Regional administration of justice support project

The project, which will be implemented by a U.S. contractor, will: (1) provide TA and short-term training in the design and implementation of AOJ projects; (2) consolidate, analyze, and report on AOJ experience; and (3) improve information sharing on AOJ-related topics. To facilitate AOJ project design and implementation, the contractor will provide technical experts such as court administrators, lawyers, political scientists, and information systems specialists to prepare sector assessments, concept papers, PID"s, project papers, and evaluations. In order to ensure host country participation in the design and implementation of AOJ projects, short-term training (U.S., third- country, and/or in-country) will be provided in technical and legal specialties such as court administration, legal reform, and information systems. Research on special subjects such as the public defender system and the development of handbooks and brochures may also be funded. Secondly, A.I.D. and other experience in the AOJ field will be consolidated and analyzed. This will include analyses both of the design and implementation of AOJ projects and, where possible, of more structural issues, including policies, practices, and laws that affect the functioning of legal systems. This component will involve the preparation of cross-cutting evaluations, country comparisons, and sectoral analyses. Other studies may be conducted as well. The analyses conducted under the second component will be disseminated under the final, information-sharing, component. Conferences, seminars, and workshops will be organized at the country, sub-regional, and/or regional levels on such topics as comparative law, narcotics law, the role of women in AOJ, environmental law, and intellectual property rights. A periodic newsletter will be published, in collaboration with the Instituto Latino de Naciones Unidas para la Prevencion del Delito y Tratamiento del Delincuente (ILANUD). At least six newsletters will be distributed and six workshops held.