TERMS OF REFERENCE

 CONSULTANCY TO DEVELOP CAMPAIGN GRAPHICS AND ILLUSTRATIONS

1. WHO WE ARE:

The National Coalition of Human Rights Defenders– Kenya (Defenders Coalition) is a national organization incorporated in the Republic of Kenya as a Trust. Its mission is to strengthen the capacity of human rights defenders (HRDs) to work effectively in the country and to reduce their vulnerability to the risk of persecution, through protection, capacity building, and advocacy for a favorable legal and policy environment. Established in 2007, Defenders Coalition is the only national organization that works primarily for the protection of HRDs.

2. BACKGROUND

As a national institution concerned with the safety, security and wellbeing of HRDs, there has to be interventions to reverse the losses as well as ringfence gains in the shaping of narratives around HRDs and their work. This, by establishing strong and empowering narratives by HRDs, CSOs, the state, members of the public, media and other relevant stakeholders to drive social change in ending violence/negative rhetoric against HRDs and CSOs. Defenders Coalition realizes that it is also necessary to inform and educate the general public and the state about the vital work, particular vulnerabilities of HRDs, and the need to support, if not join,  human rights work.  of HRDs . Moreover, it is important to inform, educate and strengthen the capacities of key stakeholders, government officials, national and regional media, law enforcement agents and National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs), to support HRDs, including by addressing violence, discrimination, criminalisation, and debunking misconceptions about HRDs.

Defenders Coalition has also noted a rise in coordinated campaigns to attack individuals and groups as well as the rise of anti-rights movements which have resulted in shrinking space for civil society, a backlash against human rights organizations and a rise in attacks against human rights defenders and activists.

With the above in mind, the Defenders Coalition is looking for a consultant to support in documenting the stories, design and lay them out. The outputs, as described below, will enable Defenders Coalition to run its digital campaign. The campaign will highlight the circumstances around which the individuals felt their rights were violated and chose not to stay silent. This, to inspire ordinary Kenyans on how the courage and bravery of ordinary Kenyans can impact other people’s lives and the existence of unwavering support for HRDs from the Defenders Coalition on the occasion of the 25^th anniversary of the Declaration on human rights defenders.

3. OBJECTIVES

The overall objective of this campaign is to document stories of triumph against persecution of 15 HRDs to raise the visibility of human rights defenders on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Declaration on human rights defenders.

The specific objectives of this intervention are:

• To raise the profile of human rights defenders in Kenya.
• To convey messages that all actors could be using during the celebration of the 25^th anniversary of the Declaration and
• To publicize the work of Defenders Coalition in supporting the safety, security and wellbeing of HRDs.
• To document stories of triumph among HRDs and with the support of Defenders Coalition so that others can be inspired, to be courageous and commit to protecting and promoting human rights.

4. SPECIFIC TASK

Applicants are expected to submit an elaborate inception report (proposal on their understanding of the assignment including a work plan and budget to guide the process of documentation, creation of the campaign identity using story boards and design, illustration, and layout of the comic book.

5. QUALITY STANDARDS

The consultant shall strive to ensure professionalism and creativity of the outputs. This includes flexibility in review and feedbacking of all outputs and final submission. The consultant shall apply ethical standards related to matters such as confidentiality of informants, sensitivity regarding the handling of information and respect towards staff and beneficiaries of Defenders Coalition’s program.

6. WORK PLAN

An indicative work plan will be put forward for review and approval. The indicative work plan will include the following information:

1. Main activities to be carried out,
2. Tentative dates (by week)
3. Expected outputs,
4. Relevant comments/remarks.

Defenders Coalition shall link up the Consultant with local partners for interviews and on-site field visits where applicable.

7. DELIVERABLES

The main deliverables to be provided by the consultant are:

• Inception Report including a work plan and budget.
• Documentation of 15 stories of HRDs.
• 15 storyboards with 15 comic illustrations. The consultant will be expected to use one comic character.
• Final report in the form of a comic book with all stories in it.
• Campaign/banner artwork for Website, Email marketing, Facebook, twitter, and Instagram

All Outputs will be submitted in English and in digital form, preferably in MS Word, pdf, png and jpeg for images and PowerPoint formats.

8. PROFILE OF THE CONSULTANT

• Proven experience in illustration, design and comic book development.
• Experience in developing reliable data-gathering tools.
• Excellent writing, editing, organizational skills and attention to detail.
• Experience producing comic for geographically wide and/or varied audiences.
• Written and oral proficiency in English is required; working knowledge of Kiswahili and sheng language will be an advantage.
• Knowledge and experience in creating artwork about human rights and social justice issues a plus.

9. REMUNERATION

The consultant shall present to the Defenders Coalition a technical and financial proposal indicating costs of carrying out the documentation, creation and illustration of the 15 stories. Defenders Coalition consideration shall be guided by the experience and track record of the consultant and the accompanying qualifications.

10. HOW TO APPLY

All interested consultants/firms are requested to write an expression of interest by describing their competence/experience and a proposal to show how they will deliver on the identified tasks:

1. Interpreting the terms of reference
2. Providing a detailed professional budget in US dollars.
3. Explaining their competences to meet the requirements of the assignment
4. Attaching brief technical biographical data of the core team-members where applicable
5. Providing evidence of similar work undertaken in the recent past (not more than 3 years).

All applications should be submitted to the Defenders Coalition via email to procurement@defenderscoalition.org

Deadline for submission of Expression of Interest for the campaign is 7 July 2023 at 5:00 PM