Consultancy - Political Economy Analysis (PEA)

Background

With financial support from the Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, the International Development Law Organization (IDLO) will implement the Damal Programme Phase II – Strengthening the Social Contract through Access to Justice in Somaliland (2026–2030). The programme seeks to strengthen the social contract in Somalia by improving the legitimacy, effectiveness, and inclusiveness of justice sector institutions at national, regional, and district levels. Building on the achievements of Damal Programme Phase I (2021–2026), Damal II will consolidate and expand access to justice interventions through three mutually reinforcing outcomes:

• improved access to Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanisms and referral pathways, particularly for vulnerable groups;
• enhanced access to formal justice through integrated support for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) and other vulnerable justice seekers; and
• increased citizen participation in accountability processes relating to justice and security.

The programme will commence with a preparatory phase designed to establish the strategic, operational, and analytical foundations for implementation. During this period, IDLO will undertake a series of complementary assessments, including a Baseline Assessment and Legal Analysis, Political Economy Analysis (PEA), Conflict Sensitivity Assessment (CSA), and Gender Analysis, to validate programme assumptions, refine implementation strategies, strengthen the Theory of Change, and ensure that programme interventions are evidence-based, conflict-sensitive, gender-responsive, and locally owned.

Objectives

The overall objective of this assignment is to undertake a comprehensive Political Economy Analysis (PEA) that establishes the political, institutional, economic, social, conflict, and governance evidence base for the implementation of the Damal Programme Phase II. The assessment will analyse the power dynamics, incentives, interests, formal and informal institutions, and contextual factors that influence access to justice, alternative dispute resolution (ADR), justice sector reform, and community security across the programme implementation areas.

The Political Economy Analysis (PEA) will build directly on the evidence, operational experience, and institutional partnerships developed under Damal Programme Phase I. Rather than starting from a new evidence base, the assignment will review and update previous Political Economy Analyses, the 2021 Baseline Assessment and Legal Analysis, Conflict Analyses, programme evaluations, outcome monitoring reports, stakeholder consultations, and other Damal I learning products. The analysis will cover all existing Damal I ADR Centres that will continue under Damal II, together with the additional districts and implementation locations introduced under Damal II, examining how political, institutional, governance, security, conflict, economic, and social dynamics have evolved since Phase I. The PEA will identify opportunities, risks, power relations, stakeholder incentives, and implementation considerations that will inform adaptive programming, partnership strategies, geographic prioritisation, and evidence-based decision-making throughout the implementation of Damal Programme Phase II. Particular attention will be given to understanding how these contextual dynamics affect access to justice for women, girls, survivors of gender-based violence (GBV), internally displaced persons (IDPs), minority communities, persons with disabilities, youth, and other vulnerable groups.

In accordance with IDLO's Political Economy Analysis methodology, the assignment will:

• Define the Development Problem by analysing the principal governance, justice, conflict, and institutional challenges relevant to programme implementation, including their impact on different stakeholder groups, justice institutions, ADR Centres, and programme beneficiaries.
• Analyse the Political Economy Drivers by examining the structural, political, economic, historical, social, legal, and institutional factors that shape governance and justice outcomes, including formal and informal institutions, power relations, incentives, accountability mechanisms, and the interests of key stakeholders.
• Examine Processes of Change by assessing ongoing political, institutional, legal, and social reforms, identifying reform champions, potential spoilers, opportunities for engagement, and realistic pathways through which positive institutional and behavioural change can be supported.
• Identify Operational Implications by translating the political economy findings into practical recommendations for programme implementation, including risk mitigation measures, adaptive programming approaches, stakeholder engagement strategies, geographic prioritisation, partnership arrangements, sequencing of interventions, and opportunities for policy dialogue and institutional strengthening.

Recognising that justice and governance reforms are implemented within dynamic and uncertain political environments, the PEA will enable IDLO and its partners to adopt a politically informed, conflict-sensitive, and adaptive approach throughout the implementation of the Damal Programme Phase II. In doing so, the PEA will generate, together with the other assessments conducted during the preparatory phase, the contextual evidence required to support the validation of the programme's Theory of Change, inform the refinement of implementation strategies, partnership architecture, and annual work planning.

The Assignment

Under the overall supervision of the IDLO Damal II Field Programme Manager and in close collaboration with the Damal II Programme Team, IDLO technical teams, consortium partners, and government counterparts, the Consultant shall undertake a comprehensive Political Economy Analysis that will serve as one of the principal analytical products of the Damal II preparatory phase.

The assignment will build directly on evidence generated under Damal Programme Phase I, including previous Political Economy Analyses, Conflict Sensitivity Analyses, Baseline Assessments, programme evaluations, stakeholder consultations, outcome monitoring reports, gender analyses, and other programme learning products. The Consultant will validate, update, and expand this evidence to reflect the current political, governance, security, and institutional context.

The Consultant will design an appropriate research methodology, undertake desk reviews, political and institutional mapping, stakeholder analysis, key informant interviews, focus group discussions, field consultations, conflict and governance analysis, and validation workshops. Throughout the assignment, the Consultant will work closely with the Damal II team to ensure that the PEA is internalised as a practical programme management tool and embedded within programme planning, implementation, monitoring, and adaptive decision-making.

Please refer here to the detailed assignment requirements.

Deliverables

The Consultant shall produce the following deliverables:

• Preparatory Phase Report, including detailed methodology, work plan, research tools, stakeholder mapping, and data collection plan.
• Political Economy Analysis Presentation to IDLO and key stakeholders outlining preliminary findings.
• Draft Political Economy Analysis Report incorporating political, institutional, governance, conflict, stakeholder, and programme analyses.
• Validation Workshop to present and validate findings with IDLO, government counterparts, consortium partners, and selected stakeholders.
• Final Political Economy Analysis Report, incorporating comments received from IDLO and validation workshop participants.
• Executive Summary and Action Matrix summarising key findings, operational implications, implementation risks, adaptive management recommendations, and priority actions for the Damal II preparatory phase.

Education

• Master's degree or higher in Political Science, Public Policy, Law, Governance, Economics, Peace and Conflict Studies, Development Studies, International Relations, or another relevant discipline.

Professional Experience

• Minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience undertaking Political Economy Analyses, governance assessments, conflict analyses, justice sector assessments, or institutional diagnostics.
• Demonstrated experience working on justice sector reform, governance, peacebuilding, rule of law, or state-building programmes.
• Previous experience working with international organisations, development agencies, government institutions, or civil society organisations in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.
• Proven experience facilitating multi-stakeholder consultations and producing high-quality analytical reports.

Knowledge, Skills and Competencies

• Strong understanding of political, governance, justice, security, economic, and conflict context in the horn of Africa in general and in Somalis in particular.
• Demonstrated knowledge of political economy analysis methodologies and adaptive programming approaches.
• Excellent analytical, research, facilitation, report-writing, and stakeholder engagement skills.
• Ability to work effectively with multidisciplinary teams and diverse stakeholders.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English and Somali.

The consultancy will primarily be home-based, with travel to programme implementation areas and stakeholder locations as required to undertake field research, institutional consultations, and validation workshops. The consultant is expected to undertake missions to selected programme locations, subject to prevailing security conditions and operational requirements.

The consultancy period, level of effort, remuneration, and payment schedule will be specified in the consultancy contract. Payments will be linked to the satisfactory completion and approval of agreed deliverables in accordance with IDLO's contractual procedures.

All work produced under this assignment, including reports, datasets, interview records, analytical tools, presentations, and supporting documentation, shall become the property of IDLO. The consultant shall maintain strict confidentiality regarding all information obtained during the assignment and comply with IDLO's policies on research ethics, data protection, safeguarding, and information security.

IDLO is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We welcome applications from qualified candidates of all backgrounds. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for IDLO vacancies.

IDLO does not tolerate sexual exploitation or abuse, any kind of harassment, including harassment of a sexual nature, or discrimination. As such, IDLO will conduct careful reference and background checks of all selected candidates as part of its selection process.

Application deadline: 23 August 2026 (23:59hrs Rome Time).