SNAP Disability Awareness Trainer

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JOB DESCRIPTION

Post:

Trainer in Disability Awareness and Labour Insertion

Partner:The National Service for Public Administration (SNAP)

Location:La Paz, Bolivia


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1. INTRODUCTION TO BOLIVIABolivia is a country of great contrasts. Geographically, Bolivia has three main regions -the Altiplano or high plateau, the Valleys and the Lowlands. In terms of altitude, theAltiplano ranges approximately between 3700 to 4500 metres, valleys descend fromthese higher areas to altitudes between 1500 to 3000 metres above sea level. LowerValleys descend towards the tropical lowlands to about 400 to 500 metres.In cultural terms, most inhabitants in Bolivia today can trace their ancestry to theTiahuanaco and Inca Empires. Traditionally, these cultures mostly inhabited theHighland and Valleys in what is now Bolivia. Today, the migration to the main cities andto the lowlands has meant a spread of the different ethnic groups. These are smaller innumber and many have been subject to heavy influence from migrants from theHighlands and Valleys of Bolivia and from abroad. Nevertheless, of all the LatinAmerican countries, Bolivia has the highest proportion of an indigenous population.Within this indigenous population are various ethnic groups with their own language,beliefs system, customs and so forth, with Quechua and Aymara cultures being theprincipal two. More than 50% of the population is bilingual, Spanish being the official

language. According to the latest census, 23% speak Quechua, 16% speak Aymaraand 3% others which includes Guarani.

One of the main challenges facing Bolivia today is the need to re-value theseindigenous cultures, respecting their traditions, beliefs and what is referred to as thecosmovision andina, which basically refers to the way these people see life and liveaccordingly which is focused on maintaining an equilibrium within the environment ofwhich of course man and woman are part. But also, last but not least, open theexclusive social, economic and political structures to the indigenous people thereforeending discrimination and exclusion.

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2. CURRENT SITUATIONSince 1985, the government has followed policies imposed by the IMF. Measures haveincluded the freeing of price controls, of restrictions on exports and imports, and thelabour market. Moves to reduce public expenditure and towards greater privatisationhave led to a transformation of the State's role. In the first five years after introducingthese policies, more than 20,000 miners from the State Mining Corporation weredismissed, and public sector salaries were kept at very low levels. Wages fell in realterms during this period, which coincided with runaway inflation and the collapse of thetin industry (one of Bolivia's main exports) due to falling prices on the world markets.

Bolivia is the poorest country in South America. Seven of every ten Bolivians areconsidered to be poor, (taking poor to signify a lack of money or material possessionssuch that a person is unable to meet the basic needs necessary for survival).

- Life expectancy: urban areas 62years, rural: 57years- Infant mortality rate: (0 to 5 years old) 55.6 per thousand births alive.- Access to sanitary services: 29% of population

- Children under 3 suffering from chronic malnutrition: 24%

In 1950 the rural population represented 73,8 % of the total population and until themid eighties this area had the highest population percentages. However, in recentyears this trend has been reversed by the high migration to urban areas. According torecent data:

- 62.4% of the population now live in urban areas.- 37.6% of the population now live in rural areas.

This rapid rise in urban population has meant that there are increasing marginal shantytowns developing particularly in the main cities (La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz and

Cochabamba). Like the majority of rural areas, these marginal city areas lack basicservices such as water, sewerage, health posts and adequate schools.

The current economic model introduced in Bolivia in l985 has brought aboutreasonable financial stability, in that inflation has remained between around 4%. Since2000 Bolivias growth rate has ranged from 0 to 4%, however, it has not been able toreduce the ever increasing levels of poverty among the majority of the population.Some analysts argue that in fact these levels of poverty have risen, and the gapbetween the small elite (politically and economically) and the majority of the populationhas widened.

Attempts to reduce this ever increasing gap, such as the Participacion Popular

(Popular Participation) Law (l994) have not had the desired effect. This law whichattempts to redistribute previously centralized resources to provincial areas has hadwide ranging results. In theory the law is potentially positive, however, in some areaslack of sufficient training, provision of information on the law and in-fighting amongstdifferent political tendencies in rural areas have hindered and delayed positive impact.In other areas successes have been achieved in terms of developing processes ofparticipative planning with different organisations at provincial levels. There are alsoexamples of increasing the effective use of natural resources and positive attempts atdeveloping what are known as productive municipalities.

As part of the IMF and World Bank HIPC II Initiative (Heavily Indebted Poor Countries),Bolivia was obliged in 1997 to produce a Poverty Reduction Strategic Plan. Animportant point decided in relation to the PRSP was the decision to strengthen

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programmes resulting from the Popular Participation Law between the BolivianGovernment and International Cooperation. This law is seen as having the potential tonot only improve conditions in provincial areas but also as a mechanism forstrengthening and empowering regional and provincial organisations. The Governmentproposed concerted action plans in relation to the reduction of poverty with thefollowing main actors: Government, the international community, civil society and theprivate sector. However, the actions so far seem to be removed from the plans, leavingthe road to effective poverty reduction still very much unpaved.

Bolivia holds the record as the country with the most frequent changes of presidency,with some decades averaging one a year. The previous few years have been noexception, with a succession of changes since Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada (Goni)took presidency in 2002. As a businessman and wealthy miner, his politics were verymuch right wing. This brought a wave of strong social, largely indigenous movementsexpressing strong dissatisfaction with the government ideologies and economic model,which, with neo-liberal policies has opened Bolivian markets to unfair competition. Thishas led to high levels of unemployment, much black market trading and an estimated

70% of the workforce in the informal sector, thus not paying taxes, but also not havingany job security, and basically in an extremely vulnerable economic situation.

October 2003 has since been named Black October due to the violent clashesbetween the military and the civilians during their protests against the government. Theevents succeeded in ousting the President, but tragically cost the lives of over 100men, women and children and left many more permanently injured. Since then, Boliviahas seen two interim presidents before the general elections took place in December2005.

The elections resulted in the former Coca leader and strong Union fighter Evo Morales from the MAS party (Movimiento al Socialismo) being elected by an overwhelming

majority of 54% of the votes a first in Bolivian history. The next few years will be verysignificant for Bolivia as we watch eagerly this new President, representative of theindigenous population, majority and poorer sectors of the population, a man withhumble roots, preside over the country. He has already declared nationalisation of thehydrocarbons (natural gas) although it remains to be seen if it is economically andlegally viable, in relation to the multinationals that have been running the industry foryears. His second big challenge is to fulfil the promise of a Constitutional Assembly. Anational assembly was formed to write up a new constitution for the country. This hasnow been finished but is awaiting approval by referendum. It is the event that manypeople hope will contribute to developing a more equal and just society.

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3. THE PROBLEMThe main problem is the lack of compliance with the Supreme Decree 27477 emittedby Carlos Mesas government in 2004. This decree states that 4% of the staff of publicentities should be composed of disabled people. Very few public entities comply withthis stipulation and many are not even conscious that disabled people need to beincorporated into the workforce.

Aside from this legal requirement, the problem extends to the general treatment ofdisabled people in the public sector. In schools, medical centres, town councils etc,there are very scarce provisions for attending to disabled people properly. A qualitativestudy done by IS Bolivia in 2006/7 revealed a worryingly high level of discriminationand exclusion of disabled people from most sectors of society and a general lack ofknowledge of disability issues by non-disabled people. This misunderstanding andignorance of disabled peoples abilities can only be addressed through increasededucation and awareness-raising with regard to how this currently marginalised groupcan be included in society.

4. INTERNATIONAL SERVICE IN BOLIVIAInternational Service has been in Bolivia nearly 30 years working in strengthening thecapacities of local grassroots organisations. Historically, in the disability sectortechnical development workers were placed in institutions and had a rehabilitationfocus. With the advent of the recent Strategic Plan of International Service for 2005-2010, we now place more emphasis on the social model of disability which attempts toachieve equality for disabled people in all aspects of society rather than focusing purelyon the individual.

Within our programme in Bolivia, International Service has embarked on a three yearproject called Towards the Social Inclusion of Disabled People into Local and

National Development Processes. This project will strengthen the capacities ofdisabled peoples organisations (DPOs) to understand, exercise and defend theirhuman rights and will collaborate with national governmental entities to ensure that thepriorities and needs of marginalised disabled men, women and children are met. TheNational Service for Personnel Administration (SNAP) is a strategic partner in thisproject because it is a fundamental player in training public sector staff in disabilityequality issues and integrating professionals with disabled in the public sector.

By encouraging the wider exchange of issues and knowledge on disability rightsthroughout networks in Bolivia, IS Bolivia and partner organisations will also be in aposition to work with other civil society organisations and governmental institutions toencourage them to include disabled people in all aspects of their work. We will use the

information and experience gathered from this programme to engage with stakeholdersin the international NGO and disability movement, particularly in Ireland and the UK,consequently contributing to the debate on how tackling issues of global disabilityequality can contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.

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4. OUR PARTNER - National Service for Personnel Administration, SNAPSNAP is currently the only national body that is a) capable of and b) interested inimproving the training of public sector staff on disability issues. There are other smallerinstitutions or associations that are doing training, but it is not at a national level. Forexample the Association of Deaf people in La Paz are conducting sign languagecourses, some of which are directed at public sector staff like the police. Whilst theseare important advances at local level, there is a lack of coordination and entity otherthan SNAP to extend these at national level.

Currently SNAP is addressing the problem of labour insertion in the following ways:

- Making public sector staff (with and without disabilities) more aware of andsensitive to disability issues.

- Training disabled people to become public sector staff themselves.- Advocacy with various authorities; local and national so that they become

receptors for employing disabled people, and that this inclusion is based on theNational Plan for Equality and Equal Opportunities developed by disabled

people in 2005.

BackgroundThe National Service for Personnel Administration is a public Institute answering to theExchequer under the framework of the institutional reform in the public sector andunder the legal rule of the political state constitution, Law No. 1178-SAFCO of 1990,Basic Administration Standards of Personnel, The Law of the Organisation of ExecutivePower LOPE and the Supreme Decree No. 28631, Rule of the Law of Organisation ofExecutive Power 2006.

The National Service for Personnel Administration(SNAP) is the main operating body of three National

Systems; the Administrative Organisation Systems(SOA); the Administration Systems of Personnel (SAP)and the National System for Public AdministrationTraining (SISNACAP). SNAPs task is to promote theintroduction of these systems in public institutions forwhich it should be the promoter of applying the civilservice statutes, the administrative career, training, thedevelopment of civil servants and the modernisation ofadministration practices.

SNAP, in an inclusive process, has carried out training for civil servants with disabilitieson issues surrounding public administration, as well as providing courses on disabilityawareness for civil servants without a disability - with the main objective of improvingquality of attention regarding disability with the community and specifically with peoplewith disabilities who require the attention. It implements these training courses throughits 15 centres in various disperse areas of the country, covering all nine administrativeregions as well as both rural and urban sectors.

VisionSNAPs vision is: The Leading Institution which assists in the strengthening,developing and changing process of public management, civil servants and civil societythrough education, training, technical assistance and Administration of Schools inPublic Management.

MissionSnaps mission is To promote and regulate the application of the Civil Service Statute,

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The Administration System of personnel, the administrative career, the development ofthe civil servant and the administrative organisation system under the framework ofinstitutional reform.

StructureORGANISATION CHART OF SNAP

Flowchart translation:

Minister of the Exchequer; Vice minister, budget and accounts office

Executive General Office

Legal Counsel Communication

Inter-institutional relations

Administrative and Finance Department Department of Training andDevelopment for Civil Servants Technical Assistance Department

Grants- Present Training Long Distance Training

Planning and budget Human relations and organization Contracts and fixedassets Accounting and Treasury System analysis and programming

Human Relations Management Technical Assistance Investigation Technical Juridical Assistance Technical Legal Assistance

Total staff working in the SNAP office in La Paz is 35, of which 12 belong to theTraining and Development Unit though this number includes both technicians andadministrative staff.

Objectives

The specific objectives related to the training and development of civil servants areexpressed as follows:

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- To identify and categorise the training and development needs of the publicadministration for the creation of programmes and a training curriculum.

- To bring together the training demands of the public sector with offers andexisting services, properly accredited.

- To assess civil servants at all levels and categories in order to improve thequality of administration and fulfillment of public bodies, offering them servicesand compatible training opportunities with the institutional needs.

- To create a National School of Public Management.

ActivitiesThere are five main areas into which their activities are divided:

- 1) Advanced Academic NetworkAt the same time as having the principal objective of training all civil servants, SNAPdecided to widen its target group and as a result created the Advanced AcademicNetwork (RAA) which is a system that comprises different national and international

bodies that are related to the generation of knowledge, such as the ministry ofEducation, and State Universities. These bodies, along with SNAP, try to improve thecapabilities and skills of civil servants through specialised courses, diplomas, mastersdegrees and doctorates either in training centres or as distant learning.

- 2) School of Intercultural Public ManagementThe Schools of Intercultural Public Management are an initiative by SNAP put intopractice with the cooperation of Authorities and the communities of the differentmunicipalities in the country with the goal of assisting in the development of skills ofcivil servants in the rural areas, from training and education in different areas ofknowledge which they will get with the up to date courses, diplomas and masters indiverse areas of knowledge.

- 3) Training and Development for Civil Servants Department.Based on citizens demands for public services, SNAP responds to the gaps inknowledge that it perceives are limiting the public staff in providing an appropriateservice, in terms of what they expect from the State. From this perspective, the trainingsystem responds to the needs of the public, placing an equal emphasis both internallyand externally on public organizations and the general public.

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Translation of the flowchart: Chain of training results:

Demand Input - process results

Identifying training needs training programmes; individual learning

process knowledge, attitudes, aptitudes organisational efficiency citizen satisfaction

Products effects impacts

Training offers civil servants, public entities - society

- 4) Grants from the International Cooperation given out by SNAPSNAP has decided to offer study grants provided by the International Cooperation.

- 5) Technical Assistance for public bodies and civil servantsThis covers all public entities at national, departmental and local level. Professionalscontracted by SNAP work alongside the local partner in order to strengthen their skillsand generally develop essential knowledge of public administration and humanresource management in order to achieve institutional objectives.

5 . JOB DESCRIPTION

Role of Development WorkerFrom within SNAP, the Disability Awareness and Labour Insertion Trainerwill contributeto the development of a professional inclusion strategy for disabled people.

Specific tasks that the Development Worker will undertake- Provide support for the Public Servant Training and Development Unit by

developing a professional inclusion strategy for disabled people.- Provide support for the Technical Support Unit by carrying-out awareness

raising workshops for the new labour inclusion strategy for disabled people.

- Design material which can be used in the 15 training centres.- Directly facilitate some of the training workshops, and where possible, train thestaff of the training centres so they will continue the programme.

- Assist in producing promotional material on the rights of disabled people, to bedistributed in both the public sector and to the general public.

- Coordinate with necessary media representatives to increase coverage given todisability issues.

- Liaise with other actors in the disability field (eg the National Committee forDisabled People, various grass roots organisations) to ensure the trainingcourses are in line with the needs and demands of disabled people.

- Maintain International Service informed of progress and challenges through avariety of communication tools case studies, articles, photographs,

newsletters.

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- Facilitate communication with other International Service partners anddevelopment workers in the area of disability.

6 . DEVELOPMENT WORKER PROFILE

Educational and professional qualifications,

Degree in Disability related subject

Masters in International Development, Disability rights or similar area.

Professional qualification in training or capacity building.

Competent IT and presentation skills.

Work experience,

At least 3 years work experience in training and capacity building.

Experience of working on disability rights, preferably in a developing country.

Experience in negotiating and lobbying with State institutions.

Ability to impart training to management and administration staff, as well asdisabled people. Experience of informal training and education with grassroots organisations.

Preferably knowledgeable of idiosyncrasies pertinent to the disability movementin a developing country

Language skills,

Good level of Spanish, both communicative and written.

Fluent English

Personal qualities.

Professional commitment to the cause of disabled people. Flexible and able to work within a demanding team situation.

Ability to tolerate frustration

Dedication and responsbilitiy

Interest in learning about Bolivias cultureand socio-political dimensions

Willingness to occasionally work outside the average working hours.

7 . LIVING AND WORKING CONDITIONS

The DW will live and work in the centre of La Paz. It is a lively city where traditional

culture meets modern technology, creating an interesting mixture of both Andeancustoms, and western influences. Most facilities found in any modern city are alsopresent in La Paz, ranging from modern shops, sports facilities, cultural andeducational events etc.

The position of La Paz, being 3600m above sea level, means that most new arrivalstake a few weeks adjusting to the altitude, and the general steepness of most streets!The climate is changeable, experiencing substantial differences between day and nighttemperatures; 20C to 3C. Many days are clear blue skies, except during the rainyseason from late December to March. La Paz is well situated for weekend trips out ofthe city. There are regular and cheap bus services to many rural and urbandestinations from mountainous to more tropical lowland areas.

8 . CONDITIONS OF SERVICE

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Appointment for a minimum of two years.

Living allowance (US$600/month)

Accommodation costs.

Outfit grant (500).

Resettlement grant in relation to length of service (2100 for 24 monthsservice).

Medical costs, personal insurance and medical evacuation cover.

Volunteer Development Worker Class 2 National Insurance contribution ofeligible or equivalent.

Travel costs.

Training costs.

Twenty days annual leave.

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Documents

SNAP Disability Awareness Trainer