Terms of Reference: For a Consultant to Review and Update an Existing Human Rights Manual

1. Background

The Center for Advancement of Rights and Democracy (CARD) is a board-led, not-for-profit organization registered in Ethiopia under the Civil Societies Proclamation No. 1113/2019 with registry number 4307. CARD envisions an Ethiopia where democratic culture flourishes on the basis of human rights values. Its mission is to empower citizens and civic groups to promote and defend human rights and contribute to the building of democratic culture. 

CARD is implementing the New Generation of Human Rights Defenders (NGHRDs) 2026 Project with support from the Human Rights Foundation (HRF). The project aims to cultivate a new generation of informed and active human rights defenders by equipping secondary school students with knowledge and values that enable them to promote and protect human rights within their schools and communities.

As part of the project, CARD will train high school-aged students in Addis Ababa through structured human rights training sessions. To ensure that the training content remains relevant, practical, and responsive to the current human rights landscape in Ethiopia, CARD seeks to engage a qualified consultant to review and update its existing Human Rights Training Manual.

The revised manual will incorporate current national and international human rights developments, emerging issues affecting young people, participatory learning methodologies, and practical tools that support effective youth engagement and advocacy.

2. Objective Assignment 

The overall objective of the consultancy is to review, revise and update CARD's existing Human Rights Training Manual to ensure it is technically sound, contextually relevant, youth-friendly, gender-responsive, and suitable for delivering engaging and participatory training to high school-aged students under the NGHRD's project.  

3. Scope of Work 

The consultant will undertake, but not necessarily be limited to, the following tasks:

3.1.  Desk Review

• Review the existing Human Rights Training Manual.
• Review relevant national laws, policies, and institutional frameworks.
• Review applicable regional and international human rights instruments.
• Review project documents and relevant background materials.

3.2 Technical Revision

• Simplify technical language into age-appropriate and learner-friendly content.
• Ensure examples reflect situations commonly experienced by secondary school students.
• Integrate child safeguarding, online safety, digital citizenship, and responsible social media engagement where relevant.
• Ensure all content promotes inclusion, diversity, gender equality, and non-discrimination.
• Incorporating current human rights trends and contextual realities.
• Including practical examples and Ethiopian case studies where appropriate.
• Strengthening youth participation and civic engagement components.
• Enhancing facilitator notes and training guidance.

3.3.  Learning Design

• Develop interactive and participatory training methodologies.
• Prepare practical exercises, games, and simulations.
• Develop group discussion questions.
• Prepare reflection exercises.
• Design learner-centered sessions using experiential learning approaches.
• Develop role plays, debates, storytelling exercises, and case studies.
• Include problem-solving and scenario-based learning activities.
• Include multimedia recommendations (videos, short stories, visuals, and infographics) where appropriate.
• Develop pre- and post-training assessment tools.
• Improve session objectives and expected learning outcomes.
• Include practical school- or community-based action ideas that encourage students to apply their learning.

3.4.  Validation and Finalization

• Present the draft manual to CARD.
• Participate in one validation meeting.
• Revise the manual based on comments received.
• Submit the final approved manual in editable and PDF formats.

4. Key Deliverables

The consultant shall produce the following deliverables:

• Inception Report outlining the consultancy methodology, work plan, and timeline.
• Draft Revised Human Rights Training Manual, including facilitator guidance, interactive learning activities, practical exercises, and assessment tools. 
• Final revised human rights training manual incorporating comments and feedback received from CARD and stakeholders.

5. Required Qualifications and Experience 

The consultant should possess the following qualifications and competencies:

Education

• Master's degree in Human Rights, Political Science, International Relations, Social Sciences, Education, or another relevant field. 

Experience

• At least five (5) years of relevant professional experience in human rights education, curriculum development, or training manual development.
• Experience developing youth learning materials 
• Demonstrated experience in developing or revising training manuals, toolkits, or learning materials.
• Strong understanding of Ethiopia's human rights, governance, and civic engagement context.
• Knowledge of international and regional human rights frameworks.
• Experience working with civil society organizations, youth programs, or educational institutions.
• Experience facilitating participatory learning approaches for young people will be an added advantage.

 Application Requirements

Interested consultants should submit the following to apply@cardeth.org no later than July 15, 2026 with: 

• A technical and financial proposal.
• Updated Curriculum Vitae (CV).

Please indicate “Application for a Consultant to Review and Update an existing Human Rights Manual” in the subject line of your email application.