Governance for Equitable Development; results and achievements

Background to the project.

The Governance for Equitable Development (GED) project is about supporting the process of governance in China towards more transparency and accountability while strengthening the emerging institutions of the NPC, the judiciary and civil society. The project aims to contribute to the government's efforts by promoting civil society development and the rule of law through institutional reform, democratic lawmaking, participation, communications and piloting. China International Center for Economic and Technical Exchanges (CICETE), Ministry of Commence is the government coordination authority / implementing partner for GED project.

The project period is from July 2007 to June 2011 (48 months) and has been extended to June 2012 

The donors are the European Commission and United Nations Development Program and the Implementing Agencies are the National People Congress (NPC), Supreme People’s Court (SPC), Ministry of Civil Affairs (MOCA)  

The focus of the three components is; 

Component A: Access to justice promotes policy development and enhances the capacities of the Supreme People’s Court and local courts to deliver fair and transparent justice, and increase the transparency in court decision making. The objectives of the component will be achieved through the following major activities: national and international workshops, training of trainers, pilot, local empirical research and overseas study tours. 

Component B: Law and policy making aims at improving the law and policy-making system. Three major outputs are expected to be achieved: first, the participatory process for law-making is institutionalized; second, capacities of the legislature for law-making and public engagement are enhanced; third, law harmonization is broadened.

Component C: Civil society involvement is designed to improve the policy and legal environment of CSOs and enhancing perceptions of CSOs’ role in development this component will build government capacities to involve CSOs in policy-making and public service delivery; improve co-ordination and communication between CSOs, and between CSOs and the government, and develop the institutional and professional capacities of CSOs.  

Objectives of the assignment 

The objective of this assignment is to research and write a paper assessing the extent to which the GED project has achieved its overall objectives and the objectively verifiable indicators as set out in the agreed project log frame (Attached in annex 1). 

The assignment also includes giving a presentation of the paper and participating in the panel discussion in the closing event of the GED project, scheduled on 17 May 2012.

Scope of the assignment 

• The assignment will include measuring the extent to which Objectively Verfifiable Indicators's have been met using available data official statistics and information obtained from the IAs, the GED project and other sources.
 
• The contribution of the GED project (‘additionality’) to the attainment of the OVIs.
 
• Where OVIs have not been achieved what the constraints were. 
 

Output required 

• Assessment on the extent to which the objectives of the project and higher level OVIs have been achieved.
 
• Assessment of the extent to which 28 ‘operational’ OVIs have been achieved by component (3) and result areas (11).
 
• Where available verifiable evidence of the achievements. 
 
• A report to include visual presentation of information and case studies which can illustrate achievements.  
 
• The presentation of the paper at an event.

Improving the law-making system in China: public participation, legislation evaluation, and law harmonization

Background to the project.

The Governance for Equitable Development (GED) project is about supporting the process of governance in China towards more transparency and accountability while strengthening the emerging institutions of the NPC, the judiciary and civil society. The project aims to contribute to the government's efforts by promoting civil society development and the rule of law through institutional reform, democratic lawmaking, participation, communications and piloting. China International Center for Economic and Technical Exchanges (CICETE), Ministry of Commence is the government coordination authority / implementing partner for GED project.

The component of law-making system is expected to achieve: first, the participatory process for law-making is institutionalized; second, capacities of the legislature for law-making and public engagement are enhanced; third, law harmonization is broadened.

The National People’s Congress (NPC) is the implementing agency (IA) for the component of law-making system.

Objectives of the assignment

The objective of this assignment is to provide a paper on the law-making system in China, in particular, evaluating the impact of the GED project on progress in the three major mechanisms that the legislature adopted to improve its law-making process: public participation, (post) legislation evaluation, and law harmonization through the regulations filing and review mechanism.

The assignment also includes giving a presentation of the paper and participating in the panel discussion in the closing event of the GED project, scheduled on 17 May 2012.

Scope of the assignment

Analysing the general development of law-making system in China, focusing on the following areas:

1. Public participation in the law-making process: forms of participation, methodology on analysis of public opinions, feedback to public opinions, impacts on the legislation concerned;

2. (Post) legislation evaluation: type of laws subject to evaluation, process of evaluation, methodology;

3. Law harmonization through the regulations filing and review system: material scope of filing and review, personal scope, passive review and active review, result of review, public participation in review process.