The Norwegian Resource Bank for Democracy and Human Rights - NORDEM

NORDEM, the Norwegian Resource Bank for Democracy and Human Rights, is a roster specialised in human rights and democratisation.

NORDEM was established in 1993 by the Norwegian Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA). Since then, it has seconded more than 2000 persons to international operations promoting human rights and democratisation. The main receiving organisations of NORDEM personnel are the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the United Nations and the European Union. NORDEM is a programme at the Norwegian Centre for Human Rights.

The stand-by roster consists of 250-300 members with relevant expertise. Recruitment to the roster usually takes place once a year. All newly recruited members are offered training in human rights field work and election observation. Members are required to be available for assignments for international organisations on a short notice. Members are not compensated for being on stand-by and are not guaranteed offers of assignments.

Mandate

NORDEM covers a wide range of expertise in connection with democracy building and the promotion of human rights, including: good governance, human rights monitoring, human rights training and education, election monitoring and advice, election regulations and legislation, political analysis, investigation of serious breaches of human rights, development of democratic institutions, independent judiciary, legal reform, the promotion of free media, political pluralism, decentralisation/local administration, minority rights, women’s rights, general administration and financial management.

Assignments

The initiative to an assignment may come from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the receiving organisations or from NORDEM. Seconded positions are funded by the MFA. NORDEM can also act as a “clearing house” for other organisations by promoting qualified candidates for positions that are directly contracted by the respective organisation.

Assignments through NORDEM vary in length – from a couple of weeks in the case of short term election observation to long term assignments that may be extended to last for several years.

Personnel are recruited from the roster. If the required expertise is not available within the roster, recruitment takes place through contacts with relevant professional environments.

Before each assignment seconded personnel are provided with relevant background material and given a specific briefing. The briefing covers thematic, organisational, administrative and security aspects of the respective assignment.

Seconded personnel primarily relate to the receiving organisation in their daily work. However, NORDEM maintains contact with the personnel and the receiving organisations through field visits and other communication. Personnel on long term assignments report regularly to NORDEM. All secondees submit a final report after the assignment is completed and a debriefing has been conducted. Some of these reports are published as NORDEM reports.

Members on assignments through NORDEM are remunerated in accordance with the character of the assignment, accommodation costs and benefits intended to compensate for additional living costs, inconvenience and hazard. The benefits vary according to the country of the assignment.