On-site technical legal support on urgent and priority Bills was provided by the Max Planck Foundation during the posting.
Under the German Federal Foreign Office funded project in the Maldives, ‘At the Crossroad Between Progressive Reforms and Democratic Backsliding: Supporting the Stabilisation of the Maldives’, the Foundation posted a Research Fellow to the Law Reform and Legislative Affairs Division of the Attorney General’s Office in the Maldives.
The objective of the temporary posting is to support the progressive legislative reform agenda of the Government of Maldives through on-site legal research and drafting assistance, to examine and address complex policy, legal and practical issues on urgent Bills that attract public interest and high expectations on the administration to deliver results.
The duration of this first temporary posting was for a period of three weeks from 16 July 2023 to 4 August 2023.
A Memorandum of Understanding between the Foundation and the Attorney General’s Office outlined the guiding principles that the posting will comply with. The posting was delivered based on this Memorandum, which also addressed the aims, type of activities, deliverables and accountability, coordination and reporting mechanisms.
Based on consultations, the technical support provided by the Foundation during postings may vary depending on the needs, requirements and priorities of the Attorney General’s Office in relation to Bills under development. It may take the form of zero drafts on select topics, legislative briefs or research papers, options papers for Bills under development, and background notes on new proposals or amendments to existing legislation. This support, based on international standards and comparative best practices, is tailored to the domestic context, and also highlights potential challenges for implementation and risk areas which might include unanticipated consequences for democratic governance, the rule of law and human rights.
Informal capacity building for State Attorneys of the Law Reform and Legislative Affairs Division is also delivered under the posting on specialised topics in relation to critical Bills under development, to equip staff with resources, knowledge and tools to promote rational law-making in the long-term.
The tentative timeline for, and research tasks to be undertaken under, the second posting is planned for November 2023.