Last week, the Women’s Initiatives for Gender Justice released its paper reviewing gender and geographical representation issues relating to the staff of the Registry of the International Criminal Court (ICC), specifically in the context of the ReVision Project restructuring this organ of the Court. Amongst other findings, the paper reveals that: there has been a decrease in the number of women appointed in mid-to-senior level posts within the Registry since July 2012; there are no female Heads of Division within the Registry; women in professional posts are clustered into the lower professional grades; and no women participate in senior management meetings of the Registry where key policy, operational and institutional decisions are made.

Our paper also reveals that the Africa region and nationals of states from this region, are disproportionately affected by the ReVision Project with 36% of professional posts occupied by those from the Africa region to be abolished in the restructuring of the Registry (nine posts out of 25 professional posts held by nationals of states from the Africa region). This is the largest proportion of professional posts impacted by the ReVision Project.

Shortly after taking office in May 2013, the ICC Registrar, Herman von Hebel, launched the ReVision Project to restructure the Registry as a whole, inclusive of its service areas.  The Registry provides the administrative and support services for the Court and employs over 550 staff in general service positions and professional posts. According to Article 43 of the Rome Statute, the Registry is responsible for the non-judicial aspects of the administration and servicing of the Court, and the Registrar is the principal administrative officer of the ICC and exercises his/her functions under the authority of the President of the Court.

In July 2015, in response to concerns expressed by states parties from the Africa region, the Registry released two Q&A papers addressing gender and geographical issues and informing states parties of the abolishment of 113 positions, including 42 professional posts within the context of the ReVision Project.

Read Women’s Initiatives paper on Gender and Geographical Representation of staff within the Registry of the ICC.