CONFLICT RESOLUTION

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L.N. 55 of 2018

EDUCATION ACT

(CAP. 327)

STATUTE FOR THE CENTRE FOR THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

IN EXERCISE of the powers conferred upon him by articles 74(5) and

75(6) of the Education Act (Cap. 327), the Chancellor of the University of Malta

has promulgated the following Statute made by the Council of the University of

Malta in virtue of the powers conferred upon it by articles 72(h), 75(2) and 77(c) of

the said Act

Citation

This statute may be cited as the Statute for the Centre for the Study and

Practice of Conflict Resolution.

Interpretation

In this Statute, unless the context otherwise requires

“the Board” shall mean the Board of the Centre for the Study and Practice of

Conflict Resolution; and

“the Centre” shall mean the Centre for the Study and Practice of Conflict

Resolution.

Establishment

The Centre for the Study and Practice of Conflict Resolution is hereby

established as an institution within the University of Malta.

Objectives and Functions

The aims of the Centre shall be

(a) to conduct studies and academic research in any of the following fields

- the deep-rooted causes of interpersonal, communal, national and

international conflict and the connections among these levels of

conflict;

- the relationship between human rights and conflict;

-

the relationship between justice and conflict;

-

the relationship between law and conflict;

-

conflict emerging from migration and integration in the domestic and

international spheres; and

-

conflict resolution practice, including assessment, evaluation and other

forms of research that focus on improving the practice of conflict

resolution.

(b) to promote research-informed conflict resolution practice through

capacity-building in the facilitation, mediation, resolution and transformation of

conflicts;

(c) to design, run and evaluate conflict interventions such as community

dialogues, problem solving workshops, negotiations and consensus-building

initiatives;

(d) to design, run and evaluate short trainings in any of the areas within the

scope of the Centre;

(e) to conduct academic programmes in the discipline/s within the scope of

the Centre;

(f) to provide continuous education both at the undergraduate and

postgraduate levels within the scope of the Centre subject to the Statutes,

Regulations and Bye-Laws of the University;

(g) to collaborate with European and international institutions with the aim to

enhance the profile of the Centre within the regional, European and international

research area, in areas related to conflict analysis and conflict resolution and any of

the disciplines referred to in sub-paragraph (a) of this article; and

(h) to disseminate acquired knowledge through online media, publications,

seminars, conferences and teaching programmes.

Governance

The Centre shall be governed by a Board that shall consist of the following

(i)

Chairperson: Rector or his delegate;

(ii)

Vice-Chairperson: Director of the Centre;

(iii)

a person appointed by the Council of the University;

(iv)

two persons appointed by the Senate of the University, of whom, one

from the Faculty of Laws and one from the Department of International

Relations;

(v)

two academics nominated by the School of Conflict Analysis and

Resolution, George Mason University, Virginia, USA;

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(vi) one representative of the students registered within the Centre; and

(vii) one representative of the academic staff lecturing or conducting research

within the Centre.

The Registrar or her delegate shall act as Secretary to the Board.

All members of the Board, other than those appointed ex officio, any

representatives of the academic staff and any representatives of the students shall

be appointed for a period of one year, renewable for up to four years. A retiring

member shall be eligible for re-appointment.

The functions of the Board shall be

(a) to govern the affairs of the Centre, subject to the provisions of these

statutes and of such regulations, policies or directions as may from time to time be

approved by the Council and the Senate;

(b) to decide the policy of the Centre, to supervise its activities and

administration, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, the Board

(i) approve business plans and annual estimates of revenue and

expenditure of the Centre for consideration and approval by the Council;

(ii) with the written concurrence of the Rector, enter into agreements with

third parties for funding of the Centre or of particular activities;

(iii) publish an annual report;

(iv) enrol the Centre in associations or institutions sharing similar aims

and interests;

(v)

propose regulations and bye-laws to the Senate;

(vi) require staff members of the Centre to produce reports on academic

matters, including the curricula of courses of study, qualifications for admission

to courses, examinations and certificates of attendance or qualification;

(vii) recommend to the Council the creation or removal of academic and

non-academic posts in the Centre; and

(viii) propose for approval to the Senate, Board of Studies and Boards of

Examiners for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

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Appointment of Director and Staff

The Centre shall have a Director and Staff

(a) the Director of the Centre shall be appointed according to the procedure

for the appointment of Directors of Institutes and Centres as approved by the

Council of the University, for a duration of one year, with the possibility of

renewal annually subject to established performance criteria, the needs of the

Centre and the needs of the University, for a total period not exceeding four (4)

years; and

(b) the staff of the Centre shall be appointed by the University according to

the usual practice.

Duties of the Director

The duties of the Director/Vice-Chairperson of the Centre shall include

(a) promoting the development and implementation of the research and

practice agenda of the Centre;

(b) developing and organizing the implementation of academic programmes

as deemed appropriate by the Board: this duty shall entail (i) compiling and

submitting to the Registrar by the time stipulated by Senate, an updated

comprehensive prospectus of any courses offered by the Centre including

descriptions of all current and projected study-units as per guidelines established

by the Programme Validation Committee and ensuring that the study-units are

delivered as advertised; (ii) monitoring the running of examinations and ensuring

that all assessment and examination results are submitted to the Registrar by the

stipulated deadlines; (iii) promoting students’ academic and personal welfare,

providing first-line support to students with any difficulties they may encounter

during their studies related to the activities of the Centre;

(c) delivering and implementing the strategic plan of the Centre under the

guidance of the Board;

(d) administering the Centre in full consultation with the members;

monitoring and approving requests for leave of absence of members of the Centre;

maintaining records of all leave taken by members and passing on these records to

the Director of Human Resources Management and Development upon request;

(e) encouraging and facilitating co-operation with other universities and other

institutions;

(f) chairing meetings of the Board in the absence and with the permission of

the Chairperson;

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(g) ensuring and facilitating the further development and training of

academic

and administrative staff;

(h) participating at any meeting of the University congruent with the post;

(i) representing the Centre during official functions of the University;

(j) compiling and submitting to the Secretary of the University by the end of

September of each academic year, an annual report outlining the activities of the

Centre for the outgoing year, which should include, amongst others, information

that may be requested by the Secretary: a comprehensive list of recent publications

of all members of the Centre; a synopsis of all projects involving members of the

Centre which are wholly or partially externally funded; a list of all

conferences/seminars/meetings attended abroad by members of the Centre during

term time; and an outline of the Centre’s collaboration with third parties including

local industry, Government or civil society at large;

(k) compiling and submitting to the Director of Finance of the University by

not later than end of May of each academic year budgetary estimates for the

following year;

(l) monitoring the performance of the administrative staff attached to the

Centre;

(m) authorising the Centre’s procurement of any equipment as required for the

proper and efficient running of the Centre;

(n) performing other duties which may be assigned by the University from

time to time.

The Director moreover

(a) is to report directly to the Chairperson of the Board governing the Centre

and shall collaborate with all senior administrative officers of the University;

(b) shall normally be a Resident Academic engaged with the University on a

full-time basis for the duration of his tenure as Director of the Centre;

(c) shall not be engaged in any other activity outside the University which

may be in conflict with, or distract him from, his duties at the University;

(d) is expected to be present on campus or any designated University of Malta

site at least during normal office hours from Monday to Friday throughout the year

subject to the exigencies of an academic in accordance with the University’s

practices and needs and subject to normal leave entitlement and public holidays as

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provided for at law; should his absence be necessary and justified he must ensure

that he is contactable through the secretarial staff of the Centre;

(e) shall not give access to any information to any third party that is not

associated with the University of Malta, about any work or data that relates to tasks

conducted at the University of Malta without the prior approval of the University

of Malta; all work carried out within the Centre must be treated according to

Maltese data protection legislation; and

(f) is to abide with the statutes, regulations, bye-laws and policies of the

University of Malta, which are in force now or will become effective during his/her

tenure.

The Treasurer

The Director of Finance of the University shall be the Treasurer of the

Centre.

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