Consultant - State Office Feasibility and Gender Equality

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. UN Women’s Country Office, based in New Delhi, India, works to accelerate the advancement of gender equality and the empowerment of women through the strengthening of strategic partnerships, technical and policy advisory services and advocacy with governmental, inter-governmental and civil society partners. In addition, UN Women CO is also leading and coordinating the UN system’s work on gender equality, including through ensuring accountability for results.

To further strengthen its efforts, the organization is exploring the potential need for establishing new offices in the Indian states of Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat. This initiative is designed to amplify UN Women’s impact in these regions by enhancing its focus on gender equality. It will involve a thorough assessment of gender indicators, fostering strategic partnerships, and optimizing resource allocation. The goal is to bolster UN Women’s capacity to drive gender equality and women’s empowerment effectively in these states, in line with the organization’s mandate.

The consultant will report directly to the Country Representative, UN Women India CO and will work in close collaboration with India's Country Office external stakeholders and relevant UN Women partners.

Duties and Responsibilities

 The consultant’s responsibilities include:

Assessment of Gender Indicators:

• Conduct a comprehensive analysis of gender-related indicators in Orissa, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat, focusing on areas such as education, health, economic participation, political representation, and violence against women.
• Identify critical gaps and opportunities where UN Women can make a substantial impact.

Mapping of Existing and Potential Partners:

• Identify and map key stakeholders, including government bodies, civil society organizations, private sector entities, and international agencies in each of the three states.
• Consult with these stakeholders about UN Women’s relevance in the States.
• Assess the capacity, relevance, and alignment of these stakeholders with UN Women’s mandate.

Strategic Focus Areas:

• Recommend strategic focus areas for UN Women in each state based on the assessment of gender indicators and potential partners.
• Identify areas where UN Women’s involvement could leverage existing efforts and create a significant impact.

Scope potential accommodation for a State UN Women presence:

• Consult other UN sister agencies on shared accommodation (UNICEF/UNDP/WFP/WHO and any others operating there).
• Investigate and recommend any other options.
• Cost these out, working with UN Women’s Operations Manager.

Resource and Budget Analysis:

• Estimate the human, financial, physical and technical resources required to establish and operate offices in the three states.
• Develop a cost-benefit analysis to guide decision-making regarding office establishment.

Stakeholder Engagement Strategy:

• Propose strategies for engaging with key partners, including government officials, donors, civil society, and other relevant stakeholders.
• Develop a stakeholder engagement plan tailored to each state’s unique context.

Deliverables and Timelines:

Inception Report - 2 Weeks from the Contract Start Date:

• Detailed work plan and methodology.
• Content headings to be agreed in advance with UN Women

Interim Report - 7 Weeks from the Approved Inception Report:

-Gender Indicators Assessment:

• Assess and identify gender indicators and gaps within the project’s scope.
• Comprehensive analysis of current gender indicators, identification of gaps, and recommendations for improvement.
• Incorporate action points to address identified gaps and align them with UN Women’s strategic priorities.

-Mapping of Potential Partners:

• Identify and assess potential partners across sectors for collaboration, including funding opportunities.
• Stakeholder mapping report with key partnerships identified, including a funding lens.
• Document consultation results across Government, NGOs, CBOs, private sector, PSUs, and educational institutions.
• Include risk analysis for partnerships and outline selection criteria. Add a section on potential challenges and mitigation strategies.

-Strategic Focus Areas Identification:

• Define and recommend strategic focus areas that align with UN Women’s mission and goals.
• Detailed report on the recommended focus areas for UN Women, with an alignment to global priorities and SDGs.
• Include potential implementation challenges and strategies to overcome them.

-Resource and Budget Analysis:

• Analyze resource requirements and budget needs for the project.
• Detailed budget report, including a breakdown of resources required and potential funding sources.
• Sustainability plan for long-term funding and a cost-benefit analysis to justify the resource allocation.

-Stakeholder Engagement Strategy:

• Develop a comprehensive engagement strategy tailored for each state involved in the project.
• Engagement strategy for each state, outlining key stakeholders, engagement methods, and timelines.
• Incorporate a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework to assess the effectiveness of the strategy. Include a communication plan to ensure consistent messaging across states.

Final Report - 3 Weeks from the Feedback on the Inception Report:

• Comprehensive assessment report including gender indicators, partner analysis, recommended focus areas, and resource requirements.

Competencies

Core Values / Guiding Principles:

Integrity:

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct

Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff
• Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values:

• Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Work in teams:

• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Communicating and Information Sharing:

• Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

• Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behaviour towards others.

Conflict Management:

• Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

• Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent analytical skills
• Strong knowledge of gender equality in India
• Knowledge of UN Women processes and systems
• Strong networking and interpersonal skills
• Ability to communicate effectively in person or in writing
• Demonstrated ability to conduct participatory needs assessments
• Ability to work under pressure
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Strong sense of responsibility, flexibility, and ability to work independently

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in economics, business management, public administration, international relations, or a related field.
• A first-level university degree with two additional years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of a master’s degree.

Experience:

• Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience, including proven expertise in gender analysis and partner mapping.
• Experience in developing strategic recommendations for international organisations.
• Demonstrated commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment.
• Experience working in or with India is an advantage.

Language Requirement:

• Proficiency in English; working knowledge of Hindi is desirable.

Interested applicants should apply to this announcement through UNDP jobs site: jobs.undp.org.

Application:

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications in one single PDF document:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded http://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/about-us/jobs.
• Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment, please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.
• Applications received after the close date will not be accepted.
• Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.                                                        

Evaluation and Selection Criteria:

Criteria for shortlisting of CVs will be based on the following assessment:

• Required Degree and Qualification (5 points).
• Minimum Experience relevant to the assignment (10 points)
• Relevant experience in gender equality and women’s empowerment (5 points).

The evaluation process for selection of the candidate will be based on the following assessment:

• Interview (80 points)
• Writing Samples (20 points)

Please Note:

• For an assignment requiring travel, consultants of 65 years or more require full medical examination. For others a statement of fitness to work is required to engage in the consultancy.
• Due to large number of potential applicants, only competitively selected candidates will be contacted for remaining steps of the service procurement process.
• The consultant is expected to use their own computer equipment. The office will not provide any computer equipment for this assignment.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality, and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.