International Expert/Trainer to develop and deliver training sessions during the winter school for Afghan Women students in Central Asia

Background

United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) supports UN member states in implementing international standards for achieving gender equality and cooperates with governments and civil society in the development of laws, policies, programs, and services necessary to effectively implement these standards. The organization's actions are also aimed at implementing the global Development Agenda for the period up to 2030 - the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the benefit of women and girls, as well as promoting their equal participation in all aspects of life.

In 2017, the European Union began to plan a comprehensive support for public sector reform in Afghanistan. The same year, the project aimed at increasing the participation of women in economic and public life through education and empowerment. Launched in 2021, the second phase of the project represents an expansion of an ongoing Phase I cooperation programme.

Given the expertise in women’s economic empowerment, UN Women has been tasked to organize extra-curriculum activities for Afghan women-students in the form of winter/summer school trainings to enhance educational potential of Afghan women, raise their awareness about gender equality, women’s rights and leadership and provide them with practical tools, that will help them in their future professional and personal development.

Based on the preferences and suggestions of the Afghan women-students, the next winter school will be held in an offline format and designed to enhance the knowledge and skills of new cohort of Afghan women-students in the area of gender equality and women’s empowerment, women’s political leadership, peacebuilding, conflict resolution, women, peace and security, enhanced employment opportunities, business planning, project management, STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) and personal development.

Timeframe and Location

The winter school training is expected to be held in-person according to the following schedule:

Location

Date

Almaty, Kazakhstan

11-15 January (two simultaneous schools for 50 women students)

Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

17-21 January (for 25 women students)

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

6-10 February (for 25 women students)

In this regard, UN Women is seeking professional and experienced trainers/ experts with proven expertise and experience to develop and deliver training sessions during the winter school for Afghan Women students in Central Asia.

Depending on the COVID-19 situation in hosting countries and state regulations, in-person event can be switched to a virtual event

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of UN Women Project Manager, the International Expert/Trainer is expected to deliver training sessions in a participatory manner and in a way that will enable Afghan Women students to learn practical skills in gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The International Expert/Trainer is expected to undertake the following specific tasks:

Participate in a preparatory meeting with UN Women and other experts/facilitators before the school training to have discussion on the training agenda, facilitation processes, roles of key participants and expected results.
In consultation with UN Women, suggest a methodology for assessing capacity needs of the Afghan women-students to identify their training needs.
Develop customized training sessions in English to enhance the knowledge and skills of Afghan women-students, including but not limited to the following areas (one or several areas can be selected):

Gender concepts and mainstreaming, International Frameworks for Gender Equality
Women’s empowerment and young women leadership
Women, peace and security
Women's entrepreneurship development and business planning
Enhanced employment opportunities, and project management, marketing
Career building for women, women’s participation in the labour market
Women in agriculture and construction
STEM and personal development.

In coordination with UN Women determine the most effective training techniques (interactive lectures, group work, debating, brainstorming, case studies, etc.) to ensure highly participatory and interactive approach.
Prepare supportive training materials (session plans, handouts, presentations, and reading materials) to be used by Afghan women students during and after the training.
Deliver training sessions during the five-day event (the number of days of contribution will depend on the approved learning agenda).
Prepare and deliver a final report on training sessions results, including main conclusions and recommendations for future work

The International Expert/Trainer is expected to work home based with travels to 1) Almaty, Kazakhstan; 2) Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan; 3) Tashkent, Uzbekistan to deliver in-person training sessions.

All deliverables must be certified and approved by UN Women.

Competencies

Core Values:

Respect for Diversity
Integrity
Professionalism

Core Competencies:

Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
Accountability
Effective Communication
Inclusive Collaboration
To learn more about UN Women values and competencies, please follow the link

UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Minimum university degree in development studies, social studies, or gender studies or other relevant field.
Additional qualification/certificate in gender, women empowerment and diversity or related areas is a clear advantage.

Experience:

Minimum 5 years of hands-on experience in conducting capacity building activities in gender equality, human rights, gender mainstreaming, women’s economic empowerment and participation in leadership
Strong presentation, facilitation, and training management skills. Excellent communication skills including interpersonal skills, ability to conduct presentations and explain complex ideas to persons from diverse backgrounds.
Knowledge of the international peace and/or human rights sector and experience in crisis or post-conflict countries is an asset.
Prior experience with UN agencies or other similar international organizations is desirable.

Languages:

Excellent communication and written skills in English are mandatory. Knowledge of Russian is an asset.

Technical evaluation criterion:

Criteria

Maximum

quantity points

Education

Minimum university degree in development studies, social studies, or gender studies or other relevant field

50

Additional qualification/certificate in gender, women empowerment and diversity or related areas is a clear advantage.

80

Professional experience

Minimum 5 years of hands-on experience in conducting capacity building activities in gender equality, human rights, gender mainstreaming, women’s economic empowerment and participation in leadership

5 year – 200

5-10 year – 250

<10 years - 300

Strong presentation, facilitation, and training management skills. Excellent communication skills including interpersonal skills, ability to conduct presentations and explain complex ideas to persons from diverse backgrounds.

130

Knowledge of the international peace and/or human rights sector and experience in crisis or post-conflict countries is an asset.

50

Prior experience with UN agencies or other similar international organizations is desirable.

30

Languages

Excellent communication and written skills in English

Knowledge of Russian

40

20

Maximum overall technical score (70%)

700

Only candidates with a minimum of 490 points will be eligible for financial evaluation.

Financial assessment:

The evaluation of the submitted financial proposals will be made based on the following formula:

C low / C x 300, where

C is the price of the evaluated offer; and

C low - this is the lowest price of all evaluated offers among the corresponding offers;

300 is the maximum financial point you can get.

The winner is the candidate who scores the highest score on the total score (according to the results of the technical assessment + financial assessment). The maximum possible score for the technical evaluation is 700 and 300 for the financial proposal.

Candidate selection:

The contract will be offered to the candidate with the highest score in the cumulative evaluation.