Technical Consultant to Support Planning on Strategic Programme Interventions and Financing for GEWE

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.

On 25 September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly adopted unanimously the Resolution 70/1 Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Gender equality and women’s empowerment is at the heart of the agenda, as numerous goals and targets address structural barriers to achieve equal rights and opportunities between women and men, girls and boys.

There are key areas of concern as the Philippines grapple with the impact of the pandemic which is seen to continue to affect women and girls’ lives differently. Further slipping into the global gender equality ranking from 17th to 19th, with so far, the lowest recorded since the World Economic Forum started reporting on it in 2006, clearer and stronger actions are needed to address ongoing barriers.

Women continue to be underrepresented in parliaments, critical ministries, police and security forces, business and private sector top management roles, with numbers far from meeting the minimum figure of 30%, said to be the number that could make a transformative difference in the space. We still see a wide gap in women’s labour force participation, often taking on vulnerable work here and abroad and still receiving unequal pay for equal work or value. They continue to be highly vulnerable to gender-based violence and suffer disproportionately in conflict areas as well as communities vulnerable to various disasters and humanitarian crises.

But beyond challenges, risks, and vulnerabilities that they face, women continue to play significant roles across the different economic, social, cultural, and political spheres, as caregivers, workers, frontliners, first responders, organizers, leaders and peacebuilders, among many other roles and tasks.

When given an enabling and empowering environment, women will be able to realize their fullest potential and transform lives and communities towards an inclusive, progressive, resilient and sustainable Philippines. This is where UN Women hopes to contribute by ensuring that these critical areas of concerns are reflected, articulated and tackled in key documents within the UN and addressed in various programming, policies and operational work.

And with the ongoing efforts to consolidate work and enhance programme delivery of the UN Women Philippines Programme Presence Office, it intends to continue its engagements with key stakeholders and strengthen relationships within and outside the UN structures through regular contributions of technical inputs as well as provision of support to various initiatives for the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment. This will be accomplished guided by the new UN Women Strategic Note for 2022 – 2025.

It is in this regard that UN Women plans to continue to host dialogues and consultations, conduct policy research, develop gender snapshots, provide technical support via capacity building, gender assessments and co-create programmes and projects. This will need to be supported by a broader framework and strategy that UN Women in the Philippines, as a non-resident agency, can use to align all initiatives and ensure that it delivers to the broader aspiration reflected in the Philippine Development Plan and articulated in the United Nation Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework.

Objective

Given UN Women’s overall mandate to promote policies and standards, deliver programmes and ensure that the rights of women and girls are upheld to empower them to reach their fullest potential, the UN Women Philippines Programme Presence Office aims to secure that critical contributions are recorded and articulated in key documents for the Philippines. This we hope to do through:

• Making available platforms for conversations and dialogues to surface issues affecting women and girls and identify key actions and recommendations to tackle them
• Contributing to various research, profiling/assessments, as well as analytical pieces to ensure that women and girls’ lives and realities are incorporated within the broader context of development work and agenda in the country and region
• Developing, co-creating and implementing programmes and projects that will deliver and support the promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment, including campaigns, communications, advocacy work and awareness raising

Duties and Responsibilities

In line with this, the UN Women Philippines Programme Presence Office requires the services of a Technical Consultant to review and prepare a framework for UN Women’s work aligned to the current Philippine Development Plan and the forthcoming UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2024-2028.

The duties and responsibilities of the technical consultant include:

1. Reviewing the Philippine Development Plan and the initial draft of the cooperation framework and revisiting UN Women’s work, mandate and current /past programmes
2. Analyzing partners’ feedback and insights on the best and critical areas for UN Women’s work and support in the country
3. Preparing and submitting documentation and reports linked to discussions, literature reviews, meetings and consultations
4. Presenting a draft plan on where UN Women should best invest its work and resources to ensure wider positive impact for the lives of women and girls in the Philippines

The technical consultant is expected to leverage existing work, expertise and networks and, adding to it, the resources and groups that are already identified and working with UN Women.

Specific Tasks, Expected Deliverables and Timeline

Specifically, the technical consultant will undertake the following: 

• Review of related literature and list of updated annotated bibliography
• Plan, prepare and present the framework for strategic programming and financing for gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Philippines
• Host/facilitate important dialogues, consultations and/or focus group discussions
• Document and prepare report, including photo documentation and/or video highlights.  

Supervision

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the Country Programme Coordinator of UN Women Philippines Programme Presence Office who will be responsible for the quality assurance of the deliverables. 

Contract period and work location

The total duration of the engagement is for a period from 4 August 2023 – 30 December 2023.

Location:  Metro Manila, Philippines

Competencies

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent analytical skills
• Strong knowledge of UN Women processes and systems
• Strong networking skills
• Strong inter-personal skills, communicate effectively with staff at all levels of the organization
• Ability to work in a highly pressured environment
• Please visit: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf  for more details on UN Women Values and Competencies Framework.

Required Skills and Experience