National Consultant – Documentation Services for Workshops supporting the OPAPRU in Finalization of the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (NAP-WPS) 2023-2033

Background

Rationale for UN Women’s Work in WPS

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality 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 regional framework Towards Peaceful, Inclusive Societies: Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda and Inclusive Governance in the Asia Pacific Region (2023-2027) is firmly grounded in international commitments, norms and frameworks on sustainable development, peace, security and women’s and human rights. It recognizes the interconnectedness of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and 16 (Just, Peaceful, and Inclusive Societies), but also acknowledges that innovative, multi-sectoral and holistic approaches must be adopted in efforts to achieve the goals outlined in the Agenda 2030.  

The Regional Framework aligns with the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), including articles 7 and 8 on women’s equal participation in political and public life, and General Recommendations No. 30 (GR 30), 33 (GR33) and 37 (GR 37), which provide guidance to State parties on their obligations to: ensure women’s access to justice; protect, respect and fulfill women’s human rights, including in conflict prevention, conflict and post-conflict contexts; and to address broader gendered peace and security concerns, such as those related to climate change and disasters.

On peace efforts in the region, the framework emphasizes the fulfilment of Women, Peace and Security commitments as outlined in the United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace and Security and subsequent resolutions. The framework highlights the importance of supporting intergenerational dialogue, conducting age-disaggregated and gender-sensitive conflict analysis, and providing spaces for young women’s leadership and expertise in peace efforts and governance processes across the region, in line with priority actions outlined in UNSCR 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security. 

Under UN Women’s Governance, Peace and Security (GPS) portfolio, the Regional Framework aims to facilitate full and equal of participation of women and girls in leadership and decision-making and benefit from gender-responsive governance in Asia and the Pacific, with the generous support of the Governments of Australia and Korea.

In the Philippines, UN Women has played a vital role in advancing the WPS agenda since 2015, including provision of support to advance the WPS normative framework at the national, regional, and local levels. This involves the inclusion of gender and women empowerment provisions in the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) and the subsequent establishment of the Bangsamoro Women’s Commission (BWC) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

UN Women has a number of ongoing projects in the BARMM that are focused on capacity building and supporting women’s leadership and meaningful participation in conflict prevention, resolution, and recovery. Other key initiatives feature localization of the WPS agenda in BARMM Ministries and Agencies to expand space for engagement and participation of local women peace mediators, civil society, and women’s organizations. In 2022, UN Women and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) launched the Joint Programme on Empowering Women for Sustainable Peace in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. The programme, funded by the Global Affairs Canada, seeks to advance the WPS agenda by: a) strengthening capacities of the agencies in the regional government through its Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), local government units, communities, and individual women, and b) enhancing ownership and responsibility of the BARMM government at all levels in promoting gender equality and inclusion in peace and security processes.

At the ASEAN level, UN Women launched the regional programme Empowering women for sustainable peace: preventing violence and promoting social cohesion in ASEAN, which includes implementation in the Philippines, given its prominent role in advancing WPS in the region.

NAP-WPS in the Philippines

The development of the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (NAP-WPS) in the Philippines emerged from collaboration between civil society and the government which began in 2007. The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), then called OPAPP, and the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) have been key movers in the process of developing the NAP-WPS, particularly since signing the circular[1] that aims to ensure the integration of concerns regarding women and peace in government programs and services in conflict-affected areas.

Multiple rounds of regional cluster consultations have been hence conducted to determine the crucial action points to be incorporated into the NAP. Following the establishment of the implementing institutional infrastructure of the NAP through the signing of Executive Order (EO) 865 in 2010, the Philippines launched the first NAP-WPS both in the country and in Southeast Asia. The NAP-WPS is anchored in the UNSCR 1325 that links women’s experience of conflict to international peace and security.

In 2014, refinements were made to the document to ensure the streamlining of indicators for implementation by the national government agencies and local government units (LGUs). The amended 2014-2016 NAP-WPS also featured the inclusion of the Payapa at Masaganang Pamayanan (PAMANA) program of the Philippine government, for harmonization with the Gender and Development (GAD) plans and budgets of areas that are affected by or vulnerable to conflict. Milestones achieved under this second generation of NAP-WPS include: gender provisions in the Philippine Government and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) peace agreement; the first and only woman chief negotiator to sign the peace agreement with a rebel group; and the adoption of the first Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (RAP-WPS) 2017-2019 in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

With the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) in 2019, and the launching of RAP-WPS a year after, the plan provided a more concrete recognition and robust articulation of women’s roles and capacities in addressing conflict, as well as in leading and implementing peacebuilding initiatives across the region.

Taking off from previous revisions, the third generation of NAP-WPS “incorporates some key recommendations made in the 2015 Global Study on the Implementation of UNSCR 1325 such as the prioritization of conflict prevention, framing women peace and security from a human rights perspective, participation and leadership of women in all levels of the peace project, transitional justice, inclusive and participatory localization efforts, combating extremism by supporting women peacebuilders, multi-level and multi-stakeholder approach to implementation, and financing initiatives aimed at materializing women, peace and security” (NAP-WPS 2017-2022).

The fourth generation plan, called the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (NAP-WPS) 2023-2033, resulted from the government-led, collaborative, and multi-stakeholder sunset review of the previous iteration of the NAP-WPS. The review surfaced the need to anchor the plan on human rights and women’s agency, instead of highlighting the state’s protection and prevention mandate. This shift underscores the mandate of duty-bearers to treat women and girl children not merely as passive beneficiaries or victims, but as active agents of peacebuilding and transformation. Moreover, the NAPGPS presents women in all their distinct, multiple, and diverse, but intersecting identities. This NAPGPS explicitly provides space for active CSO participation and end-to-end support for its implementation, which is strategically integrated into the GAD plans and budgets of local and national government agencies.

Another national consultation was held with a forward-looking perspective to inform the drafting of the NAP-WPS 2023-2033 on May 2023 and to substantiate and interrogate the preceding recommendations. Based on lessons from the Philippine NAP-WPS experience, there are significant opportunities to establish monitoring and evaluation mechanisms and to ensure the localization and mainstreaming of the NAP.

UN Women supports the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) on the process of finalizing the NAP-WPS 2023-2033 by providing technical and logistical assistance to conduct workshops on Contextualization and integration of Results-Based Management into the draft NAP-WPS. This support is provided to strengthen the substantive and programmatic content of NAP-WPS to be able to capture and address the emerging issues, threats, and opportunities related to the WPS agenda in the Philippines.

Duties and Responsibilities

In view of the foregoing, the UN Women Philippines Programme Presence Office (PPO) is looking to hire a consultant to provide Documentation Services for workshops supporting the OPAPRU in Finalization of the National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (NAP-WPS) 2023-2033.

Under the overall guidance and management of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Programme Team Lead in the Philippines, the consultant will perform the following tasks:

1. Document the proceedings, including salient points, agreements, and recommendations discussed in the following activities:
   • Contextualization Workshop for the Technical Working Group on the National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security 2023-2033 in the Philippines
   • Integration of Results-Based Management Principles in the National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security 2023-2033 in the Philippines
2. Submit a draft documentation report per workshop for the review and approval of UN Women (documentation includes all presentation materials used, discussion materials produced, and photos taken)
3. Submit the final documentation after incorporating the feedback of UN Women

All the deliverables should be submitted in writing in English (and Filipino, as used in the sessions, with English translation).

Upon receipt, the deliverables will be reviewed and approved by UN Women. The period of review is one week after receipt.

All data collected by the consultant must be submitted to UN Women and shall be the property of the latter. Proper storage of data is essential for ensuring confidentiality and should be in line with the UN Women’s Policy on data management and security.

The Consultant will be supervised by the National Project Officer of UNW-PHL Women Peace and Security. All deliverables will be reviewed and endorsed to the Team Lead of UNW-PHL WPS for approval and processing of payments.

Competencies

The consultant should share the following core values and competencies of the organization:

Functional Competencies

• Excellent analytical, communications, presentation, and facilitation skills
• Ability to plan and organize work and events
• Strong knowledge of UN Women processes and systems
• Strong networking and interpersonal skills; communicates effectively with staff at all levels of the organization
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities, as well as work in a highly pressured environment
• Excellent communication, analytical and presentation skills

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Required Skills and Experience

Education

• Master’s degree in Communications, Journalism, Gender Studies, Human Rights, Political Science or Social Science, Development Studies, Peace, Conflict, and Security Studies, or related field
• A first-level university degree in combination with 2 additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree

Experience

• Minimum 2 years of relevant experience in organizing and/or documenting WPS-related activities such as dialogues, workshops, seminars, consultations, trainings, conferences, etc. at the national or international level
• At least 2 years of experience in conducting research and/or supporting documentation or data collection related to gender and peacebuilding
• Knowledge of the WPS agenda in the Philippines is preferred

Language

• Proficiency in written English and Filipino

Contract Period and Work Location

The consultant will be based in Manila, Philippines and will work within the period of 15 October 2023 to 15 December 2023.

Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis.

• Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [70%]
• Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [30%]

A two-stage procedure is utilised in evaluating the applications, with evaluation of the technical application being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.

Technical qualification evaluation criteria

The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically qualified candidates who may be contacted for validation interview.

Financial/Price Proposal Evaluation

• Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated.
• The total number of points allocated for the price component is 100.
• The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/ evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

Submission of application

Interested candidates are encouraged to submit their electronic application to hr.bangkok@unwomen.org with cc to mariafe.mejia@unwomen.org, not later than 22 September 2023, 17:00 Manila time. Submission package includes:

• Updated Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• Cover letter explaining suitability for the work
• P11 Form, downloaded from https://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/about-us/jobs, along with educational certifications and passport
• Written samples or links to access the work portfolio
• Financial proposal which shall specify a total lump sum amount in PhP based on deliverables with break-down per deliverable. Please see the financial proposal template as below:

The system only allows one attachment per application; please consolidate all documents into one file. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

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