Community of Practice for CSOs for Gender Mainstreaming into Climate Action and Disaster Risk Reduction

1. 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.

The UN Women Cambodia Programme Office (CPO) Strategic Note (SN) 2019-2023 focuses on three key priorities to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE). The priority is to strengthen government capacity and accountability to integrate international norms and commitments (CEDAW, SDGs, Beijing PfA, Sendai) into national legislative and regulatory frameworks, including supporting dialogue and CSO engagement in accountability for GEWE commitments. The second area of focus is Ending Violence Against Women where CCO’s focus includes creating an enabling environment to prevent, respond to and prosecute all forms of GBV as well as ensuring that marginalized women who experience violence, including women migrant workers, access services and protections. Thirdly, CCO works to enhance gender responsiveness in climate change action and Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR). A focus on empowerment, women’s leadership, challenging negative gender norms and leaving no one behind runs through the programme.

The Empower project: Women for Climate-resilient Societies is a unique partnership between UN Women and UN Environment, supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency that aims to ensure that climate action and disaster risk reduction in Asia-Pacific respond to gender equality and human rights. From 2018 to 2022, EmPower phase I was implemented regionally across Asia and the Pacific, with national footprints in Bangladesh, Cambodia and Viet Nam. EmPower phase II (2023-2027) was built on the successes and lessons learnt of the phase I and aims to scale up for regional implementation and generate new regional commitments and national policies, financial mechanisms and tools, methodologies, evidence, and knowledge to further impact. The project will contribute to the overall Impact: “People in Asia-Pacific are less vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and experience greater gender equality and the full enjoyment of their rights, including equal access to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment.” EmPower aims to achieve the outcomes bellow:

• Outcome 1: Asia-Pacific actors increase action on gender responsive climate change adaptation and mitigation.
• Outcome 2: Women in all their diversity and other marginalized groups are represented as key environmental actors in climate and DRR decision-making
• Outcome 3: Women and other marginalized groups in Asia-Pacific secure climate-resilient livelihoods

EmPower approach is to expand decision-making spaces, raise awareness and support the prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV) in the context of climate change and disaster. This includes empowering women and girls through amplifying their voice and sharing their stories. EmPower seek to not only explore women experience as the passive victims of the climate change and disaster but as change agents and the leaders for climate change action and disaster management.

In Cambodia EmPower phase I, which was implemented from 2018-2022, working to empower CSOs especially women-led organization and CSOs working on Climate change and disaster risk reduction issue, around 30 local CSOs have been engaged in networking and capacity development space created by the project in phase I. This includes providing training on gender and climate change and disaster management, gender and environment statistics and how to use gender statistic for advocacy purpose. The CSOs joining are those who either working on climate change and DRR or gender and women empowerment or both. Participating CSOs acknowledge the importance of such space to be link to one another and has continue sharing relevant information in digital platform.

For this reason, one of the focus of EmPower project phase II (2023-2007) is to enhanced capacity and engagement of civil society organizations in CC/DRR actions and decision-making by creating a Community of Practice (COP) focusing on gender responsive climate action and DRR. Through the project, UN Women Cambodia Programme is seeking for an international consultant who will provide technical lead of the development and technical coordination of the community of practice.

The international consultant will provide technical expertise for the design and implementation of the community of practice for CSOs to create a platform which allows mutual learning among CSOs with difference expertise on gender, women empowerment, climate change and disaster risk reduction while also encourage them to explore the potential joint effort, actions and initiative to address gender issue and climate change. The key responsibilities of the consultant will be as follows:

• Lead the design of the community of practice (CoP) project that is applicable for CSO in Cambodia, including defining what is CoP for the group, the methodology, topics, process and collaborative coordination  
• Design a framework to identify participating members which include identification and the initial formation of the CoP process. The consultant will work with UN Women programme team to identify CSOs members to participate in the CoP space using the design framework. This will include producing material like CoP concept note and information sheet to aid the outreach and the identification process.
• Design and facilitate the orientation workshop to introduce COP and encourage members’ ownership through participatory process. This involves physical and online meetings/workshops
• Co-design with key identified members of CoP to identify topic/subject or areas of interest to be influential for advancing gender mainstreaming in climate actions and DRR
• Lead in conducting learning event/workshop for mutual learning as identified, including  gender and climate change
• Provide small group and/or individual coaching and follow up to members for effective gender mainstreaming in climate actions application in their individual and/or joint work.
• Support the participants by providing technical assistance to their potential emerging joint action and/or initiative including joint position/advocacy paper to be used for influencing policy and decision making space
• Document good practices, lesson learn and case study on CSOs CoP: Gender and climate change

2. EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

3. SUPERVISION

The consultant will work in close collaboration with the programme team in Cambodia, primarily the EmPower team, under the day-to-day guidance of the National Programme Officer, with overall supervision of the Country Programme Coordinator.  A workstation will be provided to the consultant to ensure effective consultation and support. The Consultant will bring his own personal computer to conduct this assignment. With facilitation of the CCO team, the consultant will also be expected to engage with participating CSOs.

4. CONTRACT PERIOD

The consultancy will take place over a multi-year timeframe, reflecting the life of the EmPower project.  It is expected to be carried out on a deliverable-based for the duration from 01 March 2024 to 01 August 2025.

5. DUTY STATION

Home based with 5 missions to Cambodia. The consultant may be required to travel outside of Phnom Penh as needed for the purpose of the assignment where required by UN Women-Cambodia. The standard UN Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA) will apply to any travel outside duty station that may be required in the fulfillment of this assignment.

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

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%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Technical Competencies:

• Technical expertise in Gender analysis and mainstreaming
• Demonstrated capacity to create community of practice and community building
• A proven ability to work with varied stakeholders and especially CSOs
• Knowledge and understanding of the Cambodian social, cultural and political context, including in relation to gender, climate change and disaster risk reduction context.
• A proven history of working collaboratively in a team through a style of mutual accountability and professional development.

Functional Competencies:

• Promotes knowledge management and a learning environment in the office through leadership and personal example.
• Experience in group facilitation using a participatory, inclusive approach to managing differences and honing agreements. The capacity to liaise with a range of stakeholders to build rapport, working relationships, and exchange information in order to mobilize support and collaborative action.
• Strong understanding of gender equality and social inclusion in the context of visual communications
• Strong written and face-to-face communication skills in a cross-cultural context.
• Demonstrated sensitivity, discretion, tact, and courtesy in relation to gender equality and women’s rights, development principles, implementing partners, and national and international personnel of varied nationalities and backgrounds.

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Fulfills all obligations to gender sensitivity and zero tolerance for sexual harassment.
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UN Women.
• Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Education and certification:

• Master degree of development study, gender, social work, community development or other relevant discipline

Experience:

• At least ten years’ experience in gender mainstreaming work.
• At least three years’ experience in working with CSOs in Cambodia context
• Strong understanding of gender equality and social inclusion in the context of civic engagement among CSOs
• Experience in working in the issue on climate change and disaster risk reduction is desired.
• Experience in community building and network building is preferred
• Experience in organization community of practice is desired
• Sound experience in leading learning events/workshop with participatory approach

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Fluency in Khmer language would be an added advantage.

6. EVALUATION

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis:

• Technical qualification (100 points)

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.

7. Submission of Application:

Interested candidates are encouraged to submit an electronic application to cco.procurement@unwomen.org , with cc to hr.bangkok@unwomen.org not later than 26 February 2024 by 5 p.m. local time in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Late application submissions will not be considered.

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from Application and recruitment process | About us: Careers at UN Women | UN Women – Headquarters   Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Submission package includes: 

• Cover letter outlining relevant work experience.
• UN Women Personal History Form (P11); The P11 Form can be downloaded from the following: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2022-07/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form-en.doc  or http://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/about-us/jobs 
• Writing sample

Payment

Payments for this consultancy will be based on the achievement of deliverable and certification that each has been satisfactorily completed. Payment will not be based on the number of days worked but on the completion of each stated deliverable within the indicated timeframes on satisfactory completion of task.

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.

Inclusion Statement:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employ, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity, and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)