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 work of UN Women in Moldova is guided by its Country Strategic Note 2023-2027, aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for Moldova (2023-2027), UN Women Global Strategic Plan, National Programs and Strategies and aims to contribute to the gender-responsive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Strategic Note focuses on four main areas: 1) Ending Violence against Women (EVAW); 2) Women’s Leadership and Governance; 3) Women’s Economic Empowerment; and 4) Humanitarian and Peace development nexus and UN Coordination on gender equality and women empowerment.

Women and girls constitute more than half of Moldova’s population, yet they are under-represented in the bodies that make key decisions affecting their lives. Gender inequalities continue to persist in all areas of public and private life, while important progress has been recorded in the Republic of Moldova over the past 10 years.

The overarching vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is inclusive and sustainable growth with its promise to leave no one behind. Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, target 5.5. calls to “ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of the decision-making in political, economic and public life”. Gender equality by 2030 requires urgent action to eliminate the many root causes of discrimination that still curtail women’s rights in private and public spheres.  

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted in 1995, explicitly calls for the removal of all barriers that prevent women's full and equal participation in political life. In October 2024, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women adopted General Recommendation No. 40 on the equal and inclusive representation of women in decision-making systems. The Recommendation provides comprehensive guidance to States parties on achieving equal and inclusive representation of women across all decision-making systems and sectors, with the aim of driving systemic and transformative change.

Women in politics and in decision making still confront stereotypes. According to the latest studies conducted by UN Women partners, it shows that patriarchal conceptions persist among a significant portion of the population. Gender stereotypes about women’s roles remain deeply rooted and have even intensified in recent years. The share of people who believe women have “no place in politics” rose from 18.2% in 2021 to 26.2% in 2025, while around 20% still consider women less capable of leadership roles. At the same time, traditional views about women’s primary role in family life have significantly increased, rising from 47.9% to 62.4%.

UN Women, in line with its mandate, supports women parliamentarians, women from government, mayors, councillors, and other women leaders, including those from underrepresented groups, as a long-term investment in building inclusive and representative societies. This is achieved through capacity-building programmes, networking opportunities, inspirational events, and studies that encourage diverse women to participate in public life and decision-making, while strengthening their confidence, leadership skills, and campaign strategies.    

Over the years, UN Women has supported various platforms of women leaders at both central and local levels, including the Women MPs Caucus (across the last 3 legislatures), the Women Mayors Network, and the Women in Governance network (LiderELE programme), Women in defence and security sectors, etc. These initiatives aim to equip, support, and inspire women leaders by providing them with the necessary tools to manage pressures, foster social innovation, and promote excellence in governance, while strengthening women’s active participation in decision-making processes, becoming agents of change, especially in the context of EU integration.

In order to equip actual women legislators from senior and middle-level government positions, women MPs, and women mayors with the necessary skills, knowledge, and confidence to succeed in their roles to effectively serve as change-makers in their legislative and representation functions, to provide tools to mainstream gender-sensitive culture in legislatures and society, UN Women Moldova Country Office will initiate an Academy for Women in Public Leadership. The Academy will represent a national platform to strengthen women’s leadership across the public leadership pipeline and will combine cohort-based learning, leadership labs, mentoring and coaching, peer learning circles, and an alumni network that ensures sustainability beyond a single cycle. 

In this context, UN Women Moldova will engage a team of international and national experts in various fields to deliver tailored trainings for up to 300 women from central and local administrations in accordance with TOR requirements. The relevant topics will be linked to transformative leadership, strategic communication, social media, public speaking, mediation/conflict resolution, crisis management and safe Leadership in politics, gender-responsive policy-making, resilience, wellbeing, individual coaching and not limited to.

These initiatives are planned under joint efforts from 3 ongoing projects: the regional project “Women’s Increased Leadership for Resilient and Peaceful Societies” funded by Denmark; the project “Enhancing Peace and Prosperity through Women’s Leadership and Inclusion (Women for Peace and Prosperity)” funded by Switzerland; and UN Women Strategic Note Contribution funded by Sweden.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Under current TOR, UN Women Moldova seeks a National consultant to provide programmatic, coordination and logistical support for the implementation of the Academy for Women in Public Leadership across its 4 directions (pre-electoral track, Parliament, Government, and local public authorities). The consultant will play a general supporting and coordinating role, working closely with the UN Women team, the contracted experts and trainers, and the participating institutions, to ensure the smooth, timely and well-documented implementation of all Academy activities.

It shall be noted that the implementation of the tasks will require close collaboration with the UN Women team and will be reporting to the Programme Specialist on Women in Leadership, and Gender Sensitive Governance and Budgets, and will be supported by the Project Analyst within the same area.

The selected consultant is responsible for ensuring the successful completion of the tasks, as follows:

  • Support the overall planning and coordination of the Academy, contribute to the development and regular update of the Academy workplan and calendar of activities across all four directions; coordinate schedules with the team of national and international experts; monitor progress against the workplan and flag risks and delays to the UN Women team.
  • Organize Academy activities and events, provide organizational support for trainings, leadership labs, mentoring and coaching sessions, peer learning circles, networking and alumni events, including preparation of agendas, invitations, participant lists, registration, and follow-up correspondence.
  • Provide logistical support, coordinate interpretation and translation needs; ensure the timely preparation, printing and distribution of training materials, supplies and visibility items, in line with UN Women rules and procedures.
  • Support participant outreach and management, support calls for applications and the participant selection process for each Academy track; maintain up-to-date participant databases and attendance records; act as focal point for participants’ logistical and organizational queries.
  • Support monitoring, evaluation and reporting support the administration of baseline, pre- and post-training questionnaires developed by the experts; collect, consolidate and organize M&E data, evaluation forms, and photo/documentation records; contribute to event reports, donor reporting inputs, and communication and visibility products.
  • Provide general programmatic support for drafting of concept notes, terms of reference, meeting minutes and correspondence related to the Academy; support coordination meetings with experts, partners and institutional focal points; perform other relevant tasks related to the implementation of the Academy, as required.

The assignment should be carried out within a period of 12 months with possible extension (up to 180 working days) with possible extension. The above-mentioned tasks are indicative and subject to further detailing through specific service requests to be made by UN Women Moldova CO during the contract duration; other tasks and duties may be revised/added if required as per expertise.

Deliverables

The National Consultant will be responsible for delivering the following outputs:

•  Monthly reports on major tasks performed, updates and results achieved, accompanied by timesheets with actual days worked;

•  Consolidated documentation packages for each Academy activity supported (agendas, participant lists, attendance records, evaluation forms, logistics documentation);

•  Updated participant databases and M&E data files for all Academy tracks;

•  Final report on activities carried out, achievements, challenges and recommendations.

All deliverables should be agreed with the UN Women responsible staff and provided in English, in electronic format.

Payment Details  

The Consultant shall be paid for the services performed under the Contract on a per-day basis. UN Women shall pay the Consultant upon certification by UN Women that the services have been satisfactorily performed, and upon submission and approval of corresponding deliverables and timesheets. The fee may be payable in installments and the number of days worked is to be determined solely by UN Women. The Consultant agrees and acknowledges that acceptance of the Contract does not guarantee any minimum fee to be paid to the Consultant. 

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is an office-based consultancy, with partial presence on UN Women premises required to ensure day-to-day coordination with the UN Women team. Travel within the Republic of Moldova to training venues and event locations is envisaged; related costs will be agreed with UN Women in advance and covered in line with UN Women rules and regulations.

Competencies :

Core Values:

  • Integrity;
  • Professionalism;
  • Respect for Diversity.

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 Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

  • Programme and Event Coordination
  • Organizational Skills and Attention to Detail
  • Gender Equality and Inclusive Governance
  • Stakeholder Engagement and Partnership Building
  • Monitoring, Evaluation and Reporting
  • Effective Written and Oral Communication

Required Qualifications

Education and Certification:

  • Master’s degree or equivalent in Political Science, Public Administration, Social Sciences, Management, Gender Studies, or other related fields are required; 
  • A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. 
  • Certification or training in project/programme management or event management would be an asset.

Experience:

  • At least 2 years of proven experience in providing programmatic, administrative, coordination and/or logistical support to programmes, projects or capacity-building initiatives is required.
  • Proven experience in organizing trainings, conferences, workshops or similar events, including logistics, participant management and documentation, is required.
  • Experience in programmes related to gender equality, women’s leadership, or women’s political participation is an advantage.
  • Experience working with international organizations, including the UN, is an advantage.
  • Computer literacy and professional knowledge of office software packages (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint), and experience in handling web-based management systems is required.

Languages:

  • Fluency in Romanian and English is required.
  • Working knowledge of Russian is an asset.

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Statements :

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.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, 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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.

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Before applying, please make sure that you have read the requirements for the position and that you qualify. Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.