National Consultant to support the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine to integrate gender and the Women, Peace and Security agenda in their work

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.

UN Women Ukraine implements its Country Strategy for 2018-2022, covering the following thematic areas: Making gender equality priorities central to national reforms, governance, planning and budgeting; Ending violence against women and girls; and Strengthening implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda.

In line with its Country Strategy, UN Women supports the Government of Ukraine to strengthen its national commitments to women’s rights and gender equality and implement the recently adopted strategic documents such as the National Strategy on Human Rights and the Action Plan (2016-2020)[1], the State Social Programme on Equal Opportunities (2018-2022)[2], Laws on Amending the Criminal Code of Ukraine and Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine[3] and the Law on Preventing and Combating Domestic Violence (2017)[4], the National Action Plan (NAP 1325) for Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) for 2016-2020 and its Midterm review[5], the State Programme on Recovery and Peacebuilding in the Eastern Ukraine (2017-2020)[6], the Strategy for Integration of internally displaced persons (IDPs) until 2020[7] and State Strategy on Regional Development until 2020[8].

Despite the political commitments, structural barriers to gender equality have not been addressed and gender-based discrimination remains widespread in Ukraine. As reported by the CEDAW Committee in its Concluding Observations on the 8th Country Report, “efforts to advance gender equality are consistently challenged by patriarchal attitudes and discriminatory stereotypes entrenched in society and reiterated by anti-gender political discourse, the media and society”.[9]

To support the consolidated efforts of the government, parliament, women’s groups and civil society organizations (CSOs) to meet state commitments on gender equality and women’s rights, including the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (UNSCR 1325) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UN Women, implements the projects “Enhancing accountability for gender equality and women’s empowerment in national reforms, peace and security”, funded by the Government of Sweden, “Decentralization and Law Enforcement Reforms: Transformative approaches to Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Ukraine” and “Building democratic, peaceful and gender-equal society in Ukraine”, funded by the Governments of Denmark and Norway.

The projects aim at supporting the Government in achieving transformative results for gender equality and women’s empowerment in Ukraine by integrating gender equality and women’s human rights commitments into the national reforms and the peace and security processes, and by putting mechanisms in place for adequate financing, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. As part of the reforming process, UN Women supports the Government to institutionalize the women, peace and security agenda through the development and implementation of a National Action Plan on 1325 and its localization in the oblasts of Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia. It further works on improving community security in the three oblasts though strengthening the capacities of law enforcement officials and women’s community groups to develop and implement GBV prevention and response, as well as to mobilize women and girls, men and boys in favour of respectful relationships and gender equality and safety in public spaces.

Work with media represents one important component of UN Women projects; Media can play an influential role in advancing the women, peace and security agenda, they can portray women and men in their diverse roles in the conflict, including as agents of conflict prevention and peacebuilding. At the same time, media can reproduce gender stereotypes and patriarchal attitudes which can lead to reinforcing discriminatory attitudes and behaviors, or stigmatizing survivors of gender-based violence or sexual violence. Media outlets should also be encouraged to ensure that their internal policies are gender sensitive. Efforts should be taken to increase the number of women in their institutions, including in local radio and television, as well as to create a code of ethics on reporting on sensitive issues and increase trainings on gender-sensitive reporting. Increased reporting on gender issues and features on positive women role models can help debunk gender stereotypes and increase the public’s understanding of the benefits of gender equality and women’s important roles in society, particularly during times of conflict and recovery. Civil society and women’s groups who have been working on issues of women, peace and security, gender-based discrimination and violence, are excellent sources of information on the challenges and realities on the ground, as well as the potential solutions.

UN Women cooperated with the Public Broadcasting Company[10] (PBC) to conduct a gender analysis of their programming, as well as to train journalists on issues of women, peace and security, including Ukraine’s commitments under the UN Security Council Resolutions, and increase their understanding of gender-sensitive reporting. In result of this cooperation, the guidelines for reporting on gender and conflict were developed and will be disseminated for the journalists of Public Broadcasting in 2019.

In order to continue upgrading the knowledge on Women, peace and security and expand it to understanding of gender based discrimination and violence, UN Women Ukraine is seeking to hire a national consultant to support Public Broadcasting Company to integrate gender into their programming by establishing a monitoring  (procedures) for regular content analysis of the programmes and deliver set of  trainings and trainings for trainers (TOTs) on issues related to gender stereotypes, gender-based discrimination and violence, and reporting on women, peace and security for journalists and editors, as well as media outlets from regional branches and press officers of security and defence sector. The national consultant will also develop a training module along with the manual, based on the developed by UN Women guidelines for reporting on gender-based violence in Ukraine and for reporting on gender and conflict.

[1] National Strategy on Human Rights, Decree of the President of Ukraine, 2015, available at: http://zakon0.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/501/2015

[2] State Social Programme on Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men for 2018-2021, KMU, 2018, available at: http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/273-2018-%D0%BF

[3] Law “On amending the Criminal Code of Ukraine and the Criminal Procedural Code of Ukraine to implement the provisions of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence”, No. 2227-VIII, VRU, 2017, available at: http://zakon5.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/2227-19

[4] Law of Ukraine on Prevention and Combating Domestic Violence, No. 2229-VIII, VRU, 2017, available at: http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/2229-19

[5] National Action Plan on implementation of UN Security Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, adopted by Decree ? 113 of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, dated 24 February 2016 available at:https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/113-2016-%D1%80

[6] State Target Programme on Recovery and Peacebuilding for 2017-2020, KMU, 2017, available at: https://www.kmu.gov.ua/ua/npas/pro-zatverdzhennya-derzhavnoyi-cilov

[7] Strategy for Integration of internally displaced persons (IDPs) until 2020, KMU, 2017, available at: http://zakon5.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/909-2017-%D1%80  

[8] State Strategy on Regional Development until 2020, KMU, 2014, available at: https://www.kmu.gov.ua/ua/npas/247566248

[9] Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Concluding observations on the eight periodic report of Ukraine, 9 March 2017, CEDAW/UKR/CO/8, para 26, p 8., available at: https://digitallibrary.un.org/record/1286284

[10] Public Broadcasting Company includes radio, television and other electronic media outlets.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the UN Women Representative, and direct supervision of the Programme Specialists and in close collaboration with the Programme Analyst on Women, Peace and Security, the National Consultant will be responsible for the following tasks:

• Conduct content analysis of the programming of regional branches in Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine and content analysis of public messages of security and defence sector institutions to identify entry points for mainstreaming gender into their programmes and outreach messages to support the implementation of Ukraine’s national and international commitments to gender equality, gender-based violence prevention and women, peace and security;
• Design training module, based on the developed by UN Women guidelines for reporting on gender-based violence in Ukraine and for reporting on gender and conflict and on the inputs and feedback from participants of the trainings and validated with an appointed group of experts/employees from the PBC and UN Women. The training module will be used by trainers for future workshops delivered by the PBC.
• Develop a manual to support the delivery of training module, which will include the glossary of gender relevant terminology. Conduct minimum four trainings of trainers (one on the national level and three on regional levels) on reporting on issues related to the women, peace and security agenda, CEDAW, non-discrimination, sexual and gender-based violence, etc. for the journalists of the Public Broadcasting regional branches in Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts, as well as for journalists and communications departments from the security and defense sector, including in the regions of Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk;
• Conduct at least 2 interviews and 2 meetings with the PBC staff, journalists, and CSOs working on gender-sensitive media reporting with the aim to consult on the development of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
• Develop Standard Operating Procedures on how to conduct content analysis of the PBC’s programmes from human rights and gender equality perspective for the system of monitoring the gender sensitivity of the reporting from all the regions;
• Mainstream gender in the internal draft of policy on non-discrimination which is to be adopted by PBC in 2019;

Assignment Deliverables:

1.       A detailed work plan with planned activities and timeline submitted – 2 days, by 20 July 2019

2.       Report on content analysis (with summary of recommendations) of the programming of regional branches in Zaporizhzhia,  Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts and of public messages of security and defence sector is provided – 15 days, by 20 August 2019

3.       Minimum four trainings of trainers (one on the national level and three regional) on reporting on issues related to the women, peace and security agenda, CEDAW, non-discrimination, sexual and gender-based violence for the journalists of the Public Broadcasting regional branches in Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts and press officers from the security and defense sector is conducted, training reports along with pre- and post-evaluation forms are provided – 15  days, by 13 September 2019

4.       A training module based on the developed by UN Women guidelines for reporting on gender-based violence in Ukraine and for reporting on gender and conflict is designed – 15 days, by 7 October 2019

5.       A designed manual to support the delivery of training module, which includes the glossary of gender relevant terminology is developed and submitted – 10 days, by 1 November 2019

6.        Standard Operating Procedures on how to conduct monitoring of gender-sensitive reporting by journalists of PBC. – 5 days, by 10 November 2019

7.       Substantive gender-sensitive inputs/specific recommendations on how to mainstream gender to the PBC’s internal draft of policy on non-discrimination which is under preparation by PBC – 5 days, by 25 November 2019

8.       Final report of the accomplished assignment, including all supporting documents and materials (i.e. summarized results of content analysis, training reports with evaluations, training module with the manual, SOP on monitoring gender sensitive reporting) – 3 days, by 30 November 2019

TOTAL – 70 days

• The deliverables should be submitted in English language; supporting documents produced by the consultant should be in English, official or other supporting documents can be submitted in Ukrainian.
• The Consultant is expected to work remotely using her/his own computer, but may access the UN Women office for printing of relevant documents or should he/she be required to work on-site at any point during the assignment. 

Performance evaluation:

• Contractor’s performance will be evaluated against such criteria as: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered. The evaluation will be carried out and cleared by the hiring manager, which will also be the basis for payment on a delivery-by-delivery basis to the consultant.

Financial arrangements:

Payment will be disbursed in three installments. The first installment will be disbursed upon receipt of deliverables 1-2, the second installment upon receipt of deliverables 3-5, the third installment upon receipt of deliverable 6-8. The payments will be made upon certification by the UN Women Programme Specialists that the services have been satisfactorily performed.

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

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications Education:

• Masters Degree in Journalism and Media, Social Science, Gender studies, Development studies, or other related field;

Experience:

• At least 3 years of professional experience in the field of journalism, including reporting on or providing trainings on issues related to the women, peace and security agenda and gender equality;
• Experience in developing training materials and conducting trainings, particularly for media;
• Sound knowledge and understanding of gender equality, the Women, Peace and Security agenda and prevention of gender-based violence;
• Experience in designing or contributing to manuals, guidelines on gender-sensitive reporting.

Languages and other skills:

• Fluent  Ukrainian, working level of English, Russian is an asset Computer literacy and ability to effectively use office technology equipment, IT tools, ability to use Internet and email.

Evaluation of Applicants:

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of their qualifications and financial proposal. A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. The award of the contract should be made to the individuals whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

•             Responsive/compliant/acceptable

•             Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical criteria 70% of total evaluation – max 70 points for technical criteria. Total max 70 points:

•             The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 70. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on a desk review and the following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Criterion A – Relevant education:

·         Masters Degree in Journalism and Media, Social Science, Gender studies, Development studies, or other related fields (9 pts Mastersdegree-; 10 pts- PhD degree);

Criterion B – Language skills:

• Fluent  Ukrainian, working level of English (4 pts), and Russian is an asset (5 pts);

Criterion C – Relevant Experience with total for all of the following criterion (55 pts) including:

• At least 3 years of professional experience in the field of journalism, including reporting on or providing trainings on issues related to the women, peace and security agenda and gender equality; 20 pts;
• Experience in developing and conducting trainings and training materials, particularly for media; 15 pts;
• Sound knowledge and understanding of gender equality and the Women, Peace and Security agenda; 10 pts;
• Experience in events designing or contributing to manuals, guidelines on gender-sensitive reporting; 10 pts.

Total Obtainable Score – 70 points.

Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

• Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation will be further considered and evaluated.
• The total number of points allocated for the financial/price component is 30.
• 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 49 points in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

Evaluation of submitted financial offers will be done based on the following formula: S = Fmin / F * 30

(S - score received on financial evaluation; Fmin - the lowest financial offer out of all the submitted offers qualified over the technical evaluation round; F - financial offer under the consideration).

The candidate’s application should include:

•                     A?brief Letter of Interest containing the statement on candidate’s experience in the field of recruitment. Completed and signed UN Women Personal History (P-11) form, which can be downloaded from: http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment.

•                     Proposal. The financial proposal shall specify?a total lump sum?amount with a breakdown of a daily professional rate per number of anticipated working days to include all costs (telephone, etc.).

Interested candidates are requested to apply no later than 26 June 2019, 23:59 EEST ?by submitting 2 attachments: 1) technical (a Letter of Interest and P-11) and 2) signed financial proposal to the following e-mail address: hr.ukraine@unwomen.org with a subject?“National Consultant to support the Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine to integrate gender and the Women, Peace and Security agenda in their work”.

Applications without financial proposal may be treated as incomplete and may not be considered for further assessment.

Sample of Financial Proposal

The format shown on the following tables is suggested for use as a guide in preparing the Financial Proposal

A.            Cost Breakdown per Deliverables*

	Deliverables	# of days and Percentage of Total Price (Weight for payment)	Price, UAH (Lump Sum, All Inclusive)
1
2
	Total	max. # of working days (100%)	UAH ……

*Basis for payment tranches

UN Women applies fair and transparent selection process that would take into account the competencies/skills of the applicants as well as their financial proposals.