National Consultant to develop and deliver capacity development training module on Gender Responsive Budgeting and Covid-19 response in the Local Government Units

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. Placing women's rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.The Government of Albania has made national and international commitments to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women in many different socio-economic aspects. Several international conventions and platforms, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Beijing Platform for Action, demonstrate Albania’s commitment to the realization of women’s rights and the achievement of gender equality and SDGs as women’s equality and empowerment is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but also integral to all dimensions of inclusive and sustainable development.

Over the past years, UN Women in Albania has provided support to national and local stakeholders in strengthening democratic governance and advancing women’s rights through initiatives aimed at mainstreaming gender in policy planning and budgeting. GRB has been included as a legal requirement to the Local Government Financial Management cycle. The approval of law no. 68/2017 "On Local Government Finances”, paved the way for the effective inclusion of GRB in all the phases of local financial management cycle (medium term and annual budget programming, monitoring & reporting, evaluation and auditing) by local government units. The inclusion of the Gender Responsive Budgeting in the Medium-Term Budget Program as well as the legal changes in the field of Public Financial Management at local level, provide greater responsibilities and challenges for public entities in effectively managing gender-responsive policies, by devoting the budget resources to implement the same.Building on results achieved to date, and aiming to ensure sustainability of GRB interventions, UN Women has initiated a regional programme with participation of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Serbia and North Macedonia on “Transformative Financing for Gender Equality towards more Transparent, Inclusive and Accountable Governance in the Western Balkans” (2020-2024) funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation. The main programme approach is transformative financing as an enabling factor for policy and financing actions to accelerate implementation of existing national and international commitments on gender equality and women’s empowerment.The program is highly relevant for Albania particularly during current and post COVID 19 Pandemic, a time when it is crucial for the Albanian Government and Local Government Units to receive technical support to ensure financial allocations for the new measures in response to the crisis are gender sensitive. The Covid-19 pandemic has had great impact in Albanian socio-economic life and particularly on vulnerable women. COVID-19 has been disproportionately affecting women compared to men, which could further deepen persisting gender inequalities.Recognizing the important role LGUs are playing in ensuring needs and priorities of women and men are fully considered in local planning and budgeting processes, with particular consideration of those most severely affected by the ongoing pandemics, the programme encompasses a set of capacity development interventions for local government administration.In this context, UN Women requires technical support of one national consultant to develop and deliver a tailored training module on gender responsive budgeting, inlcuding gender mainstreaming in local policies and budgets in response to COVID-19. The consultant will work in close cooperation with the Albanian School of Public Administration (ASPA) and UN Women, and the trainings will be organzied and facilitated through the learning system of ASPA.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the Program Manager on National Planning and Budgeting and the Head of Programme Unit at UN Women Albania and in close collaboration with the ASPA the national consultant is expected to conduct the following:

• Conduct brief desk review of relevant existing capacity and training needs assessments and tools at local level, other strategic documents, policies and available analyses on gender equality gender mainstreaming in policy making and budgeting processes;
• Develop/adapt a comprehensive training module for strengthening the capacities of local administration, using previously developed materials, with focus on:

a) Knowledge and skills on gender mainstreaming and application of GRB as an approach that LGUs’ can use during planning and policy making processesb) Knowledge and skills on developing targeted local gender responsive actions and policy measures to respond to the needs of women and men in the context of COVID-19 pandemic

• Coordinate closely with ASPA and UN Women in the process of drafting and design of the training programme, and using the findings and recommendations for capacity strengthening of local administration on GRB and COVID-19 response;
• Develop pre and post training knowledge assessment questionnaires and final training evaluation;Support ASPA in preparing the lists of participants from various sectors in the LGUs, including gender focal points, local DV coordinators, people from relevant sectors, budget units and municipal councils;
• Adapt the training module for use by the ASPA learning system, in close cooperation with technical staff from the institution, to ensure that the module is in line with the ASPA standards for trainings of public administration;
• Facilitate two 1-day introductory/generic online training sessions on GRB for local administration in close cooperation with ASPA, MHSP and UN Women;
• Facilitate two 2-day training sessions for local administration, with focus on application of GRB as a tool in local planning and policy making and development of local gender responsive actions and policy measures, including interactive exercises and group work, in close cooperation with ASPA, MHSPand UN Women;
• Prepare training handouts, case studies and reading material for participants;
• Collect and analyse data from the pre and post training questionnaires and prepare training reports, including recommendations to ASPA and UN Women;
• Submit final report on the assignment to UN Women.

Expected deliverables:

• A consultancy work plan that includes timeline of activities and proposed methodology for the assignment (in English, by 15 November 2020).
• Comprehensive training module for strengthening the capacities of local administration on GRB and gender responsive planning and policy formulation in the context of COVID-19 (in Albanian, by 30 November 2020)
• Pre and post training assessment questionnaires and final training evaluation (in Albanian, by 30 November 2020;
• Training agenda, handouts and reading materials (in Albanian, by 30 November 2020);
• Training reports, with recommendations to UN Women and ASPA for further capacity strengthening of LGUs (in English , by 15 February 2021);
• Final report on the assignment (in English, by 20 February 2021).

Duration and remuneration:The duration of the contract will be up to 25 working days between November 2020 – February 2021. The payment will be made upon satisfactory completion of all tasks and deliverables in the assignment, and submission and approval by UN Women.

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: https://www.unwomen.org//media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf?la=en&vs=637 

Functional Competencies:

• Thorough knowledge of Local Government planning and budgeting processes.
• Strong presentation, facilitation, reporting and writing abilities in English and Albanian.
• Diverse organizational skills in various settings.
• Proven ability to work within limited time constraints in the preparation of high-quality documents.
• Strong ability to interact effectively with various partners and stakeholders, with focus on Municipality experts and public administration.
• Possesses the ability to work independently.
• Good computer skills in Windows environment, knowledge of internet communications and command of MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Power Point).

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications/Education:

• Master’s degree in gender equality, human rights, public policy or any other related area of study.
• Additional trainings and certifications on gender equality and Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting would be considered an asset.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in the field of gender equality, human rights or good governance.
• Demonstrated experience and familiarity with the local government competencies, policy planning and budgeting processes, including the application of gender responsive budgeting.
• Experience in drafting adult learning modules, provision of trainings, capacity building for public administration or other stakeholders. 
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or similar international organizations is considered an asset.

Language:

• Fluency and proficiency in spoken and written Albanian and English required.

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

• Financial Proposal specifying the total fee in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified above. 

Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services).

Payment will be made as per the payment schedule in the contract upon (i) satisfactory completion of tasks; (ii) provision of deliverables specified in the ToRs; (iii) submission of and approval by UN Women; and (iv) submission of the certification of payment.

Recommended Presentation of Offer:

Qualified and interested candidates are asked to submit their application no later than 29 October 2020.

• A Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability including a brief description explaining why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment.
• UN Women Personal History Form (P11) including past experience in similar assignment. Can be downloaded at: UN Women Personal History Form (P11)  or http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Financial Proposal specifying the total lumpsum in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified in this assignment.

Evaluation of applicants:

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Having received the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria.

Technical Evaluation –70 points:

• Master’s degree in gender equality, human rights, public policy or any other related area of study (max 10 points)
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in the field of gender equality, human rights, good governance., - (max 20 points)
• Demonstrated experience and familiarity with the local government competencies, policy planning and budgeting processes, including the application of gender responsive budgeting (max 20 points)
• Experience in drafting adult learning modules, provision of trainings, capacity building for public administration or other stakeholders (max 15 points) 
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or similar international organizations is considered an asset (max 5 points)

Financial Evaluation – 30 points

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (49 points) in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.

The maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal. All other price proposals receive points in inverse proportion. The calculation formula applied is as follow:

p = 30 (µ/z); where: p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated; µ = price of the lowest priced proposal; z = price of the proposal being evaluated.

How to Submit the Application: To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

• Download and complete the UN Women Personal History Form (P11)- http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Merge your UN Women Personal History Form (P11), the Financial Proposal, A list of links or copies of any paperwork on social protection and /or capacity building designing and Cover Letter into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded;
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement);
• Click 'Apply Now' button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click 'Submit Application;'
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above);
• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

Notes:

• UN Women retains the right to contact references directly. Due to the large numbers of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.
• The consultancy post is open to local (Albanian) individuals or foreign individuals with valid temporary or permanent residence in Albania.
• Applications without the financial offer will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.
• The individual consultants should take the mandatory learning security course prior to commencement of assignment– details will follow before the issuance of contract.