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National Consultant to Undertake a Scoping Study of GBV Prevention Initiatives in Nepal

Kathmandu

  • Organization: UNWOMEN - United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
  • Location: Kathmandu
  • Grade: Consultancy - National Consultant - Locally recruited Contractors Agreement
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Development Cooperation and Sustainable Development Goals
    • Women's Empowerment and Gender Mainstreaming
    • Scientist and Researcher
    • Gender-based violence
  • Closing Date: Closed

Background

  1. BACKGROUND AND RATIONALE

UN Women’s Work on Gender-Based Violence (GBV)

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.

Addressing and preventing GBV is at the front and center of UN Women’s efforts to achieve gender equality. The UN Women Nepal Country Office (UN Women NCO) is in the process of finalizing a Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence in Nepal (2021-2027) to pursue a more cohesive and comprehensive approach to prevent and address gender-based violence (GBV) in Nepal’s post COVID-19 context together with its key partners. The strategy underscores the significance of data and evidence for effective programming, advocacy, and policy formulation to prevent and respond to GBV, and to foster accountability. In line with the milestone CEDAW General Recommendation No. 35, the UN Women NCO’s efforts are guided by the need to change social norms and stereotypes that support violence and support the Government to prevent violence and protect women and girls and other excluded groups from violence.

Recognizing that work on GBV in Nepal to date has focused more on response than prevention and that certain knowledge gaps on prevention exist, the UN Women NCO is commissioning a series of studies to better understand the GBV landscape in Nepal. It is in this context that the UN Women NCO is commissioning the Scoping Study of GBV Prevention in Nepal through this TOR.

 

Gender-Based Violence (GBV)[1] in Nepal

 

According to the 2016 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (DHS), one in five women in Nepal aged 15-49 have experienced physical violence since the age of 15, and at least one in four (26%) ever- married women have ever experienced spousal physical, sexual, or emotional violence.[2] GBV takes multiple forms – physical, sexual, emotional and economic – and occurs in private, public and workspaces, and throughout the life cycles of women, girls, and LGBTIQ+ individuals. Individual experiences of and vulnerabilities to GBV vary considerably and are further compounded by intersecting forms of discrimination, such as disability, gender identity and sexual orientation, caste, ethnicity, religion, age, and socioeconomic status. In Nepal, Dalit women and girls, or LBTI women, face compounded forms of discrimination or higher risks of being subject to GBV due to their caste, gender or sexual orientation. In Nepal, GBV also manifests itself through context-specific forms such as harmful practices, which include child marriage, dowry, witchcraft accusations and persecution, chhaupadi, deuki, jhuma, and dhan-khaane.[3]

The factors that increase GBV in Nepal stem from long-standing socio-cultural traditions, norms and practices that have evolved over centuries, including patriarchy, the caste system and other forms of economic and political domination of certain communities over others. GBV is not the result of random, individual acts of misconduct, rather, it is deeply rooted in patriarchy, power imbalances and structural inequality, and harmful social and cultural norms that place lower value on women, girls and excluded groups in society.

While Nepal’s legal and policy framework to address GBV is relatively advanced by comparative standards, a new constitution promulgated in 2015 explicitly prohibited discrimination against women and guaranteed the right of women to be protected from any act(s) of physical, mental, sexual, psychological, or other forms of violence or exploitation on any grounds. Furthermore, many dedicated laws exist to address and prevent various forms of GBV, including domestic violence, chhaupadi, and witchcraft accusations and persecution (WAP). The Government of Nepal has also made strong normative commitments, including the ratification of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and using international platforms to reiterate its commitment to ending all forms of GBV. The Government’s 15th Development Plan and Gender Equality Policy similarly outline an objective to end gender-based discrimination, GBV and exploitation. Furthermore, with regards to broader efforts to prevent and respond to GBV in the COVID-19 context, the UN Framework for Responding to the Socio-Economic Impacts of COVID-19 in Nepal identifies protection from violence and exploitation as one of the interventions areas.

However, the available data on GBV in Nepal clearly demonstrate that much more is needed. In 2017, GBV was found to be “the leading identifiable trigger for violent deaths in Nepal”.[4] In rural Nepal, where gendered norms around dominance, aggression, and sexual rights of husbands over their wives are even more entrenched, over half of young married women report violence from an intimate partner in their lifetime[5]. Key gaps remain, and action to prevent GBV has been limited, and when it does occur, it often goes unreported or unpunished. Adding to the challenge is the lack of national collection of comparable data on different forms of GBV, including violence against women such as femicide or suicides of women. The true scale of the GBV is likely to be underestimated, with many instances of violence going unreported.[6] In addition, impunity[7], or the failure to bring perpetrators to justice, remains a significant obstacle to preventing GBV. 

COVID-19 and GBV

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the acute need for strengthened and concerted efforts to address and prevent GBV. Evidence now shows the compounding complexities of the development and humanitarian crisis are having a disproportionate effect on women and girls, as well as those at-risk and vulnerable groups;[8] as pre-existing gender and socio-economic inequalities are further exacerbated during the crisis and in its aftermath. The consequences to women, girls and excluded groups have been dire. The extensive lockdown measures and enforced mobility restrictions have inadvertently placed women, girls and other groups such as LGBTIQ+ persons in isolation and at greater risk of sexual, domestic and intimate partner violence, or hostility from abusive family members. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light the critical gaps and challenges that remain in preventing and responding to GBV in Nepal. At the same time, the pandemic has served as a call to action, by renewing commitments, determination and the momentum to end GBV, without which GBV will continue unabated.

2.  OBJECTIVES

The study has the following objectives:

  • To review the existing GBV prevention programme and policy landscape in Nepal at the national, provincial and local level[9], including the initiatives and key stakeholders working on GBV prevention, drawing on existing mappings and studies to the extent possible.
  • To understand what works, where, how and for whom in terms of GBV prevention, including by gathering and analyzing evidence of GBV initiatives that have been carried out in Nepal, including through Key Informant Interviews (KIIs).  
  • To identify potential entry points for UN Women NCO to position itself in the field of violence prevention, both at programmatic and policy levels, and make recommendations in terms of its future approach that can contribute to UN Women NCO’s Strategy to Prevent and Address Gender-Based Violence in Nepal (2021-2027), including innovative approaches to prevent GBV. In particular, recommendations for further strengthening the efforts of women’s rights organizations and networks in GBV prevention should be assessed.

 

 

[1] Gender-based violence (GBV) refers to harmful acts directed at an individual or a group of individuals based on their gender. It is rooted in gender inequality, the abuse of power and harmful norms. The term is primarily used to underscore the fact that structural, gender-based power differentials place women and girls at risk for multiple forms of violence. While women and girls suffer disproportionately from GBV, men and boys can also be targeted. The term is also sometimes used to describe targeted violence against LGBTQI+ populations, when referencing violence related to norms of masculinity/femininity and/or gender norms. UN Women (2020).

[2] Ministry of Health and Population. (2017). Nepal Demographic Health Survey 2016, p 336.

[3] Harmful practices emanate from a combination of deeply embedded patriarchal norms, customary practices, common beliefs and unequal power relations. In Nepal, these include child marriage, dowry, son preference, polygamy, witchcraft accusations and persecution, chhaupadi (a form of menstrual exile where women and girls sleep in small huts or animal sheds during menstruation and immediately after child birth, jhuma (a Buddhist practice of offering a daughter to a monastery to bring good fortune to the family), deuki (offering a Hindu girl to a temple for ceremonial purposes), and dhan-khaane (receiving money for solemnizing the marriage of a child).

[4] Human Rights Council. (2018). Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences on her visit to Nepal. Available here.

[5] Puri Misra & Hawkes. (2015). Hidden voices: Prevalence and risk factors for violence against women with disabilities in Nepal Health behavior, health promotion and society. BMC Public Health 15(1).

[6] Human Rights Council. (2018). Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences on her visit to Nepal. Available here.

[7] “’Impunity’ means the impossibility, de jure or de facto, of bringing the perpetrators of violations to account - whether in criminal, civil, administrative or disciplinary proceedings - since they are not subject to any inquiry that might lead to their being accused, arrested, tried and, if found guilty, sentenced to appropriate penalties, and to making reparations to their victims.”. United Nations, Commission on Human Rights. (2005). Updated set of principles for the protection and promotion of human rights through action to combat impunity.

[8] IRC/CARE. (2020). Global Rapid Gender Analysis for COVID-19.

[9] There should be a particular focus on UN Women’s target provinces: Province 2, Bagmati Province and Sudurpaschim Province. The scope at provincial and local levels will be further defined in consultation with UN Women NCO during the inception phase.

Duties and Responsibilities

3. KEY ACTIVITIES AND DELIVERABLES

 

The National Consultant will lead the design, implementation and coordination of the Scoping Study of GBV Prevention Initiatives in Nepal. To achieve the key objectives listed above, the consultant will undertake the following tasks:

 

Task 1: Inception Report

After an initial meeting with the UN Women NCO team to clarify the scope of the assignment, the consultant will draft an inception report outlining the methodology for the literature review, KIIs and include a suggested list of interviewees and an interview guide. Based on the approach outlined in their proposal, it will also take into account any new information provided through discussion and any additional information provided by UN Women NCO.  

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 1:

  • Inception Report of approximately 10 pages excluding annexes.

 

Task 2: Literature Review

  • The consultant will undertake a literature review of available literature on GBV prevention programmes at the national, provincial and local (municipalities) level. These may include national government, donor, I/NGO, CSO and activist-led initiatives including social media campaigns and other online initiatives.
  • Types of literature may include project proposals, reviews, evaluations and donor reports and include published reports available online as well as any grey literature not yet published.[1]
  • The timeframe of the literature review should be GBV prevention interventions undertaken from 2010 to the present day plus any documentation of interventions that are likely to take place between 2021-2027.
  • The literature review and/or KIIs should also map out and identify the most relevant Government policy frameworks for GBV prevention at national, provincial and local levels, such as action plans/policies on GBV prevention, including those relating to violence in online spaces. The exact scope of the policy framework mapping will be agreed jointly with UN Women NCO during the inception phase. 
  • The consultant should review relevant documentation that is available either in English and Nepali. 

 

Types of violence and GBV prevention interventions may include the following search terms:

  1. Types of violence: violence, abuse, harassment, intimate partner violence, violence against women, VAW, GBV, assault, gender-based, domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, sexual coercion, child abuse, child maltreatment, child sexual abuse, harmful practices, HTP, chhaupadi, witchcraft accusations and persecution, caste-based discrimination, violence against LGBTIQ+, violence against women living with disabilities, online violence, cyberbullying, cyberstalking.
  2. Types of GBV prevention, interventions: economic, couples/ relationship/ family, awareness raising, community-based, schools-based, single-sex group based with women and girls as well as men and boys, interventions with female sex-workers, interventions with LGBTIQ+, interventions with women living with disabilities, and interventions with religious and community leaders.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 2:

  • A description of the literature review methodology should be included in the Inception Report. 
  • The methodology used for the literature review as well as a narrative description of the key findings of the review should be included in the draft and final reports. The consultant should also record key findings from the literature review and KIIs on actors working on GBV prevention, interventions and any evaluation findings in an excel spreadsheet. 

 

Task 3: Key Informant Interviews (KIIs)

The consultant will undertake a minimum of 40 KIIs with actors working on GBV prevention at the national, provincial and local level on the basis of a mutually agreed interview plan. The interviewees should include relevant Government representatives, I/NGOs, CSOs including women’s rights organizations and networks, UN agencies and donor governments, at national and sub-national level. Where relevant the consultant may also interview global specialists with expertise in GBV prevention in Nepal. These interviewees may provide additional recommendations of people to interview to create a ‘snow-ball effect’. The consultant should provide a tentative list of interviewees plus an interview guide as part of the Inception Report. Interviews should take place in either English or Nepali depending on interviewee preference.

 

The situation with COVID-19 is expected to remain the same in early 2021, therefore it is expected that the majority of KIIs will be held by phone/online and only face-to-face if the consultant is based nearby and it is possible to observe social distancing and other COVID-19 safety precautions.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 3:

  • A tentative list of interviewees, as well as an interview guide in English, should be provided as part of the Inception Report. The list of interviewees will be finalized in collaboration with UN Women NCO.
  • The consultant should plan for a minimum of 40 KIIs. 
  • Overall findings from the KIIs including relevant quotes from individual interviewees should be included as part of the draft and final reports.

 

Task 4: Draft Report

The overall findings from the literature review and the KIIs should be included in the draft and revised final reports. A suggested structure for the draft and final reports is as follows:

 

  1. Executive summary
  2. Introduction/Background
  3. Methodology and limitations
  4. Overall findings from the literature review and KIIs including identification of key gaps in terms of the types of interventions being implemented
  5. Conclusions
  6. Recommendations and entry points for UN Women
  7. Annexes including bibliography, spreadsheet showing key actors, interventions and evaluations of GBV prevention activities at the national, provincial and local level

 

The report structure will be further defined in consultation with UN Women NCO. The consultant may also be requested to include short case studies of successful prevention initiatives.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 4:

  • Draft report of approximately 30 pages excluding annexes.

 

Task 5: Final Report

The consultant should revise the draft report based on feedback from the UN Women NCO.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 5:

  • Final report of approximately 30 pages excluding annexes.

 

Task 6: Presentation

After the approval of the final report, the consultant will be invited to a face-to-face or virtual meeting with the UN Women NCO and potentially other key stakeholders to present the overall findings of the scoping study and recommendations. The purpose of the meeting will be to engage with a broader group of actors and will allow time for discussion and reflection and for UN Women NCO to clarify how to take the recommendations forward.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 6:

  • PowerPoint presentation on the methodology, key findings and recommendations of the scoping study.

 

 

 

Task 7: Brief

As a supplement to the final report and PowerPoint presentation, the consultant will also be asked to produce a short 3-4 page brief on the methodology, key findings and recommendations from the GBV prevention scoping study to be used as an information sharing and advocacy tool with the Government of Nepal, donors and other agencies.

 

Deliverables of the National Consultant under Task 7:

  • Short 3-4 page brief outlining the methodology, key findings and recommendations from the scoping study targeted at external stakeholders. 

 

4. DURATION OF THE ASSIGNMENT

 

It is anticipated the assignment will take up to 50 working days over a period of 3 months.

 

Task

Anticipated

number of days

Task 1: Inception Report

5 days

Task 2: Literature Review

10 days

Task 3: Key Informant Interviews

15 days

Task 4: Draft Report

10 days

Task 5: Final Report

5 days

Task 6: Presentation

2 days

Task 7: Brief

3 days

Total number of days anticipated

 50 days

 

 

5. TENTATIVE TIMELINE OF KEY DELIVERABLES AND PAYMENT SCHEDULE

 

Schedule of payments:

 

Payment for this consultancy will be based on the achievement of each deliverable and certification that each has been satisfactorily completed. Payment will be based on the submission of the SSA report along with the relevant supporting documents for the achievement of deliverables.

 

S. No

Deliverables

Target Date

% of payment

1

Inception report comprising of a proposed methodology, initial literature review, methodology and tools for the KIIs, and draft outline for the final report

End of Week 2

10 %

2

Draft report including executive summary, introduction/background, methodology and limitations, findings from the literature review and KIIs, conclusions and recommendations.

End of Month 2

50 %

3

Revised final report

PowerPoint presentation of the key findings outlined in the report (either in person or by video depending on COVID-19 situation)

Brief summary report (around 3-4 pages) to be shared with external stakeholders

End of Month 3

40 %

 

UN Women Inputs:

  • UN Women NCO will schedule an inception meeting with the consultant and provide the consultant with background materials and programme documents that are relevant for the scoping study. Specifically, UN Women NCO will provide project documents and access to relevant reports, research and data.
  • UN Women NCO will provide formal letters to introduce the consultant to the government and other key stakeholders as and when needed.
  • UN Women NCO will cover the travel costs and DSA as per standard UN rate for authorized official travels outside of Kathmandu valley, if needed.
  • It is mandatory for the consultant to participate in a UN security briefing and to follow UN security rules and guidance.
  • It is the consultant’s responsibility to arrange private insurance.
  • The consultant will be required to provide a Statement of Good Health, endorsed by a certified Medical Practitioner.

 

 

 

[1]  The scoping study should build on already available studies to the extent possible, such as: United Nations Country Team. 2020. Literature Review on Harmful Practices in Nepal. Access here.

Competencies

6. COMPETENCIES

 

Core Values and Guiding Principles

 

  • Demonstrates integrity by modeling UN Women values and ethical standards;
  • Demonstrates a commitment to UN Women’s mission and vision;
  • Able to work effectively within a team;
  • Displays cultural and gender sensitivity and adaptability;
  • Able to multi-task and juggle competing demands;
  • Can assess and prioritize work needs quickly;
  • Demonstrates integrity by modeling UN Women values and ethical standards;
  • Able to relate to external partners, including other international organizations and agencies, NGOs, grassroots community groups, etc.

 

Functional Competencies

 

  • Sound practical knowledge on women’s GBV prevention programming and/or research;
  • Previous experience in conducting scoping studies preferably in the field of women and girls’ rights; gender equality and/or GBV prevention or response;
  • Ability to work effectively and harmoniously with people from varied cultures and professional backgrounds, demonstrating excellent interpersonal communication skills;
  • Results based management skills;
  • Ability to produce well-written reports and/or programme documents demonstrating analytical ability;
  • Excellent communication skills;
  • Experience in working with UN Women or UN or international NGOs on women and girl's rights, and preferably ending violence against women and girls (EVAW).

 

Required Skills and Experience

7. REQUIRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

 

Education:

 

Advanced university degree (master’s degree or Ph.D) Political Science, Sociology, International Relations, Law or relevant field.

 

Experience:

 

  • At least 10 years of experience of working in the field of gender equality and women’s rights, with demonstrable experience and knowledge in GBV prevention research and/or programming;
  • Sound knowledge of the field of GBV prevention both globally and within Nepal;
  • Experience working with multi-stakeholder organizations including government, CSOs particularly women’s organizations and the UN/ multilateral/bilateral institutions, in Nepal;
  • Proven experience in designing and leading qualitative research.

 

Language: Fluency in oral and written English and Nepali.

 

8. HOW TO APPLY

 

Interested consultants must submit the following documents/information in a single PDF file to demonstrate their qualifications through the UNDP jobs site: jobs.undp.org.

  • Expression of interest with a technical proposal describing your approach, methodology, and timeline for how you will achieve the TOR;
  • Completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from: http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
  • Example of a similar type of study where the applicant is the lead author/ team leader;
  • A financial proposal must be submitted in a separate page using the following template. The financial proposal shall specify a lump sum amount breaking down the professional fee for each deliverable.

 

The financial proposal must be submitted in a separate page using the following template.

 

S. No

Deliverable

Estimated number of working days

Amount in NPR per deliverable

1

Inception report comprising of a proposed methodology, initial literature review, methodology and tools for the KIIs, and draft outline for the final report

5 days

 

2

Draft report including executive summary, introduction/background, methodology and limitations, findings from the literature review and KII, conclusions and recommendations.

35 days

 

3

Revised final report

PowerPoint presentation of the key findings outlined in the report (either in person or by video depending on COVID-19 situation)

Brief summary report (around 3-4 pages) to be shared with external stakeholders

10 days

 

Total lumpsum Financial proposal (fee cost)

50 days

 

 

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment, please combine all your documents into one single PDF document. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form and written sample will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

 

9. EVALUATION AND SELECTION CRITERIA

The total number of points awarded during the evaluation is 100, with the technical qualification evaluation including interview accounting for 70 points and the financial proposal accounting for 30 points. Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically qualified candidates.

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. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 70 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 70. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

 

  • Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or Ph.D) Political Science, Sociology, International Relations, Law or relevant field (5 points);
  • At least 10 years of experience of working in the field of gender equality and women’s rights, with demonstrable experience and knowledge in GBV prevention research and/or programming (10 points);
  • Experience of working on gender equality; women and girls’ rights and GBV prevention specifically in Nepal and preferably also in the three focus provinces (10 points);
  • Experience working with multi-stakeholder organizations, including governments, electoral management bodies, CSOs particularly women’s organizations and the UN/ multilateral/bilateral institutions, preferably in Nepal (10 points);
  • Proven experience in designing and leading qualitative research (10 points);
  • Substantive, analytical and language skills based on the writing sample (15 points);
  • Interview score (10 points) with those who score 42 points or more in the above evaluation criteria.

 

  • Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

 

The financial proposal of candidates who meet the technical assessment threshold will be evaluated.  The total number of points allocated for the financial proposal is 30. In this methodology, 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.

 

A formula is as follows:

p = y (µ/z)

 

Where:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

y = maximum number of points for the financial proposal

µ = price of the lowest-priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

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.

 

UN Women is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals especially women are highly encouraged to apply.

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