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To contract the services for a Consultant on Retainer to support the mainstreaming of gender and human security in strategic planning and policy reform.

home-based

  • Organization: UNWOMEN - United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women
  • Location: home-based
  • Grade: Consultancy - International Consultant - Internationally recruited Contractors Agreement
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Political Affairs
    • Operations and Administrations
    • Legal - Broad
    • Human Resources
    • Women's Empowerment and Gender Mainstreaming
    • Security and Safety
    • Public Policy and Administration
    • Documentation and Information Management
  • Closing Date: Closed

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.

Studies have demonstrated that businesses run by women (such as those in the agriculture and fisheries related sector) face major establishment hurdles and are frequently unable to respond to emerging economic opportunities. While women have the rights to own assets, including land, and operate businesses in their own name, informal barriers and costs, and social rules, (including sex stereotyping that leads to occupational sex segregation); as well as weak bargaining position also discriminate strongly against women’s economic participation (World Bank:  https://blogs.worldbank.org/opendata/unleashing-power-women-entrepreneurs-breaking-down-legal-barriers and Caribbean Development Bank, Gender Inequality Assessments; 2016).

Gender inequalities in access to economic incentives and productive resources reduce productivity and output. They prevent women from sharing in the benefits of production, even when they have done most of the work. For example, giving women farmers the same level of land tenure rights as men for the land they work on as men could increase, as per some studies and research, agricultural production in some countries by 20% and thereby make a huge contribution to national and regional food security.

Policy settings and regulatory frameworks often drive these less positive outcomes, engineered by discriminatory social institutions that reproduce gender stereotypes and mind-sets. This needs to be addressed sustainably through in-depth (focused) policy and legislative change.

The above provides the conceptual foundation for the project, “Building Effective Resilience for Human Security in the Caribbean Countries: The Imperative of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment in a Strengthened Agriculture (and related Agri/Fisheries Small Business) Sector”, supported by the UN Trust Fund for Human Security (UNHSTF) in collaboration with the UN Sub-Regional Team for Barbados and the OECS (UNST). This project argues strongly that gender inequality and women disempowerment is one of the main determinants of human insecurity.

The project thus aims, through a combination of policy reform advocacy and technical advice, as well as, direct downstream support to up to 2,500 farmers and small agro- and fisheries business entrepreneurs, (the majority women), to advance multi-faceted human security by focusing on the economic empowerment (of women) in these sectors.

By doing so, the project will also lay the basis for the further up-scaling of the impact upon the completion of this 3-year project, and the expansion of its innovative strategy to other sectors. Success expected to be achieved under this project will then provide a major impetus for a broader recognition of the priority of gender equality and women empowerment for enhanced resilience; for stronger economic growth; for a more inclusive society; and finally, for strengthened and sustainable human security.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives of the Assignment:

Under the direct supervision of the Project Coordinator, UN Trust Fund for Human Security and overall supervision of the UN Women MCO - Caribbean Representative, the consultant will be contracted to:

Provide critical support towards the development of pertinent strategic documents to facilitate the understanding and integration of the Human Security Approach into the core strategic planning of the UN system (Multi Country Sustainable Development Framework/United Nations Sustainable Development Framework). Further, the efforts of the consultant will facilitate the sensitization of key decision makers, as well as to serve as a pivotal component for shaping policy reform efforts within the agriculture and fisheries sectors, and influence efforts towards greater gender equality and empowerment for women and youth, which will help to strengthen the resilience of women farmers and agri-preneurs and further enhance their potential economic viability as critical contributors to the agriculture sector.

Scope of Work and Deliverables:

The consultant is expected to deliver the following results:

  • Develop guidelines for mainstreaming Human Security and Gender Equality for the new UNSDF (formerly MSDF) for Barbados and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).
  • Organize and facilitate a virtual review and endorsement ½ day workshop for the proposed guidelines for mainstreaming Human Security and Gender Equality in the UNSDF (formerly MSDF) for participating country stakeholders of UNTFHS beneficiary countries.
  • Development of a minimum of two (2) information briefs and associated tools, to formulate a Toolkit for decision makers, on policy related materials pertaining to women in the agriculture and fisheries sector, to be hosted on the ParlAmericas website on:
    1. The need for and impact of integrating Gender Equality and Human Security in public policies.
    2. The need for and impact of integrating Gender Equality and Human Security in structural adjustment programmes.
  • Support a virtual forum with ParlAmericas in October 2021 to introduce Deliverable 3.
  • Preparation of a short Advocacy and 'How To' Guide for sensitizing country stakeholders on the link between gender equality, women’s empowerment and human security.
  • Review recommendations and practices of business coaching clinics delivered through the project to agribusiness professionals. Through these clinics, Business Coaches would have made recommendations for improvement of business operations of clients/agribusiness professional, taking into account gender-related barriers to address.
  • Informed by Deliverable 6, development of a simplified mechanism to track and assess the adoption by individuals and group (related organizations or associations) members, of recommendations and practices introduced through exposure to the business coaching clinics delivered through the project, and the achievement of expected impact and results towards improvement.
  • As stated above, this would be informed by recent reports and information ascertained by Business Coaches in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, and St. Lucia under this project.

Reporting Requirements:

The consultant will work under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO-Caribbean Representative, with direct reporting to the Programme Coordinator, UN Trust Fund for Human Security.

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:

  • Strong gender and social research and analytical skills.
  • Excellent written and oral communications skills including conveying complex concepts and recommendations, in a clear and persuasive style tailored to match different audiences.
  • Ability to interact independently as part of a team.
  • Ability to multi-task and operate effectively in stressful situations.

Required Skills and Experience

The consultant should meet the following criteria:

Experience:

  • A minimum of 10 years experience in gender and development is required.
  • Experience in developing at least one (1) UN strategic planning document is required.
  • At least 5 years’ experience working with the international conventions on gender equality and women’s empowerment, or a related social development field is required.
  • At least 5 years’ experience in leading or conducting social policy or development research is required.
  • At least 3 years’ experience working with women’s groups on women’s economic empowerment is required.
  • Familiarity with the policy and programme reform context in the Caribbean is an asset
  • Relevant experience working on agricultural development/agri-business in the CARICOM region will be an asset.

Languages:

  • Fluency in oral and written English is required

Education:

  • Master's degree (or equivalent) in international development, public administration, public policy, or other relevant social science field is required.
  • A first-level university degree in international development, public administration, public policy, or other relevant social science field, with five additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Location and Duration:

  • The consultancy will be home-based.
  • The consultant will be engaged on retainer for at least 50 working days during the period May 3rd, 2021-May 2nd, 2022.

Remuneration:

  • The consultancy fee will be negotiated before contracting. Each payment will be based on a predefined and formal agreement between UN Women and the consultant and will be disbursed based on satisfactory completion of agreed deliverables.
  • The remuneration for this contract type is an all-inclusive fee, the organization will not be liable for additional cost or benefits.  Hence, it is the responsibility of the consultant to take out adequate medical insurance for the duration of the contract and it is recommendable that the policy includes coverage for COVID-19 related illness.   The medical coverage should be international when the contract requires missions or international assignment.
  • If selected for this vacant post, proof of medical coverage should be presented within the first two months of the contract.

Hardware, Software and Communications:

  • The consultant must be equipped with a fully functional laptop, which must run at least Windows 7. The consultant must be reasonably accessible by email and telephone (preferably mobile). The use of reliable, internet-based (Skype or equivalent) is required.

References:

  • Minimum of three client references that include the name of the contact person, title and contact information.

Other:

  • The consultant contracted will be required to sign a statement of confidentiality and freedom from any conflict of interest with potential future contractors with respect to the TORs and work that they will be delivering

Notes:

Submissions to UNDP Jobs are limited to a maximum of 10 MB, virus-free or corrupted contents to avoid rejection, and no more than 1 email transmission.  

All applications must be submitted through UNDP jobs.  Please do not send applications to UN Women staff as they will not be accepted.

This vacancy is now closed.
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