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 center of all its efforts, UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women plays an innovative and catalytic role in the State of Palestine since its inception in 1997. UN Women Palestine Office focuses its activities on one overarching goal, namely, to support the implementation at the national level of existing international commitments to advance gender equality in line with the national priorities. In support of this goal, and thoroughly taking into consideration the specificities of the Palestinian context, UN Women concentrates its efforts and interventions toward the realization of following strategic goals:  Mainstreaming gender in governance, peace and security; Supporting women's economic security and rights; and Promoting women’s rights and protection against violence.

In line with the Palestinian Government’s commitment to fight Violence Against Women (VAW) as set in the National Strategy to Combat VAW, and in full partnership  with the protection, security and justice sectors’ actors, including the Palestinian Civil Police (PCP), the Public Prosecution (PP), the High Judicial Council (HJC), the Supreme Judge Department (SJD) and the Ministry of Social development (MoSD) UN Women,  within its joint programme with UNDP and UNICEF- “Promoting the Rule of Law in Palestine- SAWASYA II” is supporting the Justice and Security institutions to mainstream gender into their procedures and policies, and develop and provide  gender responsive services to women victims and survivors of violence, through providing institutional capacity building and policy level interventions  amongst others.  

Acknowledging the impact of the emergency situation on the capacity of the justice, security, and social institutions in continue providing essential services to women victims and survivors of violence,  UN Women in partnership with the PCP, the AGO, the HJC, the SJD, and the MoSD developed emergency and preparedness plans for each mentioned above institution, with the aim of supporting these institutions to effectively responding  and managing  VAW cases during  emergencies, including pandemics.

As the plans included different scenarios, and assumed the availability of specific operational, and structural frameworks, UN Women through consultation with partner institutions plans to recruit a consultant to support targeted institutions in identifying key priorities, and developing implementation plans to support institutions to continue providing services to women survivors of violence during emergencies.

More specifically, the assignment includes the following specific objectives:

• To support targeted institutions in identifying key priorities related to their preparedness in continue providing services to women victims and survivors of violence during emergencies, in line with the developed emergency plans.
• To develop implementation plans related to the identified and agreed upon priorities.
• To facilitate discussions with/ between these institutions about the identified priorities, and the developed implementation plans. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of UN Women Special Representative, the direct supervision of the UN Women Rule of Law Programme Specialist, and working in close cooperation and coordination with UN Women’s technical team and partner institutions focal points, the consultant will undertake the following:

    1) Inception phase:

• Develop a work plan with timeframe and methodology and share with UN Women for discussion and approval.
• Meet with UN Women and the targeted institutions to agree on the assignment’s objectives and the methods that will be used.

2) Identify key priorities and develop  implementation plans:

• To review the developed emergency plans, and related literature review, including local, regional and international levels.

• To develop and identify 2-3 priorities for each institution, along with an implementation plan, in line with the emergency plans.
• To present and facilitate a discussion in each institution on the identified key priorities and the recommended implementation plan.
• Based on inputs and feedback provided by respective partner institution and UN Women, to amend and submit the final version of the plans.

3) Reporting:

To submit a final narrative report that includes a description of the assignment’s methodology, main findings, observations, challenges and recommendations for future related programming.  Minutes of meetings, sessions, and list of interviewees should be annexed to the report.

Deliverables:

• Deliverable 1:  An approved work plan with a methodology and time frame. Expected delivery date:  two weeks   from the signature of the contract.
• Deliverable 2:  A final approved priorities and implementation plans for the five targeted institutions, along with a final narrative report.  Expected delivery date: 6 weeks from the signature of the contract.

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/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies

• Ability to lead Policy review process through consultation with stakeholders;
• Very strong background on gender;
• Experience in assessing impact of policies, strategies and measures from a gender perspective;
• Ability to manage time and meet tight deadlines;
• Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
• Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
• Proven networking, organizational and communication skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Evaluation Criteria:

This SSA modality is governed by UN Women General Terms and Conditions. UN Women will only be able to respond to applicants who meet the minimum requirements.

Candidates should clearly indicate how they meet the above-mentioned criteria in their applications.

The following documents should be submitted as part of the application. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials:

• UN Women P11 including experience in similar assignments; the P11 form can be downloaded at http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment, a signed copy should be submitted;
• Letter of Interest containing the statement on candidate’s experience and qualification against required qualification, experience and competencies.
• A sample of a previously developed document related to response to humanitarian crisis or emergency response.

Note: Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Please upload as one attachment of the documents as mentioned above online through this website

Candidates should have the ability to quickly submit degree certificates, medical certification (of good health) expression of Interest (EoI).

Evaluation of applicants

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications mentioned above, and financial proposal. A contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer receives the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria. Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 50 points in the technical evaluation will be considered for financial evaluation.

Technical Evaluation (70%) – max. 70 points.

• A Bachelor’s degree in social science, gender, development, human rights, criminology, sociology or related discipline. An advanced degree is an asset. (max. 10 points)
• At least 4 years working experience in the field of gender justice and violence against women. (max. 10 points)
• At least 2 previous assignments in developing gender focused policy papers, plans and /or strategies. (Max .5 points)
• At least 2 previous assignments related to response to humanitarian crisis. (max. 15 points)
• Previous experience with the justice, security and social sectors is an asset. (max. 10 points)
• Experience with the UN system or/and International Organizations is an asset. (max. 5 points)
• A sample of a previously developed document related to response to humanitarian crisis or emergency response. (max. 15 points)

Financial Evaluation (30%) – max. 30 points.

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 suggested formula is as follows:

p = 30 (µ/z)

Using the following values:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Only long-listed candidates will be contacted.

Financial proposal. Shortlisted candidate will be requested to submit a financial proposal. The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount breaking down a daily professional fee, proposed number of working days and any related expenses, i.e. travel and communications expenses.