National Consultant: Trainer on Green Business Practices for Egyptian Women in Upper Egypt

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 of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

In line with UN Women’s Strategic Plan 2018-2022, the UN Women Egypt Country Office is contributing to three interdependent and interconnected outcomes:

•   Women lead, participate in and benefit equally from governance systems;

•   Women have income security, decent work and economic autonomy;

•   All women and girls live a life free from all forms of violence.

Women’s economic empowerment is central to realizing women’s rights and gender equality. Women’s economic empowerment includes women’s ability to participate equally in existing markets; their access to and control over productive resources, access to decent work, control over their own time, lives and bodies; and increased voice, agency and meaningful participation in economic decision-making at all levels from the household to international institutions. Empowering women in the economy and closing gender gaps in the world of work are key to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 5, to achieve gender equality, and Goal 8, to promote full and productive employment and decent work for all; also Goal 1 on ending poverty, Goal 2 on food security, Goal 3 on ensuring health and Goal 10 on reducing inequalities.

Duties and Responsibilities

To capitalize on the national priorities related to combating the impacts of climate change through green and environmentally conscious business practices, UN Women is intending to hire a national consultant to conduct a 10-day vocational training on green business practices for Egyptian women in Upper Egypt including social business modeling, plastic bag recycling and upcycling home décor. This training aims at inspiring Egyptian women to start their own green businesses and to generate sustainable income for themselves and their families.

The consultant is required to provide the following:

• Conduct a 5-day training in Minya for 27 women participants (pre-selected by UNW) on introduction to social business[1], plastic bag recycling and upcycling home décor;
• Conduct a 5-day training in Beni-Suef for 27 women participants (pre-selected by UNW) on social business modeling, plastic bag recycling, and upcycling of home décor;
• To ensure appropriate upcycling knowledge is provided to all participants in all sessions.
• Submit a final report outlining the training findings, recommendations, and the complete list of participants including photos that document the training, and quotes from trainees on the impact of the training.

[1] Social business modeling is about building the skills of women in terms of challenges she might face when starting a green business. The model will go through the phases of the business from design, product, solution, matchmaking.

Duration of the Assignment:

A total of 12 days equivalent time is estimated for this consultancy work from 15 February – 31 March 2023.

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

• Experience in and understanding of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment;
• Good communication and interpersonal skills;
• Awareness of Egypt’s culture, social issues, social norms and values, gender equality and social inclusion;
• Demonstrated analytical skills on issues related to gender, social, and economic aspects;
• Strong analytical and innovative skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Education

• A minimum of a bachelor’s degree in applied arts, fine arts, product design, marketing, or related studies, is required.
• Additional certification in gender studies, is an asset.

Experience 

• Minimum 5 years of experience in conducting similar training on green businesses, upcycling, and product design, is a must.
• Demonstrated experience in social entrepreneurship and environmentally conscious business practices, is required.
• Previous experience in pricing and sales of items upcycled.  
• Supervising experience is desirable, ideally within a customer service environment.
• Previous experience in observing deficiencies during the training,
• Experience working with the UN System, preferably in a similar assignment, with the target segment. 

Language

• Good command in usage English and Arabic is required.

Evaluation Criteria

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology: Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for the financial evaluation.

Technical Weight Criteria: 70% (70 points)

1. A minimum of a bachelor’s degree in applied arts, fine arts, Product Design, or related studies. (5 points)
2. Minimum 5 years of experience in conducting similar training in green businesses, upcycling, product design, and pricing and sales of items upcycled (40 points)
3. Demonstrated experience in social entrepreneurship and environmentally conscious business practices. (20 points)
4. Good command in usage English and Arabic. (5 points)

Financial Proposal

The Financial proposal of the consultant should include all the consultant costs (fees, transportation, accommodation, the material of the training, ..etc) in both Minya and Beni Suef.

Financial Weight Criteria: 30% (30 points) – Lowest Financial Lumpsum Proposal

The points for the Financial Proposal will be allocated as per the following formula:

• Contract will be awarded to the most technically qualified consultant who obtains the highest combined score (financial and technical)
• The points for the Financial Proposal will be allocated as per the following formula: (Lowest Bid Offered*)/ (Bid of the Consultant) x 30; 'Lowest Bid Offered' refers to the lowest price offered by Offerors scoring at least 49 points in the technical evaluation.

Application

Interested Individual Consultants must submit the following documents/information in English to demonstrate their qualifications:

• Portfolio of previous work must be submitted showcasing experience;
• Completed and Signed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment; make sure that you provide a valid email address for future communications, and
• The financial proposal is to be submitted based on the lump sum in EGP.

IMPORTANT: The above-mentioned documents should be merged in a standalone file including all of them, since the online application submission only permits one file upload per application. Incomplete submission can be grounds for disqualification.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)