Consultant for LACRO Gender Team Strategic Reflection meeting 2022, Panama City - Home-Based 1.5 months - EXTENDED

Consultant Programme & Policy

Overview

Design and facilitate a Strategic Reflection meeting for LACRO Gender Team.

You have:

• Master’s degree in social sciences (Gender and Development, Political Science, International Relations or Sociology/Social Work, Human Rights, etc.)
• At least 10 years of experience in social justice issues such as human rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, inclusion, gender, development cooperation in the Latin America and the Caribbean region.
• Demonstrated experience in facilitating participatory and inclusive team building and/or strategic planning meetings, ideally from a feminist perspective.
• Fluency in Spanish and English (oral and written) is required.

Contract

This is a Consultancy contract. More about Consultancy contracts.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

UNICEF promotes the rights and welfare of all children and adolescents in everything we do. Together with our allies, we work in 190 countries and territories to transform this commitment into practical actions that benefit all children, especially focusing our efforts on reaching the most vulnerable and excluded, worldwide.

For every child, gender equality

The UNICEF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office is based in in Panama, operating in 36 territories, including 24 country offices.

UNICEF works to put the rights and well-being of the most disadvantaged children at the heart of the social, political, and economic agenda, in line with our equity focus, working across our organization and with our partners in government, civil society and the private sector to support shifts in public policy, fuel social engagement, and increase investment for children.

The UNICEF LACRO Gender Team is comprised of five team members, four of whom are based in Panama and one who is based in Barbados. Four are international professionals and one is a programme associate. All speak both Spanish and English with varying degrees of confidence.

The team has undergone many changes over the past year, including the transition of leadership after a five-month hiatus in early 2022. Two positions in the team have undergone change in contracting modality, if not in substance. Furthermore, the regional office is undergoing important changes in leadership, with both the Regional Director and Deputy Regional Director (to whom the Gender team reports) soon being replaced.

At the same time, UNICEF has recently adopted a new Gender Policy 2021-2030 and new Gender Action Plan 2022-2025 (internally known as ‘the GAP’).

The regional Gender team is expected to work cross-sectionally, collaborating with all UNICEF sectoral teams and 24 country offices in the region to implement the ambitious aims of the new GAP. The regional ambition and areas of focus for the Gender Section as established in the Regional Office Management Plan 2022-2025 (ROMP; produced before the new GAP came into force) can be summarized as follows:

Despite the high-level organizational policy and managerial commitments, the regional Gender section operates with limited funding, which places the team under constant pressure, both for delivery of results and for mobilizing the resources it needs to deliver on those results. Technical Gender capacity within UNICEF across the region is very limited and expectations related to the regional team’s ability to provide technical assistance to country offices are high.

Within this context, the recently arrived Regional Gender Advisor (RGA) considers it important to conduct a team meeting to explore opportunities for the team to become more efficient and effective in the delivery of GAP results in LAC, while increasing collaboration between team members and ensuring an inclusive, respectful, supportive and motivating working environment for all colleagues.

For more information about UNICEF and its work. (www.unicef.org/lac).

How can you make a difference?

Under the overall guidance of the Regional Gender Advisor, the purpose of this assignment is to design and facilitate a Strategic Reflection meeting with the UNICEF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office (LACRO) Gender Team in Panama City in September 2022.

Specific Tasks:

Under the oversight of the RGA, the consultant will conduct the following tasks, in line with the above objective:

1. Hold briefing meetings with the RGA to agree on the meeting approach and agenda and read background documents as required to deliver on the assignment.
2. Conduct individual interviews with all five team members to understand everyone’s role in the team and their respective expectations of the meeting.
3. Based on the above, design a first draft meeting agenda with methodological notes. Based on feedback by the team, produce a final agenda to be signed-off by the RGA. The methodology is expected to be inclusive, participatory and engaging.
4. Produce, or ensure the production of, all required technical inputs for the delivery of the meeting as per the approved agenda.
5. Support the team’s programme associate on logistical aspects required for the optimal delivery of the meeting at the chosen venue.
6. Facilitate a 3-day in-person meeting, working closely with the RGA to ensure the agenda is evolving as expected, while remaining flexible for any necessary adjustments during the course of the meeting.

7. Produce a brief report outlining the main discussions held during the meeting and follow-up actions agreed by team members.

   The RGA welcomes the adoption of feminist leadership principles in the conceptualization, design and facilitation of the meeting.

Expected Results:

All written deliverables will be produced in English. The meeting can be conducted in a mix of English and Spanish to ensure all team members can meaningfully and confidently engage in discussions.

• Agenda and methodological notes
• Facilitation of in-person meeting
• Final meeting report in English (max 5 pages)

Deliverables

Description

Expected deadline

First draft agenda and methodological notes

September 8, 2022

Final draft agenda and methodological notes

September 16, 2022

Facilitation of in-person meeting

September 26, 27 and 28, 2022

Final meeting report in English (max 5 pages)

October 10, 2022

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• Education: Master’s degree in social sciences (Gender and Development, Political Science, International Relations or Sociology/Social Work, Human Rights, etc.)
• Work Experience: At least 10 years of experience working in social justice issues such as human rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, inclusion, gender, development cooperation, etc. in the Latin America and the Caribbean region. Demonstrated experience in facilitating participatory and inclusive team building and/or strategic planning meetings, ideally from a feminist perspective. Experience facilitating meetings and/or processes for international development/aid organizations, preferably UN agencies.}
• Languages: Fluency in Spanish and English is required. The consultant will be expected to work fluently in both Spanish and English (oral and written). *Please note language levels used in UNICEF are fluent, proficient, intermediate, and basic.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

UNICEF competencies: building and maintains partnerships, demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness, drive to achieve results for impact, innovates and embraces change, manages ambiguity and complexity, thinks and acts strategically, works collaboratively with others and nurtures, and, leads and manages people.

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

Administrative details:

Supervision: The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the Regional Gender Advisor.

Workplace: The consultant will work mostly remotely, although preparatory in-person meetings with the RGA and other team members based in Panama City will be encouraged. The meeting itself will be conducted in person at a venue yet to be chosen in Panama City. It is assumed that the consultant will be based in Panama City and therefore no travel expenses will be covered.

How to Apply? Application should be submitted online and should include: Resume, Cover Letter, University Diploma and Financial proposal by products and proposal and a brief workplan including a proposed methodological approach.

Two payments will be made to the contracted consultant in local currency (US dollars):

• 30% of the approved budget against the approval of the final meeting agenda and methodological notes
• 70% of the approved budget against the approval of the final meeting report

Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

Insurance: The selected consultant must demonstrate a proof of medical insurance prior to the beginning of the consultancy and must be valid for the entire duration of the contract. In duty stations where UNICEF provides medical evacuation, the medical insurance that the contractor holds should include provisions for medical evacuation.

Duration of contract: Tentatively from September 1st to October 10th (1.5 months)

Vacancy Announcement Remarks:

Please note only short-listed candidates will be contacted. UNICEF reserves the right to make additional assessment of the pre-selected candidates, if needed UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles 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.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.

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Potential interview questions

Added 3 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unicef.org