Consultant: Gender Transformative Strategy for Belize

Contract

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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.

For every child, hope.

Location: Remote/Home Based Consultancy

Duration: 90 days within 4 months

Start Date: February 2022

End Date: June 2022

Supervisor: Belize Gender Focal Point, M&E Associate

Background

Gender equality is essential to realizing the mandate of UNICEF to uphold the rights of all children. UNICEF’s Gender Action Plan (GAP) 2018-2021 guides the organization’s promotion of gender equality throughout its work. The GAP elaborates the 13 gender programmatic results across the five goals of the UNICEF Strategic Plan 2018-2021. Eight results focus on integrating gender across sectoral programming, under two themes: gender equality in outcomes for boys and girls and in care and support for women and children. Five results focus on the empowerment and wellbeing of adolescent girls, through ending child marriage and early unions, promoting gender-responsive adolescent health, advancing girls’ secondary education, and addressing gender-based violence in emergencies.

Read the full GAP here: https://www.unicef.org/gender/files/2018-2021-Gender_Action_Plan-Rev.1.pdf

The UNICEF Gender Action Plan (GAP), 2022–2025, operationalizes the UNICEF Gender Policy, 2021–2030, by specifying how UNICEF will promote gender equality across its programmes and workplaces.

UNICEF’s Gender Action plan 2021-2030 places a special emphasis on promoting the leadership and wellbeing of girls and women, recognizing that they continue to bear the brunt of multiple intersecting deprivations. The Policy highlights the history, vision, and strategic comparative advantages of UNICEF related to gender equality and articulates the commitment of the organization to achieving its vision through strategic partnerships, amplified investments in transformative programmes and policies, and, importantly, improving the ways in which UNICEF conducts its work It affirms that promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls is the responsibility of everyone, regardless of organizational role. The GAP elaborates the steps required to accelerate progress on gender equality across the five Goal Areas of the UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2022–2025, as well as within institutional systems and processes, with clear indicators and monitoring mechanisms to track change.

Read the full GAP here: https://www.unicef.org/executiveboard/documents/UNICEF-Gender-Action-Plan-2022%E2%80%932025-SRS-2021

The GAP builds on an increasing knowledge base on gender equality, including current evidence regarding the gendered effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. It responds to lessons learned from the implementation of previous GAPs and an extensive global consultative process with staff, partners and young people. It is grounded in the human rights principles of non-discrimination and equality and articulates the role of UNICEF, as a collaborator with Governments and other partners, in supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Objective

Recognizing that gender discrimination has lifelong and intergenerational impacts, the GAP advances gender equality throughout the life course. At the same time, it promotes targeted actions to advance the leadership and well-being of adolescent girls, as girls are both disproportionately affected by gender inequality and have tremendous potential to be leaders for change. This dual-track approach goes beyond responding to the manifestations of gender inequality to tackle its underlying drivers, including by engaging boys and men as allies; advancing upstream financing and policy solutions; and supporting girls’ agency and voice.

UNICEF is committed to leaving no one behind and recognizes that gender intersects with multiple risks faced by the poorest and the most marginalized and excluded groups, including heightened risk of discrimination and neglect related to disability, racism, xenophobia, sexual orientation and gender identity, ethnicity, urbanization, migration and displacement, natural disasters and armed conflicts, or any other reason.

To address gender inequality, the Belize country programme identifies the following areas of focus:

1. Promote gender equality and the empowerment of girls and women, in line with the Gender Action Plan 2022-2025.
2. Strengthen institutions to promote early childhood care, gender socialization, gender transformation and healthy lifestyles.
3. Strengthen national capacities for generating timely, quality, disaggregated and gender-sensitive data to provide evidence for research, policy decisions and the monitoring of child rights.
4. Monitor progress in addressing gendered bottlenecks that inhibit gender equality, gender transformative agenda and the realization of capabilities, resources and opportunities for children through the indicators consolidated in the UNICEF Gender Action Plan.
5. Strengthen the Belize Country Office leadership and accountability for Gender Equity and Women Empowerment in the following areas:

• Gender-based violence, including domestic violence, is mitigated, and reduced
• Social protection packages serve women and girls
• Accelerate the implementation of the road map to address child marriage and early union

The Gender Programmatic Review and Gender Action Plan will feed into the 2022-2026 Country Programme and rolling work plans. The Gender Programmatic Review highlights how a Country Programme can strengthen gender programming in alignment with the GAP and Strategic Plan 2022-2026. Across all five Goal Areas of the UNICEF Strategic Plan, 2022–2025, the GAP both advances gender equality priorities throughout the life course, promotes targeted actions to advance the leadership and well-being of adolescent girls, promotes sustainable programmes which are led by people who understand and address the key challenges facing girls and their families including smart programming for girls. The gender programme view will determine to what extent the 2022-2026 Country Programme Document:

1. Allows for adjustments in internal policies and systems to transform the organization into a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable institution.
2. Emphasizes structural and norms change (in the dual track approach)– going beyond responding to the manifestations of gender inequality to tackling the underlying drivers.
3. Allows for the institutional accountability for gender, including human and financial resources.

Purpose

The purpose of this consultancy is to lead and support the undertaking of the Gender Peer Review exercises in order to shape and refine country programme planning alignment with the UNICEF Gender Action Plan 2022-2026, and to inform UNICEF contributions to the United Nations Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework ongoing reviews.

Expected Results:

1. An analysis of the 5 Gender Action Plan gender goals along established criteria, and against existing country programme outputs and activities. Identify key gaps and entry point for institutionalizing for the gender transformative approach.
2. Propose and identify a clear set of action points to strengthen gender equity programming for transformative results including discriminatory gender norms. and programmatic interventions as part of the CPD.
3. Preparation of a report documenting the key findings and agreements of the GPR, in a way that facilitates integration into the relevant country programme documents.
4. Draft 2022-2025 Belize Country Office Gender Strategy.
5. Prepare a Belize Country Office Gender capacity statement. The Consultant will be responsible for the development of the content and Country Office will undertake design and other publishing -related issues.
6. Capacity building for UN staff and implementing partners on gender responsive and gender transformative programme.

Deliverable Timeframe

The consultant will work collaboratively with relevant country office staff to conduct the gender review, and execute the following deliverables within the indicated timeframe:

Deliverables****Estimated Number of Days1. Inception report completed detailing understanding of TOR, agreed methodology and work plan.42. Analysis of 5 GAP goals (desk review), prioritization of subset for in-depth review, agreement reached with relevant Country Office staff.63. In-depth analysis completed, including identification of bottlenecks, programmatic solutions, outputs and indicators – agreed on with relevant UNICEF staff. This will include fields visits.204. GPR findings expressed in template with strategic and concrete recommendations55. Draft Gender Strategy256. Training materials on gender and child rights; UNICEF GAP implementation developed (in collaboration with Latin America CRO Regional Advisor).157. Final reports of Gender Programmatic Review58. Training of UNICEF staff and implementing partners5Total:****90 Days****Supervision

The contract Is under the overall supervision of the Belize Gender Focal Point. The Regional Gender Advisor will support the country offices, and the consultant, as needed; and directly oversee the development of training materials for UNICEF staff with the consultant.

Payment Schedule

Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed deliverables which receive satisfactory quality review. In general, individual contracts shall not allow for fee advances. However, a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value may be authorized by the Approving Authority in cases where advance purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary.

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

• A Master’s degree in Social Sciences, Public Health, or International Development
• A minimum 8 years of strong technical skills in gender, research and ability to support countries especially on gender assessments or reviews.

• Substantive and programmatic experience in gender issues, with an understanding of social change, is essential.

  • Demonstrated experience in using the evidence base on gender in shaping and implementing programmes.

  • Strong analytical skills in gender programme design and assessment, ideally at the national level

  • Some prior experience with UNICEF or UN agency programme planning

  • Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with strong interpersonal and presentation skills.

Administrative Matters

The work will be performed remotely. The consultant will provide own materials, and ICT equipment.

Conditions of Service

Before commencing work, a consultant or individual contractor shall submit a statement of good health and take full responsibility for the accuracy of that statement, including confirmation that he or she has been informed of the inoculations required for the country or countries to which travel is authorized. Consultants and individual contractors shall assume all costs that may occur in relation to the statement of good health. Consultants and individual contractors are required to certify that they are covered by medical/health insurance.

Recourse

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. Performance indicators against which the satisfactory conclusion of this contract will be assessed include: timeliness/quality of submission and responsiveness to UNICEF and counterpart feedback.

Title Rights

All materials created by the Contractor which bears a direct relation to, or is made in order to perform, this contract and any intellectual property rights thereof, including but not limited to patents, copyright and trademarks, shall be jointly owned by UNICEF and the Contractor. At the request of UNICEF, the Contractor shall assist in securing such property rights and transferring them to UNICEF in compliance with the requirements of the law governing such rights. Any third-party usage shall require written permission from both parties.

Trainings

Consultants and Individual contractors, even those working from home, must complete the following online courses prior to signature of contract. All certificates should be presented as part of the contract:

• Ethics and Integrity at UNICEF
• Prevention of Sexual Harassment & Abuse of Authority
• Sexual Exploitation Abuse (PSEA)

Consultants and Individual Contractors must complete the following course before commencement of any travel on behalf of UNICEF.

• BSAFE Security Training

Any consultant or individual contractor who is issued a UNICEF email address must complete the following courses no later than 30 days after signature of contract.

• UNICEF Information Security Awareness Course
• Fraud Awareness

How To Apply

Prospective consultants should apply through UNICEF jobs website using the link provided No later than 6th February 2022. The application package should include the following:

1. A cover letter;
2. Detailed curriculum vitae
3. A proposal stipulating all-inclusive fees, including lump sum travel and subsistence costs, as applicable.

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 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.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

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.