International Consultant to conduct analysis on Gender Equality in Foreign Policy in North Macedonia

Contract

This is a International Consultant contract. More about International Consultant contracts.

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 leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality (GE) and gender mainstreaming translate into action globally. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

Progress of North Macedonia in recent years respecting and promoting Gender Equality is highlighted in a series of international commitments and in national legal and policy frameworks. The main achievements in the field of gender equality and women’s empowerment reside in the Country’s institutional capacity development for the work on gender equality. Indeed, the legal provisions guaranteeing women’s rights and gender equality are largely in place – the Law of Equal Opportunities of Women and Men, the Election Law amendment instituting quotas, the Action Plan for the implementation of UNSCR 1325 (2020-2025), and the ratification of the Istanbul Convention are normative achievements that influence the institutional practice in promoting gender equality in North Macedonia.

However, gaps in policy development and slow implementation of the adopted legislation constitute important structural obstacles to achieving gender equality. Improvements are needed in both strengthening institutional capacities and enhancing cooperation between the gender mechanisms, the key ministries and civil society organizations in order to increase gender mainstreaming in all aspect of government work - primarily policy development and budgeting - as the means for achieving gender equality.

In line with the European Council’s decision of March 2020 to open accession negotiations with the Country, the Sida-funded project “Gender Equality Facility” (GEF) aims at supporting the Government of North Macedonia in transposing the EU Gender Equality acquis, strengthening the effective implementation of national and international legal frameworks on gender equality and women’s rights, mainstreaming gender equality into EU integration and planning processes for pre-accession assistance, and strengthening institutional mechanisms for gender equality in line with EU standards. Thereby, GEF supports institutions to correctly align with the EU Gender Equality acquis. The intervention will also address challenges in implementation of laws and gender equality policies by providing support for enhancing coordination and monitoring of gender equality policies and measures. In the medium to longer-term, and in line with the EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025 and the Principles of the EU Gender Action Plan III (2021-2025), the Project aims to secure implementation/application of gender equality legislation, policies and standards through policy dialogue, technical expertise and guidance, development and sharing of good practice, and strategic partnerships and cooperation.

The main partners of the Project are the Secretariat for European Affairs (SEA, the main project beneficiary), Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA) structures, the Equal Opportunities Department at the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy (MLSP), and National Gender Machinery institutions.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the GEF Project Manager, and the direct supervision of the GEF Output Coordinator for Result 2, the International Consultant will be responsible for performing the below key activities:

• Design workplan and methodology for data collection and analysis;
• Conduct desk review of relevant national, EU and international legal and strategic documents, policies, as well as knowledge products;
• Conduct desk review of available analyses and reports, focusing specifically on gender aspects of foreign policy in North Macedonia;
• Undertake a stakeholder analysis of main actors relevant for the analysis of gender and foreign policy;
• Perform data collection, as established with the methodology approved by UN Women;
• Analyze the data and information obtained during the data collection and desk review period;
• Draft a thematic analysis on gender and foreign policy in North Macedonia;
• Extract main findings on gender issues, including but not limited to possible gaps identified at legal, policy, budgetary, decision-making, and implementation levels;
• Prepare a succinct set of recommendations for areas of improvement with specific focus on the advancement of gender mainstreaming;
• Submit final report on the assignment to UN Women;
• Any other tasks and responsibilities, as assigned.

Main expected outputs/deliverables:

Activity/Task

Results / Expected Outputs

Indicative Days

Tentative Timeframe

• Prepare work plan for the assignment with clear methodology and timeline of activities.

• Work plan with outlined methodology and timeline, approved by UN Women

1

By 12 July 2023

• Desk review of relevant national, EU and international documents, relevant analyses and reports, with focus on gender.

• List of relevant documents, analyses, reports, and other relevant sources, approved by UN Women

2

By 14 July 2023

• Perform data collection, in accordance with the agreed methodology.

• Summarize findings from desk review and data collection.

• First draft of thematic analysis, with inputs and comments by UN Women

15

By 11 August 2023

• Prepare specific recommendations.

• Finalize thematic analysis.

• Consolidated thematic analysis report, approved by UN Women

6

By 28 August 2023

• Final report on the assignment to UN Women.

• Final individual report on the assignment

1

By 30 August 2023

Total

25

Duration and remuneration

The duration of the contract will be for a period of 1.5 months, with a maximum of 25 (twenty-five) working days to perform the specified tasks. Payment will be made in one installment upon satisfactory completion of tasks and deliverables.

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:

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Shares knowledge and experience
• Seeks and applies knowledge, information, and best practices from within and outside UN Women
• Development and Operational Effectiveness
• Demonstrates excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Communicates sensitively, effectively and creatively across different constituencies
• Demonstrates very good understanding of and experience in communications and outreach/advocacy
• Ability to perform a variety of standard specialized and non-specialized tasks and work processes that are fully documented, researched, recorded and reported
• Ability to review a variety of data, identify and adjust discrepancies, identify and resolve operational problems
• Uses Information Technology effectively as a tool and resource

Leadership and Self-Management

• Focuses on result for the client and responds positively to feedback
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure
• Proven networking skills and ability to generate interest in UN Women’s mandate
• Identifies opportunities and builds strong partnerships with clients and partners

Required Skills and Experience

The selected candidates shall possess:

• Master’s degree in gender studies, social studies, public policy, development studies, or any other degree relevant to the requirements of the ToR.
• A minimum of 7 years of demonstrated relevant professional experience in the field of gender equality, gender mainstreaming, women’s empowerment, human rights, or similar;
• Proven experience in conducting gender analysis, gender research, gender assessments, and/or knowledge products related to gender equality (examples of work provided). Experience of work on women, peace and security issues will be considered as an asset;
• Demonstrated experience in working with government institutions at central and/or local level, with focus on capacity building, awareness raising, or other activity related to gender equality, will be considered as an advantage;
• Proven experience in working with programmes and projects funded by UN, EU, and other similar international organization will be considered as an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency and excellent writing skills in English.

Other skills:

• Good computer skills in Windows environment, knowledge of internet communication and command of MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Power Point), Zoom and MS Teams.

  Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

• Financial Proposal specifying the daily fee in US Dollars (USD) for the tasks specified above. Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period (e.g., fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services).

• Payment will be made as per the payment schedule in the contract upon (i) satisfactory completion of tasks; (ii) provision of deliverables specified in the ToRs; (iii) submission of and approval by UN Women; and (iv) submission of the certification of payment.

Evaluation of applicants:

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Having received the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria.

Technical Evaluation –70 points:

• Master’s degree in gender studies, social studies, public policy, development studies, or any other degree relevant to the requirements of the ToR. (max. 10 points)
• A minimum of 7 years of demonstrated relevant professional experience in the field of gender equality, gender mainstreaming, women’s empowerment, human rights, or similar; (max. 20 points)
• Proven experience in conducting gender analysis, gender research, gender assessments, and/or knowledge products related to gender equality (examples of work provided). Experience of work on women, peace and security issues will be considered as an asset; (max. 20 points)
• Demonstrated experience in working with government institutions at central and/or local level, with focus on capacity building, awareness raising, or other activity related to gender equality, will be considered as an advantage; (max. 10 points)
• Proven experience in working with programmes and projects funded by UN, EU, and other similar international organization will be considered as an asset. (max. 10 points)

Financial Evaluation – 30 points

• Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (49 points) in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.
• 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. The calculation formula applied is as follows:

p = 30 (µ/z); where: p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated; µ = price of the lowest priced proposal; z = price of the proposal being evaluated.

Recommended Presentation of Offer:

Qualified and interested candidates are asked to submit their application no later than the deadline indicated above:

• A Letter of Confirmation of Interest including a brief description explaining why the individual considers her/himself as the most suitable for the assignment.
• Completed and signed UN Women Personal History Form (P11) that can be downloaded at https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Copies/reference/links to examples of relevant/related reports or documents prepared/authored in the past.
• Financial Proposal specifying the total lumpsum in US Dollars for the tasks specified in this assignment.

How to Submit the Application:

To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

• Download and complete the UN Women Personal History Form (P11)- http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Merge your UN Women Personal History Form (P11), the Financial Proposal, and the Letter of Confirmation of Interest into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded.
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement).
• Click 'Apply Now' button, fill in necessary information on the first page, and then click 'Submit Application;'
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (underlined above).
• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

Notes:

• UN Women retains the right to contact references directly. Due to the large numbers of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process.
• Applications without the financial offer will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.
• Candidates should have the ability to quickly produce degree certificates and medical certification (of good health) for consideration of the consultancy post.