International Peace and Security Advisor for Gender Responsive Conflict and Peace Analysis in Afghanistan
Contract
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Background
The Taliban takeover of Kabul on 15 August 2021 has had a seismic impact on Afghanistan. With the ascent of the Taliban, the future of women from all walks of life who have shaped the fabric of the country over the past 20 years, is unknown. The conflict dynamics in the country are multi-layered, and Afghanistan’s people are facing the devastating effects of a protracted conflict, increasing poverty and natural disasters, all of which are amplified by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the Taliban’s military offensive progressed throughout August, thousands of people fled to Kabul and other urban areas, seeking safety from the conflict and other threats. There are some 5.5 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Afghanistan, and approximately 80 percent of nearly a quarter of a million Afghans forced to flee since the end of May are women and children. (1) 2021 has to date been one of the deadliest years for Afghan women and girls, with more women and more children killed and injured than ever before recorded by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) for the first half of any calendar year. (2) More than 18 million people – fully half of the country’s population – are in need of humanitarian assistance, and almost a third of the country is facing emergency levels of food insecurity compounded by severe drought. (3)
Despite gains on women’s rights achieved over the past 20 years, Afghan women continue to struggle to avail themselves of their rights and to consolidate and advance their progress. In 2019, Afghanistan ranked 166 out of 167 countries on the Gender Development Index, an index designed to measure gender equality in three basic dimensions of human development: health, education and command over economic resources. (4) Women and girls face barriers to their participation and decision-making in the public, economic, social and political sphere. These include deeply entrenched patriarchal socio-cultural and traditional norms regarding the role of women; women’s lack of awareness of their rights, linked to low levels of literacy; a lack of access to education and economic opportunities; and harmful traditional practices such as honour killings, underage and forced marriages, and discrimination in public and private sector services delivery.
What progress has been achieved on the advancement of gender equality in Afghanistan in the past decades is now at risk of being erased - and at worst regressed. The Taliban have not yet articulated their vision for women’s rights and protection, stating only that “women’s rights will be protected under Islamic principles”. The Taliban military offensive has been marked by unlawful restrictions on the human rights of women and girls. (5)There have been reports that Afghan women and girls are already seeing restrictions on their access to health and education, freedom of movement, and freedom of expression. In a statement issued on 16 August 2021, just before the fall of Ashraf Ghani’s government, UN human rights experts warned that reports from almost half of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces show that the majority of women are experiencing the same rights violations as 20 years ago under the control of the Taliban. (6)
Many women human rights defenders and public officials who have been targeted or threatened by the Taliban now fear for their lives, and many are trying to get emergency visas and flights out of the country, though currently unable to due to closure of the airport. (7) The deterioration of security is adversely impacting the ability of women and girls to access life-saving services and realize their rights. The Taliban as de-facto authorities are using their armed fighters to maintain “law and order” in the country, but the corresponding frameworks and lines of command are unclear. Amidst the resulting security vacuum, there is a heightened risk of increased activity of other armed groups, such as the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-K) in the country.
The current security vacuum and instability in the country exacerbate pre-existing patterns of discrimination against women and girls, exposing them to heightened risks of violations of their human rights. Looking at the Taliban’s actions on the ground, two aspects are clear: (i) Oppressive gender roles are central to their governance vision and its implementation; and (ii) there is a direct link between the Taliban assuming control of a district and the imposition of rules that negatively impact the rights of women and girls and severely limit their access to protection, health, and education services.
In the context of a rapidly changing Afghanistan, there is a need to produce rapid gender analysis to leverage and optimize policy windows, as well guide UN Women’s engagement framework and operational priorities strategic framework and when they emerge, with the aim of ensuring that the international community does not compromise on or subordinate women’s rights to other agendas. Given the volatility of the context, a retainer expert is needed to support UN Women Afghanistan provide evidence-based analytical advice and products that draws on comparative examples.
[1] IOM appeal for Afghanistan, 26 August 2021 (https://www.iom.int/news/usd-24-million-urgently-needed-acute-humanitarian-needs-afghanistan); UNHCR, 13 August 2021 (https://www.unhcr.org/news/briefing/2021/8/611617c55/unhcr-warns-afghanistans-conflict-taking-heaviest-toll-displaced-women.html) and OCHA, Internal Displacement in Kabul, 15 August 2021: https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/flash_update_4_-_internal_displacement_-_kabul_15_aug_2021.pdf
[2] UNAMA: Afghanistan. Protection of Civilians in Armed Conflict Midyear Update: 1 January to 30 June 2021 (https://unama.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/unama_poc_midyear_report_2021_26_july.pdf)
[3] OCHA, June 2021 (https://www.unocha.org/story/daily-noon-briefing-highlights-afghanistan-3)
[4] Gender Development Index (GDI), United Nations Development Programme (http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/Country-Profiles/AFG.pdf)
[5] Statement from the High Commission for Human Right, 10 August 2021: https://news.un.org/en/story/2021/08/1097482
[6] https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=27384&LangID=E
[7] Informal Experts’ Group Meeting on Afghanistan to the UN Security Council, Thursday 19th August 2021.
Duties and Responsibilities
The consultant will work under supervision Programme Specialist, Women Peace and Security – UN Women Afghanistan to ensure delivery of rapid analysis and advice with the view to secure a more gender responsive approach of the international community, including UN Women’s strategic priorities vis-à-vis Afghanistan.
Scope of Rapid gender analysis and advisory support covers following.
- Rapid analysis on topics relevant to peace, security and humanitarian context in Afghanistan—at request of ACO;
- Develop think pieces, policy briefs and other documents – for internal and external audiences – to prompt critical discussion on the status of women’s rights in Afghanistan, bringing in evidence and comparative perspectives in analysis;
- Review of strategies/documents/briefs/reports/proposals at request of ACO, including gender analysis of non-gender focused documents (such as UN system wide-planning document);
- Support UN Women (including through workshops, reflection sessions, think pieces) to develop its strategic vision and engagement opportunities and optimally operationalise its mandate in the current political context in Afghanistan
- Support the drafting and development of evidence-based lines of argumentation, negotiation and talking points to support UN Women’s positioning with the UN-system and work more broadly;
- Synthesize and summarize the evidence-base on related to topics relevant to peace, security and humanitarian context in Afghanistan—at request of ACO;
- Provide high-level strategic advice, drawing on evidence related to WPS, and lessons from other contexts, on navigating entry points to advance WPS;
- Design and facilitate high-level meetings/workshops/consultations relevant to the peace, security and humanitarian context in Afghanistan;
- Design processes to bring together women leaders – inside and outside of Afghanistan – to influence policy discussions related to the future of Afghanistan;
- Other advice and analysis, as needed, to support ACO to respond to windows of opportunity to advance women’s rights and gender equality.
DELIVERABLES, TIMELINE AND SCHEDULE OF PAYMENT
No.
Deliverables
Expected Delivery Date
Quarterly Rapid gender analysis report includes policy briefs and other documents with inputs/recommendations
31 October 2022
Quarterly Rapid gender analysis report includes policy briefs and other documents with inputs/recommendations
31 December 2022
Quarterly Rapid gender analysis report includes policy briefs and other documents with inputs/recommendations
31 January 2023
Quarterly Rapid gender analysis report includes policy briefs and other documents with inputs/recommendations
30 April 2023
Quarterly Rapid gender analysis report includes policy briefs and other documents with inputs/recommendations
31 July 2023
Competencies
Core Values:
- Respect for Diversity
- Integrity
- Professionalism
Essential knowledge and experience:
- Excellent grasp of substantive gender equality and women, peace and security issues relevant to peace processes
- Substantive experience in conducting research and writing for international organizations on women, peace and security. Specific experience on women’s meaningful participation in peace processes is an added value.
- Excellent writing skills. Strong publication record on issues including gender equality and women, peace and security.
Corporate Competencies:
- Demonstrates integrity by modeling the United Nations' values and ethical standards;
- Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of the UN and UN Women;
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
- Ability and willingness to work as part of a team to meet tight deadlines and produce high quality work.
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
- Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
- Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them
- Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management
- Strong writing skills and ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making
- Strong organization skills and ability to pay close attention to detail;
- Strong policy analysis experience and knowledge of WPS;
- Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation
- Strong networking skills
- Ability to negotiate and interact with donors, identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising
Required Skills and Experience
Education and certification:
- Master’s degree or equivalent in conflict prevention and peacebuilding programming, gender/women's studies, international development, or a related field is required.
- At least 15 years progressively responsible experience in conflict prevention and peacebuilding programming, training and analysis with significant experience mainstreaming gender into analysis and planning processes.
- Experience working in the UN and multilateral organizations in conflict and post-conflict contexts.
- Experience across multiple conflict-affected contexts working in the area of women, peace and security.
- Extensive knowledge of the UN system, particularly in relation to peace and security and humanitarian response.
- Experience designing processes to bring diverse women leaders together to influence international policy process.
- Experience working with multiple partners within the UN Country Team.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English. Additional official UN language considered an asset.
- Ability to work independently and deliver on tight timelines.
- Outstanding partnership skills, particularly with civil society and government stakeholders.
- Fluency in English is required
- Additional UN language is an asset.
Evaluation:
Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis:
- Technical qualification (100 points); weight: (70%)
- Financial proposal (100 points): weight (30%)
A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the applications, with evaluation of the technical application being completed prior to any price proposal being compared.
The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:
Technical qualification evaluation criteria:
Technical Evaluation Criteria
Obtainable Score
A) Education
20%
B) Experience and skills
70%
C) Language and report writing skills
10%
Total Obtainable Score
100%
Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically-qualified candidates who may be contacted for validation interview.
Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:
- Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated.
- The total number of points allocated for the price component is 100.
- The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.
Application:
- All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from Application and recruitment process | About us: Careers at UN Women | UN Women – Headquarters Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.
Note:
In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality, and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW, and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.
Inclusion Statement:
At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employ, 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.)