National Consultant for Private Sector Engagement

Contract

This is a National Consultant contract. More about National 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.

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.

In addition, 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.

The private sector is a key partner in efforts to advance gender equality and empower women. Research shows that women’s economic empowerment contributes to economic growth, innovation, and increased performance of companies. More than 30 per cent of private sector leaders report increased profits from efforts to empower women in emerging markets (McKinsey 2010) and companies with more than one-woman board director generated additional annual return of 3.5 per cent (McKinsey 2007, Catalyst 2014). Hence, ensuring the inclusion of women’s talents, skills, and energies—from executive offices to the factory floor and the supply chain—requires intentional actions and deliberate policies.

Under the framework of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF 2023-2027);

and in alignment with the objectives of the Economic Empowerment pillar of the National Strategy for Women’s Empowerment (NSWE) and the objectives of the Closing the Gender Gap Accelerator (coordinated by the Ministry of International Cooperation in partnership with the NCW), UN Women is working with the private sector through the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs).

Established by UN Women and UN Global Compact, the WEPs are informed by international labour and human rights standards and grounded in the recognition that businesses have a stake in, and a responsibility for, gender equality and women’s empowerment. The WEPs are a primary vehicle for corporate delivery on gender equality dimensions of the 2030 agenda and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. By joining the WEPs community, the CEO signals commitment to this agenda at the highest levels of the company and to work collaboratively in multistakeholder networks to foster business

practices that empower women. These include equal pay for work of equal value, inclusive supply chain practices and zero tolerance against sexual harassment in the workplace. For more information on the WEPs, please read the WEPs brochure. To date, more than 89 business leaders from Egypt have signed the CEO Statement of Support; therefore, signaling their support to achieving gender equality and the empowerment of women and more specifically, to the guidance offered by the WEPs.

This assignment supports two programmes:

“****Women’s Economic Empowerment for Inclusive and Sustainable Growth in Egypt” – “Rabeha”:

UN Women and UNIDO are implementing this five-year program funded by Global Affairs Canada (GAC). The program aims at reaching 6,300 direct beneficiaries. The Programme reflects an integrated approach combining both upstream interventions at the policy level and downstream measures directly working with women and businesses to realize each of the three outcomes:

Outcome 1100: Increased productivity and job opportunities generated by women entrepreneurs

Outcome 1200: Increased employment of women by businesses

Outcome 1300: Reduced gender-specific barriers to women’s entrepreneurship and to women entering and remaining in the work force.

The Programme is implemented through partnerships with the National Council for Women (NCW), Ministry of Trade and Industry (MOTI) and the Micro Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency (MSMEDA).

“Women’s Economic Empowerment in Egypt” project:

UN Women Egypt and KOICA are implementing a three-year project titled “Women’s Economic Empowerment in Egypt” co-funded by UN Women and KOICA.

The project aims to ensure that women in three Governorates in Egypt are economically empowered through access to capacity development, decent employment opportunities, and increased community support for gender equality through enhanced cultural perceptions to realize the two outcomes:

• Outcome 1: A gender-responsive private sector that attracts, retains, and invests in women is expanded.
• Outcome 2: Women’s active participation in the private sector is facilitated.

Objective of the Assignment

Reporting to the UN Women Programme Analyst, under the overall supervision of the UN Women Programme Specialist and Deputy Country Representative, the consultant is to support the effective implementation of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) portfolio in the office. The consultant is expected to support the Programme team in order to provide the most suitable package of services to private sector companies interested in adopting the WEPs. This includes supporting the team in outreaching to the private sector and raising awareness about the WEPs, following up with interested companies, and monitoring the progress of companies throughout the different steps of the WEPs journey, which includes creating the online profile, finalizing the gender gap analysis, developing the WEPs action plan, implementing action items, receiving UN Women’s technical support, and communicating their experience.

Duties and Responsibilities

Supporting in Communication and Outreach Efforts to the Private Sector (tasks include but are not limited to):

• Prepare the content for videos, presentations, email templates, FAQs, and flyers that illustrate the WEPs journey, the principles, the companies’ commitment, and the services offered by UN Women, in partnership with the UN Women’s communications department.
• Coordinate WEPs outreach and awards events in collaboration with portfolio partners. The events aim to outreach to new private sector companies, and to award the best performing companies for their efforts in each of the principles. The support includes preparing and coordinating the event’s invitations and agenda, following up with partners on the list of invitees, printing material, providing administrative support to the team, and gathering the needed means of verification for the donors including attendance lists, expressions of interest, pre and post assessments, business cards, and photographs.
• Search for and outreach to other private sector companies that might be interested in joining the WEPs.
• Support UN Women’s partnership under Closing the Gender Gap Accelerator, coordinated by Ministry of International Cooperation in partnership with the National Council for Women.
• Coordinate meetings with business networks/ associations and governmental partners around potential partnerships to promote Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) in the private sector.
• Follow up with companies that express interest to join the WEPs. This includes but is not limited to:
• Sending emails and conducting follow up phone calls with company representatives;
• Coordinating meetings with the interested companies;
• Preparing material needed to address the company’s questions;
• Ensuring companies receive the support they need.

Tracking the Progress of Signatories in their WEPs Journeys and Highlighting the Follow-up Support Needed by UN Women (tasks include but are not limited to):

• Constant follow up with the different companies and consultants to track the progress of signatories in terms of their WEPs journeys, including updated information regarding the efforts they take towards achieving their action plans.
• Support private sector companies by collecting data related to the bottlenecks they face in pursuing GEWE, both internally and externally.
• Keep a constantly updated database of all companies being supported, the type of support received, the other needs they express, and the further technical support/ guidance they might need.
• Support senior WEPs consultants in gathering data and developing case studies for interested signatories.
• Administer needs assessments and evaluation surveys and collect means of verification as requested by the donors.

Deliverables

Level of Effort

Timeline

Provide support to the Programme team on the WEPs portfolio in their outreach efforts and monitoring of the progress of private sector companies

• Deliverable: Monthly report of key achievements upon certification of satisfactory performance

15 days per month (on average)

July 2023 – June 2024

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:

• Capacity to engage and communicate with partners from private sector and business associations and leverage partnerships within WEPs and other platforms;
• Good knowledge of best practices of promoting GEWE in the private sector;
• Ability to create, edit, synthesize and present information in a clear manner;
• Proven excellent written skills;
• Knowledge and expertise in private sector governance structures and operations;
• Knowledge and expertise in ESG private sector practices is an asset;
• Knowledge and expertise in gender research and policy analysis;
• Advanced analytical, problem-solving, and negotiation skills;
• Familiarity with gender-related statistics and indicators;
• Capacity to set priorities, self-organize research work and to plan, prioritize and deliver tasks on time;
• Knowledge and use of computer office tools (word, database, spreadsheets, etc.).

Required Skills and Experience

Education

• University degree in Public Administration, Business Management, Economics, Political Sciences, International Development, Statistics, Social Sciences or any related field is required;

Experience

• A minimum of 2 year of progressively responsible work experience in the development sector or the private sector in Egypt is required;
• Demonstrated knowledge of international best practices in gender equality and women’s empowerment in the private sector, required;
• Demonstrated capacity to communicate with people from different backgrounds and familiarity with business priorities and concerns, required;
• Demonstrated knowledge of human resources practices, company governance structures and/or sustainability practices, required;
• Experience working on GEWEor ESG in the private sector is an asset;
• Experience in women’s economic empowerment is an asset;

Language Requirements

• Fluency in written and spoken English and Arabic is required.

Evaluation Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology: Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for the financial evaluation.

Technical Weight Criteria: 100% (100 points)

• Criteria 1: University degree in Public Administration, Business Management, Economics, Political Sciences, International Development, Statistics, Social Sciences or any related field (20 points).
• Criteria 2: A minimum of 2 years of progressively responsible work experience in the development sector or the private sector in Egypt (20 points);
• Criteria 3: Demonstrated knowledge of international best practices in gender equality and women’s empowerment in the private sector (20 points);
• Criteria 4: Demonstrated capacity to communicate with people from different backgrounds and familiarity with business priorities and concerns (20 points);
• Criteria 5: Demonstrated knowledge of human resources practices, company governance structures and/or sustainability practices (10 points);
• Criteria 6: Experience working on GEWEor ESG in the private sector (5 points);
• Criteria 7: Experience in women’s economic empowerment (5 points).

Application:

Interested Individual Candidate must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

• 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
• A cover letter with a brief presentation of your consultancy explaining your suitability for the work and link to portfolio of work.

The above-mentioned documents should be merged in a standalone file including all them, since the online application submission does only permit to uploading one file per application. Incomplete submission can be a ground for disqualification.

Incomplete submission can be a ground for disqualification. Make sure that you provide a valid email address for future communications.

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.)