National Consultant on Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE)

Contract

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

Background

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (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, humanitarian action, human rights and peace and security. UN Women provides support to Member States’ efforts and priorities in meeting their gender equality goals and for building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) is one of the key development areas for UN Women. From 2019 to 2023 (May), UN Women with the generous support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway implemented the first phase of the Good Governance for Gender Equality in Georgia (GG4GEG) project. The WEE component of the project worked with the public-private sector to sustain women’s economic empowerment through access to entrepreneurial and employment opportunities.

To accelerate the achievement of the project’s ambitious goals and objectives and for the sustainability of the results, UN Women has started the implementation of the second phase of the GG4GEG project in July 2023 for the next thirty months. Project acknowledges the women as the key drivers of entrepreneurship and innovation growth and jobs and the importance of the private sector in ensuring that women can participate and contribute to the economy. In support of this idea, the project persistently continues to promote women’s economic empowerment in the private sector in Georgia by applying the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs). The project also incorporates the findings and recommendations of the recent Assessment of Women’s Entrepreneurship Development (WED)[1] in Georgia that shed light on the specific barriers faced by women entrepreneurs in the country and identify locally adapted and strategic recommendations to unleash the potential of women entrepreneurs.

One of the key state partners of the project is the Ministry of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia (MoESD) and its affiliated agencies, including Enterprise Georgia, the Georgian Innovation and Technology Agency (GITA) and the Georgian National Tourism Administration (GNTA). With the support of the project, all above mentioned state partners examined their activities from a gender perspective and identified strengths and weaknesses in promoting gender equality by conducting a Participatory Gender Audits (PGAs). Completed technical assistance allowed the organizations to enhance their collective capacity (at the individual, work unit and organization levels) to effectively mainstream gender. Enterprise Georgia and GITA have been further supported to implement PGA recommendations by not only developing action-oriented plans and improving the organisational capacity but also there has been provided additional technical assistance to sustain the implementation process.

One of the identified gaps and recommendations of the recent Assessment of Women’s Entrepreneurship Development (WED) in Georgia is the lack of presence of a government focal point for the promotion and coordination of WED and support actions, therefore, the study identified the MoESD and its subsidiary agencies mentioned above, will highly benefit from having a dedicated staff / expertise to pursue the development of women’s entrepreneurship in a sustainable manner.[2]

To support the implementation of the recommendations of the WED, the UN Women Georgia Country office is hiring a Local Consultant to advise on Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) and coordinate the work within the MoESD and its subsidiary entities – Enterprise Georgia, GITA, GNTA.

[1] The WED Assessment is available on-line at: https://georgia.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2023-05/National%20Assessment%20of%20WED%20ENG.pdf

[2] Assessment of Women’s Entrepreneurship Development (WED) in Georgia, 2023

Duties and Responsibilities

The Consultant on Women's Economic Empowerment will play a crucial role in advancing gender equality and women's economic empowerment within the MoESD and its affiliated entities. The consultant will work closely with various stakeholders to ensure that gender considerations are mainstreamed into policies, programs, and initiatives aimed at promoting women's economic empowerment. Here are the key duties and responsibilities of the consultant:

1. Review and Mapping of Policies and Programmes, workplan development
   • Conduct a comprehensive review and mapping of existing policies and programs within the Ministry of Economy and its subsidiary entities (Enterprise Georgia, Georgian National Tourism Administration, Georgian Innovation and Technology Agency) and identify opportunities and requirements for gender mainstreaming.
   • Coordinate with the representatives of the above-mentioned entities, pinpoint areas with gender mainstreaming needs and outline the work plan.
   • Facilitate the establishment of effective cooperation and communication mechanisms with the MoESD and its affiliated entities to ensure smooth integration of gender mainstreaming efforts.
2. Gender Mainstreaming in Implementation, Monitoring, and Evaluation
   • Assist in integrating gender perspectives into the implementation, monitoring, and evaluation processes of all relevant policies, programs, and action plans within the Ministry of Economy and its affiliated entities. This support extends to assist partners in piloting, testing, and adopting Gender Impact Assessment (GIA) elements in policy and program planning and monitoring.
   • Collaborate with entities to review and revise existing initiatives to align them with gender mainstreaming principles.
   • Mainstream gender in the work of regional branches or hubs of the relevant entities to ensure consistent implementation across different locations.
   • Provide technical advice and support in designing interventions focused on women’s economic empowerment, with a specific focus on rural women’s economic engagement.
3. Collaboration with Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs):
   • Establish and maintain efficient collaboration and communication channels with NGOs, particularly those focused on women's economic empowerment, both in Tbilisi and various regions of Georgia.
   • Connect NGOs to the activities of the Women's Economic Empowerment project to ensure alignment of efforts.
4. Capacity Development and Training:
   • Identify the training and capacity-building needs of the staff regarding women's economic empowerment and gender mainstreaming.
   • Organise relevant workshops, and training sessions to enhance staff understanding and competence in gender-related matters.
   • Collaborate with relevant teams to establish a system for collecting, analyzing, and reporting sex-disaggregated data.
   • Ensure that gender-specific data is collected and utilized to inform policy and program decisions.
   • Assist in the establishment and operationalization of a complaints mechanism for addressing sexual harassment issues within the entities.

The consultant will perform any other relevant duties as required to support the Ministry of Economy and its affiliated entities in achieving their gender mainstreaming goal.

The Consultant will be reimbursed based on the submission of periodic (monthly) reports.

Deliverables:

1. Inception report on the assignment that needs to be performed under the defined duties and responsibilities by October 25, 2023
2. Narrative report 1, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by November 25, 2023
3. Narrative report 2, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by December 25, 2023
4. Narrative report 3, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by January 25, 2023
5. Narrative report 4, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by February 25, 2023
6. Narrative report 5, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by March 25, 2023
7. Narrative report 6, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by April 25, 2023
8. Narrative report 7, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by May 25, 2023
9. Narrative report 8, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by June 25, 2023
10. Narrative report 9, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by July 25, 2023
11. Narrative report 10, on the activities performed as a part of the assignment by August 25, 2023
12. Final report of delivered activities under the assignment, including recommendations on further development by September 25, 2023

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

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in gender/women's studies, international development, economics, law, or a related field

Experience:

• At least 3 years of experience in the design and implementation of economic/entrepreneurship development projects.
• At least 3 years of work experience on women’s issues. Including at least 1 year of work experience with a focus on gender and women’s economic empowerment.
• At least 2 years of experience coordinating and liaising with government agencies, local stakeholders, CSOs and/or donors.
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or international organizations is considered an asset.

Language:

• Fluency in English and Georgian

Evaluation Procedure:

The candidates will be evaluated in three stages: according to minimum qualification criteria; technical and financial evaluation.

The candidates must possess the following minimum qualification criteria to be eligible for further technical evaluation:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in gender/women's studies, international development, economics, law, or a related field
• At least 3 years of experience in the design and implementation of economic/entrepreneurship development projects.
• At least 3 years of work experience on women’s issues. Including at least 1 year of work experience with a focus on gender and women’s economic empowerment.
• Fluency in English and Georgian

Technical evaluation criteria (including minimum qualifications):

• Master’s degree or equivalent in gender/women's studies, international development, economics, law, or a related field (max 30 points).
• At least 3 years of experience in the design and implementation of economic/entrepreneurship development projects (max 100 points)
• At least 3 years of work experience on women’s issues. Including at least 1 year of work experience with a focus on gender and women’s economic empowerment (max 100 points)
• At least 2 years of experience coordinating and liaising with government agencies, local stakeholders, CSOs and/or donors (max 90 points).
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or international organizations is considered an asset (Max 10 points).
• Fluency in English and Georgian (max 20 points).

The maximum total technical score amounts to 350 points. Only candidates who have passed over the minimum qualification criteria and have accumulated at least 245 points out of a maximum of 350 under technical evaluation will qualify for the next stage i.e. evaluation of their financial proposals.

Evaluation of submitted financial offers will be done based on the following formula: S = Fmin / F * 150

S – score received on financial evaluation.

Fmin – the lowest financial offer out of all the submitted offers qualified over the technical evaluation round.

F – financial offer under consideration.

The winning candidate will be the candidate, who has accumulated the highest aggregated score (technical scoring + financial scoring).

Management arrangements:

The contractor will report to and work under the direct supervision of UN Women Good Governance for Gender Equality in Georgia (GG4GEG), Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Programme Analyst and under the overall supervision of the UN Women Deputy Country Representative.

Financial arrangements:

Payment will be disbursed monthly, upon submission and approval of listing deliverables undertaken and upon certification by UN Women National Programme Analyst that the services have been satisfactorily performed.

Application submission package:

• Duly filled in Personal History Form PHF11 that can be downloaded from: https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment/application-process
• CV.
• Financial Proposal - lump sum proposal/offer* in USD (including breakdown of this lump sum amount, indicating all necessary costs to complete this assignment).

*The applicants are required to submit an aggregated financial offer: “aggregated financial offer” is the total sum of all financial claims of the candidate, including travel costs (ticket, DSA etc.) for accomplishment of all tasks spelled out in this ToR.

How to Submit the Application:

• Download and complete the UN Women Personal History Form (P11)- https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment/application-process
• Merge your UN Women Personal History Form (P11), CV and the Financial Proposal 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.
• The individual consultants should take the mandatory learning security course prior to commencement of assignment– details will follow before the issuance of contract.

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.)