National Consultant to support the Final Evaluation of the second phase of the Project Support to Priority Actions for Gender Equality in Serbia

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Belgrade (Serbia)

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Application deadline 7 months ago: Monday 4 Sep 2023 at 23:59 UTC

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Background

Background of the project

UN Women is the lead agency within the UN system on gender equality and women’s empowerment, mandated to promote, and coordinate efforts to advance the full realization of women’s rights and opportunities. UN Women brings global technical expertise in gender equality and women’s empowerment, and links local and regional interventions with global best practices, including work on the Sustainable Development Goals. Placing women's rights at the center of all its efforts, the UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality 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.

The Republic of Serbia is a signatory to a number of important international treaties, which guarantee the equality of men and women and prohibit gender-based discrimination, most notably the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Istanbul Convention. National commitments on gender equality are in place, such as the National Strategy and Action Plan for Gender Equality and the Gender Equality Law. Despite the existing legal and policy framework, gender inequalities are prominent in Serbia and present in all spheres of life, in access to resources, in participation to decision-making processes and in interpersonal relations.

Through its programmes and projects, UN Women is providing technical assistance to national partners (governmental and non-governmental) in the implementation of existing international and national commitments to women’s rights and gender equality, it facilitates networking and exchange of good practices and advocates for women’s rights and gender equality in all areas of life.

UN Women Programme Office in Serbia works towards selected development results in the framework of several projects to effectively coordinate and promote accountability for the implementation of gender equality commitments and advancing gender responsive policies and budgeting in Serbia. UN Women places a special focus on the position of vulnerable groups of women and is investing efforts in advocacy for their rights. Many great results have been achieved related to gender responsive budgeting, combating violence against women and strengthening mechanisms for gender equality which need to be captured and distributed to broader audiences for their learning and use in the future.

UN Women Programme Office in Serbia is implementing second phase of the three-year Project “Support to Priority Actions for Gender Equality in Serbia” (short title: the Gender Equality Facility – GEF II), started in March 2021, funded by the European Commission within the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) II. The Project supports the Government of the Republic of Serbia in effective implementation of the EU Gender Equality Acquis and the National Strategy for Gender Equality 2023-2030. UN Women Serbia is implementing the Project, in close cooperation with the Coordination Body for Gender Equality, the Ministry of European Integration, the EU Delegation in Serbia and other partner institutions and women's organizations’. Furthermore, the project will advance the position of women and will support local communities in fulfilling their commitments on gender equality.

2. Description of the programme/project

2.1 Project strategy and key objectives

The project rely on several proven strategies to build sustainable commitment and capacity to support gender equality, which include: facilitating partnerships to reach consensus on policy priorities; providing innovative models to support measures and actions; giving highest priority for the sustainability of the Project objectives and results; documenting and disseminating proven practices for enhancing performance and accountability for gender equality; and building an evidence-base that supports advocacy and action on implementing commitments to gender equality.

Overall objective of the project is to support the Government of Republic of Serbia to comply with national and international gender equality commitments and EU Gender Equality Acquis.

Specific Objective of the project is that the Serbian administrative capacities are strengthened for integrating and implementing EU and national gender equality commitments in strategies, plans, budgets and EU funds management.

The project will focus on the following key results:

Result 1: The National Gender Machinery system has knowledge and capacities for accomplishment of gender equality and women’s empowerment standards and principles.

Result 2: Civil servants responsible for EU funds programming, implementation and monitoring strengthened their knowledge and skills to comply with principles of non-discrimination, gender equality and accessibility.

Result 3: Women’s CSOs are supported to influence development and implementation of gender sensitive policies and programmes and to promote the culture of tolerance, equality and non-discrimination.

Under the Result 1, activities encompass continuous support to the institutional capacities of the Government of Serbia and National Gender Machinery through the Coordination Body for Gender Equality and other key institutions by ensuring the development and implementation of Law on Gender Equality and National Strategy for Gender Equality. Inclusion of gender perspective in all public policy documents, policies, measures and budgets will contribute to the improvement of women’s position in Serbia, which is in line with national and international commitment on gender equality standards and EU Acquis. The activities also provide model for multi-disciplinary and inter-institutional response to gender equality, strengthening mechanisms for cooperation among institutions in charge for gender equality. The model will include networking and improved coordination and cooperation amongst gender equality mechanisms on national, provincial and local level. Supporting capacities of civil servants for planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting will lead to gender mainstreaming of all policies and measures in different sectors and on different level. It will also include the support to Gender Equality Mechanisms at local level for implementation of their Local Action Plans for Gender Equality.

Under the Result 2, support to the Ministry of European Integration of the Government of the Republic of Serbia efforts in the promotion of gender equality, non-discrimination and accessibility in all cycles of management of IPA funds - planning, programming, monitoring and reporting – in line with the enabling conditions will be provided. In addition, MEI as well as other relevant members of the negotiating group for Chapter 22 will be supported to establish effective mechanisms to ensure compliance with the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights in managing EU post accession funds (i.e. structural funds and Cohesion fund). In this respect, arrangements for capacity assessment, training and capacity building activities of staff of the current authorities involved in the management of IPA funds and future authorities involved in management of post accession funds in the fields of EU antidiscrimination law and policy, gender equality law and policy, gender mainstreaming, national disability legislation and the United Nations Convention on the rights of the persons with disabilities (UNCRPD) in the field of cohesion policy and EU funds will be carried out as part of the process to fulfil the general enabling conditions. Support will be provided to further strengthen existing mechanism of cooperation with CSOs, to ensure the dissemination of information and participation of citizens in the planning, monitoring and implementation of cohesion policy, IPA and EU funded programmes. Essential activities for promoting equality principles will include publicity activities and dissemination of information that include trainings and meetings on national, regional and local level, materials, brochures etc. The activities will also comprise of technical assistance and expert support services to the national authorities in integrating gender equality, antidiscrimination and accessibility principles into the IPA III programming documents, IPA III procedures for programming and monitoring, as well as cohesion policy management and program documents.

Under the Result 3, The activity will support active engagement of women and women’s CSO in identifying main issues and priorities related to gender equality and developing watchdog reports, thus influencing the development, implementation and monitoring of gender related programmes and policies at national and local level. Furthermore, women’s CSO will work towards increased public awareness of the significance of gender equality and importance of active involvement of women in the labour market. Cooperation between women’s CSOs and gender mechanisms at all levels will be established and supported through organization of thematic meetings and events, to enable exchange of knowledge and defining policies and measures that address adequately gender equality challenges. Women’s CSOs will be selected to act as the responsible parties and signing the Partner’s Agreements (PA) for the implementation of specific measures. Combining the exchange of knowledge and the implementation of projects by women’s CSOs, this action will capacitate women's CSOs to support targeted initiatives and participate in community development in general.

2.2 Project beneficiaries and stakeholders

Direct beneficiaries include the following:

(Result 1) The Coordination Body for Gender Equality is the Government body mandated to ensure the coordination of Government actions in gender equality. The activities include support to the Coordination Body for Gender Equality to coordinate implementation and monitoring of national legal framework for gender equality and the EU Gender Equality Acquis. The Government units and gender focal points in line ministries responsible for gender mainstreaming will benefit from the activities. Furthermore, direct beneficiaries include approx. 20 local gender equality mechanisms and at least twenty gender focal points in line ministries and key institutions.

(Result 2) The Ministry of European Integration, being responsible for organizing and coordinating processes on IPA planning, programming, implementation, monitoring and reporting, and IPA units, participating in the abovementioned processes across sectors through the mechanisms of Sector Working Groups and Sectoral Monitoring Committees, as well as members of the negotiating group for Chapter 22. The activities will focus on increasing knowledge and skills to include gender perspective, antidiscrimination and disability principles in the programming and will provide tools and methodologies in strategic planning, programming, monitoring and reporting of IPA assistance. Direct beneficiaries include staff of the Ministry of European Integration and approx. 100 civil servants.

(Result 3) Women's civil society organizations will implement the initiatives around gender equality and women empowerment with the focus on improving the active involvement of women in policy development, raising awareness on gender equality issues, reduce stereotypes and increase women’s access to the labour market and secure work-life balance. Direct beneficiaries include approx. 18 women's civil society organizations.

2.3 Project budget, geographical scope and timeframe

The GEF II project is three-year project implemented in the Republic of Serbia from 1 of March 2021 until 29 February 2024. The total project budget is EUR 2,000,000 contributed by the European Commission.

The implementation is in line with the EU-UN Financial and Administrative Framework Agreement (FAFA) of 29 April 2003 and supplemented by the 26.02.2014. Addendum No. 1, and Addendum No. 2 signed on 31.12.2018. which says that UN Women is the leading organisation on gender equality and women´s empowerment in the UN system. UN Women passed the pillar assessment, which confirmed that all assessed pillars (internal control, accounting, external audit, grants, procurement, and sub delegation) are positive, thereby confirming that the European Commission can entrust budget implementation tasks to UN Women under direct management.

2.4 Project Management

Operational Management

UN Women implement the project in close cooperation with the Coordination Body for Gender Equality, the Ministry of European Integration, the EU Delegation in Serbia and other partner institutions and women's organisations.

UN Women have the overall responsibility for managing the implementation of the project. The project is managed by the project GEF team and supported by the technical experts in various areas. The GEF Team members include: Project Manager, three Project Officers, Finance Officer, Project Assistant and Communication Officer.

The Project Steering Committee

The Project Steering Committee is established in line with detailed provisions of the respective procedures under project management. The Project Steering Committee is responsible for ensuring smooth implementation through regular reviews of the project progress and its chaired jointly by UN Women and the Coordination Body for Gender Equality. The Project Steering Committee monitor progress, examine, and approve annual plans and reports and the respective outputs, provide a forum for regular, transparent, and coordinated sharing of information about the project.

The Project team members provide the administrative support for organising all Project Steering Committee meetings, with UN Women acting as the Secretary to the Project Steering Committee.

3. Evaluation Purpose and Use

3.1 Evaluation scope

The final evaluation of the project will be conducted at the end of project implementation and will cover the entire duration of the project from 1 March 2018 until 28 February 2021. The evaluation is scheduled between September 2020 and January 2021.

The evaluation includes a data collection mission to Belgrade and up to three selected local self-governments in Serbia.

The evaluation shall cover all aspects of the project, and broadly allocate resources (time) in relation to the relative expenditure between the various project components.

3.2 Evaluation purpose

A final project evaluation will be conducted with a special focus on lessons learnt both from programmatic and coordination perspectives. The main purpose of this final evaluation is to assess the programmatic progress and performance of the above described intervention from the point of view of relevance, effectiveness, impact, organizational efficiency and sustainability. The evaluation will not be able to fully assess the project performance, as some activities are still ongoing; however, it will address the following questions with the results and evidence that is available to date.

The findings of the evaluation will contribute to effective programming, organizational learning and accountability. The findings of the evaluation will moreover be used to engage policy makers and other stakeholders at national and local levels in evidence-based dialogues and to advocate for gender-responsive strategies to promote inclusive local and national economic development with a particular focus on rural women. The evaluation should also provide specific recommendations as to the priority areas that should be considered in next projects implemented by UN Women Serbia office, including interventions that require continued support, successful interventions for expansion, and recommendations on prioritizing interventions to maximize impact. It should also define recommendations to improve project management structure.

The evaluation will follow a participatory approach that will include a twofold management structure were all key partners will be represented and additional consultation with key stakeholders, governmental representatives from relevant ministries and national institutions, with civil society representatives and active women’s groups as well as key donor partners.

3.3 Evaluation objectives

The specific evaluation objectives include:

Analyse the relevance of the project objectives, strategy and approach at the local and national levels for the Government support to comply with national and international gender equality commitments and EU Gender Equality Acquis.
Assess effectiveness and a potential measurable impact of the project intervention on the target group across all three results.
Assess organizational efficiency and coordination mechanisms in progressing towards the achievement of the project results, including the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment results as defined in the intervention.
Assess the sustainability of the results and the intervention in advancing gender equality in the target group.
Analyze how human rights based approach and gender equality principles are integrated in the project implementation
Asses how the intervention and its results relate and contribute to the Agenda 2030 and its Sustainable Development Goals
Identify and document lessons learned, good practices and innovations, success stories and challenges within the project, to inform future work of participating UN agencies in the frameworks of gender mainstreaming and good governance.
Identify strategies for replication and up-scaling of the project’s best practices.

4. Evaluation Management Structure

Evaluation Management Group

An Evaluation Management Group (EMG) will be conformed and will be the main decision-making body for the evaluation and is composed of UN Women project team members, UN Women Serbia Head of Office, and UN Women ECA RO Evaluation Specialist. The EMG will be responsible for the overall management of the evaluation and will oversee the day to day business of the evaluation and communication with the Evaluation Team. UN Women Serbia representative will be responsible for day-to-day management of the evaluation and the coordination for the field visits, including logistical support.

Evaluation Reference Group

An Evaluation Reference Group (ERG) will be established to ensure that the evaluation approach is relevant to stakeholders, and to make certain that factual errors or errors of omission or interpretation are identified in evaluation products. The reference group will provide input at key stages of the evaluation: inception report; draft and final reports. The ERG will be composed of Coordination Body for Gender Equality, Ministry of European Integration, Ministry of Human and Minority Rights and Social Dialogue, Delegation of European Union, and women CSOs representative. The ERG will be consulted on key aspects of the evaluation process. The group will be composed to ensure that all relevant stakeholders’ groups and perspectives are represented, including from CSOs.

5. Evaluation Approach, Methodology Criteria and Questions

The evaluation will assess progress and challenges for each of the three results, with measurement of the specific results achievements and gaps and how and to what extent these have affected overall progress. It will consist of a desk review, in-depth interviews with key stakeholders, such as the Coordination Body for Gender Equality, Ministry of European Integration and women`s CSOs involved in project implementation or addressing the needs and representing the interests of specific groups of women, such as Roma women, rural women, women with disabilities etc.

The evaluation will be a transparent and participatory process involving relevant stakeholders and partners in Serbia. The evaluation will follow gender equality and human rights principles, as defined in the UN Women Evaluation Policy[1] and adhere to the United Nations norms and standards for evaluation in the United Nations system[2]. The evaluation methodology will employ mixed methods. A more detailed evaluation methodology will be proposed and agreed with the evaluation team and will be presented in the evaluation inception report.

The evaluation is a final project evaluation and both a summative approach focusing on capturing the lessons learned during the implementation and assessing the achievement of the results at output and outcome levels, as well as a formative, forward-looking approach assessing the applicability of the results will be employed. The evaluation methodology will furthermore follow a ToC approach and employ mixed methods including quantitative and qualitative data collection methods and analytical approaches to account for complexity of gender relations and to ensure participatory and inclusive processes that are culturally appropriate. Methods may include but are not limited to:

Desk review of relevant documents such as project documents, progress reports, financial records, meeting minutes and monitoring reports, and secondary data or studies relating to the country context and situation analysis.
Online consultations and discussions with the senior management and project management staff.
Semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, surveys with direct and indirect beneficiaries, implementing partners, donor and other stakeholders.
Field visits to and observation at selected project sites.

Data from different research sources will be triangulated to increase its validity. The proposed approach and methodology has to be considered as flexible guidelines rather than final requirements, and the evaluators will have an opportunity to make their inputs and propose changes in the evaluation design. The methodology and approach should, however, incorporate human rights and gender equality perspectives. It is expected that the Evaluation Team will further refine the approach and methodology and submit a detailed description in the inception report.

The evaluation will include Relevance, Coherence, Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Sustainability and Impact criteria. More specifically, the evaluation will address the following evaluation questions that will be further refined once the evaluation team is recruited[3]:

To what extent was the design of the intervention and its results relevant to the needs and priorities of the beneficiaries? Was the choice of interventions relevant to the situation of the target group?
To what extent key national partners were involved in programme’s conceptualization and design process?
To what extent has gender and human rights principles and strategies been integrated into the project design and implementation?
To what extent is the intervention aligned with international agreements and conventions on gender equality and women’s empowerment in the context of EU Gender Equality Acquis?
To what extent was the design of the intervention relevant to gender equality priorities in the country?
What are the needs and priorities of the women in Serbia?
Is the NAP for GE implementation making sufficient progress towards planned objectives of the National Strategy for Gender Equality?
To what extent project contributed to achieving nationalized Sustainable Development Goals?

Coherence:

Internal coherence:

To what extent does the project fit within UN Women’s Strategic Plan and interrelated threefold mandate?
Are there any synergies and inter-linkages between the project and other interventions of UN Women?
To what extent UN Women in Serbia has capitalized from GEF implementation in other countries and how UN Women has established synergies in terms of GEF implementation in the region?

External coherence:

To what extent is the intervention consistent with the national development strategies in the area of gender equality, gender mainstreaming and women’s empowerment, and reflect national priorities and commitments on GE?
How does project reflect and align with national strategic plans and normative frameworks and Serbia` international obligations and commitments in the field of women’s rights and gender equality?
To what extent the project is in complementarity, harmonized and coordinated with the interventions of other actors’ interventions in the same context?
To what extend the implementation of the project ensures synergies and coordination with Government’s and key partners relevant efforts while avoiding duplications?
To what extent are the interventions achieving synergies with the work of the UN Country Team?
What is UN Women’s comparative advantage in Serbia to implement this project?
To what extent is project aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework and nationalized SDGs?

Effectiveness:

To what extent have the expected results of the project been achieved on both outcome and output levels?
What are the reasons for the achievement or non-achievement of the project results? Has project achieved any unforeseen results, either positive or negative? For whom? What are the good practices and the obstacles or shortcomings encountered? How were they overcome?
How effective have the selected programme strategies and approaches been in achieving programme results?
How well did the intervention succeed in involving and building the capacities of rights-holders, duty-bearers, as well as the project partners?
To what extent are the programme approaches and strategies are innovative for achieving gender equality in Serbia? What -if any- types of innovative good practices have been introduced in the programme for the achievement of GEEW results?
What contribution are participating UN agencies making to implementing global norms and standards for gender equality and economic empowerment of women in Serbia?
To what extent the project improved communication, coordination and information exchange within the National Gender Machineries at all level?
Is there a clear understanding of roles and responsibilities by all parties involved?

Efficiency:

Have resources (financial, human, technical support, etc.) been allocated strategically to achieve the project outcomes?
Has there been effective leadership and management of the project including the structuring of management and administration roles to maximize results? Where does accountability lie?
Have the outputs been delivered in a timely manner?
To what extent are the project monitoring mechanisms in place effective for measuring and informing management of project performance and progress towards targets? To what extent was the monitoring data objectively used for management action and decision making?
Were there any constraints (e.g. political, practical, bureaucratic) identified in the implementation of the different actions and what level of effort was made to overcome these challenges?
What is the likelihood that the benefits from the project will be maintained for a reasonably long period of time after the project phase out?
To what extent the intervention succeeded in building individual and institutional capacities of rights-holders and duty-bearers to ensure sustainability of benefits and more inclusive practices to local development and good governance?
How effectively has the project generated national ownership of the results achieved, the establishment of partnerships with relevant stakeholders and the development of national capacities to ensure sustainability of efforts and benefits?
What steps were taken to develop and/or reinforce the operating capacities of national partners during the implementation of the programme?
To what extent has the project been able to promote replication and/or up-scaling of successful practices?
To what extent has the exit strategy been well planned and successfully implemented?
How effectively has project contributed to the establishment of effective partnerships and development of national capacities?

Considering the mandates to incorporate human rights and gender equality in all UN work and the UN Women Evaluation Policy, which promotes the integration of women’s rights and gender equality principles into evaluation, these dimensions will require special attention for this evaluation and will be considered under each evaluation criterion.

It is expected that the evaluation team will develop an evaluation matrix, which will relate to the above questions (and refine them as needed), the areas they refer to, the criteria for evaluating them, the indicators and the means for verification as a tool for the evaluation. Final evaluation matrix will be approved in the evaluation inception report.

[1] UN Women, Evaluation policy of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UNW/2012/12), http://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2012/10/evaluation-policy-of-the-united-nations-entity-for-gender-equality-and-the-empowerment-of-women

Duties and Responsibilities

6. Evaluation Process, duties and responsibilities of the Evaluation Team

6.1 Evaluation process

The evaluation process is divided in five phases:

Preparation, mainly devoted to structuring the evaluation approach, preparing the TOR, compiling programme documentation, and hiring the evaluation company;
Inception, which will involve consultations between the evaluation team and the EMG, programme portfolio review, finalization of stakeholder mapping, inception meetings with the ERG, review of the result logics, analysis of information relevant to the initiative, finalization of evaluation methodology and preparation and validation of inception report;
Data collection and analysis, including in-depth desk research, in-depth review of the project documents and monitoring frameworks, online interviews as necessary, staff and partner survey/s, and field visits;
Data analysis and reporting stage, focusing on data analyzed, interpretation of findings and drafting and validation of an evaluation report; and
Dissemination, follow-up and use, once the evaluation is completed UN Women is responsible for the development of a Management Response, publishing of the evaluation report, uploading the published report on the GATE website, and the dissemination of evaluation findings.

The outline above corresponds to the entire evaluation process from preparation, to conduct, reporting and follow up and use. The evaluation team will only be responsible for the inception, data collection and data analysis and reporting phase. Evaluation preparation and dissemination, follow up and use will be responsibility of EMG.

6.2 Evaluation team requirements

Corresponding with the inception, data collection, data analysis and reporting stages of the evaluation process, the duties and responsibilities of the evaluation team will be as follows:

Leading the inception phase and developing an inception report outlining design, approach and methodology of the evaluation and an indicative workplan of the evaluation team within the framework of this ToR.
Directing and carrying out collection, research and analysis of relevant documentation and other data, and reporting.
Overseeing and assuring quality of data collection and leading the analysis of the evaluation evidence.
Preparing for meetings with the evaluation management group, evaluation reference group and other stakeholders to review findings, conclusions and recommendations.
Leading the preparation of the evaluation communication products.
To conduct a data collection field mission with the support of the EMG which will include individual interviews with the relevant stakeholder;
To prepare a Power Point Presentation and an outline on preliminary findings and present to EMG and to ERG;
To produce and submit a draft and a final evaluation reports in English to be validated by EMG and ERG;
To produce an evaluation brief in English.

Competencies

7. Evaluation team composition

The evaluation team will include an international consultant as a team leader and a national consultant as team member supporting in all substantive aspects of the evaluation.

Both have some experience of each of the following: conducting evaluations, gender equality, gender mainstreaming and women’s economic empowerment. The international consultant as team leader is responsible for coordination during all phases of the evaluation process, ensuring the quality of outputs and application of methodology as well as timely delivery of all evaluation products in close collaboration with the evaluation task manager and the evaluation management group. The national consultant will provide support to the international consultant in all the aspects of conducting the evaluation, including translation and interpretation where necessary.

7.1 Required skills and expertise of the National Consultant

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:

- Sensitivity and adaptability to culture, gender, religion, nationality and age

- Strong analytical, writing and reporting abilities

- Strong interpersonal and communication skills, ability to lead a team and negotiate amongst a wide range of stakeholders

- Commitment to quality products and deadlines

8. Evaluation timeframe and expected outputs

8.1 Expected deliverables

The evaluation team is expected to deliver:

An inception report: The evaluation team will present a refined scope, a detailed outline of the evaluation design and methodology, evaluation questions, and criteria for the approach for in-depth desk review and field work to be conducted in the data collection phase. The report will include an evaluation matrix and detailed work plan. A first draft report will be shared with the evaluation management group and, based upon the comments received the evaluation team will revise the draft. The revised draft will be shared with the evaluation reference group for feedback. The evaluation team will maintain an audit trail of the comments received and provide a response on how the comments were addressed in the final inception report.
Presentation of preliminary findings: A PowerPoint presentation detailing the emerging findings of the evaluation will be shared with the evaluation management group for feedback. The revised presentation will be delivered to the reference group for comment and validation. The evaluation team will incorporate the feedback received into the draft report.
A draft evaluation report: A first draft report will be shared with the evaluation management group for initial feedback. The second draft report will incorporate evaluation management group feedback and will be shared with the evaluation reference group for identification of factual errors, errors of omission and/or misinterpretation of information. The third draft report will incorporate this feedback and then be shared with the reference group for final validation. The evaluation team will maintain an audit trail of the comments received and provide a response on how the comments were addressed in the revised drafts.
The final evaluation report: The final report will include a concise Executive Summary and annexes detailing the methodological approach and any analytical products developed during the course of the evaluation. The structure of the report will be defined in the inception report.
Evaluation communication products: Online presentation of the preliminary findings (date TBD), a PowerPoint/Prezi presentation of the final key evaluation findings and recommendations, and a 2-pager/infographics on the final key findings, lessons learned and recommendations in a format preferably adjustable for individual project sites both in English and Serbian.

Payment will be issued in three instalments upon the satisfactory submission of the deliverables cleared by the evaluation task manager to certify that the services have been satisfactorily performed:

30% upon approval of evaluation inception report;

30% upon the submission of the draft report; and

40% upon the validation of the final evaluation report and communication products.

8.2 Evaluation time frame

The project evaluation will be conducted between September 2020 and January 2021. The preliminary calendar for the process is detailed in the table below.

Task

Tentative timeframe deadline

Est no days international consultant

Est no of days

national consultant

Inception phase September – October 2023

Desk review of background documentation

20 September 2023

Inception meeting with EMG

30 September 2023

Inception report (including two rounds of

revision)

15 October 2023

Data collection phase October – November 2023

Documents review, (online) interviews

30 October 2023

Visit to project sites[1]

30 November 2023

Analysis and reporting phase December 2023-January 2024

Drafting and presentation of preliminary

findings (including one round of revision)

30 December 2023

Preparation and submission of report (including two rounds of

Revision

15 January 2024

Review and submission of final report and communication products (PPT and a brief)

31 January 2024

Total

[1] The project sites will be agreed with UN Women during the inception phase of the evaluation.

Required Skills and Experience

8. Qualification and experience:

At least a master’s degree in economics, social sciences, international relations, development studies, gender or related area
At least 3 years of relevant experience and involvement in several evaluations of development projects
Experience/knowledge of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment at the country level
Strong analytical skills and ability to quickly grasp and synthesize information;
Demonstrated facilitation and communications skills, experience in participatory approaches and ability to negotiate amongst a wide range of stakeholders
Professional recognition in the women’s movement in Serbia;
Fluency in written and spoken Serbian and English.

9. Application procedure:

The following documents should be submitted as part of the application:

Cover letter to include a brief overview in English (unedited text) about which of your previous experiences makes you the most suitable candidate for the advertised position.
P11 with past experience in similar assignments; can be downloaded at https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc, a signed copy should be submitted.
Financial Proposal Specifying a total lump sum amount for the tasks specified in this Terms of Reference. Can be downloaded from the following link: https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/2022-07/confirmation.docx . The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (daily rate and number of anticipated working days) and other possible costs necessary to complete this assignment, including the travel related costs for the field mission to be conducted – up to 5 days for Serbia (Belgrade and up to three selected local self-governments).

10. Evaluation of applicants:

Consultants will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of 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.

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.

Evaluation Criteria

Max points

TECHNICAL EVALUATION (70%)

Language Requirements

Fluency in written and spoken English and Serbian

REQUIRED

Education

Master’s degree in economics, social sciences, international relations, development studies, gender studies or a related area.

0: without relevant master’s degree

20: Master’s degree

Professional experience

Relevant experience and involvement in several evaluations of development projects.

0: without 3 years of experience

15: 3 years of experience

20: more than 3 years of experience

Experience/knowledge of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment at the country level.

0: without relevant experience

10: relevant experience

Strong analytical skills and ability to quickly grasp and synthesize information.

0: without relevant experience

10: relevant experience

Demonstrated facilitation and communications skills, experience in participatory approaches and ability to negotiate amongst a wide range of stakeholders.

0: without relevant experience

10: relevant experience

Total technical

Financial Evaluation (30%) – max. 30 points:

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. A suggested formula is as follows:

p = 30 (µ/z)

Using the following values:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

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.)

11. Evaluation TOR Annexes

UNEG Code of Conduct for Evaluations [1]
UNEG Ethical Guidelines[2]
UNEG Norms for Evaluation in the UN System[3]
UNEG Standards for Evaluation in the UN System[4]
UNEG Guidance Integrating Human Rights and Gender in the UN System[5]
UN Women Evaluation Handbook[6]
UNSWAP Technical Note and Scorecard [7]
National Strategy for Gender Equality for the period 2021-2030[8] with following Action Plan for the period 2022-2023[9]