Senior National Consultant/s for Gender mainstreaming and Ending Violence Against Women

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; empowerment of women; and 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 centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women Albania is implementing its Strategic Note (SN) 2022-2026, which aims to ensure that “All Women and girls enjoy and exercise their human rights in a gender equal society and meaningfully contribute to Albania’s sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development and EU integration”. To achieve such result, UN Women will focus on three outcomes, which mirror verbatim the areas of focus of the United Nations Albania:

1. Increased and more equitable investment in people to remove barriers and create opportunities for those at risk of exclusion.

2. Innovative and integrated policy solutions that accelerate sustainable, productive and inclusive development.

3. Gender-responsive governance that strengthens equality and non-discrimination.

Across its interventions, UN Women Albania will address key thematic area of focus in line with the Global Strategic Plan 2022-2025[1]: ending violence against women; women’s economic empowerment; gender-responsive budgeting; gender responsive governance; as well as promoting cross-cutting principles including the adoption of a human rights and Leaving No One Behind. This approach aims to support the Government of Albania to implement its commitments on human rights and gender equality, in line with its National Strategy on gender Equality (NSGE) 2021-2030, and the EU Acquis Communautaire. All interventions undertaken by the Country Office aim to address structural causes of gender inequality, addressing discriminatory practices and reach women and girls who are at greatest risk of being left behind.

As part of the implementation of its new Strategic Note, UN Women will continue support the Government of Albania to align its national legal and policy framework with international human rights standards on gender equality, as well as facilitating networking and exchanges of good practices and advocate for women’s rights in all areas of life. Several ongoing initiatives support strengthening national policies and legislations, improve institutional capacities to implement international commitments, and promote the production of knowledge and information on the status of gender equality in the country. In addition, during this SN period, the country office will continue supporting the upcoming CEDAW Committee session (2023), the UPR reporting (2024), the Beijing +30 review (2025) and possibly the submission of a Voluntary National Review by the Government of Albania. UN Women will also follow up on the implementation of other key recommendations proposed by international instruments such as GREVIO and the Committee of Parties in Albania.

In this context, the country office is seeking to hire national consultant(s) who will advise on and support the implementation of activities related to gender equality, ending violence against women and human rights in Albania, across the thematic areas covered by the office, including by providing expert-level support to relevant projects. This will include support to the normative and inter-governmental work as well as programmatic interventions of the Country Office in the context of implementation of the following UN Joint Programmes: “EU for Gender Equality”, EVAW phase II, “Leave No One Behind”, the regional programme “Transformative Financing for Gender Equality in the Western Balkans” project and other upcoming programme interventions where the consultant will be requested to provide inputs related to human rights, gender equality and ending violence against women

[1] See UN Women Global Strategic Plan here: https://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2021/09/un-women-strategic-plan-2022-2025

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; empowerment of women; and 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 centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women Albania is implementing its Strategic Note (SN) 2022-2026, which aims to ensure that “All Women and girls enjoy and exercise their human rights in a gender equal society and meaningfully contribute to Albania’s sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development and EU integration”. To achieve such result, UN Women will focus on three outcomes, which mirror verbatim the areas of focus of the United Nations Albania:

1. Increased and more equitable investment in people to remove barriers and create opportunities for those at risk of exclusion.

2. Innovative and integrated policy solutions that accelerate sustainable, productive and inclusive development.

3. Gender-responsive governance that strengthens equality and non-discrimination.

Across its interventions, UN Women Albania will address key thematic area of focus in line with the Global Strategic Plan 2022-2025[1]: ending violence against women; women’s economic empowerment; gender-responsive budgeting; gender responsive governance; as well as promoting cross-cutting principles including the adoption of a human rights and Leaving No One Behind. This approach aims to support the Government of Albania to implement its commitments on human rights and gender equality, in line with its National Strategy on gender Equality (NSGE) 2021-2030, and the EU Acquis Communautaire. All interventions undertaken by the Country Office aim to address structural causes of gender inequality, addressing discriminatory practices and reach women and girls who are at greatest risk of being left behind.

As part of the implementation of its new Strategic Note, UN Women will continue support the Government of Albania to align its national legal and policy framework with international human rights standards on gender equality, as well as facilitating networking and exchanges of good practices and advocate for women’s rights in all areas of life. Several ongoing initiatives support strengthening national policies and legislations, improve institutional capacities to implement international commitments, and promote the production of knowledge and information on the status of gender equality in the country. In addition, during this SN period, the country office will continue supporting the upcoming CEDAW Committee session (2023), the UPR reporting (2024), the Beijing +30 review (2025) and possibly the submission of a Voluntary National Review by the Government of Albania. UN Women will also follow up on the implementation of other key recommendations proposed by international instruments such as GREVIO and the Committee of Parties in Albania.

In this context, the country office is seeking to hire national consultant(s) who will advise on and support the implementation of activities related to gender equality, ending violence against women and human rights in Albania, across the thematic areas covered by the office, including by providing expert-level support to relevant projects. This will include support to the normative and inter-governmental work as well as programmatic interventions of the Country Office in the context of implementation of the following UN Joint Programmes: “EU for Gender Equality”, EVAW phase II, “Leave No One Behind”, the regional programme “Transformative Financing for Gender Equality in the Western Balkans” project and other upcoming programme interventions where the consultant will be requested to provide inputs related to human rights, gender equality and ending violence against women

[1] See UN Women Global Strategic Plan here: https://www.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2021/09/un-women-strategic-plan-2022-2025

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the UN Women Head of Programmes and in direct coordination with respective Project Managers, the national consultant will be requested to provide technical assistance in the area of gender equality, gender responsive social inclusion and protection and ending violence against women. Every assignment under the retainer contract will be guided by a specific assignment clearly stipulating the nature and scope of work, list of deliverables, timeframe and the outcome.

Possible duties and responsibilities/Key Results Expected:

• Provision of advice and expertise to UN Women and relevant authorities (including but not limited to Ministry of Health and Social Protection, Ministry of Interior, local government units, Ministry of Justice) on the adoption/amendments of policies, protocols and other frameworks related to ending of violence against women;
• Develop and deliver standard training modules for capacity building of providers of services for women victims of violence, including municipalities/local government units, members of local referral mechanisms, police, health, education and judicial sectors as well as civil society organisations and other relevant actors, including organizations that provide services for perpetrators of violence;
• Provide training to UN Women CSO responsible parties in implementing EVAW initiatives and providing technical support to the coordinated referral mechanism and direct services to survivors;
• Support in designing UN Women programmatic strategies to address stereotypes and gender norms, including engaging men and boys in promoting gender equality and preventing VAW;
• Support and facilitate the creation of synergies with Social Work Faculty on establishment of curricula and organization ofInternships / bootcamps with focus social integration of vulnerable women and girls, including survivors of violence;
• Provide technical inputs in engendering national strategies, policies, plans and practices relevant to UN Women programmatic interventions;
• Support various gender analysis and related capacity building activities with the public and civic stakeholders with regard to gender equality and gender responsive planning and budgeting;
• Support the development of new project proposals, when applicable, in the area of gender equality, gender responsive social inclusion and protection, women’s empowerment and ending violence against women;
• Provide technical assistance, guidance and capacity building to municipalities for signing, developing the Local Gender Action Plans and operating in line with the articles of the European Charter for Equality of women and men in local life, thereby localizing national gender policy and laying the ground for alignment with EU GAP III at LGU level;
• Undertake missions based on request of project managers, for events/activities outside Tirana and Albania;
• Provide written inputs to project summaries, briefs and reports and deliver presentations upon request;
• Other tasks as assigned by the Project Managers within the scope of the above duties and responsibilities/key results expected.

Expected deliverables:

• Copies of reports, action plans, technical inputs and other on-demand written deliverables on specific initiatives requested.
• Timely provision of comments and inputs from a human rights/women’s rights perspective to other sections drafted by other colleagues/lead agencies.
• Final versions of the assigned sections.

Notes:

• Technical inputs and other on-demand reports on specific initiatives when requested will be evaluated by peer review for quality.
• Quality of relationships with UN Women team and partners is central to success and will be assessed.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• 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: UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf (unwomen.org)

Functional Competencies:

• Proven research, analytical and drafting skills,
• Demonstrated ability to interact effectively with various public and non-public stakeholders including in the areas of gender equality and violence against women;
• Excellent writing skills in English and Albanian;
• Strong interpersonal skills;
• Strong initiative-taker;
• Focuses on impact and results for the partner;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.

Required Skills and Experience

Required Skills and Experience:

Qualifications/Education:

• Advanced university degree in development-related disciplines (international development, gender and social studies, public administration or any other social science related to development).

Work Experience:

• At least 15 years of relevant professional experience in the areas of gender equality and gender mainstreaming;

• Experience related to the application of international and legal policy frameworks in the area of ending violence against women, gender- responsive planning and budgeting, social protection and inclusion, at national and local level including in the EU accession context;

• Experience in working with academia on issues related to gender equality and social inclusion;
• Experience in developing training modules and delivering training for service providers at the central and local levels on all forms of violence against women;
• Previous experience with UN system or similar international organisations would be an advantage.

Language requirement:

• Proficiency in written and spoken English and Albanian

Schedule of Payments:

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; (iv) submission of the respective certification of payment.

Recommended Presentation of Offer:

Qualified and interested candidates are asked to submit their application no later than June 15th.

The application should contain:

• Cover letter explaining the applicant’s interest in applying for the position.
• Filled UN Women Personal History Form (P11 form) including past experience in similar assignments and contact details of referees (blank form can be downloaded from: UN Women Personal History Form (P11)please upload the P11 instead of your CV
• Financial Proposal - Financial proposal specifying the daily fee in Albanian Lek. Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall consider 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). Other travel costs different from the above will be covered by UN Women separately.

All applicants should note that this is a retainer contract and therefore there is no guarantee by UN Women of minimum number of days the consultant will be engaged for. The contract will not exceed the total number of working days as stated above. If additional days are required from the consultant, this will be done through a separate contract extension to the parent contract.

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.

Applications will be assessed according to the following Technical Criteria:

• Master’s degree in development-related disciplines (international development, gender and social studies, economics, public administration or any other social science related to development) (10 points);
• At least 15 years of relevant professional experience in the areas of gender equality and gender mainstreaming (15 points);
• Experience related to the application of international and legal policy frameworks in the area of ending violence against women, gender- responsive planning and budgeting, social protection and inclusion, at national and local level including in the EU accession context (20 points);
• Experience working with academia on issues related to gender equality and social inclusion (10 points);
• Experience in developing training modules and delivering training for service providers at the central and local levels on all forms of violence against women (10 points)
• Previous experience with UN system or similar international organisations (5 points)

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 70% (49 points) in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.

• Experience in developing training modules and delivering training for service providers at the central and local levels on all forms of violence against women;
• Previous experience with UN system or similar international organisations would be an advantage.

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 follow:

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.

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)- P11 form
• Merge your UN Women Personal History Form (P11), the Financial Proposal, and Cover Letter 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.

• The consultancy post is open to local (Albanian) individuals or foreign individuals with valid temporary or permanent residence in Albania.

• 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.