Team Leader with a Sub-Contracted Research Team to Support Gender-Responsive Analysis and Research on Institutional, Policy and Service-Delivery Frameworks for Social Protection in Jamaica

Contract

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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.

UN Women has entered into a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal Fund Joint Programme (SDG JP) with the UN System in Jamaica entitled “Modernization of the Social Protection Systems in Jamaica, Towards an Adaptive, Shock Responsive, Inclusive System” (short title “Modernizing Social Protection System in Jamaica”) with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) (Lead UN Agency), World Food Programme (WFP) and UN Women as Participating UN Organizations (PUNOs).

The SDG JP will lead to the strengthening of Jamaica’s social protection system, enabling it to be shock and gender responsive which will be key to accelerating efforts to end poverty and vulnerability, reducing people's and communities’ exposure to risks, recognizing the multi-hazard environment that citizens are exposed to, towards enhancing their capacity to manage economic and social risks, as well as environmental and other natural hazard risks. The SDG JP will lead to acceleration of multiple SDGs, in support of adaptable, inclusive shock responsive services, leaving no one behind. To do this, the programme will focus on key activities including: piloting more efficient, effective and safe payment processes within Jamaica’s social protection system with an emphasis on accessibility; generating evidence to support the development of an adaptation of the algorithm to proxy household welfare or need to be used during emergencies to enable the expansion of social programmes based on tailored protocols and quickly identify people facing acute socio-economic impacts; accelerating the scaling-up of a social registry to support increased coverage and coordination of key vulnerable groups; and undertaking gender-gap analyses of the policy and legislative social protection frameworks to ensure responsiveness of the system to the needs of men and women, thereby narrowing inequalities between women and men. The SDG JP will be coordinated through four major national programmes developed to respond to, plan for, and seek to improve services, especially for Persons with Disabilities and the poor: the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH); The Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities; the Early Stimulation Programme (ESP); and the Public Assistance Division.

Duties and Responsibilities

UN Women is seeking to contract a Team Leader with a Sub-Contracted Research Team to (1) conduct a gender gap analysis of the policy and legislative frameworks of the Jamaican social protection system, in order to assess the responsiveness of the system to narrowing inequalities between women and men; (2) undertake a gender aware beneficiary assessment (GABA) of the PATH programme to assess and strengthen the responsiveness in the programme’s service delivery to both women and men; and (3) Informed by the results of the gender gap analysis and GABA, prepare a Draft Framework for Promoting Gender Equality in the PATH.

S****cope of Work

The Team Leader is expected to:

• Undertake a gender gap analysis of the policy and legislative frameworks of the social protection system to ensure responsiveness of the system to narrowing inequalities between women and men.: The Team Leader is expected to do this by applying a robust and gender-responsive analytical tool to undertake this assessment of Jamaica’s social protection policy and legislative frameworks and social protection system. UN Women recommends the following approach as outlined in the document Toward Gender-Responsive Social Protection Strategies: A Four-Step Checklist that includes defining the overarching framework for assessing gender-responsiveness; identifying gender-specific risks and vulnerabilities (such as early marriage, maternity-related risks, teenage pregnancy, single parenthood, widowhood, old-age among others); programme design; and monitoring and evaluation.
• Undertake a Gender Aware Beneficiary Assessment (GABA) of the PATH programme to assess and strengthen the responsiveness in the programme’s service delivery to both women and men: The Team Leader will assess gender-related barriers in beneficiaries’ interaction with the PATH programme to determine the differentials that might exist between women and men. The GABA will also provide recommendations for strengthening the PATH’s capacity for gender-responsive service delivery with the results informing policy, legislative and institutional strengthening interventions. The GABA is mainly intended to provide data and information on the gender dimensions of the procedural and operational limitations that beneficiaries experience in accessing the services of the PATH. Effective approaches and good practices currently employed in the service delivery systems of the PATH will be highlighted in the analysis. The beneficiary analysis will also support Partner and the Government of Jamaica in exploring opportunities and bottlenecks for women to access decent work. The GABA will identify and map the entire cycle of the beneficiaries’ interface with the PATH in order to rigorously assess the gender dimensions of the bottlenecks in policies and operations of the programme. The GABA will clarify beneficiaries’ experiences in engaging with the PATH, starting from the application stage and/or the initial point at which the beneficiaries interact with the programme. The impact of the Compliance Conditionalities of the PATH (school-age children (6 years and over) are required to maintain an attendance rate of not less than 85%, while children under six years are required to comply with the schedule of preventive health visits established by the Ministry of Health) will be assessed to determine possible differences in their impact on women and men beneficiaries, including differentials associated with unpaid care work. PATH Affiliated Interventions such as the education grants and bursaries; and others to be identified by the Partner will be included in the GABA. Finally, recommendations for procedural and operational reform of the PATH will be put forward, based on the results of the GABA.
• Strategic Plan and Results Framework: Promoting Gender Equality in the PATH: Guided by results of the GABA and Partner Policy/Programme priorities, a draft Strategic Plan and Results Framework to promote the gender-responsiveness of the PATH will be developed by the Team Leader.

DELIVERABLES/PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

• Time-Bound Work Plan for the Assignment – 17 March 2023
• Draft Report: Gender Gap Analysis of the Policy and Legislative Frameworks of the Social Protection System in Jamaica – 31 May 2023
• Final Report: Gender Gap Analysis of the Policy and Legislative Frameworks of the Social Protection System in Jamaica – 30 June 2023
• GABA: Background Desktop Reviews – Draft Methodology and Analytical Framework – 31 July 2023
• GABA: Final Methodology and Analytical Framework – 31 August 2023
• GABA: Data Collection/Field Work: September 2023 – December 2023
• GABA: Draft Report: 31 January 2024
• GABA: Final Report: 31 February 2024
• First Draft Strategic Plan and Results Framework for Promoting Gender Equality in the PATH: 31 March 2024
• Second/Final Draft Strategic Plan and Results Framework for Promoting Gender Equality in the PATH: 30 April 2024

Reporting Requirements

The Team Leader will work under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO - Caribbean Representative and direct supervision of the Deputy Representative.

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:

• Strong gender analysis and social research skills.
• Excellent written and oral communications skills including the conveying complex concepts and recommendations, in a clear and persuasive style tailored to match different audiences.
• Ability to interact independently as part of a team.
• Ability to multi-task and operate effectively in stressful situations.

Required Skills and Experience

TEAM LEADER

Experience – Team Leader:

The Team Leader for the assignment must possess the following:

• At least five years direct experience on gender analysis of social protection systems
• A minimum of 2 years of experience leading gender-sensitive/gender-responsive beneficiary assessments of social protection/social assistance/social welfare programmes
• At least five years conducting socioeconomic research and analysis on gender and poverty
• Experience working in small island developing states of CARICOM or the Pacific is an asset, but not required

Languages:

• Fluency in written and oral English is required.

Education:

• A Master’s Degree in any of the following areas: Economics, Social Sciences, Statistics, Public Health, Gender and Development.

SUB-CONTRACTED RESEARCH TEAM

Experience – Sub-Contracted Research Team:

The Members of the Sub-Contracted Research Team, for the assignment must collectively possess the following:

• At least two years conducting socioeconomic research and analysis on gender and poverty
• Experience working in small island developing states of CARICOM or the Pacific is an asset, but not required

Languages:

• Fluency in written and oral English is required.

Education:

• A Bachelor’s Degree in any of the following areas: Economics, Social Sciences, Statistics, Public Health, Gender and Development.

LOCATION AND DURATION

• The assignment will be home-based
• A minimum of three (3) travel missions to each of the four countries should be expected and included in the financial proposal.
• The Team Leader will be engaged during the period 14 February 2023 – 31 October 2024.

REMUNERATION

• The consultancy fee will be negotiated before contracting. Each payment will be based on a predefined and formal agreement between UN Women and the consultant and will be disbursed based on satisfactory completion of agreed deliverables.

• The remuneration for this contract type is an all-inclusive fee, the organization will not be liable for additional cost or benefits. Hence, it is the responsibility of the consultant to take out adequate medical insurance for the duration of the contract and it is recommendable that the policy includes coverage for COVID-19 related illness. The medical coverage should be international when the contract requires missions or international assignment.

• If selected for this vacant post, proof of medical coverage should be presented within the first two months of the contract.

HARDWARE, SOFTWARE, AND COMMUNICATION:

• The consultant must be equipped with a fully functional laptop, which must comfortably run Office 365 programs, using operating systems Microsoft Windows 10/11, or Mac OS X 10.11 or upward. The consultant must be reasonably accessible by email and telephone (preferably mobile). The use of reliable, internet-based (Skype or equivalent) is required.

REFERENCES:

• Minimum of three client references that include the name of the contact person, title and contact information.

OTHER:

• Interviews may be conducted with the shortlisted applicants if deemed necessary.
• The CVs of the Team Leader and each member of the Research Team must be included in the application.

• Submissions to UNDP Jobs are limited to a maximum of 10 MB, virus-free or corrupted contents to avoid rejection, and no more than 1 email transmission. All applications must be submitted through UNDP jobs. Please do not send applications to UN Women staff as they will not be accepted.

• 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, colour, 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.