To contract the services of a Team Leader/Data Anonymisation Expert with sub-Contracted Team Members to strengthen capacities in the anonymization of micro-datasets

Contract

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

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

From 2016 to 2019, five CARICOM Member States – Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago – conducted national prevalence surveys on gender-based violence.[i] These surveys were a collaborative project between Governments, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The impetus for this collaboration came from a decision of the CARICOM Council for Human and Social Development in 2014, to pilot a CARICOM model of national prevalence surveys on VAWG.

As the participating member states launch their reports on the results of the Women’s Health and Life Experiences Surveys, anonymized datasets for the survey are expected to be disseminated to the public as well. The anonymization of datasets for small populations given the sensitivity of the data and the potential for re-identification of survey participants is critical. This concern is a reality for all participating countries as Small Island Developing States (SIDS) populations can all be considered small. It is therefore critical that support be provided to custodial organisations responsible for the micro-datasets to strengthen their capacity for the anonymization of the data by employing review committees, file formats that are secure and the like. This would contribute greatly to the reduction of the level of risk associated with releasing the survey datasets.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives of the assignment:

The overall objective of this assignment is to support the institutions responsible for direct collection and analysis of the survey data with further strengthening their capacities for the anonymisation of the survey micro-datasets. The assignment will also be informed by the approach utilised for the anonymisation of the survey-microdata set for Grenada, taking into account the context in each country.

Fulfilling this objective would require providing expert-level technical assistance that will include (1) participation in a regional webinar to be jointly convened by UN Women and UN ECLAC, on the methodology, principles and recommendations for anonymisation of micro-datasets of national prevalence surveys on gender-based violence in CARICOM; (2) applying the methodology shared in the webinar to review the micro-datasets for Jamaica and Guyana. This will be done in close collaboration with the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) and the Guyana Bureau of Statistics (BOS)[1]; (3) proposing measures to minimize disclosure risk based on the experiences of applying the methodology and reviewing the respective micro-datasets, taking into account the local context; (4) participating in follow-up remote meetings/sessions with the Guyana BOS and STATIN to discuss the application of these measures with respect to their national datasets; and participating in meetings with QURE, Sistemas Integrales and Datafruit to ensure alignment of processes; (5) receiving final feedback from UN Women and UN ECLAC for approval and clearance of the final anonymized datasets for Jamaica and Guyana.

[1] NB: The survey datasets for Trinidad & Tobago and Suriname will be reviewed separately and in parallel by these institutions/organizations that have been contracted separately by the IDB: QURE Ltd Consultants; Sistemas Integrales; and Datafruit.

Scope of Work:

The Team Leader/Data Anonymization Expert, with overall guidance provided by UN Women MCO-Caribbean, will be responsible for producing the following deliverables:

Deliverables:

1. In partnership with UN Women and UN ECLAC, develop the methodology, principles and recommendations for anonymisation of micro-datasets of national prevalence surveys on gender-based violence in CARICOM (September 2020)
2. Co-facilitating a regional webinar to be jointly convened by UN Women and UN ECLAC, on the methodology, principles and recommendations for anonymisation of micro-datasets of national prevalence surveys on gender-based violence in CARICOM (****September-October 2020)
3. Applying the methodology shared in the webinar to review the micro-datasets for Jamaica and Guyana. This will be done in close collaboration with the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) and the Guyana Bureau of Statistics (BOS) (****October-November 2020)
4. Proposing measures to minimize disclosure risk based on the experiences of applying the methodology and reviewing the respective micro-datasets, taking into account the local context (****October – November 2020)
5. Participating in follow-up remote meetings/sessions with the Guyana BOS and STATIN to discuss the application of these measures with respect to their national datasets; and participating in meetings with QURE, Sistemas Integrales and Datafruit to ensure alignment of processes (November 2020)
6. Anonymizing the micro-datasets for Guyana and Jamaica ensuring alignment of processes with QURE, Sistemas Integrales and Datafruit (November – December 2020)
7. Receiving final feedback from UN Women and UN ECLAC for approval and clearance of the final anonymized datasets for Jamaica and Guyana (December 2020)

Reporting Requirements:

The Team Leader/Data Anonymisation Expert will work under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO-Caribbean Representative, with direct reporting to UN Women Programme Specialist for Economic Empowerment and Statistics.

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:

http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

• Strong statistical analysis and social research and analytical 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

The Team Leader/Data Anonymization Expert should herself/himself meet the following criteria:

Experience:

• At least fifteen years’ direct experience anonymising micro-datasets from large household surveys.
• Experience working in small island developing states of CARICOM or the Pacific is an asset but not required.
• Proven experience with undertaking at least 1 large survey-based initiative that has produced gender statistics.
• Proven experience with engaging with users and producers of gender statistics or gender equality research.

The Team Leader will be assessed on the strength of the members of his/her team whose skillsets either individually or combined, should meet the following criteria:

• At least five years direct experience anonymising micro-datasets from large household surveys.

• A minimum of three years working on social and /or gender statistics.

Languages:

• Fluency in written and oral English is required.

Education:

The Team Leader/Statistician should herself/himself meet the following criteria:

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

The Team Leader will be assessed on the qualifications of members of his/her team who should, either individually or combined, possess the following:

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

Location and Duration:

• The consultancy will be home-based (no travel is required/expected particularly given the COVID-19 pandemic).
• The consultant will be engaged for a maximum of 30 working days during the period 07 September 2020 – 04 December 2020.

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.

Hardware, Software and Communication:

• The consultant must be equipped with a fully functional laptop, which must run at least Windows 7. 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 will be conducted with the shortlisted applicants.
• The consultant contracted will be required to sign a statement of confidentiality and freedom from any conflict of interest with potential future contractors with respect to the TORs and work that they will be delivering.

• The consultant should submit, along with his/her application, the curriculum vitae of team members.

  Note:

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All applications must be submitted through UNDP jobs. Please do not send applications to UN Women staff as they will not be accepted.