UN WOMEN Jobs - 50256- Shelters’ Capacity Development Expert Women’s Huma

Shelters’ Capacity Development Expert Women’s Human Rights Programme National Consultant

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Occupied Palestinian Territory (Ramallah, with travel to other locations in the West Bank), PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

24-Oct-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

National Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

3 months

Languages Required :

Arabic English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

3 months

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

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. Placing women's rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women is mandated to lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts, to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It is also mandate to provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

In 2007, a pilot, national, specialized service shelter, the "Mehwar Center for the protection and empowerment of women and families" was inaugurated. The Centre addresses the phenomenon of Violence Against Women (VAW) in a comprehensive way, working in parallel on the levels of prevention with the community, protection of women and children victims of violence through sheltering and specialized counseling services, and women victims' empowerment and qualified reintegration in the society. Mehwar Center, which operates under the umbrella of the Palestinian Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA), is the first anti-violence center in the occupied Palestinian territory adopting international human rights standards.

The “Nablus Safe Home” was established in 1999 by a local NGO, the “Family Defense Society”. Since its opening, the Safe Home experienced several financial and management difficulties which strongly affected its ability to deliver services in a continuative and standardized manner. In 2010 the Safe Home was re-opened by MoSA upon decision of the Palestinian Council of Ministries and within the framework of a new policy document the “National Regulation for Women’s Protection Centers” developed by MoSA. Nonetheless its vision, mission, approach and practice vis-à-vis that framework, as well as international human rights standards are yet to be properly defined and its capacity further enhanced through specialized training and regular professional supervision.

The Mehwar Center Project is being executed since 2008 by UN Women in partnership with MoSA. Since 2013 the Project has included a component supporting the Nablus Safe Home both in terms of running costs and capacity development. Within this framework, UN Women has been and will continue working towards developing and consolidating the capacity of the Mehwar Center, as well as the Nablus Safe Home to deliver protection and empowerment services to VAW survivors according to specialized professional guidelines (“Mehwar Practice and Policy Guidelines”) and to human rights standards.

In this regard, the Women’s Human Rights Programme at UN Women would like to recruit a highly qualified “Shelters’ Capacity Development Expert” to carry out supervision, training and end-of-year appraisal targeting the Mehwar Center and the Nablus Safe Home staff members, while monitoring the implementation of professional and human rights standards.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under, the overall supervision of UN Women Programme Coordinator, the direct supervision of the Women’s Human Rights Programme (WHRP) Project Manager and the technical leadership of the Women’s Protection Advisor, the “Shelters’ Capacity Development Expert” will undertake the following duties and responsibilities related to the Mehwar Centre Project:

Staff Supervision and Support to Case- Management

Draft and submit to UN Women a staff supervision plan on the base of which to deliver supervision services to Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home staff which will clarify supervision methodology, principles and approach, in addition to mechanisms for case monitoring;
Conduct regular supervision sessions with Mehwar team, (3 hours twice a week) and with Nablus Safe Home team (3 hours once a week) including technical backstopping and support for team building and case management;
Draft and submit to UN Women monthly supervision briefings highlighting progress of staff in terms of professional performance and capacity development, as well as challenges and emerging issues affecting the implementation of professional, human rights-based case management.

Deveiopment and Delivery Of Training :

Draft and submit to UN Women a comprehensive training programme targeting Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home teams including without being limited to basic VAW sensitization and case-management modules, as well as advanced modules on sexual violence; sexual exploitation; criminal law related to VAW cases; reintegration of VAW survivors – approach and mechanisms;
Draft and submit to UN Women a detailed budget for the training programme including costs of training materials and training facilities, in addition to any other training cost deemed necessary;
Implement the agreed upon training programme for Mehwar and Nablus Centers’ teams between 1 October and 15 December 2014;
Ensure payment of all training expenses as per agreed upon budget;
Draft in consultation with UN Women formats to assess trainees’ expectations related to the training programme, as well as trainees’ feedback on the benefits/level of satisfaction acquired through the implemented training programme;
Draft and submit to UN Women an overall training report highlighting impact on targeted beneficiaries based on the results of trainees’ pre- and post-assessment, as well as on the Expert’s professional observation and evaluation during the training.

Monotoring and Evaluation:

Conduct Mehwar and Nablus Safe Home end-of-year staff appraisal as per guidelines developed and previously implemented for the Mehwar Center by UN Women in cooperation with MoSA;
Develop in close coordination with UN Women specific goals of the staff appraisal, as per assessed professional priorities;
Draft and submit to UN Women the 2014 End-of-Year Staff Appraisal Report covering both Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home, including (A) evaluation of individual staff members as well as (B) an overall evaluation of the two Centers’ current capacity/performance and capacity development needs;
Specific action-oriented recommendations should also be included in the Staff Appraisal Report suggesting further support and capacity development actions aimed to enhance and homogenize staff capacity and performance within both Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home;
Implement bi-weekly meetings with Mehwar and Nablus Safe Home beneficiaries for monitoring their conditions and rehabilitation process, while assessing impact of agreed intervention plans;
Participate in meetings with relevant stakeholders (also including “case conferences”) as needed and required;
Timely inform UN Women of any case sheltered at Mehwar and/or Nablus Safe Home which is evaluated to be under life threat;
Perform any other duties as required, within the scope of this Terms of Reference.

Time frame:

The assignment is expected to start on 20 October 2014 and be finalized by 31 December 2014.

Key deliverables

Supervision plan targeting Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home staff including supervision methodology, principles and approach, in addition to mechanisms for case monitoring;
Report certifying the completion of the planned training programme for Mehwar and Nablus Safe Home staff and highlighting impact on targeted beneficiaries, as well as Expert’s professional observation and evaluation during the training;
2014 End-of-Year Staff Appraisal targeting Mehwar and the Nablus Safe Home staff.

All reports and documents required by this assignment are requested to be developed in English.

Competencies

Core Values / Guiding Principles:

Integrity

Demonstrating consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Cultural Sensitivity/Valuing diversity

Demonstrating an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff;
Demonstrating an international outlook, appreciating differences in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Results oriented

Plans and produces quality results to meet established goals, generates innovative, practical solutions to challenging situations.

Ethics and Values

Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity.

Organizational Awareness

Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Developing and Empowering People / Coaching and Mentoring

Initiative-taking; coaching and mentoring ability.

Working in Teams

Acting as a team player and facilitating team work.

Communicating Information and Ideas

Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively.

Self-management and Emotional intelligence

Creating synergies through self-control.

Conflict Management / Negotiating and Resolving Disagreements

Managing conflict.

Knowledge Sharing / Continuous Learning

Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of other.

Functional Competencies:

Sound knowledge of international standards on human rights, women's rights and related instruments;
Understanding of and ability to apply a gender sensitive approach;
Proven ability to liaise with a variety of stakeholders and partners, including government and international organizations;
Flexibility to adapt to changing conditions/situations and to respond to crisis;
Strong analytical, dialogue, consultation and communication skills;
Maturity, ability to take decisions under pressure and ability to deal with matters that are politically or culturally sensitive;
Ability to work as a member of a team;
Proven knowledge of social work professional ethics;
Sound understanding of the Palestinian social protection and legal systems.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

MA in Gender, Women’s Studies, Human Rights, Social Work or any related field.

Experience:

7 years of experience with progressively higher responsibility related to protection and empowerment services for women victims of violence, preferably including management, staff supervision, capacity and institutional development;
3 years of experience in the Palestinian context, particularly working in the social protection sector, preferably in services targeting women and addressing VAW;
Demonstrated experience in timely delivery of products;
Previous work with UN Women as an asset.

Languages:

Fluency (both oral and written) in English and Arabic.