Historique

UN Women was established by GA resolution 64/289 of 2 July 2010 on system-wide coherence, with a mandate to assist Member States and the UN system to progress more effectively and efficiently towards the goal of achieving gender equality and the empowerment of women.

Since 2001 UN Women (previously as UNIFEM) in Kyrgyzstan has been implementing catalytic initiatives on promoting women’s economic, political and social rights. In 2012 a full Country Office was established.

The position is in support of UN Women’s Building a Constituency for Peace Project that is funded under the United Nations Peace and Recovery Facility, PRF which in turn supports the Peace-building Priority Plan confirmed jointly by the Kyrgyz Republic and the United Nations System.

The project commenced in January 2014 and due to complete in June 2016. It works in 25 mainly remote and conflict prone municipalities and towns of twelve districts of all provinces of the Kyrgyz Republic.

State partners include the Presidential Administration and Ministry of the Interior, and national and local educational authorities as well as project area district administrations and municipalities.

Implementing Partners are the Rural Advisory Service Jalalabad (RAS) and the Foundation of Tolerance International (FTI). UN Women Kyrgyzstan is directly implementing the second component of the project and the focus of the assignment is on this component. However, UN Women will take a direct interest in the implementation, monitoring, supervision and guidance of the two other components and the incumbent will also spend significant time in backstopping these.

The project aims at facilitating a higher level of respect for the rule of law and rights, also overcoming divisions in society and influencing attitudes of the wider public to conform with the Constitution, by

• Engaging youth in activities that build life- and livelihood skills;
• Sensitizing law enforcement and justice sector personnel to human rights in particular of young men and women;
• Assisting civil society to advocate against, and hold the state accountable towards combating violence against women and girls (VAWG);
• Building understanding and cooperation between various stakeholders including officials and religious leaders.

The project works towards promoting gender equality by involving - especially young - women in all aspects of public life and economic activity, and by building support systems to ensure their rights, especially those related to living a life free of violence. The project focusses on bridging ethnic divisions by promoting equal opportunity regardless of ethnic origin, by facilitating side-by-side leaning of life- and livelihood skills and by actively building knowledge of how to be a good citizen based on respecting diversity.

Activities prepare students from age 15 upwards to make a decent living from the family land plot. Students learn how a market economy works and the benefit its principles offer the industrious and skilled person. Secondary school students develop life-skills that enable them to secure their rights and those of their peers. Our project aims at enabling them to actively participate in community affairs and to help solve problems affecting their schools and communities. The project’s theory of change posits that empowered girls are somewhat less likely to be victims of violence and can make informed choices regarding their well-being.

In addition the project aims to provide a platform for diverse stakeholders in municipalities to jointly understand and address problems and conflicts affecting their community. Civil servants and especially security sector personnel are trained to prevent women from being radicalized or criminalized by anti-state elements, as well as protected from violence so that they are less likely to fall prey to such elements.

• 3,000 9th graders of various ethnicities in 30 schools in rural areas are able to effectively use scarce land resources to build successful livelihoods and understand the benefit of joint action, also across ethnic divides. Both men and women are involved in productive agriculture in a market economy as an alternative to poverty induced migration. By knowing about land and water rights conflict over land and pasture use, as well as irrigation water will be largely avoided. Students will learn how to register a business with local self-government and pay the required fees and taxes, and how to ensure equal access of women to natural resources and entrepreneurship (RAS/UNW);
• 4,000 secondary school students of the 9th, 10th and 11th grade in 30 schools are knowledgeable about human rights of young women and men, as well as gender equality.  Students will learn how to conduct a conflict analysis and take action to address the causes, working with law enforcement, local self-government (LSG) institutions and the state towards remedying the situation. By documenting duty bearer performance on upholding the law based on specific cases relating to the infringement of women’s human rights and on local conflict (including for instance extortion rackets at school) youth will be empowered to play the role of active citizens in safeguarding the constitutional order (UNW);
• 460 key individuals across 23 municipalities, half of them LSG, aiyl kenesh members or law enforcement personnel, the other half community leaders such as religious leaders, aksakal court judges, women peace committees etc. are sensitized to human rights of young women and men, including religious rights. They are aware of their duties to protect human rights, justice and peace and they are able to conduct a conflict analysis of their community. They will be able to come up with an action plan for what they are going to change towards justice, lasting peace and the equal involvement of women. The implementation of those action plans will be jointly monitored. A key role is played by local self-government to convene all stakeholders towards preventing, mitigating and transforming conflicts on their territory which will lead to increased trust by citizens in LSG (FTI/UNW).

In the third project component UN Women plans to train a wide spectrum of state and non-state stakeholders in conflict prone communities on conflict analysis, -prevention, and -transformation. This activity is complimented by involving community gatekeepers and local self-government in mechanism that will both advise on the law and mediate conflict, as well as to support the formation of local conflict prevention and transformation networks. These networks will advocate for conflict resolution not at the cost of justice as is often the case when aksakal courts ‘rule’, but by upholding justice and the law, and by guiding conflict parties to conform to the law. Capacity built at community level in the area of informal legal assistance and on conflict prevention will focus on the rights of women and the prevention and mediation of domestic conflict at community level - in accordance with the domestic violence law and other laws.

In preparation of the project UN Women in December 2013 conducted activities that support women in having recourse to better services through enhanced capacity of elected female local councilors and local self-government heads in 20 conflict-prone municipalities across the country, with three quarters in the proposed project area. Beneficiaries were trained to advocate for the rights of women and an improved scope of women’s political participation. Project activities will contribute to increased effectiveness of women in local decision-making in the area of Women Peace and Security and on advocating for ensuring implementation of CEDAW; to building knowledge among elected female officials at local self-government level about their duties to the citizenry; and on the tools to effectively address gender equality shortcomings.

In 2013 UN Women launched a project funded by the European Union on “Promoting Gender Justice and Empowerment of Young Women”. While Kyrgyz Republic law ensures young persons and women’s rights, the reality of the justice sector often enforcing the law selectively encourages widespread rights abuses and a culture of impunity where the vulnerable is at the mercy of the powerful. The project strengthens the capacity of women and men to effectively advocate for gender equality, to monitor effective implementation of gender justice and to promote equal engagement of young women in community level conflict resolution and gender justice after having been qualified under the project to doing so. The project engages youth and youth organizations to advocate for gender justice, and build their capacity to mediate community-level conflicts, thus contributing to mitigating tensions and resolving conflicts at school and university and within their community. These activities coincide with activities planned under the second component of the PRF project.

With the aim to ensure effective implementation of the PRF-funded project, UN Women Kyrgyzstan office plans to contract a Field Specialist who will be responsible for project related support which features regular extended field missions to the project area requiring overnight stays in villages, also in winter.

A specific focus shall also be given to lessons-learned documentation and coordination support to national implementing partners. The incumbent will need to be able to deploy substantive knowledge in relation to preventing and dealing with violence against women and girls (VAWG) and will advise the UN Women Country Office on strategies and activities to counter VAWG in communities.

The Field Specialist promotes a client-oriented approach consistent with UN Women rules and regulations and commits to high standards of quality, productivity and timeliness in the delivery of tasks. The Project Specialist will meet and apply the highest standards of integrity and impartiality.

The incumbent will be fully dedicated to the mandate and the values of UN Women, particularly to promoting Gender Equality as a strategy to reduce conflict, improve livelihoods and ensure fairness and justice; to Women Empowerment underpinning Gender Equality promotion efforts; to inter-ethnic tolerance and concord; and to respect for diversity. S/he will be fully conversant with the Constitutional requirements for the state to protect women and girls specifically against violence and youth in general against human rights abuse.

Devoirs et responsabilités

Under direct supervision and guidance of the International UN Women Programme Specialist on Gender and Mediation in Kyrgyzstan, the Field Specialist will support the implementation of the UN Women activities in the area of Women, Peace and Security in the country, specifically in regard to the PRF-funded portfolio.

The Field Specialist will:

Conduct Regular Field Missions of several day duration to remote areas (40% of time)

• Prepare for, mobilise and conduct missions, liaise with partners and arrange for all logistics
• Conduct training workshops and monitoring visits, participate in roundtable discussions, provide supervision support and prepare for each input
• Document the findings/results/lessons learned and follow-up actions required, obtaining stakeholder commitments to time-bound action and  subsequently monitoring implementation 
• Support and guide responsible parties in the field towards effective and efficient cooperation on project implementation; oversee and support the organization of trainings and events

Ensure substantive and implementation support to, and administration of projects and/or activities (30%)

• Adapt processes and procedures to ensure achievement of project results and indicators, this also by directly facilitating, supporting and enabling peer educators and preparing them to deliver results;
• Assist with coordinating responsible parties towards effective and efficient cooperation on project implementation; oversee and support the organization of trainings and events;
• Provide support to developing and implementing activities, entering projects into Atlas, prepare for required budget revisions
• Prepare draft project documents, work plans, budgets, proposals on implementation arrangements and reports required for the purposes of annual work planning, resource mobilization, collaboration with partners, reporting to donors, as well as drafting official letters;
• Ensure timely and quality implementation of activities under the relevant AWP, monitor budget utilization/implementation in lieu of AWP and project log-frame;
• Timely prepare progress, narrative & final reports for the Programme;
• Maintain internal expenditures control system which ensures that vouchers processed are matched and completed, transaction are correctly recorded and posted in Atlas; maintain shadow budget;
• Help align project interventions with those of state and non-state actors as well as donors;
• Liaise with government stakeholders, civil society and private sector partners to ensure proper coordination and partnership in common development efforts, present information on project activities, as well as ensure dissemination to broader public
• Document issues and cases in relation to VAWG and advise UN Women on remedial strategies in relation to its current and proposed Strategic Plan into which the PRF funded project is embedded;
• Ensure that participating youth have access to law enforcement and the justice sector to discuss with, and if necessary, document and report failure of the state to protect women and girls against violence;
• Work with UN Women Country Office personnel on designing advocacy campaigns and related interventions on promoting attitude change on VAWG among the general population in the project area;
• Liaise with implementing partners on routine implementation of the project activities, track use of resources, train and monitor expenditure reports as per FACE;
• Maintains accurate personnel records of the project as required by UN Women;
• Supports handling with procurement contracts for goods and services;
• Maintains project equipment and servicing as well as its records;
• Ensures the maintenance of a filing system, reports or other documentation related to the programme and administrative matters of the programme in hard and electronic formats;
• Provides logistics support to programme needs; provide assistance in organizing and holding seminars, conferences, trainings, and meetings;
• Provides assistance on financial and administrative matters to the project;
• Arranges travel and hotel reservations, preparation of travel authorizations, processing requests for visas, identity cards and other documents;
• Assists with recruitment of (Inter)national Experts/Consultants and assists with procurements for goods and services in line with UN Women rules and regulations;
• Oversees and coordinates working plans and travel schedules, and quality of reports (Inter) national Experts/ Consultants;
• Provides logistical support and programmatic guidance to (Inter)national Experts/ Consultants when required;
• Ensure facilitation of knowledge building and sharing through synthesis of lessons learnt and best practices under the project supported; sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice; assistance in maintenance of a calendar of the most relevant regional/national fora related to the project activities and assistance to facilitate access to that information by partners and relevant UN Women staff; keeping abreast of technical development in Women, Peace and Security.

Provide visibility to the United Nations’ Women, Peace and Security Agenda (10%)

• Advocate for WPS UNSCR/NAP1325, UNSG 7-point action plan; UNiTE and the UN Women mandate;
• Attend meetings and events on behalf of UN Women.

 Assist international staff with interpretation during meetings and missions (10% of time).

Perform other tasks as required, such as taking minutes, assisting other thematic areas (10% of time).

Compétences

Corporate:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN's values and ethical standard;
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UN Women;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Functional:

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Shares knowledge and experience;
• Actively works towards continuing personal learning, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills;
• Ability to analyse complex situations from a position of impartiality;
• Ability to concisely and to the point document information and findings, targeting a specific audience.

Development and Operational Effectiveness

• Ability to perform a variety of specialized tasks related to Results Management, including support to design, planning and implementation of the projects, managing data , reporting;
• Ability to provide input to business processes re-engineering, implementation of new system including new IT based systems;
• Good knowledge of Results Management Guide and Toolkit;
• Good numerical skills.

Leadership and Self-Management

• Focuses on result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure, uses skills of diplomacy;
• Ability to prioritize and manage competing priorities, grasping the situation quickly;
• Ability to conduct advocacy on sensitive issues, not avoiding but processing conflict.

Qualifications et expériences requises

Education:

• Bachelor degree in social sciences, education (including teaching), agricultural extension, or another relevant discipline;
• In case if the discipline is not relevant, a Master’s or higher degree in a relevant discipline may substitute;
• Fluency in Kyrgyz and Russian. Working knowledge of English. Knowledge of additional minority languages is an asset but not a requirement

Experience:

• Minimum five years of relevant experience in Kyrgyzstan (a relevant Master’s degree may substitute for one year of this experience);
• Work experience must include exposure to public administration or social or economic development;
• No less than two years of first-hand experience working against violence against women and girls; and/or specifically on human rights protection for youth including girls; and/or with vulnerable sections of the population including young women on human rights protection;
• Work experience must include relevant field-level experience as well as interaction with sub-national level security or justice sector
• Demonstrated substantive knowledge in the thematic area of gender equality and/or women’s social, political or economic empowerment, and of conflict prevention and peace-building methodologies;
• Proven experience in writing project documents or project reports; strong analytical skills;
• Proven skills as a trainer on issues of gender, women empowerment, or human rights in Kyrgyz ;
• Competent in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.).

Language:

• Fluency in Kyrgyz and Russian;
• Working knowledge of English. Knowledge of additional minority languages is an asset but not a requirement.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Only short-listed candidates will be contacted. All online applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women, UNDP or UN Personal History form (P11) in English which can easily be found via web search. Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment which must be the P11.

Applications without the completed P-11 form are incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.