Antecedentes

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), grounded on 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 at various levels; 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 centre of all its efforts, the UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. In Liberia, UN Women leads the United Nations Country Team on gender equality and the empowerment of women. In line with the implementation of the UN One Programme in Liberia, UN Women is embarked on scaling up its support in the four priority areas as aligned to the Government’s Agenda for Transformation i.e. 1. Governance and Women Participation; 2. Women’s economic empowerment; 3. Women, peace and security; and 4. Coordination and gender mainstreaming in national development priories.

 The Government of Liberia through mandated ministries such as Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection is committed to addressing its institutional development needs and capacity gaps in order to more effectively play its role in consolidating the policy gains through improved implementation and anchoring them in a whole of government accountability framework.  As the Ministry’s key partner, UN Women is particularly well placed to accompany them in this process through the provision of technical assistance, capacity building, and policy guidance.

 Although the Ministry plays the lead coordination role within the Government of Liberia for the promotion of gender equality, there are multiple Government institutions and ministries with the responsibility of implementing the National Gender Policy, particularly within the implementation of pending national reforms. These reforms also take into consideration the ongoing processes of the Ebola recovery through the Economic Recovery and Stabilization Plan (ERSP), Review of the Agenda for Transformation, as well as taking into account UNMIL drawdown. The various government institutions are central to the success of the National Gender Machinery with active stakeholders and participants in the assessments, analysis. In partnership with Sweden, UN Women is undertaking a Preparatory Phase of the Gender Sector Support Programme, which will provide a baseline and evidence to inform and longer-term programme to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women in Liberia

 About the Position

 Under the overall guidance from the Country Representative, and direct supervision of the Deputy Representative, the national consultant will provide support for the Development of the Gender Sector Support Programme, with specific assistance to the literature review of legal and policy frameworks on Gender; review of the gender policy, assessment of institutional capacity gaps of gender machineries, as well as the development of the development of a 4-year programme to address the gaps at national and subnational levels, as well as increase women participation and representation in decision making processes.

Deberes y responsabilidades

Literature review of existing documentations on the 2013 - 2017 UNDAF, Liberia’s Agenda for Transformation (AfT), the National Gender Policy and its action plan, the National Plan of Action for UNSCR 1325; Economic Recovery and Stabilization Plan, and other relevant policy documents; as well as the review of the Gender Policy.

Support to organize consultations for participatory institutional assessment of key stakeholders in gender equality and women empowerment, including government, civil society, women groups, and government agencies, among others, as well as the development of a 4 year programme:

• Provide support to the lead consultant in organizing the review of policy and legal frameworks regarding gender equality and women empowerment in Liberia;
• Organize and co-facilitate sessions (with lead consultant for research institutions and key stakeholders including the UN system on available data and research on gender commitments and implementation – including ongoing programmes;
• Support the lead consultant with summaries to inform the drafting of the report on initial findings based on the review and consultations with various stakeholders;
• Organize consultations with stakeholders on the review of the gender policy, as well as on the dissemination of the findings.

Support to organize consultations for participatory institutional assessment of key stakeholders in gender equality and women empowerment, including government, civil society, women groups, and government agencies, among others, as well as the development of a 4 year programme:

• With support from the lead consultant, prepare roadmap, checklists, and stakeholders  data base and contacts in preparation for consultations;
• Draft a series of documentation including invitations, programmes/session agenda, for participants
• Lead the process of organizing meetings and preparation of any additional supportive documentation for the entire assessment period;
• Identify and coordinate the gender actors who will be involved in consultations and validation exercises, including compilation of relevant reference documents;
• Document raw information from the sessions as well as co – facilitate with the lead consultant as deemed to;
• Support the Lead Consultant on the analysis and programme development in line with national development priorities;
• Lead any follow up session preparations as well as ensuring that relevant partners are engaged into the process;
• Liaise with programme team on finance and logistics related preparations for the entire process.

 Deliverable(s):

• Finalization of the report on literature analysis, as well as on the review of the Gender Policy – including dissemination;
• Sessions and consultations organized and facilitated to inform the finalization of the capacity assessment report as well as the as well as the development and finalization of a 4-year Programme on Gender sector support.

Competencias

Core values and Guiding principles:

 Integrity:

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

 Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

 Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

 Ethics and Values:

• Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

 Organizational Awareness:

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Development and Innovation:

• Take charge of self-development and take initiative.

Work in teams:

Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds;

Communicating and Information Sharing:

• Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

• Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others.

Conflict Management:

• Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

• Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

• Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

• Participatory approach, knowledge of statistical theory and applications and the ability to monitor and collect research data to assess accuracy, validity, and integrity;
• Ability to analyze statistics and other data and to interpret and evaluate results, and create reports and/or presentations;
• Ability to effectively utilize computer software (i.e. MS Excel, Access, oracle, etc.) for database development and management;
• Communicating clearly and objectively the work done and the resulting findings. Use appropriate standards for reporting certain findings or recommendations;
• Ability to follow instructions through a standard work process;
• Ability to perform routine tasks and to check work for accuracy before completion of tasks;
• Ability to write comprehensive assessment and/or research reports.

Habilidades y experiencia requeridas

Education:

• Degree or equivalent in Social Science, Economics, or equivalent; Certified in Monitoring and Evaluation.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years  of proven experience in the following areas:
• Gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls;
• Developing strategies for conducting baseline studies and/or research;
• Strong in facilitation and organization of sessions and consultations;
• Participatory methodologies including analysis and reporting of data;
• Gender programming and machineries in the context of Liberia;
• Excellent writing skills.

Language:

• Fluent in English.

Note:

Shortlisted candidates may be requested to provide samples of their previous work.