Worldwide trends reflecting the unequal burden of care work, as well as a mismatch of care needs and care services available (in both public and private sectors) and the impact this has on families and women’s economic and public participation are mirrored in Egypt. The recent UN Women report ‘The Role of the Care Economy in Promoting Gender Equality: Progress of Women in the Arab States 2020’ revealed that in Egypt, married women spend seven times more time than that of married men on unpaid care work, while unmarried women spend 6.5 times more time as unmarried men. Employed and unemployed women in Egypt spend almost the same amount of time on unpaid care work, reflecting the double burden many women face. There is also a mismatch between care needs in the home and available services, which limits the ability to redistribute unpaid care responsibilities.

The above report also posits that expanding decent jobs in the care economy sector can be a major driver of private sector growth and women’s engagement in paid work. Between 2009–2017, private sector employment in Egypt grew faster in paid care sectors (education, health, and social work) than in the rest of the economy (at 13 versus 1.8 per cent). Addressing gender imbalances in unpaid care work and investing in the paid care sector would equally increase women’s economic empowerment and reduce gender disparity in the Egyptian labour market, as women form a significant percentage of employees in the paid care sector.

The Government of Egypt has recently announced plans to establish more nurseries and childcare centres. In addition, under new directives from President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, nurseries will now be treated as micro, small or medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), granting them eligibility for all incentives available under the MSMEs Act. The directives include tax markdowns to a rate of 1 per cent of the total growth in sales per year. The President also instructed his government to continue giving unlicensed nurseries temporary licenses until they complete the necessary paperwork.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Social Solidarity (MoSS) has another programme that recognizes women’s unpaid care work responsibilities and supports them in reducing this burden, which are the Working Women’s Service Centres (WWSC). They were established to help working women by providing practical solutions to reconcile work and family responsibilities by providing domestic-oriented services at reasonable prices while at the same time providing the women employed by the centres access to decent work in their communities. There are currently 41 such centres located in 22 governorates that provide a diverse range of services – such as ready made meals, laundry services, etc. – to women and their families. However, there is a recognized need to improve the services offered. 

Objectives of the Assignment

In close coordination and in partnership with MOSS, UN Women is recruiting a national consultant to develop a training manual to enhance the professional skills of Egyptian domestic workers and improve and standardize job skills for the domestic worker profession. In addition, it aims to improve the recognition of decent work standards of domestic workers and enhance their employability and living and working conditions. The manual will cover but is not limited to the following topics: applicable national laws related to gender equality and women’s empowerment, international and national labour standards related to decent work and social protection in addition to technical topics such as housekeeping, health and hygiene, cooking, laundry, and self-development.

The manual will be developed through a consultative process involving key stakeholders such as domestic workers, domestic workers and women’s organizations, MOSS, Ministry of Manpower, ILO and other relevant entities such as the private sector. It should be in line with international good practices in the field and build on lessons learned and insights from other countries with similar contexts as Egypt. 

Under the overall supervision of the Deputy Representative of UN Women Country Office in Egypt, and the day-to-day supervision of the programme coordinator, the national consultant will be responsible for the following:

• Conduct formative research to gain insights into the relevant characteristics of domestic workers, their current level of knowledge on relevant topics such as relevant laws and technical topics such as cooking, health and nutrition, their beliefs and attitudes, the channels through which they receive and act on information and the potential barriers to enrolling in this course to improve their livelihood prospects;
• Develop a detailed inception report for the consultancy, in close consultation with UN Women and MOSS. This inception report should include:

1. Workplan, timeline and methodology to carry out the assignment; and
2. A desk review of domestic workers’ training manuals and curricula including mapping domestic workers curricula globally, regionally and nationally and identification of best practices as applicable; and
3. An annotated outline of the curricula and TOT sessions for feedback by UN Women and MOSS. The inception report should be around 15-20 pages (excluding annexes).

• Based on an agreed-upon outline of the program/ manual and TOT sessions, develop the first draft of the curriculum in collaboration with MOSS, UNWOMEN, ILO and representatives of domestic workers;
• Submit revised curriculum, based on feedback from UN Women and MOSS;
• Using a semi-final version of the curriculum, the national consultant will deliver a TOT where trainers could be selected from staff of the WWSC, MOSS directorates and/or domestic workers organizations, based on a rigorous set of criteria (approximately 20);
• The national consultant will provide technical advisory support to enhance the capacity of the WWSC including back stopping as necessary in the piloting of the training course to 50 beneficiaries in the selected centers/ governorates. This will include announcement and roll out of the training curricula to potential domestic workers through the WWSC;
• Finalization of the curriculum based on feedback from the TOT and pilot.

Core Values

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues, including Masculinities;
• 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

Education:

• An advanced/ post graduate degree in Women’s or Gender Studies, International Development, Human Rights, Anthropology/Sociology, or another related area in Social Sciences.

Experience:

• At least 10 years of professional experience in the field of gender equality and the development of gender strategies and tools, preferably with UN agencies, funds, or programmes.
• Substantive experience working with ministries on international and national labour standards and gender equality and women’s empowerment, particularly on issues relevant to the care economy.
• Experience in the development of curricula relevant to the care economy and/ or gender equality and women empowerment.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in Arabic.
• Knowledge of English is an asset. 

Evaluation Criteria:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodology: Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 out of the 70 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.

Technical Criteria Weight: 70%

• Criterion 1: At least 10 years of professional experience in the field of gender equality and the development of gender strategies and tools, preferably with UN agencies, funds, or programmes. (30 points)
• Criterion 2: Substantive experience working with ministries on international and national labour standards and gender equality and women’s empowerment, particularly on issues relevant to the care economy. (30 points).
• Criterion 3: Experience in the development of curricula relevant to the care economy and/ or gender equality and women empowerment. (20 points)
• Criterion 4: Advanced/ post grad degree in Women’s or Gender Studies, International Development, Human Rights, Anthropology/Sociology, or another related area in Social Sciences. (20 points).

Financial: Lowest Financial Proposal: 30% (30 points)

The points for the Financial Proposal will be allocated as per the following formula:

• Contract will be awarded to the technically qualified consultant who obtains the highest combined score (financial and technical);
• The points for the Financial Proposal will be allocated as per the following formula: (Lowest Bid Offered*)/ (Bid of the Consultant) x 30;
• 'Lowest Bid Offered' refers to the lowest price offered by Offerors scoring at least 49 points in the technical evaluation.

Application:

Interested Individual Consultants must submit the following documents/information in a package to demonstrate their qualifications:

1. Letter of Interest (cover letter) explaining the suitability of the candidate to the work as well as indication of applicant’s availability and start date;
2. UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded at  http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
3. A brief technical proposal (2 or 3 pages maximum) with the proposed methodology for undertaking this assignment, along with a brief work plan with timelines;
4. Samples of similar work undertaken in the past (at least three) that demonstrate strong technical skills in gender, gender mainstreaming, gender analysis and/or youth engagement for gender equality;
5. Financial proposal or price proposal that indicates a daily rate (in EGP) to undertake the terms of reference, and other related costs -if applicable- applications submitted without a daily rate will not be considered;
6. The contact details of three referees.

The above-mentioned documents should be merged in a standalone file including all them, since the online application submission does only permit to uploading one file per application.

Incomplete submission can be a ground for disqualification. Make sure that you provide a valid email address fro future communications.

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, color, 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.)