UN WOMEN Jobs - 109775- Consultant for IASC Gender Policy and Accountabili

Consultant for IASC Gender Policy and Accountability Framework Update

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

15-Nov-2022

Application Deadline :

05-Nov-22 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

3 Months

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

13 Weeks

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

The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) renewed its commitments to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in humanitarian action through its 2017 Policy on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls in Humanitarian Action. The policy prescribes the standards and specific roles and responsibilities of the IASC’s structures (e.g., Principals, subsidiary bodies, members) and its field representation (e.g., Humanitarian Coordinators, Humanitarian Country Teams, clusters) to deliver the policy’s vision and intended outcomes.

The Policy was also accompanied by an Accountability Framework (AF), intended to allow the IASC to monitor its delivery – both at the global and field level – on the commitments, standards and prescribed roles and responsibilities contained within the Gender Policy.

The Accountability Framework focuses on the collective actions of the IASC with regards to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls (GEEWG), monitoring the collective performance of the IASC on standards defined in the Policy, as well as the performance of IASC bodies with regards to fulfilling their roles and responsibilities, as prescribed in the Policy.

As such, the overall aims of the Accountability Framework are:

To monitor the collective actions of the IASC – at both global and field levels – to integrate gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls into the coordination of humanitarian response efforts around the world.
To guide the IASC in identifying priority actions to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls (GEEWG).
To support the strengthening of accountability across the IASC with respect to advancing gender equality in humanitarian action.
To showcase good practice and implementation of the IASC’s commitments on gender equality.
To highlight gaps where the IASC needs to amplify efforts to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.

Five-Year Review

Recognizing that the IASC’s formulation and working structures are subject to change and that the means of integrating gender into humanitarian action are ever evolving in terms of practice and focus, as per the global humanitarian context, the IASC 2017 Gender Policy calls for a review after five years (2017-2022).

This will also involve an adjustment of the Accountability Framework logframes and indicators to keep it in line with the standards and designated of the updated Gender Policy. The review will also serve as an opportunity to better integrate the actions endorsed in the Management Response Plan to the Inter-Agency Humanitarian Evaluation on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and Girls in Humanitarian Settings.

The review process will also provide an opportunity to review the Gender Accountability Framework (GAF) reporting process to encourage wider engagement, buy-in and utilization across the IASC. For example, in nine pilot countries[1], UN Women is establishing a process of localized accountability frameworks based on the IASC field level AF logframes and indicators, to facilitate country level buy-in, recognition of strengths and weaknesses in terms of policy delivery and encourage action to adjust practices as needed.

Challenges

Inconsistent submission of report inputs – Not all the bodies and field representation of the IASC are aware of the GAF or of their reporting obligations, so requested inputs and assessment submissions are often delayed or not received at all. This impacts the timeliness and thoroughness of the report completion process. For example, in 2020 only 6 out of 11 Global Clusters reported and in 2021 only 8 of 11 reported. In 2021, only 11 of 29 Humanitarian Coordinators (HCs)/ Humanitarian Country Teams (HCTs) responded to their assessment surveys.
Inadequate reporting lines – As per the IAHE’s 2020 Gender Evaluation, “at the IASC level, although there is a global Gender Accountability Framework (GAF) annual report with recommendations for improvements, there are not yet institutionalized reporting lines for implementation and follow-up on these recommendations. Meanwhile, not enough attention has been paid to gender equality or the GAF recommendations by the IASC leadership”.
Accountability gaps in field representation – Whilst each annual report is sent by the IASC Secretariat to all the relevant HC and HCTs, there is little evidence that the findings of the reports are being acted on at the country level or that HCs and HCTs are being held accountable to their designated roles and responsibilities, as set out in the IASC Gender Policy.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Consultation

Review IASC’s current structures, working methodologies, TORs, etc. to ascertain which standards and roles and responsibilities set out in the 2017 Gender Policy need to be adjusted and how.
Research developments in gender in humanitarian action normative framework, best practice, tools and resources etc. that should be included in an updated Gender Policy.
Conduct consultations with relevant stakeholders (e.g., IASC Secretariat, member agencies, associated entities, field representation etc.) on their reflections of the 2017-2022 Gender Policy and Accountability Framework and gather their inputs and recommendations for updating.
Review the recommendations of the published Gender Accountability Framework Reports to ascertain practical inclusion in updated Policy and AF.
Review the findings of the IAHE Gender Evaluation and the associated management response to ascertain inclusion in updated Policy and AF.
Review the AF reporting SOPs to streamline the process, make more localized, inclusive and improve buy-in across the IASC membership and structures.
Based on consultations and reviews, draft updated Gender Policy. Including any adjusted standards and roles and responsibilities.
Based on updated Gender Policy, draft associated updated Accountability Framework logframes.
Develop a new, streamlined, inclusive standard operational procedure (SOP) for the development of annual AF reports.

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

Professionalism: Sound knowledge of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls.
Communication: excellent communications skills; strong interpersonal skills; ability to prepare professional and practical published material.
Teamwork: excellent interpersonal skills and ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and working relations, both within the UN system and externally; ability to work in a multicultural and multi-ethnic environment with respect for diversity.
Ethics and Values: Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity.
Organizational Awareness: Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.
Self-management and Emotional intelligence: Creating synergies through self-control.
Knowledge Sharing / Continuous Learning: Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree or equivalent in human rights, gender, international relations, international development, international law or other social science fields is required.
A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in developing and monitoring humanitarian policy and programmes, with a particular focus on gender and protection in emergencies;
Technical experience in inter-agency coordination both at global and field level, preferably relating to the integration of gender in humanitarian action in crisis response settings;
Clear understanding of the global humanitarian coordination system and the mechanics of the Interagency Standing Committee, especially with regards its commitments to gender in humanitarian action
Experience in policy analysis and strategic planning;
Experience working at consultation processes with UN bodies, donors and civil society organizations internationally and in the field;
Experience working with the UN is an asset;

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English a is required;
Working knowledge of another UN official language is an asset.