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 leads and coordinates United Nations System efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs. It is essential that Afghan women and girls can continue to shape the development of their country, and that their gains are protected. UN Women remains fully committed to supporting Afghan women and girls and to putting them at the center of the global response to the crisis in Afghanistan.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic, and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has four key programme priorities: (1) Gender in Humanitarian Action, (2) Ending Violence Against Women, (3) Women’s Economic Empowerment, and (4) Women, Peace and Security.

UN Women country programme is delivered through generous support from several donors. Timely submission of results focused reports is essential for maintaining good relations with the donors. UN Women Afghanistan is seeking to recruit an international consultant - Editor with expertise in editing reports, knowledge products and communication materials for publication to donors and public audiences. The consultant should have a strong background in gender equality and women’s human rights, with a good understanding of Results Based Reporting skills. The consultant will support the UN Women Afghanistan Country office on a retainer basis when needed.

  SCOPE OF WORK AND SPECIFIC TASKS

Under the direct supervision of the Monitoring and Reporting Specialist and overall guidance of the Deputy Country Representative , the consultant will be responsible to review donor/internal ACO reports, knowledge products, communication materials including publication documents and ensures reports are comprehensive, concise and results based oriented, and publications are of set standards.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Review and revise UN Women internal and donor reports to ensure:

• Correctness of language- grammatically correct language, spellings, politically correct language among others;
• Results based reporting: where activities are reported, they are accompanied by strong results statements. Reporting follows the logic model and results are reported at the correct level in terms of RBM- outputs are reported at output level and outcomes are reported at outcome level;
• Reporting includes results reporting as well as indicator reporting;
• Completeness of documents, including complete information included in all sections of the narrative report and annexes are in place;
• Ensure consistency with previous reports submitted under the project to the same donor. ACO will provide the previous reports to the consultant. The consultant is expected to request the office for the previous reports;
• Ensure a consistent style and format throughout the document and elimination of repetition and inconsistencies

• Appropriate positioning and numbering of boxes, figures, and tables
• Consistent font (s) – as relevant to headings and text
• Appropriate use of italicized and bolded words
• Ensure all footnotes, sources, references are complete and consistent
• Thorough review of annexes (people consulted, bibliography, etc) to highlight incomplete areas along with consistency in presentation as per UN Women publication guidelines.
• Review Table of Contents and Acronym List.

• It is expected the consultant will be proactive and work closely with ACO identified staff on the report.

       2. Copy-editing, Synthesizing and rewriting donor/internal ACO reports, knowledge products, communication materials including publication            documents into concise formats to meet in-house reporting style manual and publication guidance.

      3. Prepare specific report-related feedback to relevant UN Women ACO for improvements on quality reporting.

Note: The consultant is required to inform UN Women on the progress of his/her work on regular basis.

•  DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT AND DUTY STATION

The time required for the consultancy is estimated at maximum 80 working days within the period indicated. The consultant will be engaged under a retainer contract, which facilitates direct engagement of the consultant depending on need and availability within the contract period for a pre-agreed fee.

• SCHEDULE OF PAYMENTS

Payment in full upon final submission and satisfactory outputs/products in accordance with specified requirements.

• DELIVERABLES

UN Women ACO internal and donor reports, knowledge products and communication materials that reflect high quality, result based standard and format established by UN Women. Any printed materials utilized to be referenced and returned. All materials are property of UN Women.

• INPUTS
• UN Women will provide copies of all relevant documentation in electronic / hard copy to the consultant. The consultant is expected to work remotely using their own computer but may access the UN Women office for printing/ scanning of relevant documents during the assignment.
• UN Women will cover the costs for translation of printed materials if required throughout the duration of the assignment.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Master’s degree related to Gender Studies, Public Administration, Social Sciences, International Relations, Political Sciences, Development Studies, journalism and media  or related field.

Experience:

• Minimum of 5 years of progressive relevant professional work experience on gender, women’s rights, project management, monitoring and evaluation, and resource mobilization;
• Strong background and understanding of RBM based reporting;
• Prior relevant work experience with UN Women is a plus;
• Knowledge and understanding of the social, cultural and political context of Afghanistan and women’s rights situation and work in the country will be an asset.

Language:

• Native English speaker with excellent command of English analytical writing skills and presentation skills;
• Knowledge of local language, Dari and/or Pashto, will be considered as an asset

1.  SELECTION CRITERIA

The candidates will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria:

1. Educational background and work experience as reflected in their CV;
2. Writing samples; and
3. Financial proposal, which includes daily consultancy rate.

The evaluation will be based on the combination of the weighted technical and financial scores (70 per cent technical and 30 per cent financial). The evaluation methods include desk review and/or interview.

2.   HOW TO APPLY

Interested candidates are requested to submit:

• CV
• Updated P-11 Form
• Copies of Certified Academic Certifications
• Letter of Interest containing a statement on the candidate’s experience in the field of recruitment  and clearly states candidate’s skills and experience in undertaking similar work
• Examples and references to recent publications which the consultant has edited
• Financial proposal. The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount breaking down a daily professional fee.

All applications must include (as an attachment) the CV and the financial proposal.   Applications without a financial proposal will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

3.    Evaluation

Applications will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis:

•           Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [70%]

•           Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [30%]

A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% (49 points and above) of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.

a)   Technical qualification evaluation criteria:

The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically qualified candidates.

b)  Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

-           Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated.

-           The total number of points allocated for the price component is 100.

-           The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/ evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

Application:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from Application and recruitment process | About us: Careers at UN Women | UN Women – Headquarters  Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

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.

Inclusion Statement:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employ, 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.)