UN Women, the United Nations entity for gender equality and the empowerment of women, is an active advocate and global champion for women and girls. UN Women assists UN member states in setting international norms and standards for achieving gender equality, works with governments and civil society to develop laws, policies, programmes, and services needed to implement these standards.

UN Women actively promotes the equal participation of women in all sages of life, with a focus on five priority areas of action: strengthening women's leadership and expanding their participation in society; elimination of violence against women; engaging women in the full spectrum of peace and security issues; empowering women in the economy; ensuring the central role of gender equality in the planning and budgeting of national development. UN Women also coordinates the work on promotion of gender equality across the whole UN system.

Among the countries of Central Asia, Kazakhstan is a leader in progress on gender equality. Kazakhstan improved its overall ranking and jumped 15 positions to 65th place in the Global Gender Gap Index 2022, a report designed to measure gender equality among 146 countries. The country has eliminated gender gaps in education levels, shown improvements in economic opportunities and in wage equality, and an increase in the proportion of women in leadership positions. However, to accelerate further efforts of Kazakhstan in reaching gender equality as well as enhancing gender mainstreaming, presence of gender thematic professionals with expertise in all spheres is crucial. 

Therefore, UN Women, together with the Ministry of Information and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan (hereinafter - Ministry), with the support of the National Commission, implements a project in the framework of a tied Grant “Assistance to Kazakhstan in the implementation of the Concept family and gender policy, in terms of ensuring gender equality and empowering all women and girls in Kazakhstan and overcoming the consequences of the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic” (hereinafter- Project) in 2022-2024.

The main goal of the project is to provide effective and timely support to the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls in Kazakhstan, including the most vulnerable groups, considering the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis in accordance with Action plans of updated Concept of family and gender policies in the Republic of Kazakhstan until 2030. The project covers three significant components (1) strengthening national legislation and policies with a strong perspective of gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, (2) a gender-sensitive approach in educational policies and (3) economic empowerment of women.

Within the framework of the project’s second component, the UN Women, together with the Ministry and with the support of the National Commission and UNESCO, plans to introduce Gender Studies course and master’s degree programme in higher education of Kazakhstan.  

For the above-mentioned activities, UN Women will contract National Consultant and International Consultant with relevant experience in the field of gender studies.

The goal of the project is to increase the number of professionals in gender studies through the introduction of gender-related academic courses and master’s degree programmes in Kazakhstan to fasten the process of implementation of UN gender equality standards.

The International Consultant shall work in collaboration with National Consultant for designing a Gender Studies course and Master’s degree for universities in Kazakhstan. The International Consultant will be responsible for development of Gender Studies course and Master’s degree programme. National Consultant will support International Consultant with adaptation of the programme to suit the local context and ensuring its relevance to the Kazakhstani academic landscape.

The Gender Studies course aims to provide students with an understanding of gender issues (gender difference, gender identity, femininity, masculinity, gender economics), both locally and globally, and equip them with the necessary tools to analyze and address gender inequality issues. The course will cover topics such as gender and power, gender and development, gender-based violence, and women's rights, among others.

The International Consultant will play a central role in designing Gender Studies academic course and Master’s degree curriculum. International Consultant shall implement international best practices, ensuring that the course meets the highest standards of quality and relevance of academic course and Master’s degree curriculum. 

The International Consultant will work closely with National Consultant who will ensure that the course is comprehensive, up-to-date, and reflective of the latest research and best practices in gender studies. The collaboration will involve regular communication, consultation, and feedback to ensure that the course meets the highest standards of quality and relevance.

UN Women expects that after acquiring Master’s degree in Gender Studies students should know:

• basic concepts of the theory of gender relations (gender, sex, sexuality, gender order, gender regime, gender difference, gender identity, femininity, masculinity, gender contract, sexism; gender economics):
• methodology of gender analysis in pedagogical sciences;
• modern research methods and tools to study the scope and extent of the influence of the gender factor on economic development;
• analyze and evaluate the relationship between socio-economic processes and the development of gender equality;
• assess the potential impact of various types of social policies, including gender policies;
• apply scientific methodology to study the impact of the gender factor on socio-economic development;
• apply theoretical knowledge to solve practical problems of rational and efficient use of resources in the implementation of gender policy and gender budgets;
• conducting a dialogue with classmates, distributing functions, and completing tasks.

Correspondingly, on successful completion of the Gender Studies academic course UN Women expect students to be able to:

• investigate issues and debates around gender, particularly in relation to Kazakhstan society;
• understand the political, economic and social implications of gender constructs;
• ?ritically evaluate the impact of gender-based violence, including domestic violence, sexual violence, and harassment, on individuals, communities, and societies, and the ways in which these forms of violence are perpetuated and can be prevented.
• develop the skills to recognize and challenge gender and other biases and prejudices, both in oneself and in others, and understand the importance of building inclusive and equitable communities;
• analyze how gender is represented in different media and cultural forms, and how these representations both reflect and shape attitudes towards gender and sexuality;
• critically assess the policies and programmes designed to promote gender equality and women's empowerment, including those aimed at increasing women's participation in politics, the economy, and other areas of public life;
• demonstrate research literacy, through library searches, research techniques and skills, development of argument, and academic referencing;
• write logical and coherent arguments based on evidence and engage in critical debate;
• work with others in the exploration of ideas and to collectively develop arguments and negotiate solutions to problems.

Overall, the Gender Studies course and Master’s degree programme are expected to enhance students' knowledge and understanding of gender issues and contribute to the promotion of gender equality and women's empowerment in Kazakhstan. The International Consultant will play a critical role in achieving this goal by ensuring the course and Master’s degree curriculum meets highest standards and good quality according to best international practice.

For reference, UN Women plans to pilot Gender Studies academic course as mandatory in several selected pedagogical universities of Kazakhstan in 2023-2024, and Master’s degree programme in Gender Studies designed on the basis of Public and Local Administration degree from September, 2023.

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

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

Education:

• Doctorate (Ph.D.)  degree in political science and international relations, education and pedagogy, law/jurisprudence, gender studies, economics/social sciences, or interdisciplinary fields from an accredited institution.

Work experience:

• At least 3 years of professional experience in classroom teaching gender-related or interdisciplinary fields’ courses for university undergraduate and/or graduate levels;
• Proven/documented experience in designing courses or graduate or undergraduate degree programmes. 

Functional skills

• Experience in working with UN agencies or other international organizations, as well as with government agencies in the field of education and science will be an advantage.

Languages:

• Excellent writing and speaking skills English language.

Applications must meet minimum qualification requirements which will be reflected in technical evaluation form. The cumulative evaluation consists of evaluation of technical proposal (70%) and the financial proposal (30%).

Technical assessment criteria:

Applications that will accumulate at least 490 points of the maximum 700 points during the technical evaluation process will be qualified for financial proposal.

Score for Financial Proposal:

The financial offers of the technically qualified bidders will be weighted in terms of selection points as per below formula:

B = T + Clow / C x 300, where

T- is the universal technical score awarded to the evaluation of the proposal (only those proposals that pass 70% of the technical evaluation);

C is the financial offer of the bidder; and

Clow- is the lowest financial proposal among all evaluated bidders.

300 is the maximum financial point that can be obtained.

The successful bidder will be selected based on the highest aggregated score (technical and financial scoring)

Selection of a candidate: The contract will be awarded to the candidate with the highest cumulative score. Payment will be made upon achievement of expected results and submission of an agreed package of documents and reports approved by UN Women.

Package of documents for consideration

• Motivation letter;
• Completed and signed P11 form (available at http://eca.unwomen.org/ru/about-us/employment). Applicants without completed P11 forms will be classified as incomplete submitters and will not be admitted to further evaluation;
• Financial proposal in U.S. dollars, including the total requested amount required to complete all tasks under the ToR.
• Proven/documented experience in designing courses or graduate or undergraduate degree programmes in Kazakhstan (letter from institution or designed course with name indication). 

The admin-jobs.undp.org platform accepts only one attachment; therefore, you need to prepare all the necessary documents, scan them as one PDF document and attach to the online application.

* Each candidate must submit a consolidated financial proposal that includes all of the applicant's expenses required to complete the assigned tasks, including communication costs, travel expenses to complete the task, etc.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, hires, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by applicable law. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational needs.  

If you require any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information with your application. 

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy for conduct that is inconsistent with the goals and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of power and discrimination. All selected candidates will be required to adhere to UN-Women's policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN-Women staff and will therefore be subject to a thorough background and background check. (A background check will include verification of academic credentials and employment history. Selected applicants may be required to provide additional information in order to conduct a background check.)