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  equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

Under the overall guidance and direction of the UN Women Regional Coordination Specialist and with matrix line to UN Resident Coordinator for Zambia, the Gender Equality Coordinator will provide analytical, technical and programme management support for coordinating the implementation of UN Women projects in the Zambia, as well as strategic technical advisory expertise to the UN Resident Coordinator Office (RCO), the UNCT and the Gender Theme Group in Zambia. Using the result-based management (RBM) approach, he/she will exercise overall responsibility for timely planning, programme/project development, monitoring, and reporting of all UN Women’s projects in the Zambia. Additionally, in the overall role of supporting the RC and the UNCT in advancing the Gender Agenda in country, to enhance UN coherence and improve overall Gender programmatic interventions impact to better achieve results.
 

The Gender Equality Coordinator works with the Programme Support Unit of the UN Women Regional Office for East and Southern Africa (ESARO)and the RCO Zambia to oversee and coordinate activities of different projects as well as enhance strategic collaboration with international and national partners, including government, civil society, multi and bi-lateral donors, UN agencies and other development organisations ensuring coherence and successful implementation of the UN Zambia gender agenda, UN joint advocacy efforts in gender area and overall joint programmes/initiatives of the GTG and the UN Zambia in general, as well as UNWomen’s programme in Zambia.  

UN Coordination (support mainstreaming of Gender in the UN System)

• Provide support to the UN RC, UNCT and the UN Gender Theme Group for increased capacities in research, analysis, program formulation, implementation and monitoring, coordination, program development, implementation, monitoring and reporting in line with international, regional and national legal norms and standards;
• Provide support to the UN Country Team (UNCT), national and local partners, in the development and implementation of laws, plans, policies and budgets, in line with international and national commitments on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls; and in support of mainstreaming national gender equality priorities into legal frameworks and government-led programmes.
• Provision of technical advice to the UN Resident Coordinator (UN RC), and international partners as required, in the coordination of emerging technical and development cooperation to the Government of _Zambia and civil society, ensuring emerging development support responds to women’s needs and national gender equality priorities.

Provide guidance and coordinate with gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) as a guiding principle during the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2023-2027 (including the development of CCA updates, monitoring and reporting of the UNSDCF).

• Provide analysis and advise the UNCT on the gender dynamics in the country including i) informing joint socioeconomic analysis for CCA and UNSDCF and ii) opportunities to support inclusive engagement of women in the development and humanitarian assistance provided by the UNCT,
• Identify and advise on entry points for new initiatives for the UN to strengthen national and local capacities for gender equality and to support the advancement of women’s empowerment and gender equality in the country.
• Contribute to joint programming and coordination of UN joint work  around gender equality, including support in forging strategic partnerships at the national and local level to promote gender equality, women’s advancement and women’s representation.
• Coordinate the UN technical advisory support to the Government for enhanced capacities and coordination in leading the country to address gender inequalities, women, peace, security agenda in the country in line with international and regional obligations of the Government;

Provide technical support to strategic partnerships building and resource mobilization:

• Provide technical and substantive support to the UN Zambia Joint Partnerships and Resource Mobilization Strategy related to GEWE and the Cooperation Framework;
• liaise with key stakeholders from Government, academia, civil society, the private sector and key international actors to build and strengthen strategic alliances and partnerships on women’s rights and gender equality initiatives as needed and guided by the RC and/or the UNCT and/or the GTG.
• Coordinate, and review the development of interagency briefs on possible areas of GEWE cooperation, including identification of opportunities for cost sharing.

Provide coordination support to GEWE intergovernmental and normative work with UNCT and national partners

• Coordinate initiatives related to the Commission on the Status of Women, including contributions to relevant global/regional reports and background documents;
• Provide technical support gender related SDG consultations;
• Facilitate regular review of the progress on implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action;
• Coordinate CEDAW, Voluntary National Review and Universal Periodic Review reporting on gender equality and women’s empowerment;
• Engage with women’s Civil Society Organisations with respect to the above;
• Support the UN efforts in what regards to the UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security implementation in Zambia;
• Support the UN efforts in what regards to the African Women Leadership Network (AWLN) Zambia Chapter implementation

Manage inter-agency and country coordination support for ESARO

• Develop strategy, advise, and support the Gender Theme Group in forging strategic partnerships at the national and sub-national level to promote gender equality, women’s advancement and women’s representation;
• Support the implementation of Generation Equality Campaign in support of the UN System in the country;
• Accompany UN Women relevant initiative including the UNW/AU Joint Africa Strategy;
• Coordinate Programme to ensure strong representation and participation in Common Country Assessment (CCA)/UNSDCF roll out and implementation, and similar exercises related to the RC system, as necessary;
• Write progress reports on UN Women’s programme experiences in support of UN women inter-agency coordination role;
• Collaborate with the Regional Office and with the RCO, to provide coordination support to UN Agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations including African Women Leadership Network (AWLN); the Council of Traditional Leaders of Africa (COTLA); as well as national authorities to promote gender equality and women empowerment activities in _Zambia;
• Identify and inform the RO of joint programming opportunities and participate in the development of UN joint programmes, as necessary;
• Support the OMT Zambia in its implementation of a gender-sensitive Business Operations Strategy (BOS 2.0).

Manage knowledge building and sharing

• Ensure documentation of the programme implementation process and products produced are in accordance with UN Women guidelines and UN standards in general;
• Contribute to the exchange of information and knowledge products internally and externally of the UN in Zambia.
• Support the UNCG Zambia in major advocacy campaigns, events, trainings, workshops and development of communication and/or knowledge products related to gender, as needed.

• Develop knowledge management strategies and methodologies with RO KM Specialist.
• Identify and synthesize of best practices and lessons learned to dissemination information.
• Act as resource person in capacity building, knowledge sharing events and other relevant activities on gender equality and women’s participation in the UN System.

Key Performance Indicators

• Timely and quality contribution and coordination to the UNCT, GTG,  and other UN inter-agency working groups and other coordination meetings, as needed;
• Quality technical inputs to RC, UNCT, and Senior Management;
• Quality technical advice and coordination support provided to the government officials and UN agencies at regional level;
• Quality communication and collaboration on GEWE between agencies;
• Quality RCO’s leadership and results in gender equality space;
• Quality suggestions for joint programming on GEWE;
• Quality knowledge and strategic inputs provided to DCO RO;

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

Functional Competencies

• Strong knowledge of general gender equality and women’s empowerment issues;
• Strong knowledge of UN system and understanding of inter-agency coordination and UNSDCF processes;
• Ability to advocate and provide policy advice and interact with high level decision makers; 
• Ability to envision, conceptualize and communicate strategic vision;
• Strong gender-focused results-based management, programme implementation and monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Excellent analytical and conceptual thinking skills;
• Strong negotiating, cultural sensitivity and diplomatic skills;
• Strong planning, goal-setting and prioritization and organizational skills;
• Familiarity with the region and women's rights organizations and networks in the region considered an asset.

Education and certification

• Master’s degree in international relations, development studies, public policy, gender or other social science field
• 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:

• Minimum 7 years of relevant experience at the national or international level in design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development projects
• Experience in establishing inter-relationships among international organization and national governments
• Experience in organizing multi-stakeholder meetings and coordinating with a wide range of stakeholders, including government, civil society and non-governmental organisations, women groups, and local communities. Experience in preparing background documents, agenda and talking points for such meetings.
• Experience in working independently with minimal supervision.
• Familiarity with the United Nations system and its coordination mechanism would be an advantage.
• Experience in the in the field of gender and human rights of women is an asset

Language:

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

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc. 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.

Diversity and inclusion:

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.