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.

UN Women work in Ukraine focuses on supporting the government and civil society in advancing gender equality and implementation of the national and international commitments on gender equality and women’s human rights. UN Women Ukraine implements interventions on the following four thematic priorities: Peace and Security, Humanitarian Action and Disaster Risk Reduction;               Ending Violence Against Women and Girls and Women; Women’s Economic Empowerment; Governance and Participation in Public Life. UN Women works closely with the UN Country Team in integration of women’s rights and gender equality in all spheres of UN work. The 2023 Strategic Note is aligned with the UN Transitional Framework covering the following areas: Humanitarian Response; Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus and Early Recovery.

UN Women works in integration of women’s rights and gender equality in governance, in particular within its project “Transformative Approaches to Achieving Gender Equality in Ukraine”, funded by Sweden, aimed at employing transformative approaches to the advancement of gender equality and women’s empowerment through removing the root causes, structural barriers, and restrictive social norms, that underpin the persistence of gender inequalities in various areas of life. The project is partner with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration (DPMO) and engage the following key institutions at the same time: the government, the parliament, women’s organizations, media and the private sector.

The Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights in Ukraine is a government official responsible for parliamentary control over the observance and protection of human rights on the territory of Ukraine and within its jurisdiction and who is governed by the Constitution of Ukraine, laws of Ukraine and international treaties, ratified by Ukraine. The Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights prepares reports on human rights submitted by Ukraine to international organizations in accordance with international treaties currently in force, consent to be bound by which is granted by the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine

The Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights in Ukraine is a strategic partner of UN Women Ukraine as supports the mandate of UN Women as stipulated in the United Nations General Assembly resolution 64/289 and UN Women’s Strategic Plan and ensures protection of human rights proclaimed by the Constitution of Ukraine, laws of Ukraine and international treaties ratified by Ukraine; guarantees respect for human, prevention of violation of human rights and/or assistance in their restoration; supports bringing the Ukrainian legislation on human rights in line with international standards in this field, improvement and further development of international cooperation in the field of protection of human rights, as well as prevention of any forms of discrimination in the exercise of human rights.

As part of its work on supporting National Women’s Machinery institutions to further implement and better monitor gender equality commitments (including CEDAW and CRPD), as well as strengthen their accountability, UN Women project “Transformative Approaches to Achieving Gender Equality in Ukraine” is looking for a National Consultant to provide expert support to the Office of Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights in Ukraine on monitoring of the implementation of state policy in ensuring equal rights and opportunities for women and men, prevention and combating to domestic and gender-based violence, discrimination in various spheres of public relations.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the UN Women Representative and direct supervision by the Programme Specialist/Project Manager, the National Consultant will provide expert support to the Office of Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights in Ukraine. The assignment will include but not be limited to the following tasks developed in coordination with the Office of Parliament Commissioner on Human Rights in Ukraine and UN Women:

1. Provide expert support to the Parliament Commissioner’s Office in preparation of its regular and thematic reports, monitoring reports on the protection of human rights, including reports on the implementation of national commitments on women’s human rights under CEDAW and CRPD.
2. Provide expert support in monitoring of implementation of CEDAW and CRPD Concluding Observations.
3. Provide expert support and assistance in effective advocacy and promotion of gender equality and women’s empowerment, the development of knowledge products pertaining to women’s human rights based on data and evidence, which could include research, studies, informational, analytical and thematic materials.
4. Provide recommendations to the policy documents, laws and regulations in the area of ensuring equal rights and opportunities for women and men, preventing and combating domestic and gender-based violence, discrimination in various areas of public life in terms of their compliance with international normative standards in the field of gender equality and rights of women facing multiple forms of discrimination.
5. Contribution (according to the competencies) in cooperation with the Office of Deputy Prime Minister on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration on the development of a mechanism to protect the rights of persons affected by conflict-related sexual violence.
6. Facilitation of elaboration and implementation of capacity development programs for the Office of Parliament Commissioner’s staff and regional representatives on integration of gender equality and protection of rights of women facing multiple forms of discrimination into human rights monitoring.
7. Facilitate different multi-stakeholder’s meetings organized by the Parliament Commissioner’s Office on gender equality and women’s human rights with engagements of the women’s and human rights civil society organizations, governmental institutions on the national and regional level, local authorities and development partners.

Assignment Deliverables:

*All reports should be submitted in English language and include the full set of supporting documents, such as analytical briefs, meeting notes, concept notes and agendas, handouts and lists of participants, etc. The supporting documents can be submitted in Ukrainian.

Inputs

• UN Women will provide the Consultant with background materials related to the assignment.
• The consultant is expected to work using her/his own computer.

Performance evaluation:

• Contractor’s performance will be evaluated against such criteria as: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, efficiency, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered. The evaluation will be carried out and cleared by the hiring manager which will also be the basis for payment on a delivery by delivery basis to the consultant.

Financial arrangements:  

• Payment will be disbursed in three installments upon receipt of the deliverables (as per above matrix) and their certification by UN Women Programme Specialist that the services have been satisfactorily performed.

Competencies

Core Values

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism
• Competencies

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 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

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications Education:

• Advanced (Masters) degree in Law, Public Policy and Administration, Social Sciences or related field.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years of relevant work experience (after Master’s degree) in human rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) or other related fields;
• Proven experience with conducting gender analysis of normative documents and policy documents and providing policy gender-responsive recommendations on GEWE;
• Previous experience of providing advisory/technical support to the legislative and/or executive institutions, dealing with issues of human rights and GEWE;
• Experience with support of coordination of multiple stakeholders’ activities and liaise with governmental and non-governmental stakeholders, including development partners, and civil society; experience with UN Women and other UN agencies will be considered as an asset;
• Proven knowledge of human rights and GEWE international and national frameworks.

Languages and other skills: 

• Fluency in verbal and written English and Ukrainian is required.

Evaluation of Applicants:

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of their qualifications (including an interview) and a financial proposal. A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal (including an interview) being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. The award of the contract should be made to the individuals whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable.
• Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

Technical criteria and interview - 70% of total evaluation (max 45 points for technical criteria and max 25 points for interview). Total max 70 points:

• The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 45. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on desk review and following technical qualification evaluation criteria

Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

• Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation will be further considered and evaluated.
• The total number of points allocated for the financial/price component is 30.
• 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 49 points in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.
• Evaluation of submitted financial offers will be done based on the following formula: S = Fmin / F * 30
• (S - score received on financial evaluation; F min - the lowest financial offer out of all the submitted offers qualified over the technical evaluation round; F - financial offer under the consideration).

Sample of Financial Proposal

The format shown on the following table is suggested for use as a guide in preparing the Financial Proposal

1. Cost Breakdown per Deliverables*

*Basis for payment tranches

UN Women applies fair and transparent selection process that would take into account the competencies/skills of the applicants as well as their financial proposals.

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).