Background/Context

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.

This assignment is a documentation of milestones, successes and processes of the ‘Engendering Governance to promote Peace and Security in Zimbabwe for purposes of sharing both internally and externally and extracting lessons from it.

 Objectives:

The objective are;

• To document the progress and impact of the five-year project on women's political participation and women, peace, and security in Zimbabwe.
• To analyze the strategies interventions and partnerships employed in each of the three phases.
• To identify lessons learned and best practices in the implementation of the interventions with an extension of work with partners that can inform future initiatives.
• To provide recommendations for policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders.

Outputs

• Technical note outlining the documenters’ understanding of the tasks to be carried out, as well as the methodology to be used.
• Data collection tools          
• A comprehensive report documenting the project's impact, challenges, and successes.
• Two case studies showcasing best practices and successful interventions annexed to the report
• Two policy briefs with recommendations for enhancing women's participation in politics and security sector.
• A repository of photos captioned and edited for inclusion into the report and for use in other UNW engagements.
• A documentary video showcasing project in action, human interest stories, new initiatives and strategies that contributed to the achievements, challenges or constraints encountered, project achievements and lessons learned

Proposed Activities will include:

The documentation process will involve a mixed-methods approach, including:

Based on experience on project reviews and documentation, UN Women is proposing to use the Action Learning Case Study (ALCS) Methodology, a methodology that guarantees structured documentation process, thoroughness, objectivity, stakeholder participation, ownership and triangulation of information generated within a short span of engagement.

The methodology offers an opportunity to combine use of both desk reviews and field work to generate primary information from and with the target groups and their organizations as well as other stakeholders. The ALCS will entail the following stages, each with distinct methodological approach.

These are;

Inception phase

• Carry out desk reviews with project team to gain background understanding of the project and pick experiences and best practices, and identify the specific lessons learnt and practical recommendations for the knowledge production.
• Conduct analysis of quantitative data collected during the project implementation.
• Develop tools for documentation.
• Consultations with the Zimbabwe country office team to broaden understanding of the project and corroborate information gathered through desk reviews.

Field Phase

• Conduct interviews with key stakeholders, including project beneficiaries, government officials, and civil society organizations.
• Focus group discussions with AWLN and women who participated in the project to gather in-depth insights into their experiences and perspectives.

Synthesis phase

• This phase will see the collation, analysis and professional presentation of the information gathered during the preceding 2 phases ensuring that information is accurate and objective, recommendations realistic.
• Finalize the publication by incorporating any additional comments from UN Women Zimbabwe team and submit the draft final documents as per the Terms of References.

Case Studies:

• Develop case studies of successful interventions and highlighting stories of individual and community impact.

The Consultant is expected to report to the Monitoring and Evaluation and Learning Analysts with matrix reporting UN Women Governance Specialist who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues

Deliverables

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy.

DURATION OF ASSIGNMENT AND DUTY STATION:

The assignment is home-based. The contract duration is tentatively from  20th  of August 2024 to 10th  Sept 2024. Travel to interview beneficiaries, view project sites and engage with the Project stakeholders is required. UN Women will cover travel and accommodation costs beyond commuting distance from the consultant’s usual place of residence for UN Women authorized travel as per the UN Women standard travel guidelines.

Logistics and Contract Arrangements

UN Women will facilitate this process by providing contact information such as email addresses and phone numbers of their respective partners. UN Women will oversee the logistics of the documentation and provide support for the arrangements as needed. The consultant will be also responsible for the dissemination of all methodological tools such as questionnaires, conducting interviews, group discussions etc.

Arrangement: The consultant must have own equipment and working space. UN Women will own all rights to the evidence and information gathered during the process, reports, policy briefs, case studies, videos, photos and all documents produced for this assignment, and UN Women must be credited in perpetuity

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 

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:  

https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment/application-process#_Values 

FUNCTIONAL COMPETENCIES: 

• Strong interpersonal, teamwork and communication skills.
• Ability to work independently and proactively solve problem;
• Capacity to plan, priorities and deliver tasks on times.
• Capacity to   engage with stakeholders to receive inputs for analysis and reporting;
• Ability to research, analyse, compare and present complex information.

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in  Social Sciences,  Law or a related field 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.

• A [project/programme management] certification would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• A national consultant with the following skills and experience
• Master level and above educational background in social sciences or a related field;
• 8 – 10 years’ experience and knowledge in documenting project and programmes related to Women Political Participation and Women Peace and Security.
• Experience in conducting evaluations with a focus on gender equality, women’s empowerment. Specific evaluation on Governance and Women Political participation will be an added advantage.
• Extensive knowledge and understanding of Results Based Management methodologies;
• Experience and understanding of gender equality, human rights, and women’s empowerment programming of UN agencies, development partners and government;
• Application and understanding of UN Mandates on Human Rights and Gender Equality;
• Knowledge of regional/country/ local context will be an asset;
• Proven experience and excellent networking and partnership skills with UN agencies, government and CSOs;
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written and strong presentation skills;
• Excellent spoken and written English (all deliverables to be in English). Working knowledge of Shona and/or Ndebele will be an asset;
• Capacity to work independently and use own equipment.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge local languages any other UN official language is an asset.