Jobs - 68786- UNFPA International Consultant for development of

UNFPA International Consultant for development of Stigma Alleviation Program

Location :

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

01-Oct-16 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

October - December 2016 – a total of 25 working days.

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

UN Country Team in BiH’s Joint Program on Conflict-related Sexual Violence (CRSV) is working on a three-pronged approach aimed at improving the position of CRSV survivors in the country:

Support for inclusive, aligned legislation conducive for the rights of CRSV survivors;
Capacity development for comprehensive, sustainable services that respond to survivors’ needs;
Contribution to alleviation of CRSV stigma, for both survivors and their families.

UNFPA is directly engaged in building capacities of public institutions for service provision to CRSV survivors. However, stigma is one of the biggest obstacles to improving the quality of life of survivors of Conflict-related Sexual Violence (CRSV). Focusing the attention on the stigma against survivors of conflict-related sexual violence must be a priority for those who provide assistance to survivors.

Therefore, there is no doubt that the victims of sexual violence in war are the victims of war, no matter how their sacrifice might seem minor in comparison to those who have lost their body parts. And yet, in individual cases, the fact that they are the victims is being challenged, and these persons are not only faced with the conviction of the environment that the victims in some way have contributed to this situation, but this same belief is to some extent often accepted by the victims themselves, although such an inversion can be understood as a paradoxical attempt to protect one’s own identity and integrity. Victims are faced with stigma and self-stigmatizing attitudes, and many persons with this experience themselves choose to keep it a secret until death, though –at least for some of them – there is a likelihood that their daily coping with the past is so painful that it makes them completely dysfunctional.

Sexual violence is a particularly sensitive topic and anybody who was not exposed to sexual violence in conflict is trying to make a distinction between themselves and the survivors, so they could find some kind of justification of what happened. People might even not be aware that they stigmatise and that is the reason why this Stigma Alleviation Program needs to explain the meaning of stigma, how dangerous it is and what are the ways of destigmatisation.

UNCT JP completed a complementary set of research that painted a clearer picture of the position of CRSV survivors in BiH today, including analysing views of survivors themselves, the general public, CSOs and service providers from public institutions. UNFPA is seeking to engage a qualified consultant who will review all the research findings and use it as starting point for defining consultative sessions with stakeholders and decision makers, before developing a comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program.

This comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program will be a self-contained, long-term initiative unto itself, while still being a part of the larger UN intervention in the area of Conflict-related Sexual Violence. As such, it will define all the goals, activities, actors, stakeholders, outputs, end results, timelines, risks, communication channels etc. needed to guide us in the period of January 2017 – April 2019.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision and day to day coordination of Assistant Representative, International Consultant will be responsible for developing a long-term, comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program. This document will guide all future interventions of UNCT JP on Conflict-related Sexual Violence (currently implemented by UNDP, UNFPA, UN Women and IOM) in the area of stigma alleviation. In parallel, work of the International Consultant will be augmented with two national consultants. The International Consultant will bear full responsibility for the delivery of the final product, which is the comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program.

Breakdown of tasks:

Review all the knowledge products produced under the JP, that include but are not limited to:

Study on Stigmatisation of Conflict Related Sexual Violence Survivors in BiH
Study on Socio-economic impediments to (re)Integration of CRSV survivors in BiH
Guidelines of Media reporting on CRSV cases in BiH
Analysis of knowledge, views and attitudes of service delivery professionals towards CRSV survivors in BiH
Relevant legislation tackling CRSV in BiH
UNCT Joint Project on Conflict-related Sexual Violence Program Document
Produce a desk review report outlining the current types and levels of CRSV stigma in BiH. Pay special attention to include descriptions of types of stigma experienced by male survivors as well. Keep in mind that desk-review report will set the tone and the baseline for further development of the Stigma Alleviation Program. Desk review report will be between 7 and 9 pages long and will contain following elements:

i. Narrative part to be between 5 and 7 pages long
ii. Visual representation of key information collected, but not contain more than 5 charts/infographics and not longer than two pages
iii. Be written in clear, concise language
iv. Highlight all the key patterns, trends and most important concepts recognized through the review

Desk review will include a complete methodology to be used in the following phases of the Stigma Alleviation Program development. Methodology will at the very least include the following elements:

i. Conceptual framework for SAP development
ii. Sampling size for consultation sessions
iii. Breakdown of tools to be used during the Stigma Alleviation Program development

Consult all the relevant stakeholders at all levels in BiH to inform the development of Stigma Alleviation Program

In order to fully develop a grounded strategy that relies on insights, knowledge and capacities of all actors to act on it, the consultant will organize consultative sessions with stakeholder groups where the starting point for the discussion will be the summarized findings from research data made available by UNCT Joint Program or other entities active in this field.
To that end, the consultant will organize at least 6 types of meetings with the following stakeholder groups:

i. International community (UNJP team, donors, etc.)
ii. Survivors’ groups, CSOs and academia, skilled professionals
iii. Government bodies at all levels
iv. Media

Special attention must be paid to geographical distribution of consultations. Due to the number of stakeholder groups, and the fact that they are scattered across the country, a total number of actual field visits and meetings will be larger than 6, but not greater than 15. Consultations must be conducted within one week.

Based on the desk research and consultative sessions, develop the Stigma Alleviation Program

The consultant will develop the program which will at the very minimum include the following chapters

Introduction/executive summary – max one page, with summarized long-term objectives, estimated outputs and a general breakdown of roles of implementing partners
Stigma Alleviation Objectives
Target groups
Preparatory phase – all the necessary elements, resources and tools before actual implementation
Activity Plan – 30 months overview, with aggregated, per quarter plan, with a more in-depth details on a per-week basis, including responsible parties and necessary inputs
Detailed Description of Activities – all activities broken down to the minute details, guiding future implementation
Detail description of stakeholders – breakdown per type (public, private, individual), including analysis of scope of influence, agenda, estimated resources dedicated to the issue
List of supporters - mapping of current supporters, their impact, scope of influence and area of expertise
Public broadcasting services, including social media channels, web-bases news portals and a proposed network of Stigma Alleviation Champions.

Consultant will be required to also develop a detailed M&E plan.

Also, the consultant will make sure to include 3 core sections when designing the Stigma Alleviation Program:

Initiate community-wide dialogue and awareness raising of the public on CRSV Stigma, its forms, determinants and impacts on the survivors, their families and the community as a whole. Besides the inevitable psychological aid provided to survivors, we should also focus on the families of the survivors, who are experience secondary traumatization, Stigma Alleviation Program will deliberately and explicitly focus on the general public, bringing it into the discussion and raising its awareness on CRSV stigma and its impacts. Additionally, some awareness raising initiatives on survivors of sexual violence in conflict already exist, but those are mostly oriented to female survivors. It is very important to also draw attention to the existence of men who have survived sexual violence in conflict, because it is even a bigger taboo for them to talk about it and to seek help. It should be clear that even though

Alignment and sensitization of services to tackle stigma
Define minimum standards and advocate for allocation of sufficient resources for incorporating stigma alleviation elements into regular service provision within public institutions

Positioning of CRSV Stigma Alleviation on the decision makers/stakeholder agenda
Contribute to attitude and behaviour change amongst decision makers - to increase their understanding of status of survivors of CRSV in order to create more inclusive public policies and services

Consultant is expected to deliver a comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program by 19th December, 2016.

Desk research to be submitted by 31st October, 2016 for review;
Complete methodology to be submitted for approval by 11th November, 2016 for review and approval;
11th November - 25th November 2016: field work – consultations with stakeholder groups;
Draft, comprehensive Stigma Alleviation Program to be submitted for review by 7th December , 2016;
Final comprehensive Stigma Alleviations Program to be submitted by 19th December 2016.

Competencies

Competencies:

Builds strong relationships;
Focuses on impact and results and responds positively to feedback;
Approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.

Values:

Demonstrates integrity and fairness by modelling UN values and ethical standards;
Demonstrates professional competence and is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
Displays cultural, gender, nationality, religion and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree in the field of psychology, social work, political sciences, international relations, or related fields.

Work Experience:

Minimum of five years of professional experience working with international organizations active in the field of prevention of gender based violence, sexual and reproductive health and rights; advocacy and outreach on programming for vulnerable populations. Previous experience in dealing with issues of Conflict-related sexual violence and stigma reduction will be considered a strong asset.

Skills and knowledge areas:

The incumbent should display high level of knowledge on Gender Equality/Gender Based Violence/Conflict-related Sexual Violence issues in general and particularly in Europe;
Display full understanding of the international legal framework relating to Conflict-related sexual violence;
Possess in-depth understanding of types and impacts of stigmatisation onto various disadvantaged, under-privileged and marginalised groups;
Demonstrated knowledge and expertise in developing comprehensive plans and programs aimed at stigma alleviation;
Great organisational and logistical skills;
Strong interpersonal and communication skills. Communicates clearly and effectively. Seeks to understand the ideas of others. Helps create an environment for open communication;
Ability to conceptualize information into written reports;
Delivers oral/written information in a timely, effective and easily understood manner;
Initiative, sound judgment and demonstrated ability to work harmoniously with people of different ethnic backgrounds;
Fluency in English

Work of the International consultant will be augmented with two national consultants.
Expected travel: Consultant is expected to travel to Sarajevo once to conduct consultations with stakeholder groups.

Suitable female and male candidates are invited to send a quote for the work as outlined in the Terms of Reference (please provide a lump sum). Payment for contractor will not exceed average UNFPA rates for international consultants. UNFPA reserves the right to offer to the selected candidate the rate in accordance with UNFPA consultant rates and UNFPA available budget.

Where the contractor fails to deliver the required quality of products, the rate payable will be reduced. UNFPA reserves the right to assess the quality of products. Contractor has obligation to finalise products/documents to the full UNFPA satisfaction;

The contract terms will include the following:
The contractor must observe UN Minimum Operational Security Standards (MOSS) as communicated by the United Nations for the location(s) visited;
Be willing to travel around Bosnia and Herzegovina;