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. Key trends in Eastern Europe illustrate that challenging gender stereotypes, strengthening the national gender equality machineries and introducing polices responsive to women’s and men’s needs represent an effective solution for the sustainable development of the whole region.

Since March 2020, UN Women and UNFPA are jointly implementing “EU 4 Gender Equality: Together against gender-stereotypes and gender-based violence” project[1], funded by the European Union. The project is operational in countries of Eastern Partnership (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine) and has a regional component. The project is aimed at shifting harmful gender stereotypes and patriarchal norms limiting women’s rights, improving men’s participation in unpaid care work and father’s programmes, and increasing the knowledge and tools of social workers and civil society organizations on how to conduct evidence-based violence prevention programmes targeting perpetrators of domestic violence, including early intervention. Specifically, the regional component collates global and regional experiences to coordinate activities that will have an impact across all six countries within the project. Currently, the EU4GE project is in its no-cost extension period until 30 June 2023. Final evaluation of the project is ongoing.

In the six countries included in the programme, a number of efforts have been undertaken in recent decades to advance gender equality and promote women’s rights. However, a broad range of challenges persist. All six countries show evidence that cultural beliefs around the roles of men and women persevere. Harmful social norms and stereotypes perpetuate gender inequalities that can be expressed through violence and discrimination against women. Recently, the region has also been characterized by a wave of conservative, nationalist and xenophobic sentiment and politics. Re-traditionalization, often supported by influential religious institutions, ties women’s primary value to their reproductive function, maternal care and the private sphere. Against this background, the impacts and implications of the COVID-19 pandemic are proven to be different for women and men, in most cases exacerbating existing gender inequalities.

Ukraine has made a considerable effort to address gender inequalities that were pervasive at all levels of society. Political and institutional changes were introduced to strengthen the national gender mechanisms and mainstream gender equality in the national reforms.  Number of new laws and related bylaws were adopted with the aim to eliminate existing discriminatory acts towards women and enabling equal rights and opportunities between women and men[2].

Despite the increased political commitment[3] and efforts of the Government, civil society and development partners, structural barriers to gender equality have not been addressed and gender-based discrimination remains widespread. Women’s participation in politics and in decision-making is still low, with 3 women among the 22 ministers, 21% female legislators in the Parliament. There is a considerable gender gap in the labor market participation and remuneration. Female employees in Ukraine earn on average significantly less than their male colleagues: according to the State Committee of Statistics of Ukraine, the average monthly salaries in 2019 shown the difference in pay of men and women at the level of 22.8 %.  In the ILO Global Wage Report 2018/19[4]  on gender pay inequalities, the gender pay gap for Ukraine is much higher, of 32.0%[5]. Gender-gased violence against women and girls is a widespread form of the gender-based discrimination. According to the UN Women Database on Violence against Women, every fourth women in Ukraine has experienced physical or sexual violence committed by her intimate partners during her lifetime[6] Women spend disproportionally more time as compare to men on domestic chores and unpaid care work. While reliable data on the division of unpaid domestic and care work between do not exist, the Rapid Gender Assessment of the impact of COVID-19 conducted by UN Women in Spring 2020 [7]confirmed, that women spent significantly more time than men during the lockdown, when mostly both parents were at home, on cooking, cleaning, care of children and other dependent family members. This also confirms the endurance of gender stereotypes, and  deep-seated perceptions of “traditional” division of work in the family between men and women. The COVID-19 pandemics has exacerbated the pre-existing gender inequalities in Ukraine, exposing vulnerabilities in social, political and economic systems which are in turn amplifying the impacts of the pandemic as confirmed by the Rapid Gender Assessment of the impact of COVID-19 conducted by UN Women in Spring 2020 [8].

In Ukraine structural barriers and deeply rooted social norms stil persist. According to the Baseline Study on Gender Stereotypes conducted in 2020, more women than men believe that career advancement is more important for men than it is for women in Ukarine (43 vs. 38 percent). 65 percent of men agree that it is better for pre-school children if her or his mother does not work. The study also shows that dominant perception of women as homemakers and mothers remains prevalent. 71 percent of surveyed women stress that they are primarily responsible for performing unpaid domestic tasks. Many women and men (30 vs. 39 percent) believe that conflicts between a husband and wife, even when they lead to violence, are a private matter and others should not intervene.

Through grants to CSOs, the EU 4 Gender Equality joint project seeks to shift these deeply rooted stereotypes by initiating set of tailored activities aimed at improving equality of opportunities and the realization of women’s rights, including increasing men’s responsibility for domestic work and child-care, and women’s employment and empowerment in general. In September 2020, the first round of the Call for Proposals for civil society organizations to implement actions aimed at shifting harmful social perceptions and gender stereotypes in six countries of Eastern Partnership was announced. As a result, 14 civil society organizations (including four in Ukraine) became responsible partners under the project and launched creative solutions to address gender stereotypes. In August 2021, the second round of Call for Proposal was announced with the similar objective of tackling and shifting harmful gender stereotypes and adverse social norms as the underlying causes of gender inequality and violence against women as its most pervasive form. As a results, three CSOs from Ukraine became responsible partners under the joint project.

1. Under the third round of the calls for proposals, Pisliazavtra CSO was selected to implement cross-country initative (5 project countries included) on addressing and shifting harnful gender stereptypes by partnersing with youth. The project includes development and country-specific adaptation of educational assistant on Telegram (chatbot). UN Women seeks to recruit a National Consultant to support the EU4GE in Ukraine final programme monitoring,evaluation  and reporting, as well as monitoring implementation of the grant project by a responsible party (Pislizavtra CSO).

[1] https://eca.unwomen.org/en/what-we-do/ending-violence-against-women/eu-4-gender-equality

[2] The law enabling women to join military combat positions (2018), recognizing their status and privileges as veterans (2019), adoption of the law on prevention and protection from GBV and DV (2018) and amending the Criminal code to prosecute cases of GBV/DV (2019), adoption of the new electoral law introducing GE quota of 40%. Number of orders were issued to strengthen gender responsiveness of policies, such as the one on GE of legislation (MJustice and MoSP).

[3] According to the Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum, Ukraine progressed from 69th to 59th rank between 2016 and 2020 with improving the score from 0,700 to 0,721. , World Eocomic Forum, http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GGGR16/WEF_Global_Gender_Gap_Report_2016.pdf

[4] Source: ILO Global Wage Report 2018/19 – What lies behind gender pay gaps (ilo.org)

[5] In line with ILO definition and methodology for calculation of the gender pay gap.

[6] Source: UN Women Ukraine (unwomen.org)

[7] Source: UN Women: Rapid gender assessment of the situation and needs of women in the context of COVID-19 in Ukraine | UN Women – Europe and Central Asia

[8] Source: UN Women: Rapid gender assessment of the situation and needs of women in the context of COVID-19 in Ukraine | UN Women – Europe and Central Asia

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the UN Women Representative in Ukraine and a direct day-to-day supervision of the UN Women Programme Coordinator, Communication and Advocacy Analyst and EU4GE Regional Project Manager, the National Consultant will implement a set of tasks, including, but not limited to:

1. Coordination, monitoring and reporting of the activities by the responsible party (Pisliazavtra CSO) of the project

• Liase and coordinate with the project responsible party to ensure timely and efficient monitoring and implementation of the project activities.
• Provide technical inputs and comments to the products produced by the responsible pary.;
• Support responsible party in its project-related communication and advocacy in coordination with the UN Women and UNFPA communications team.
• Participate in the meetings/events organized by the responsible parties.
• Support the responsible party in coordination with CSO partners from partner countries.
• Perform other support as required.

1. Provide support to implementation, moniroting, evaluation and reporting under the EU4GE joint project in Ukraine:

• Contribute to delivering results in accordance with the project’s document, work plans, communication plan and result framework.
• Provide inputs to project reports, including progress,annual and final reports.
• Participate in and contribute to the Technical Working Group of the project together with UN Women, UNFPA and the donor. 
• Proactively and substantively support advocacy activities and campaigns with key partners.
• Ensure awareness about project priorities, strategies and approaches. Analyze ongoing experience for lessons learned, best practices, and shares with project management for use in knowledge sharing and planning future strategies.
• Contribute to UN Women and UNFPA communication of the project activities including support to social media, collection of impact stories, attending events, etc.
• Support the final evaluation of the project, as required. The support will include setting up and coordinating meetings with the partners, participating in and contributing to the focus groups or related meetings at the country or regional levels, etc.
• Support the data collection process under the follow up assessment on gender norms and stereotypes, as required.
• Other duties as required.

Assignment Deliverables:

• All progress reports and final report should be submitted in  English languages (the supporting documents, such as meeting minutes, analytical papers, workshop agendas etc. can be submitted in Ukrainian language).
• The Consultant is expected to work remotely using computer, provided by the EU4GE project, and  may access the UN Women office for printing of relevant documents or should he/she be required to work on-site at any point during the assignment.
• The Consultant might undertake travels to the regions of Ukraine where the project-related activities are implemented (subject to security situation). Related travel expenses will be covered separately.

Inputs

• UN Women will provide the Consultant with background materials related to the assignment.
• The consultant is expected to work using computer provided by the the EU4GE project.

Performance evaluation:

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

Financial arrangements:  

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

Competencies

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/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications Education:

• Bachelors’ degree or equalent in social sciences, public policy/administration, economics, finances, development studies, gender studies, Communication studies or similar. Advanced (Master’s) degree will be an asset.

Experience:

• At least 3 years of relevant experience on implementing and / or coordinating international development projects/initiative, preferably with focus on human rights, gender equality and women's empowerment;
• 2 years of experience in coordination, facilitating partnership and cooperation with various stakeholders, including various women’s groups;  experience of running communication and advocacy campaigns would be an asset; ability to write articles/ stories and comprehensive understanding of social media would be an asset;
•  Experience in advocacy for gender equality and women's empowerment would be an assest.

Languages and other skills: 

• Proficient Ukrainian and English
• Computer literacy and ability to effectively use office technology equipment, IT tools, ability to use Internet and email.

Evaluation of Applicants:

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis taking into consideration the combination of their qualifications and financial proposal. A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal 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 - 70% of total evaluation. Total max 70 points:

• The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 70. 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 50 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).

Application and submission package:

All applications must include as one attachment:

1. Completed and signed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.unwomen.org%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2FHeadquarters%2FAttachments%2FSections%2FAbout%2520Us%2FEmployment%2FUN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc&wdOrigin=BROWSELINK
2. Financial proposal completed and signed: The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount with a breakdown of a daily professional rate per number of anticipated working days to include all costs (e.g. tele-communication, etc.).

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment.

Applications without P11 and financial proposal may be treated as incomplete and may not be considered for further assessment.

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.

This contract  is announced/produced/implemented in the framework of the “EU4Gender Equality: Together against gender stereotypes and gender-based violence" programme, funded by European Union, implemented jointly by UN Women and UNFPA.

General disclaimer: “EU4Gender Equality: Together against gender stereotypes and gender-based violence" programme, funded by European Union, implemented jointly by UN Women and UNFPA.

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).