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. The UN Women Europe and Central Asia Regional Office (ECARO) was established in Istanbul, Turkiye in early 2014. It provides support and oversight to country offices in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, and Ukraine. In addition, the Regional Office directly supports programme and project presence in Kosovo (under UN Security Council Resolution 1244), the Republic of North Macedonia, Serbia, Tajikistan, and Turkiye.

Since 2018, UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ECARO) has been implementing a regional component of the Flagship Programme Initiative Making Every Woman and Girl Count: Supporting the monitoring and implementation of the SDGs through better production and use of gender statistics (Women Count), developed by UN Women Headquarters (HQ). The Women Count programme aims to affect a radical shift in the production, availability, accessibility and use of quality data and statistics on key aspects of gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE).

One of the key priority objectives of the Women Count programme is to support countries in conducting comprehensive gender assessments of their national statistical systems (NSS). Such exercises adopt a granular and holistic approach to evaluating the capacity of the NSS to produce and communicate quality gender statistics that meet user needs. They not only uncover the various motivations and political dimensions that influence the capacity to produce quality gender statistics but also highlight soft skills of individuals, such as teamwork and leadership. As an outcome, they propose a sustainable way to promote the production and use of gender statistics across the NSS by providing a solid basis for the formulation of national strategies for the development of statistics (NSDS) to secure better political support, prioritization, and funding. Ultimately, these assessments recognize and elevate the important role of gender statistics in evidence-based policy creation and policy monitoring, enhancing transparency, good governance, and facilitating societal change.

In 2023-2024, the ECA Women Count programme plans to extend such support to the Republic of Uzbekistan with the aim of assessing data and capacity gaps linked to gender statistics, as well as identifying targeted interventions to address them sustainably. The Republic of Uzbekistan was identified as one of the priority countries, underscoring its critical role in advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment in the region. In August 2023, the Statistics Agency under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan expressed readiness and commitment to join the ECA Women Count programme. It is expected that the gender assessment of the national statistical system will lay the foundation for a long-term partnership to enhance the production and use of gender statistics in Uzbekistan. This strategic collaboration will be undertaken in close coordination with the national women’s machinery, represented by the Committee on Family and Women’s Affairs under the Ministry of Employment and Poverty Reduction of the Republic of Uzbekistan.

The methodological approach to support this work should be guided and informed by the Joint PARIS21 –– UN Women’s Framework and Implementation Guidelines for Assessing Data and Statistical Capacity Gaps for Better Gender Statistics.

2. Objective

Under the direct supervision of the Regional Gender Data Specialist based at UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ECARO), the International Gender Statistics Consultant in coordination with the Statistics Agency under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan will undertake the comprehensive gender assessment of the country’s national statistical system to assess data and capacity gaps linked to gender statistics, as well as identify targeted interventions to address them sustainably.

Duties and Responsibilities

Within the assignment, the Consultant will be responsible for implementation of the following tasks:

• Review and finalize the assessment methodology, including questionnaires for the Statistics Agency under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, data producers and users.
• Provide guidance and oversee the data collection process including completion of questionnaires and holding additional meetings/ interviews as needed to address remaining data gaps. For these purposes, one 5-day field mission to Tashkent, Uzbekistan, will be organized to hold face-to-face meetings with relevant stakeholders.
• Develop draft report of the assessment in English comprising preliminary findings and recommendations.
• Attend virtually and contribute to at least 1 national-level workshop/roundtable discussion to validate preliminary findings of the assessment.
• Support the development of a roadmap on gender statistics based on findings and recommendation of the assessment.
• Prepare PowerPoint presentation in English based on the report, using visually appealing and informative graphs, charts, and infographics to communicate key findings and recommendations effectively.
• Attend in-person and contribute to at least 1 national-level official launch event disseminating the assessment findings and recommendations.

Timeframe, payments and deliverables

It is anticipated that the assignment will take up to 30 working days over a period of 5 months:

Payment for this consultancy will be based on the achievement of each deliverable and certification that each has been satisfactorily completed. Payment will be based on the submission of the SSA report along with the timesheet and relevant annexes as supporting documents for the achievement of deliverables:

Input from UN Women:

Throughout the assignment, UN Women will provide:

• Background and resource materials beyond those available online or otherwise published that the Consultant will need to obtain directly.
• Technical inputs when reviewing key conceptual documents and knowledge products, including methodology, resulting assessment report, PPT presentation, key event agendas and concept notes.
• Support to coordinate activities with National Statistics Office and other key stakeholders, when and if required.
• Travel costs for field missions to Tashkent, Uzbekistan (as needed).
• Full logistical and communications support to strengthen visibility of the official events.

Reporting requirements:

The International Gender Statistics Consultant is expected to work remotely using her/his own computer, with 2 field missions to Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Consultancy report should be provided in electronic version in English with detailed description of the fulfilled tasks, according to the present Terms of Reference. Analytical documents, reports and other materials developed by expert should be attached to the report as annexes, which will serve as a justification for payment.

Competencies

Core Values

Integrity:

• Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:

• Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Respect for Diversity:

• Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff.
• Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies

• Demonstrate and integrity and fairness by modeling UN values and ethical standards.
• Strong knowledge of methodological approaches to assessments of national statistical systems.
• Knowledge of the social, cultural, and political context of countries in Europe and Central Asia.
• Strong written/oral communication and training skills
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Competencies in coordination, planning and teamwork
• A commitment to quality product and deadlines

Required Skills and Experience

Evaluation of applicants

The evaluation starts with shortlisting of potential candidates and received applications against the mandatory requirements. Only full applications will be considered. Shortlisted candidates will be then evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants' technical qualifications and experience, and financial proposal. The contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Technically responsive/compliant/acceptable to the requirements of the ToR; and
• Having received the highest cumulative (technical & financial) score out of below defined technical and financial criteria.

The selection of candidates will be done in 3 stages:

1st stage: Prior to detailed evaluation, all applications will be thoroughly screened against eligibility criteria (minimum qualification requirements) as set in the present ToR in order to determine whether they are compliant/ non-compliant.

2nd stage: Technical Evaluation/ Desk review.

Short-listed candidates will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

3rd stage: Financial evaluation will be conducted according to the method described below:

The maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal. All other price proposals receive points in inverse proportion.

A suggested formula is as follows: p=30 (µ/z)

Where:

p - points for the financial proposal being evaluated;

µ - price of the lowest priced proposal;

z - price of the proposal being evaluated

The candidate achieving the highest cumulative score for both Technical and Financial evaluations will be recommended by the Evaluation Committee for contracting.

The Consultant shall promote a client-oriented approach consistent with UN Women rules and regulations and commits to high standards of quality, productivity and timeliness in the delivery of tasks. The Consultant will meet and apply the highest standards of integrity and impartiality.

The Consultant must be fully dedicated to the mandate and the values of UN Women, particularly to promoting Gender Equality as a strategy to reduce conflict, improve livelihoods and ensure fairness and justice; to Women Empowerment underpinning Gender Equality promotion efforts; to inter-ethnic tolerance and concord; and to respect for diversity.

Application procedure:

Applications should include:

• Offeror's letter to UN Women confirming interest and availability for the assignment.
• Financial proposal, indicating a total lump sum to include all costs relating to the delivery of activities as per above description.
• P-11 form including experience in similar assignments. This form can be downloaded at http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment.

Financial proposal format:

Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant during the contract period.