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 - in partnership with the International Labour Organization (ILO) and European Commission - is implementing the regional programme “Win-Win: Gender Equality Means Good Business” to contribute to the economic empowerment of women, recognizing them as beneficiaries and partners of growth and development, by increasing commitment of private companies to gender equality and women´s empowerment and strengthening companies’ capacities to implement these commitments. The programme will ultimately contribute to the achievement of gender equality through enabling women’s labour force participation, entrepreneurship, economic empowerment and thus their full and equal participation in society.
Targeting women led enterprises and networks, multi-national companies, and relevant stakeholders in Europe and selected Latin American and Caribbean countries, the project will promote business links, joint ventures and innovation between women from both regions, while supporting inter-regional dialogue and exchange of good practices to increase the capacity of the private sector more broadly in the implementation of gender equal business.
Empowering women to participate fully in economic life is essential to build stronger economies and improve the quality of life for women, men, families and communities. Companies drive gains in productivity, competitiveness and innovation by developing policies and practices to improve gender equality at the workplace and developing gender responsive procurement and source from women-owned businesses. Private sector companies have a central and active role to play in achieving gender equality and women’s empowerment under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Women's Empowerment Principles offer seven steps to guide business on how to empower women in the workplace, marketplace and community. Subtitled, Equality Means Business, the Principles emphasize the business case for corporate action to promote gender equality and women's empowerment and are informed by real-life business practices and input gathered from across the globe. Rather than being prescriptive or a new initiative to which business is asked to subscribe, the WEPs seek the point the way to best practices by elaborating the gender dimensions of good corporate citizenship and the business role in sustainable development.
Principle 7 of the WEPs calls for companies to report on progress and underscores that accountability and transparency go hand-in-hand: Committed businesses have explicitly stated their intention to measure and publicly report on their progress towards gender equality in their workplace, marketplace and community. Business leaders and stakeholders agree that while not everything of value can be counted, it is difficult to manage what is not measured.
The Gender Gap Analysis Tool (GGAT) was designed by UN Women and UN Global Compact to help companies move from principles to practice and close the gender gap. The Gender Gap Analysis Tool (GGAT) is founded on the WEPs Principles and was developed in consultation with more than 170 companies. The questions are based on empirical company practice, international benchmarks, and indicators. Once companies have signed onto the WEPs online, they register to take the Gender Gap Analysis Tool. The assessment helps the global business community identify gaps in its performance on gender equality and enables companies to make informed decisions on setting goals and strategies.
The results of the Gender Gap Analysis Tool are provided in a succinct and well-defined format, so companies can easily identify areas for upgrading. The GGAT is free, user-friendly, and a strictly confidential online platform that helps companies to evaluate their current policies and programmes, identify areas for strengthening, and recognise opportunities to set future corporate goals and targets. Companies can use the GGAT to:
- Assess the company’s strategic approach to gender equality;
- Identify gaps and opportunities for continuous improvement;
- Learn about best practices on gender equality globally;
- Set concrete goals and targets, and measure progress over time;
- Benchmark against peers and industry standards;
- Leverage global gender equality resources to guide future actions;
- Contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals by investing in women and girls in order to drive business awareness and action in support of achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
The Gender Gap Analysis Tool (GGAT) is a critical step in the implementation of the Women’s Empowerment Principles. It is a self-assessment for businesses to identify strengths, opportunities, and areas for improvement in existing gender equality policies, programmes and initiatives. The voluntary tool will help companies of all sectors and sizes to implement the Women’s Empowerment Principles and identify areas where further action can be taken.
In Jamaica, the Vision 2030 National Development Plan makes a national commitment to redressing long-term systemic discrimination against women, identifying and overcoming the limitations to the empowerment of women and men and ultimately creating a society that values gender balance, equality and equity. The implementation and attainment of the SDGs are priorities for Jamaica and the country’s commitment to SDG Agenda 2030 is evident in the strides the nation has made towards implementation thus far, using the pre-established framework of the Vision 2030 Jamaica National Development Plan. There is demonstrated strong alignment between Vision 2030 Jamaica and the SDG Agenda 2030, highlighted by the Mainstreaming, Acceleration and Policy Support (MAPS) mission, and the SDGs Roadmap which built on the MAPS exercise in Jamaica. Additionally, the establishment of new mechanisms such as the SDGs Oversight Committee and the SDGs Core Group and Secretariat to advance implementation, demonstrates the strength of partnerships and augurs well for the future.
As Jamaica works towards achieving the SDGs and the SDG Agenda 2030, focus on the accelerators identified under the MAPS mission to achieve the SDGs will be key priorities. In this regard, continued partnerships with key stakeholders, including the private sector, as well as financial and technical assistance from local, bilateral, regional and multilateral development partners, will be required to ensure the effective monitoring and implementation of the SDGs. Leveraging these partnerships and identifying innovative financing modalities will be particularly critical for future monitoring and evaluation.
Jamaica recognizes that it will be particularly important to continue the systematic review and reporting process for the SDGs. This will include sharing updates, building awareness and support, localizing and keeping the SDGs in the forefront of the national discourse, to attain the common national goal of making “Jamaica, the place of choice to live, work, raise families and do business” and accelerate progress to the fulfilment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The Win-Win Programme, with its focus on building the commitment and capacity of the private to incorporate gender equality initiatives and report on the findings using the GGAT as a tool of analysis, offers an opportunity to derive the strategic information necessary for policy and programme planning as Jamaica implements it National Policy on Gender Equality.
Duties and Responsibilities
Objective of the assignment
The consultancy is under the Win-Win Activity 2.3.1 - In partnership with on-going global initiatives, refine and make available tools for companies to voluntarily report progress in the implementation of WEPs (Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) and Gender Gap Analysis, for example. In Jamaica, there is no history of reporting to the Global Reporting Initiative. The assignment will therefore be in the first instance to conduct a feasibility assessment. Included will be a mapping of the GGAT with the relevant matching key performance and proxy indicators of Jamaica’s Vision 2030 Agenda. Ultimately, this action will facilitate the refinement of the Gender Gap Analysis Tool (GGAT) to enable companies in Jamaica to voluntarily report progress in the implementation of WEPs.
UNW MCO Caribbean will collaborate with a number of key stakeholders such as the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) and the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ) to eventually develop an easily accessible reporting tool relevant to the Jamaican context, train companies in the use of the tool to report on the WEPs and link the WEPs indicators to broader economic development indicators. This will enable companies to use their WEPs reports not only to determine how well they have integrated gender into their company systems and processes, but to also link this to the broader development priorities of the country. In the first instance, it will be necessary to conduct a feasibility assessment.
Scope of Work and Deliverables
Under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO - Caribbean Representative and reporting directly to the National Private Sector Specialist, the consultant will conduct the following tasks:
- Prepare a consultancy work plan and timeline;
- Conduct comprehensive desk review of the Vision 2030 M&E framework, Medium Term Socio-Economic Policy Framework (MTF), Jamaica Voluntary National Review Report, SDG RoadMap, Economic and Social Survey for Jamaica (ESSJ), Gender Gap Analysis Tool and relevant gender-related reporting tools such as the Sustainability Report of the Global Reporting Initiative;
- Conduct key informant interviews with relevant stakeholders from Sir Arthur Institute of Social and Economic Studies (SALISES) of the University of the West Indies (UWI), PIOJ and STATIN;
- Based on the findings of the key informant interviews and the desk review, prepare a mapping document showing any alignment among key performance and proxy indicators between the GGAT and the MTF;
- Based on feedback from MCO, finalise mapping document showing any alignment among key performance and proxy indicators between the GGAT and the MTF;
- Prepare and submit draft Feasibility Report including recommendations;
- Based on MCO feedback, finalise Feasibility Report including recommendations;
- Provide weekly email updates to UN Women on the progress made, identify challenges and request support as needed.
Competencies
Core Values/Guiding Principles:
- 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:
Functional Competencies:
- Ability to support the design and development of training and educational material for a professional audience.
- Knowledge of Results-Based Management principles and approaches, including gender mainstreaming.
- Ability to maintain networks and partnerships with key private sector partners.
Required Skills and Experience
The consultant should meet the following criteria:
Required skills and experience:
Education:
- Postgraduate degree in public administration, law, economics, human rights, gender equality, management, social sciences or other related areas is required.
Experience:
- At least five (5) years’ experience project and programme development and management;
- At least 3 Experience working in private sector companies` environment and corporate management practices and policies;
- Demonstrated experience in monitoring and evaluation.
Languages:
- Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of Spanish is an asset.
Desirable Skills:
- Prior experience in the private sector and the Caribbean, preferably in Jamaica.
References:
- Minimum of three client references that include the name of the contact person, title and contact information.
Remuneration:
- The consultancy fee will be negotiated before contracting. Each payment will be based on a predefined and formal agreement between UN Women and the consultant and will be disbursed based on satisfactory completion of agreed deliverables.
Hardware, Software and Communication:
- The consultant must be equipped with a fully-functional laptop, which must run at least Windows 7. The consultant must be reasonably accessible by email and telephone (preferably mobile). The use of reliable, internet-based telecommunications application software (Skype or equivalent) is required.
Location and Duration:
- The consultancy will be home based.
- The consultant will be engaged during the period 14 October – 6 December 2019 (maximum of 10 working days).
Other:
- The consultant contracted will be required to sign a statement of confidentiality and freedom from any conflict of interest with potential future contractors with respect to the TORs and work that they will be delivering.
- The deadline for submission is 30 September 2019. Please submit relevant work samples.
Selection Process:
- Publishing of Terms of Reference (TOR) on UNDP Jobs;
- Technical Evaluation and Shortlisting of three candidates with highest scores according to criteria as listed in TOR;
- Desk Review of P11 documents of the three candidates;
- Selection of best candidate.
Note:
Submissions to UNDP Jobs are limited to a maximum of 10 MB, virus-free or corrupted contents to avoid rejection, and no more than 1 email transmission. As such, all application materials must be scanned into one document and submitted.
All applications must be submitted through UNDP jobs. Please do not send applications to UN Women staff as they will not be accepted.