Background

UN Women Ethiopia Country Office  (ECO), in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework: 2020-2025 (Available at:

https://www.et.undp.org/content/ethiopia/en/home/library/UNSustainableDevelopmentCooperationFrameworkforEthiopia2025.html) looks forward to strengthening collaboration with the Government of Ethiopia in line with its 10 years perspective plan (2020-2030) and other partners to achieve gender equality and women empowerment through implementation of transformative programmes in Ethiopia.In addition to the national development frameworks, the new Strategic Notes (2021-2024) will also be guided by the Sustainable Development Goals, Agenda 2030, Addis Ababa Action Agenda and the Africa Agenda 2063.

With this background, UN Women Ethiopia Country Office builds in harnessing synergies and opportunities, including the findings of the ongoing Country Portfolio Evaluation (CPE), to develop its next country programme document ‘Strategic Note 2021-2025’ which will set the vision, strategic results areas and implementation plan for UN Women ECO for the next four years. This new Strategic Note will take into consideration the new generation equality themes as defined by UN Women (see references in https://www.unwomen.org/en/get-involved/beijing-plus-25/about#:~:text=The%20Generation%20Equality%20campaign%20demands,in%20all%20areas%20of%20life.) but also the areas where UN Women focused its current SN, namely: 1.Women in leadership and governance; 2.Women Economic Empowerment; 3. National Planning; 4.Ending Violence Against Women and Girls; 5.Coordination; 6. Communications & advocacy; 7. Liaison with African Union and UN ECA.  

Objectives of the Assignment

UN Women ECO is embarking on the process of developing its third Strategic Note (SN) for the period of 2021-2024, defining key development results and management/operational results for the next four years. The Strategic Note will be informed by the global UN Women Strategic Plan (2018-2021) and aligned to the UNSCDF for Ethiopia as well as the national development plans and priorities, articulating UN Women’s contribution to achieving national priorities, goals and results as set out in the UNSDCF. This means that development-focused country programmes of individual UN entities (i.e. the SN in the case of UN Women) will be derived from the UNSDCF rather than the other way around. Henceforth, specifically, this new SN will:

1. Provide an opportunity for Country Team and partners to reflect and undertake a strategic examination of the programmatic approaches and ToC and ensure alignment with the UNSDCF 2020-2025.
2. Make a business case for investment in UN Women programmes and projects in Ethiopia for the next five years (2021-2025)
3. Facilitate the alignment of the SN with the UN Women SP 2018-2021, Generation Equality Agenda and the UNSDCF for Ethiopia 2020-2025 and Agenda 2030.

As a necessary part of the process of developing the new Strategic Note, the UN Women ECO needs to develop a SN that is:

• Strategically aligned to national priorities, goals and to results of the UNSDCF;
• Focused and clearly aligned with UN Women’s Strategic Plan (Regional and Global);
• Aligned with the relevant international and regional normative frameworks on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls;
• Highlight UN Women’s contribution to support the full, effective and accelerated implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, CEDAW, Security Council Resolutions on Women, Peace and Security where relevant, and gender-responsive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

In addition, this SN should:

• be robust in development, humanitarian action, peace and security;
• be consultative, developed through the engagement of key stakeholders within the country, including youth and beneficiary populations to ensure ownership of the programme;
• be based on evidence from previous Country Portfolio Evaluations (CPEs) and UNSDCF (formerly UNDAF) evaluations,  as well as the Country Gender Equality Profile (CGEP), Common Country Assessment (CCA) ensuring that all major findings in these, other evaluative activities, and their subsequent management responses and/or implementation plans are reflected in the design and development of the SN document; and
• be informed by a review of existing and needed human resources, ensuring sufficient capacity is available to safely implement the country programme.
• also take advantage of new windows and opportunities that are presenting especially the increased interest on GEWE, generational equality, etc

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of Consultancy Assignment:

Under the guidance of the UN Women Country Representative and the direct supervision of UN Women Deputy Representative in Ethiopia, the Consultant (s) will be responsible for the following specific tasks:

1. Based on the findings and recommendations of the Country Portfolio Evaluation (CPE), conduct a desk review to identify the trends/issues related to GEWE in the country a and how the UN has been engaged in advancing the same, with practical and substantial recommendations for improved programme cohesion and coherence within the framework of the proposed Strategic Note;
2. Facilitate initial internal and external consultations with key stakeholders (including within the UN e.g. the Gender Theme Group, Resident Coordinator’s Office) to validate the preliminary findings of the desk review, obtain additional insights on key GEWE gaps, challenges and opportunities, etc.;
3. Support the development of the Draft Strategic Note 2021-2025 based on UN Women’s global guidance and requirements for the Strategic Note Development; 
4. Conduct final consultation in Ethiopia to validate preliminary analysis, results framework and the key element of the Strategic Note;
5. Develop the final Strategic Note for the UN Women Ethiopia Country Office including Integrated Resource Results Framework, Monitoring, Evaluation, Research Plan, Knowledge Management Plan, Theory of Change and all the required documents based on UN Women’s global guidance/requirement for SN- in consultation with relevant thematic and functional leads in the Ethiopia Country Office.

To achieve these requirements, the Consultant is expected to fulfill the deliverables stated in the table below:

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies

• In-depth knowledge of gender equality and women's rights issues;
• Experience in Programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to gather and interpret data, reach logical conclusions and present findings
• Good knowledge of technical area
• Good organizational skills and ability to pay close attention to detail
• Ability to use ICT based solutions
• Strong analytical and presentation skills

Required Skills and Experience

Education

• Master’s degree or equivalent in social sciences, gender studies, public administration, international relations, international law, public policy, or a related field.

Skills and Experience

• At least 10 years of experience in the international development field facilitating strategic planning processes.
• Knowledge of gender analysis and experience working on GEWE issues, preferably within the UN system
• Familiarity with human rights concepts and approaches and GEWE normative frameworks
• Demonstrated knowledge of results-based planning, including planning of monitoring & evaluation work including relevant experience of UN results-based management standards and guidelines, and UN planning processes (UNDAF/UNSDCF and/or UN Country Programing)
• Demonstrated experience in project management, conducting research and writing strategic documents, and proposals preferably within the UN system

Language 

• Fluency in English (written and oral) is a high priority requirement
• Fluency in Amharic is highly desirable
• Please note that applications without a completed and signed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

NOTE

Application procedure

In addtion to online application, The following documents should be submitted as part of the application:at ethiopia.public@unwomen.org

• Cover letter to include a brief overview about which of your previous experiences makes you the most suitable candidate for the advertised position.
• P11 including past experience in similar assignments; can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Financial Proposal
  • Professional fee based on the deliverables breaking down into a daily fee x number of working days;
  • 2 trips airfare from the consultant’s place of origin to Ethiopia and return, if the current lockdown restrictions are lifted
  • Daily Subsistence Allowance and Terminal Cost

Applicants who have submitted full application packages in response to the initial announcement do not need to reapply to be considered for the position.

UNWOMEN 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