Historique

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 .Placing women's rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

The Government of Albania has made national and international commitments to advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women in many different socio-economic aspects. Several international conventions and platforms, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the Beijing Platform for Action, demonstrate Albania’s commitment to the realization of women’s rights and the achievement of gender equality and SDGs as women’s equality and empowerment is one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but also integral to all dimensions of inclusive and sustainable development.

Over the past years, UN Women has provided support to national and local stakeholders in strengthening democratic governance and advancing women’s rights through initiatives aimed at mainstreaming gender in policy planning and budgeting. Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting (GRB) has been identified as important tool for advancing gender equality in key national documents as in accordance with existing Albanian national policy documents on social inclusion and gender equality. In this framework, Albania has made important steps towards the institutionalization of gender responsive budgeting at central and local level.

GRB has been included as a legal requirement to the Local Government Financial Management cycle. The approval of law no. 68/2017 "On Local Government Finances”, paved the way for the effective inclusion of GRB in all the phases of local financial management cycle (medium term and annual budget programming, monitoring & reporting, evaluation and auditing) by local government units. The inclusion of the Gender Responsive Budgeting in the Medium-Term Budget Program as well as the legal changes in the field of Public Financial Management at local level, provide greater responsibilities and challenges for public entities in effectively managing gender-based policies, by devoting the budget resources to achieve them.

In the framework of the UN Joint Programme “Catalysing Municipal Social Protection” implemented by four UN Agencies (UNDP, WHO, UNICEF, and UN WOMEN), in partnership with the Albanian Government, UN Women will continue its support at the local level in using GRB as a tool to advance gender equality and ensure that women’s needs are incorporated in local social protection policies and related budgets. The local government units play a vital role in designing policies at local level in providing and distributing the budget resources and in providing public services in the communities. When local government units give priorities to gender equality as policy targets, and when they directly involve communities and citizens – both women and men – in the process of local governance, the benefit they have is undoubted.

UN Women in cooperation with UNICEF intend to support the municipalities of Tirana, Pogradec, Kamza, Devoll, Puka, Rrogozhina to apply gender and children responsive planning and budgeting in the process of local Medium-term Budget programme (MTBPs). The ultimate aim is that the targeted municipalities plan and implement budgets and programs that take into account the needs of men and women, girls and boys and various groups including those most vulnerable. In this frame UN Women will support the 6 target Municipalities in improving the delivery on national legal and policy commitments related to gender equality by applying GRB and to effectively address the needs of women and girls, with specific focus on socially excluded groups. Work will be coordinated with UNICEF which will engage in a similar process with the same target municipalities but with a focus on children. Work will focus in upscaling the past proven approaches in conducting sectoral programme analysis and identifying gender responsive measures and indicators by having more profound focus on equitable and gender-responsive social protection and care services at the local level. This will entail deeper gender analyses and use of data and evidence and capacity strengthening of municipalities (budget users; program staff) on how to use GRB tools and methods, its importance for local economic growth, and its implications for social inclusion.

In this context, UN Women requires technical support of one national consultant to provide direct support to the Municipalities of Tirana, Pogradec, Kamza, Devoll, Puka, Rrogozhina to integrate gender equality perspective in the budgeting processes of the municipal budgets through the whole cycle of the local public finance management system.

The consultant will coordinate with UN Women and UNICEF  team on a unified methodology/approach  that will be applied in all six muncipalities.

Devoirs et responsabilités

Under the supervision of the Program Manager of National Planning and Budgeting at UN Women Albania and in close collaboration with the General Directorate of Social Services in the Municipalities of Tirana, Pogradec, Kamza, Devoll, Puka, Rrogozhina the national consultant is expected to conduct the following:

• Familiarization with the Municipalities planning and budgeting process for social services including key strategic and policy documents, available analyses and data.
• Conducting gender gap analysis in target municipalities.
• In cooperation with UNICEF national consultant conduct a training needs assessment (measuring municipal gaps) tool and report.
• In cooperation with UNICEF national consultant prepare a training plan and package for the targeted Municipalities;
• In cooperation with UNICEF national consultant prepare and deliver six trainings , one in in each municipality with specialists of social services, budget planning, budget monitoring and gender equality employees on Gender Equality, Gender and children responsive budgeting and integration of GRB in the local MTBP processes and participatory budgeting processes.
• Mentor and coach a core team in each of the selected Municipalities, especially budget users and gender equality employees to ensure sustainability of GRB application in the MTBP.
• Support the Municipalities to mainstream gender in the sector Mid-Term Budgeting Program (MTBP) and bring gender consideration into the core of the work.
• Guide Municipalities’ staff, budget specialist with the inclusion of gender equality objective(s) and indicators in MTBP;
• Support in the review of the budget plan upon the requests done in the public hearings by women, women organizations or other stakeholders, with regard to gender budgeting.
• Draft excel of final MTBPs with included gender key performance indicators marked in the document.
• Support record tracking and keeping and full documentation of the work conducted, and results achieved in the framework of this consultancy.
• Provide activity reports for each training session (including sex-disaggregated data on training participants and coaching/mentoring beneficiaries) as well as bimonthly reports and time sheets (in English) and respective outcomes to the Municipalities and UN Women on the implementation of activities as it will be specified in the consultancy Work-plan.

Expected deliverables:

• A consultancy work plan that includes timeline and a proposed outline and methodology for the consultancy in English (to be consulted with and approved by UN Women).
• A training needs assessment (measuring municipal gaps) tool and report in English
• Training modules including materials, handouts, pre and post-training evaluation tools in Albanian
• Report on the delivered 6 trainings including all materials, evaluation tools and follow-up recommendations for participants. In English
• Bimonthly reports on the technical support provided within the time period to UN Women.
• Presentation in excel of final MTBPs with included gender key performance indicators marked in the document.
• Technical inputs and on-demand reports on specific initiatives when requested.

Duration and remuneration:

The duration of the contract will be up to 30 working days between March 2020 - October 2020. The payment will be made monthly upon satisfactory completion of all tasks and deliverables in the assignment, and submission and approval by UN Women.

Compétences

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//media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf?la=en&vs=637

Functional Competencies:

• Thorough knowledge of Local Government budgeting processes and planning of the MTBP.
• Strong presentation, facilitation, reporting and writing abilities in English and Albanian.
• Diverse organizational skills in various settings.
• Proven ability to work within limited time constraints in the preparation of high quality documents.
• Strong ability to interact effectively with various partners and stakeholders, with focus on Municipality experts and public administration.
• Strong negotiating skills.
• Possesses the ability to work independently.
• Good computer skills in Windows environment, knowledge of internet communications and command of MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Power Point).

Qualifications et expériences requises

Academic Qualifications/Education:

• Master’s degree in gender equality, human rights, public policy or any other related science.
• Additional trainings and certifications on gender equality and Gender Responsive Planning and Budgeting.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in gender mainstreaming in policies and programs including specific experience in gender responsive budgeting application either at the central or local level.
• Experience in working with local government finance policies and processes – including mid-term budgeting program (MTBP) budgeting methodologies and approaches.
• Experience in drafting adult learning modules, provision of trainings, capacity building for government and other stakeholders.
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or similar international organizations is considered an asset.

Language:

• Fluency and proficiency in spoken and written Albanian and English required.

Scope of Price Proposal and Schedule of Payments:

• Financial Proposal specifying the total monthly fee in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified above. 

Please note that the financial proposal is all-inclusive and shall take into account various expenses incurred by the consultant/contractor during the contract period (e.g. fee and any other relevant expenses related to the performance of services and travel- 3 travel missions to each municipality).

Payment will be made as per the payment schedule in the contract upon (i) satisfactory completion of tasks; (ii) provision of deliverables specified in the ToRs; (iii) submission of and approval by UN Women; and (iv) submission of the respective invoice.

Recommended Presentation of Offer:

Qualified and interested candidates are asked to submit their application no later than 2 March 2020:

• A Letter of Confirmation of Interest and Availability including a brief description explaining why the individual considers him/herself as the most suitable for the assignment.
• UN Women Personal History Form (P11) including past experience in similar assignment. Can be downloaded at: UN Women Personal History Form (P11)  or http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Financial Proposal specifying the total all-inclusive monthly fee in Albanian Lek for the tasks specified in this assignment.

Evaluation of applicants:

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications and financial proposal. Contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Having received the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria.

Technical Evaluation –70 points:

• Master’s degree in gender equality, human rights, public policy or any other related science; (max. points 10);
• Experience in working with local government finance policies and processes – including mid-term budgeting program (MTBP) budgeting methodologies and approaches. (max. points 20);
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional experience in gender responsive budgeting application either at the central or local level; (max. points 20);
• Experience in drafting adult learning modules, provision of trainings, capacity building for government and other stakeholders. (max. points 15);
• Previous experience or familiarity with the UN system or similar international organizations is considered an asset. (max. points 5).

Financial Evaluation – 30 points

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation will be considered for the Financial Evaluation

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)

Using the following values:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

How to Submit the Application: 

To submit your application online, please follow the steps below:

• All online applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from UN Women Personal History Form (P11)  or http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment   
• Merge all the required documents above ( Cover letter, P-11, aggregated financial offer) into a single file. The system does not allow for more than one attachment to be uploaded;
• Click on the Job Title (job vacancy announcement);
• Click 'Apply Now' button, fill in necessary information on the first page
• Please enter the CV or Resume in the Resume Section of the online application format
• click 'Submit Application;'
• Upload your application/single file as indicated above with the merged documents (indicated above);
• You will receive an automatic response to your email confirming receipt of your application by the system.

Note: Applications without the financial offer will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

The United Nations in Albania is committed to workforce diversity. Women, persons with disabilities, Roma and other ethnic or religious minorities, persons living with HIV, are particularly encouraged to apply.