Antecedentes
1. 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. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality are translated into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts while building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.
Building on the successes of the first ever Europe and Central Asia Expo “Connect and Create” for Europe and Central Asia in 2021, UN Women is launching the second phase of its Women's Entrepreneurship Expo series “Partner and Accelerate.” Bringing women entrepreneurs at the heart of Expo 2022, it will engage partners and mentor networks established in 2021 and new ones to be established, the Expo will seek to accelerate women entrepreneurs’ greater access to markets and finance. Enhanced focus will be put on inclusion of women owned businesses in the corporate supply chains. In making more women become successful entrepreneurs regionally and beyond, UN Women is looking for partners to join Expo 2022 to facilitate new business connections and maximize their business growth. As the world begins to emerge from the impact of COVID-19, boosting women’s entrepreneurship is more important than ever. According to UN Women research in 2020, one quarter of self-employed women across many countries in Europe and Central Asia region lost their jobs. Micro, small and medium-sized business account for 70 percent of global employment and the majority of new jobs. The Expo provides an opportunity to support women businesses affected by the pandemic be part of a recovery journey to launch and expand business ideas and opportunities. Women-owned and-led businesses are gaining momentum in Europe and Central Asia, presenting benefits for women, marginalized groups, local markets and regional businesses and investors. There is a huge amount of business potential waiting to be unlocked which can lead to greater economic and social transformation. The Expo will provide an interactive and inclusive professional space for women entrepreneurs and business partners to convene and work together to grow and flourish businesses. UN Women’s first Expo, held on 27-29 April 2021, brought together more than 500 participants from 50 countries on a multilingual platform, engaging over 200 entrepreneurs. It established a market space for over 100 Expo booths by women entrepreneurs which gained 2,456 visits during the three days. The Expo platform also facilitated nearly 4,000 chat messages, over 300 private and network meetings, and triggered hundreds of connection requests. There were huge benefits for partners who had access to profiles of entrepreneurs. Over 40 new partnerships were formed between private sector, civil society organizations and UN Women. Expo 2022 will seek to accelerate these gains and foster productive partnerships to foster and deepen business growth and opportunities. In order to maximize the effect of the Expo and given the relieved sanitary measures due to the significant drop of Covid-19 cases worldwide, UN Women, together with its partners will host satellite expos/events in selected countries of ECARO. Reflective of the above, UN Women ECARO is seeking for several consultants experienced in working with entrepreneurs (pre-accelerators, accelerators, bootcamps etc), to provide expert support in planning, preparing and organizing the Expo. In addition, the consultants will conduct profiling process and act as focal points for Expo in respective countries. |
Deberes y responsabilidades
2. Goal and Objectives
The objective of this consultancy is to support UN Women’s ‘Women’s Entrepreneurship Expo’ in the ECA region 2021 and provide technical expertise in Expo planning and coordination.
As this is a retainer contract, UN Women will engage the consultant on an ‘as-needed’ basis and does not commit to guaranteeing a certain number of days work for the consultant, noting that the maximum number of days within the contract will not be exceeded.
3. Duties and Responsibilities
Working under the guidance of, and in close collaboration with UN Women, the consultant will be responsible for the following:
- To develop entrepreneurs profile template and submit for UN Women’s approval;
- To review submitted applications of women entrepreneurs, assess against eligibility criteria, systematize, group per sector and develop individual profiles of women entrepreneurs
- In case of missing information in applications, follow up with entrepreneurs to fill in the information gaps;
- To maintain regular contact with women entrepreneurs (respond to their emails, clarification requests, ensure their participation in meetings, seminars etc) in close coordination with UN Women in English and in local language;
- To plan and conduct in close coordination with UN Women meetings/orientation sessions with women entrepreneurs to guide them through Expo stages;
- If necessary, conduct seminars on the topics identified in coordination with UN Women;
- Offer professional, creative and interactive techniques to plan and execute the sessions to most value for entrepreneurs and other attendees;
- Support planning of the agendas and sessions, identifying of guest speakers, and, if necessary, preparation of materials/resources/tools/ templates;
- Provide professional, proactive and client-orientated event management and coordination services;
- Ensure smooth and professional facilitation between participants, and transitions between the sessions;
- If needed, prepare session reports and include a toolkit with resources used and shared;
- In coordination with UN Women and relevant partners, conduct pre-event assessment on the knowledge and needs of participating women entrepreneurs and a post-event evaluation on their learnings;
- Guide women entrepreneurs to the pitching training sessions and document best practices for women entrepreneurs;
- Support the communication and visibility efforts of the Expo by working closely with UN Women teams and partners to maximize Expo visibility on relevant social media channels and showcase supporters, relevant briefs and reports, activities and achievements.
- Support in systematizing information for creation of virtual booths of women entrepreneurs;
- Prepare the detailed report on the tasks accomplished during the consultancy;
- Other related deliverables as agreed with supervisor.
4. Deliverables
The consultant will be required to support and produce the following indicative key deliverables within a period of up to 50 days between 15 August 2022 and 20 February 2023.
| Deliverables | Timeframe |
| Detailed work plan of how the tasks in the TORs will be delivered with the respective timelines developed | 1 working day, by 18th of August |
| Entrepreneurs profile template developed and submitted for UN Women’s approval | 1 working day, by 24th of August |
Applications of women entrepreneurs reviewed, assessed against eligibility criteria, systematized, grouped per sector and individual profiles of women entrepreneurs developed; if necessary, in case of missing information in applications, follow up with entrepreneurs ensured to fill in the information gaps; | Up to 10 working days depending on number of applications of entrepreneurs from the specific country/language , by 10th September |
| Meetings/orientation sessions with women entrepreneurs planned and conducted to guide them through Expo stages; | Up to 10 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| If necessary, seminars conducted on the topics identified in coordination with UN Women; | Up to 4 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| Regular contact with women entrepreneurs maintained (responding to their emails, clarification requests, ensure their participation in meetings, seminars etc) in close coordination with UN Women; | Up to 5 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| In coordination with UN Women and relevant partners, pre-event assessment on the knowledge and needs of participating women entrepreneurs and a post-event evaluation on their learnings conducted; | Up to 4 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
Planning of the agendas and sessions, identifying of guest speakers, and, if necessary, preparation of materials/resources/tools/ templates supported | Up to 4 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| Women entrepreneurs guided to the pitching training sessions and best practices for women entrepreneurs documented; | Up to 5 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| Communication and visibility efforts of the Expo supported by working closely with UN Women teams and partners to maximize Expo visibility on relevant social media channels and showcase supporters, relevant briefs and reports, activities and achievements. | Up to 5 working days, by 30 January 2023 |
| A detailed report on the tasks accomplished during the consultancy prepared | 1 working day, by 20 February 2023 |
Competencias
5. 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
Habilidades y experiencia requeridas
6. Qualifications
Education and certification:
Master’s degree or equivalent in business management, social sciences, public administration, international relations, communications, gender studies, or a related field relevant to the requirements of this TOR;
A Bachelor’s degree can be accepted in lieu of a Master’s degree with two additional years relevant experience (total 7 years).
Experience:
- Minimum 5 years of professional experience in entrepreneurship skills development, building of entrepreneurship ecosystem
- Minimum 3 years of professional experience at a national and/or international level in event planning, hosting and management, and developing event related material
- Experience at a national and/or international level in mentoring and coaching of entrepreneurs in business idea generation and facilitating businesses and entrepreneur networking would be an asset
- Experience working with the UN and/or civil society organizations, international institutions and the private sector is an asset
- Experience working in the Europe and Central Asia region is an asset
Language and Other Skills
- Fluency in written and spoken English is required
- Fluency in one of the following languages is required: Albanian, Georgian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Serbian, Turkish, Romanian, Russian, Ukrainian
- Good computer skills in Windows, knowledge of internet communications and command of MS Office applications (Power Point, Word, Excel) required
7. Application Procedure
The following documents should be submitted as part of the application:
- 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 at http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment, a signed copy should be submitted with the application
- Financial Proposal a US$ amount for the tasks specified in this Terms of Reference. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (daily rate and number of anticipated working days). The Consultant will work from home.
8. Payment Schedule
Workplan will be set at beginning of the contract with clear scheduled milestones/deliverables. This workplan will be agreed between the Consultant and the ECA RO supervisor.
Monthly payments will be made based on the Supervisor reviewing and confirming that the consultant has met the required deliverables set in this workplan. This will also be accompanied by a time sheet submitted by the Consultant to the Supervisor.
9. Evaluation of Applicants
Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of 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.
Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points in the technical evaluation would be considered for financial evaluation.
| Evaluation Criteria | Max. points | |
| TECHNICAL EVALUATION (70%) | ||
| Language Requirements | Fluency in written and spoken English is required Fluency in one of the following languages is required: Ukrainian, Georgian, Moldovan, Turkish, Serbian, Albanian, Romanian, Russian | REQUIRED |
| Education | Minimum educational requirement | 10 |
| Professional experience | Minimum 5 years of professional experience in entrepreneurship skills development, building of entrepreneurship ecosystem | 25 |
Minimum 3 years of professional experience at a national and/or international level in event planning, hosting and management, and developing event related material | 30 | |
| Experience working in the UN and the Europe and Central Asia region is an asset | 5 | |
| Total technical | 70 | |
Financial Evaluation (30%) – max. 30 points:
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
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.)