Antecedentes

Ethiopia has been showing increasing progress in terms of ensuring gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE). The Government of Ethiopia (GoE) has demonstrated its commitment through (1) accepting major international and regional frameworks including CEDAW, the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the Protocol to the African Charter on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Africa’s Agenda 2063 (2) putting in place adequate legal frameworks starting from the constitutional protection of the rights of women, revision of the family and criminal laws and in proclamation dealing with education, employment, housing and land administration including provisions for temporary special measures (3) issuing policies, strategies and action plans starting from the National Women’s Policy in 1993, the National Action Plan on Gender Equality  (2006-2010) and the Development and Change Strategy and Package (2017) (4) Setting up the national gender machinery including the Ministry of Women and Social Affairs (formerly the Ministry of Women, Children and Youth), bureaus of women, children and youth/social affairs at regional level and lower structures and directorates at sector ministries and (5) the inclusion of gender into its development plans and agendas, as evidenced most recently by the 10 Years Development Plan (2020-2030) which includes gender and social inclusion as one pillar of the plan.

These efforts have brought about changes in the participation and benefit of women in the economic, social and political realms. In terms of the economic aspect, there has been an increase in women’s access to vital resources such as land and property, participation in the labor force and in engagement in income generating activities especially through micro and small enterprises and self-help groups. In the social sphere, education and health outcomes for women have shown remarkable improvements.  Although it 

These efforts have brought about changes in the participation and benefit of women in the economic, social and political realms. In terms of the economic aspect, there has been an increase in women’s access to vital resources such as land and property, participation in the labor force and in engagement in income generating activities especially through micro and small enterprises and self-help groups. In the social sphere, education and health outcomes for women have shown remarkable improvements.  Although it declines at higher levels, girls’ education has expanded reaching parity (100%) at primary school level. Maternal and child mortality rates have significantly gone down with more access to reproductive health information and services. Ante-natal care coverage has expanded to 72% with 66% of birth in health institution.  There has also been increased coverage of social protection with strong gender elements. The significant increase in the number of women in higher government positions is also a remarkable development in recent years. Currently, women take up 36% of the cabinet positions at the federal level.

Despite this progress however, for the most part Ethiopian society still lives in a patriarchal social structure that underlies the unequal social power relations between men and women, boys and girls. These entrenched social norms limit women’s decision-making and pull them back from enjoying the same opportunities and benefits. There is also limited access to quality services, programs and infrastructure especially in rural areas including poor roads and transportation, access to clean water and electricity and access to health care. These limitations further expose women and girls to risks such as gender based violence and harmful traditional practices. Institutional constraints in technical and financial capacity and human resources in the gender machinery have also been a bottleneck to effectively implement the laws and policies on GEWE.

Addressing these gaps and limitations requires putting in place a transformative policy framework. The National Policy on Ethiopian Women (NPEW) which was issued in 1993 still remains in place and although it has spearheaded progress in the participation and benefit serving as an anchor, there have been many changes and developments at the global, regional and national level in the last 26 years since the policy has been issued. It is important for the national policy to take stock of these developments and be aligned with commitments such as the Sustainable Development Goals and Africa’s Agenda 2063. At the national level as well it is necessary for the policy to take into account the situation of women in the present time to put in place timely policy directions for enhancing women’s rights and their participation and benefit. It is also critical for the policy to fully consider the current issues and demands of Ethiopian women.

With this background in mind, the Ministry of Women and Social Affairs in collaboration with UN Women, CARE Ethiopia, and other partners have commissioned a consolidated review of the policy. The policy review which was guided by a task force composed of representatives from government, CSOs, UN Agencies and other partners analyzed the policy document, conducted consultations with relevant stakeholders at the federal and regional levels including Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) at the community level. The findings of the review clearly indicated gaps in the policy and forwarded recommendations for the preparation of a transformative gender policy through an inclusive process. The review includes an action plan for the major activities that need to be undertaken for the development and implementation of the policy. For the development of the policy, the action plan recommends establishing a multi-stakeholder gender advisory coordination mechanism, aligning the key areas of concern and the policy with international frameworks and commitments and national development plans, including a toolkit with indicators in the key areas of concern and costing the policy.

Based on the findings of the comprehensive review and the action plan, the MoWSA has started the process to develop the gender policy with the establishment of a technical committee composed of senior experts from government, CSOs, UN Agencies international organizations, and donor agencies. A National consultant to facilitate the overall policy development process has also been brought on-board.

Considering the nature of the policy document and the need to align the policy with international, regional and national commitments, laws and policies, UN Women is seeking to hire a national legal consultant to facilitate the development of the gender equality roadmap including preparing background documents, mapping of initiatives and stakeholders, leading consultations with different stakeholders and submitting a final roadmap document

Deberes y responsabilidades

UN Women will recruit a national consultant for the assignment. The national consultant will have the following main tasks and responsibilities,

• Reviewing successive drafts of the national gender policy to ensure that it is aligned to the international commitments and national laws of the country
• Providing strategic advice the national consultant hired to facilitate the development of the policy on any legal issues that may arise on the policy document
• Proposing mechanisms for coordination and accountability to ensure the effective implementation of the national gender policy
• Providing briefings to the technical and steering committees on the alignment of the policy document with international commitments and national laws 

Expected Outcome

• Draft gender policy aligned to international and regional commitments and national legal frameworks ready for endorsement by the Council of Ministers prepared
• Coordination and accountability mechanisms for the implementation of the National gender policy outlined

DELIVERABLES

The following key deliverables are expected to be submitted to MoWCY and UN Women:

• Inception report which clearly depicts the understanding of the ToR, details the agreements made between MoWSA, UN Women and the consultant undertaking the assessment regarding the proposed research methodology and core tasks to be undertaken for this assignment
• Report on the alignment of the policy document with the international, regional and national commitments and policy frameworks
• Attend and provide briefings to the technical and steering committees established to support the policy development process 

Competencias

Core Values and Guiding Principles

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling UN Women values and ethical standards.
• Demonstrates a commitment to UN Women’s mission and vision.
• Able to work effectively within a team.
• Displays cultural and gender sensitivity and adaptability.
• Able to multi-task and juggle competing demands.
• Can assess and prioritize work needs quickly.
• Able to relate to external partners, including other international organizations and agencies, NGOs, grassroots community groups, etc.

Functional Competencies

• Sound expertise in law, gender equality and women’s empowerment, including policy and strategy development
• Communications or knowledge management experience an advantage.
• Academic and practical research experience.
• Outstanding networking, team-building, organizational and communication skills.
• Capacity to work with diverse partners including governments, donors and civil society.
• Ability to work effectively and harmoniously with people from varied cultures and professional backgrounds
• Ability to produce well-written documents
• Demonstrating excellent interpersonal communication skills

Habilidades y experiencia requeridas

Education 

• Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) Law or Public Policy studies

Experience

• More than 10 years’ experience in legal field with specialization in legal and policy analysis, human rights, gender equality
• Demonstrated knowledge of international, and regional instruments
• Strong understanding of the Ethiopian legal system and institutional structures
• Experience working with Governments and non-governmental organizations and knowledge of their working procedures
• Ability to establish and maintain productive relationships with partners and other stakeholder’s and responds positively to critical feedbacks and differing points of view.
• Demonstrated ability to produce well written, well researched and high-quality reports and documents

Language

• Fluency in oral and written English and Amharic is required.
• Working knowledge of other local languages is an asset

Application:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) a completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment.