In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The main roles of UN Women are:

• To support inter-governmental bodies, such as the Commission on the Status of Women, in their formulation of policies, global standards and norms;
• To help Member States to implement these standards, standing ready to provide suitable technical and financial support to those countries that request it, and to forge effective partnerships with civil society
• To lead and coordinate the UN system’s work on gender equality as well as promote accountability, including through regular monitoring of system-wide progress.

Gender equality is not only a basic human right, but its achievement has enormous socio-economic ramifications. Empowering women fuels thriving economies, spurring productivity and growth. Yet gender inequalities remain deeply entrenched in every society. Women lack access to decent work and face occupational segregation and gender wage gaps. They are too often denied access to basic education and health care. Women in all parts of the world suffer violence and discrimination. They are under-represented in political and economic decision-making processes. UN Women was created to address such challenges. It is a dynamic and strong champion for women and girls, providing them with a powerful voice at the global, regional and local levels. Grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the UN Charter, UN Women, among other issues, 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 is also committed to ensuring equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of humanitarian action. When crisis occurs, people’s lives change in an instant. Death, injury, displacement, and the destruction of infrastructure and institutions impact entire communities as a result. Crises impact women, girls, boys and men of all ages differently. As a result, their needs and interests differ, as do their resources, capacities and coping strategies. Women are often the first responders to a crisis, and they play a central role in the survival and resilience of families and communities. Women and girls are not helpless victims. Humanitarian efforts must recognize the fact that women and girls—like men and boys—have much to contribute in preparing for, and responding to, crises. Women must be included in decision-making about the forms of assistance and protection they need. Humanitarian action can also present opportunities for new and more progressive gender roles and relationships to emerge.

Through its inter-agency leadership and coordination role, UN Women supports other UN organizations in promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment in their humanitarian efforts. We assist Member States in implementing policies and commitments to gender equality and women’s empowerment in humanitarian action. We also promote the voices, agency and capacity of women’s civil society organizations and national women’s machineries in humanitarian efforts. UN Women fulfils its humanitarian role by providing coordination and leadership, technical expertise, capacity-building, and evidence-based response and advocacy to the global humanitarian system.

UN Women’s work in PNG specifically focuses on women’s safety and economic security in public spaces (through work in markets and the transport system), as well as on women’s leadership. UN Women has worked closely with the Department for Community Development and Religion to complete the Informal Economy Audit which quantifies the incomes earned by women and men in the informal sector and therefore the significance of income earned in markets. The majority of the cash economy in both locations is undoubtably women earning incomes in the informal economy. 

UN Women has developed a range of tools and training that are relevant to supporting women and markets including, financial literacy training for women market vendors; establishment of Market Vendors Associations to raise issues on markets and urban development within decision making bodies; innovative fee pay systems that suit vendors and market managing bodies; safety audits to assess hot spots for women’s security, and the conduct baseline and ongoing reviews to assess the effectiveness of its work and impact one women and girls.

• UN Women now requires Project Interlocutors to support the implementation of the Safe and Prosperous Districts Programme in Kimbe in West New Britain Province, Wabag in Enga Province, Tari in Hela Province, Port Moresby in NCDC, Daru in Western Province, Lae in Morobe Province, Madang Province, Kokopo in East New Britain, Mount Hagen in Western Highlands Province and Goroka in Eastern Highlands Province.

Under direct supervision of the Safe and Prosperous District Program Specialist – the Project Interlocutor Consultant will be responsible for providing coordination and technical assistance through performing the following key tasks and delivery of the expected results:

Provide support to programme management and implementation:

• Coordinate and provide technical support to key authorities responsible for the management of targeted markets.
• Provide support for coordinating UN Women’s technical support to the Provincial government, District and local level governments
• Assist in strengthening connections between the working committees for market management and key governance mechanisms related to gender equality, for example the Provincial Family and Sexual Violence Secretariat, the Provincial Family and Sexual Violence Units within the RPNGC and other related mechanisms
• Participate in all relevant coordination meetings and provide substantive input to guide the coordination efforts and activities of existing work
• Provide support and guidance to other UN Women Consultants that will be deployed on site to undertake various aspects of the project
• Work with UN Women staff to ensure that interventions for market management authorities and market vendors are implemented in line with agreed expectations
• Provide technical assistance and coordination support to market vendors to form vendors association(s) to ensure Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) commitments are fulfilled
• Provide support and guidance to the Sanap Wantaim Youths in coordination with local authorities, the local youth desk and other relevant partners for smooth implementation of the Sanap Wantaim outreach activities, as well as the 20 days of Activism events 

Continue dialogue with key stakeholders on the planned activities under the Safe and Prosperous District Programme:

• Meet on a regular basis with key stakeholders to ensure coordination on programme implementation;
• Coordinate and maintain regular contact with women’s groups, youth groups, civil society organizations, community/religious leaders and local government counterparts;
• Ensure women vendors effective participation and dialogue with key market management authorities
• Monitor and strengthen existing relationships with key programme partners;
• Conduct monitoring and assessments on projects and project risk and provide regular updates to UN Women;
• Map out and explore synergies for coordination in the project sites to be considered by the SPD programme team. 

Provide support for information gathering and data collection

• Provide research and documentation support for ongoing/future initiatives on women’s economic empowerment as well as public safety (data and information collection, briefing notes, presentations, concept notes, talking points)
• Assist with facilitating and/or monitoring UN Women work in the project sites to ensure effective implementation
• Assist in preparation of knowledge resources, best practices and lessons learned, including fact sheets on thematic issues

Duration of the assignment

The duration of this assignment will be for 6 months. There is a possibility for extension. Work should begin from 19th October 2020 upon signing of the contract.

Expected Deliverables and Timeframes

The following deliverables are expected from the Consultant to deliver noting that timeframes for delivery is not static and may change depending on changes within each project site. The consultant will develop a flexible workplan in consultation with the SPD Programme Specialist. 

The payment for each deliverable will be made upon the approval of the FINAL version of the respective deliverable.

All the documents and materials utilized need to be returned to UN Women in electronic format. Any printed materials utilized to be referenced and returned. All materials are property of UN Women.

Inputs: 

UN Women will provide copies of all relevant documentation in electronic / hard copy to the consultant. The Consultant is expected to work remotely using her/his own computer. UN Women will engage local services providers for printing and scanning services and will pay for such services directly from Port Moresby.

Transport:

The consultant will be responsible for arranging their own land transportation, and this cost should be included in the lump sum fee for the financial proposal (see Annex I).  

Communications:

The Consultant will be required to provide their own local communications such as SIM cards and phone credits.. The consultant will provide her/his own laptop and mobile phone including a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot device in order to enable internet access. This cost should be included in the lump sum fee of the financial proposal

Accommodation:

The Consultant is to be locally based and therefore should not include accommodation in their financial proposal.

Security:

The consultant will be provided with a UN security briefing and will be required to follow UN security rules and guidance.

Insurance:

The Consultant will arrange private insurance and the cost of which will be included in the financial proposal.

Office space and facilities:

The Consultant is expected to provide his /her own office space for this assignment. 

Performance evaluation

Contractor’s performance will be evaluated based on: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered.

Core Values and Guiding Principles:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Demonstrates integrity by modelling UN Women values and ethical standards
• Able to work effectively within a team
• Able to multi-task and juggle competing demands
• Demonstrated ability to work remotely with minimal supervision and achieve results
• 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;
• Ability to relate to external partners, including other international organizations and agencies, NGOs, grassroots community groups, etc.
• Demonstrated ability to work successfully in remote, rural, hardship posts.