International Consultant to prepare the Regional Thematic background paper on Preventing and Eliminating Violence Against Women and Girls – a priority thematic areas of the Beijing+25 review

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. The UN Women Europe and Central Asia Regional Office (ECA RO) was established in Istanbul, Turkey in early 2014. It provides support and oversight to Country Offices in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Ukraine. In addition, the Regional Office directly supports programme and project presence in Kosovo (under UN Security Council Resolution 1244), Serbia, the Republic of NorthMacedonia, Tajikistan and Turkey. 

The 1995 Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing, represented a critical turning point in the world’s focus on gender equality and the empowerment of women. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted in Beijing, represents a global commitment to achieving equality, development and peace for women worldwide. It builds upon consensus and progress made at earlier UN conferences, particularly the Conference on Women in Nairobi in 1985. In its resolution2018/18, as of 12July 2018, the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) decided that at its sixty-fourth session, in 2020, the Commission on the Status of Women will undertake a review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA) and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly, including an assessment of current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women and its contribution towards the full realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The regional economic commissions in partnership with UN Women are encouraged to undertake regional reviews based on comprehensive national-level reviews of the progress made and challenges encountered in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and the opportunities to strengthen gender equality and the empowerment of women in the SDGs. The outcomes of intergovernmental processes at the regional level will feed into the March 2020global review to be undertaken by the Commission on the Status of Women at its sixty-fourth session. In line with these recommendations, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) has planned a regional intergovernmental meeting on the 25-year review of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and its alignment with the 2030 to take place in Geneva, on 29-30 October 2019.

For UN Women Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ECA RO) support to member States for the Beijing+25 review process is a key priority for 2019 and 2020. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action remains a landmark normative agreement and the defining policy framework for the achievement of gender equality and women’s rights. It also remains an unfinished agenda that requires political recommitment and accelerated implementation in line with the SDGs and CEDAW.

UN Women ECA RO is collaborating with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) to support strategic regional reviews, meetings and consultations with governmental and civil society stakeholders. UN Women and UNECE will produce a Regional Report for Europe and Central Asia (ECA) (covering 56 member States) on the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and the BPfA and its alignment with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs.

UN Women and UNECE will also facilitate development of a thematic background paper on one of six priority thematic areas of the Beijing+25 review, namely on preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls (UN Women).

Goal and objectives: 

UN Women ECA RO is seeking the services of an experienced international consultant to lead preparation of the regional thematic review on the progress and challenges in preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls in the ECA region. The thematic review will assess the situation in 56 member States and will discuss progress and challenges in EVAW drawing close interlinkages with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the relevant SDGs. 

The main objective of the assignment is to undertake a thematic review of the 56 national progress reports by conducting the substantive comparative analysis of achievements, challenges and gaps encountered by countries in preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls in the ECA region, as well as by analyzing information from available data sources. This thematic report will be aligned with the review of UN Women’s Global priorities to draw key messages for the achievement of gender equality, women’s rights and women’s empowerment related to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals. The consultant will also draw on resources beyond the country level reports (including data from World Bank, DHS, MICS and other) and will benefit from the compilation of the statistical data for the countries in the region, prepared by the International Consultant who prepares the regional synthesis report on Beijing+25. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the UN Women ECA RO Programme Specialist and in consultation with UNECE Senior Social Officer and Gender Focal Point as well as in consultation with the International Consultant to prepare the ECA Regional Synthesis Report on Beijing+25 Review, the International Consultant will lead the development of the ECA Thematic Report on preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls in the ECA region, which will include, but will not be limited to the following tasks:

• Develop methodology and detailed outline of the thematic report and its alignment with the 2030 Agenda. Develop detailed timeline of the assignment with the support of the UN Women ECA RO and UNECE.
• Prepare the initial and final drafts of the thematic report, through analysis of the national-level reports and desk review of other sources of information, including those provided by UN Women ECA RO, such as programme and policy documents; studies and research publications on prevention and elimination of VAW in the region, data on VAW, etc.  The following key issues have to be addressed:

                         -    Overview of the progress towards the BPfA’s priority actions on preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls and SDGs 5 and 16 enforcement;

                         -    Key trends in the Europe and Central Asia region (ECA) with regards to forms and prevalence of violence;

                         -    Overview of national legal and policy frameworks in line with CEDAW, BPfA and SDGs targets, and results and perspectives of their implementation;

                         -    Main gaps and challenges to preventing and eliminating violence against women and girls;

                         -    Recommendations for policy actions to address the existing gaps and challenges to ensure efficient enforcement of BPfA and SDGs 5 and 16 in ECA region. 

• Coordinate, analyze and collate inputs from UN Women and UN entities (through the Issue-based Coalition on Gender Equality and the Regional Coordination Mechanism) for inputs into the thematic report.
• Identify key thematic messages on priorities emerging from the country-level and regional analysis to support briefing materials for delegations to the Beijing+25 regional consultations to be conducted in partnership with UNECE in Geneva on 29-30 October 2019.
•  Based on the analysis done, draft the thematic background paper on Preventing and Eliminating Violence Against Women and Girls to be used for the discussions at the B+25 regional review meeting in Geneva on 29-30 October 2019. The paper will have a maximum of 8,500 words.
• Based on findings of the peer review for the draft paper, finalize and submit its final version to UN Women.

UN Women HQ and Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia will participate in the peer review process of the thematic report to ensure consistency of the approach and methodology used for production of the Regional Synthesis Report and the global progress report. Also, respective UN Agencies will be invited for peer review for thematic papers

Expected deliverables 

Deliverables	Timeframe
1.   A detailed outline of the thematic report and timeline of the assignment, including proposed methodology for the thematic assessment.	By 15 June 2019 (7 w/days)
2.   Initial draft of the thematic report.	By 20 July 2019 (10 w/days)
3.   Final version of the thematic report including key messages and conclusions from the Beijing+25 regional review meeting	By 5 August 2019   (8 w/days)

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: http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications Education:

• Advanced (Masters) degree in international development or development studies with focus on gender/women’s rights, public administration or other social sciences fields relevant to the requirements of the TOR. 

A PhD is considered an asset.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of experience in women’s rights, gender equality and elimination of violence against women, including research/analytical experience; 
• At least 5 years of experience of advocacy related work with violence against women issues in Europe and Central Asia;
• Demonstrated experience in BPfA and/or CEDAW and key concerns related to positioning various GEWE aspects in inter-governmental processes and discussions related to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Developmentand Sustainable Development Goals;
• Previous professional experience with development agencies and/or the United Nations is an asset. 

Languages and other skills:  

• Proficient in written and oral English. Knowledge of Russia is an asset;
• Computer literacy and ability to effectively use computers, including advance Excel skills and/or knowledge of related analytical software (SPSS, Stata etc.) and standard applications for concise communication and development of complex written documentation;
• Excellent analytical skills.
• Strong writing and editing skills, and experience in writing thematic reports

Application Process 

The application should include:

• Personal History Form (P-11 form) - including past experience in similar assignments; can be downloaded at http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment, a signed copy should be submitted;
• Financial Proposal: Specify a total lump sum amount for the tasks specified in this Terms of Reference. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (per deliverable, alltravel costs, per diem any other possible costs as relevant);  
• Candidates should have the ability to quickly produce degree certificates and medical certification (of good health) should they be short-listed in consideration of the consultancy post.

Management and financial arrangements

The contractor will report to and work under direct supervision of UN Women ECA RO Programme Specialist.

Payment will be disbursed in four installments upon submission and approval of deliverables and certification by UN Women ECA RO that the services have been satisfactorily performed as specified below:

• Deliverable 1 – 28% of contract amount
• Deliverable 2 – 40% of contract amount
• Deliverable 3 – 32% of contract amount

Evaluation process

Consultants will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of qualifications and financial proposal. 

The candidates must possess following minimum qualification criteria to be eligible for further technical evaluation: 

• University degree in international development or development studies with focus on gender/women’s rights, public administration or other social sciences field;
• Proven experiencein women’s rights, gender equality and women’s empowerment; 
• Computer literacy and ability to effectively use computers, including advance Excel skills and/or knowledge of related analytical software (SPSS, Stata etc.) and standard applications for concise communication and development of complex written documentation;
• Fluency in English (speaking and writing)

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. Knowledge of Russian is an asset.	REQUIRED
Education	Advanced (Masters) degree in international development or development studies with focus on gender/women’s rights, public administration or other social sciences fields relevant to the requirements of the TOR. PhD is an asset.	10 0: without relevant university degree 5: relevant university degree PhD degree will be considered as the advantage - 10
Professional Experience	At least 7 years of experience in women’s rights, gender equality and elimination of violence against women, including research/analytical experience	20 0: without relevant expertise and experience 0-10: 7 years of relevant experience  10-20: more than 7 years of relevant experience
	At least 5 years of experience of advocacy related work with violence against women issues in Europe and Central Asia	20 0: without experience/expertise  0-10: 5 years of relevant experience/expertise 10-20: more than 5 years of experience/expertise
Specialized Knowledge	Demonstrated experience in BPfA and/or CEDAW and key concerns related to positioning various GEWE aspects in inter-governmental processes and discussions related to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goals	15 0: without experience  0-10: 5 years of experience/expertise 10-15: more than 5 years of experience/expertise
	Previous professional experience with development agencies and/or the United Nations is an asset.	5 0: without experience 5: Demonstrated experience
Total technical		70