Project Interlocutor Consultant, Women Make the Change (Open to PNG Nationals Only)

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.

Under its Strategic Note 2018-2022; PNG Country Office focuses on delivering programmes under four thematic areas;

• Women’s leadership and political participation
• Ending Violence Against Women
• Women, Peace, Security and Humanitarian Actions
• Global Norms, Policies and Standards

UN Women is embarking on a new project titled “Women Make the Change project” under its thematic area 1. This project aims to contribute towards the longer-term outcome of women’s full and effective participation in equal opportunities for leadership at all levels of decision-making in political and public life. In order to achieve the longer-term outcome; the project will contribute towards four sub-outcome areas:

Outcome 1: Legal and Policy frameworks promote gender balance throughout the electoral cycle

Outcome 2: A cadre of interested, diverse and capable women political leaders is formed at national and sub-national levels

Output 3: Significantly increased perception of women as equally legitimate and effective political leaders as men

Output 4: Women are promoted as leaders in gender sensitive political institutions

Implementing partners of the project are UN Women in partnership with UNDP and the Department of Community Development, Sports and Religion.

Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Country Representative, the Project interlocutor will be responsible for overseeing the management, implementation, monitoring and reporting of project on behalf of the Country Office.  

UN Women now requires a Project Interlocutor Consultant to lead the project initiation to support the project implementation.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under direct supervision of the Deputy Country Representative, Project Interlocutor/consultant will be responsible for providing expert technical assistance through performing the following key tasks and delivery of the expected results:

1. Initiate dialogue with key stakeholders on the planned activities under the Women Make the Change Project;

• Conduct key stakeholder project planning meeting with key stakeholders at the national and sub-national level and document the discussions;
• Map out key stakeholder’s readiness towards the project and provide written report to UNW;
• Identify women leaders to be capacitated as advocates for WPE
• Conduct capacity assessment for key stakeholders both government and CSOs, and propose capacity building support to UN Women and render reports accordingly
• Conduct assessments on projects risk and provide written updates to UNW on a regularly update.

2. Develop work plan for the Women Make Change Project

• Convene a three days planning meeting with key stakeholders to discuss activities for the project
• Based on feedback and proposed activities from stakeholder consultation meeting, develop a work plan for the project specifying activities for year 1-3 implementation.

3. Establish communication and relationships with Project stakeholders and partners:

• Meet on a regular basis with key stakeholders to provide progress updates on the project implementation
• Map out and explore synergies for coordination with different key stakeholders both at national and sub-national level to be considered by UNW Country Team.

4. Provide support to the Project management, implementation and coordination:

• Identify and propose effective coordination mechanisms for the Women Make the Change Project
• Convene quarterly monitoring meeting/updates with Reference group members for Women Make the Change project
• Deliver technical aspects of the programme, as outlined in the agreed workplan and in consultation with UN Women and the advisory group.

Duration of the assignment

The duration of this assignment will be for six months and work must begin from July 1 2019 upon signing of the contract.

Expected Deliverables

The following deliverables are expected from the Consultant to deliver within the approximate timelines. 

Each deliverable will be in the first instance through a DRAFT delivered in soft copy to UN Women.

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

Deliverable	Payment	Approx. Timeline
Work plan for Women Make the Change project	20%	By 30 August, 2019
Written report on stakeholder planning meeting containing recommendations for effective project implementation.	10%	By 30 September, 2019
List of identified women leaders to be capacitated advocates for WPE at national and sub-national level	10%	By October 30, 2019
Report on capacity assessment and proposed capacity development plan for key institutions/stakeholders for WMC project	10%	By November 30, 2019
Report on synergies for collaboration and coordination for the WMC project	10%	By December 30, 2020
Risk assessment report containing recommended strategies to minimize the risks	10%	By February 28, 2020
Technical report completed on the set of agreed technical aspects of the programme as agreed in the work plan	20%	By mid- February 28, 2020
Monthly progress update in the form of report submitted to UNW containing key milestones for deliverable in the upcoming months	10%	By March 25, 2020

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 but may access the UN Women office for printing/scanning of relevant documents during the assignment.

UN Women will cover the costs for translation of printed materials as required throughout the duration of the assignment.

Transport:

The consultant will be responsible for arranging their own travel to the duty station and this cost should be included in the lump sum fee for the financial proposal (see Annex I).  Official movements at the duty station will be facilitated by UN Women who will either pay directly for domestic airfares and/or provide a driver on a pick and drop basis.

Communications:

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

Accommodation:

All accommodation costs and other living expenses will be covered within the consultancy fee. 

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.

Competencies

Core Values and Guiding Principles 

• 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
• Demonstrates integrity by modelling 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;
• 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.

Functional Competencies

• Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to lead the development of detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them for development results
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making
• Excellent analytical skills
• Strong knowledge of UN programme management systems

Required Skills and Experience

Education

• Master’s degree in a relevant field in social science, development, social inclusion or gender studies.

Experience and skills

• At least 7 years of relevant working experience in political participation and gender equality programming
• At least 6 years of progressively responsible experience in administration or programme management/supporting complex and multi-component programme interventions with national partners, preferably related to Women in Leadership and Political Participation and gender equality thematic area at international and national level.
• Experience in coordinating, implementing, monitoring and evaluating development programmes and projects; specifically, with different UN Agencies, Funds or Programs is an asset.
• Experience in supporting a team.
• Experience in gender mainstream programming would be an advantage

Language and other skills

• Fluency in oral and written English is required;
• Ability to speak Tok Pisin is an asset;
• Working knowledge of another local language is an asset.
• Computer literacy and ability to effectively use office technology equipment, IT tools, ability to use Internet and email

Submission of application 

To enable you with your application submission, the requirements for the position can be accessed on the following site:

Interested candidates are requested to submit electronic application to: email address required here

Submission package:

1. Cover letter explaining the suitability of the consultant: applicants are encouraged to address experience and qualifications listed in the ‘criteria for technical evaluation’.
2. Curriculum Vitae (CV) of Consultant including references.
3. Personal History Form (P-11 Form).
4. Copies of certified academic certifications.
5. Financial proposal with total lump sum quotation based on professional daily fees.  Payment will be made upon certification by the designated official that stated deliverables have been achieved.

Applications without a complete financial proposal will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. UN Women reserves the right to accept or reject any bid.

The procurement process will be governed by the rules and regulations of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).

Deadline of all submissions: no later than Friday 20, July 2019 (close of business).

Applications will be evaluated based on the cumulative analysis:

• Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [70%]
• Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [30%] 

A two-stage procedure is utilised in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.

1. Technical qualification evaluation criteria:

The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Technical Evaluation Criteria	Obtainable Score / Points Awarding Criteria
Education	10 points
Experience and skills	60 points
Language and other skills (Pacific Experience)	30 points
Total Obtainable Score	100 points

Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically qualified candidate.

2. Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

Annex I and II is shared herewith, below, to set the guidance to submission/s of financial proposals.

1. Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated. 
2. The total number of points allocated for the price component is 100 (30%).
3. The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/ evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation.
4. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.
5. The prospective Individual Consultant should take the following explanations into account during submission of his/her price proposal:
   • The consultant’s daily rate estimated to complete deliverables.  Please note that UN Women solely pays upon submission of deliverables.
   • The daily price proposal should indicate a "lump sum amount" which is "all-inclusive"; All costs (professional fees, communications, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor needs to be factored into the proposed price.  Airfare, daily subsistence allowance and terminal payments for travel outside of Port Moresby will be paid directly by UN Women and are not required to be included in the lump sum amount.
   • UN Women will not withhold any amount of the payments for tax and/or social security related payments. UN Women shall have no liability for taxes, duties or other similar charges payable by the Individual Contractor in respect of any amounts paid to the Individual Contractor under this Contract, and the Contractor acknowledges that UN Women will not issue any statements of earnings to the Individual contractor in respect of any such payments.
   • Currency of the price proposal.  The applicants are requested to submit their price proposals in USD. In case of proposals in other currency, these shall be converted into USD using the official UN exchange rate for currency conversion to USD at the date of applications’ submission deadline.

Annex I: Price Proposal Guideline and Template

The prospective Individual Consultant should take the following explanations into account during submission of his/her price proposal.

1.Daily fee

The daily price proposal should indicate a "lump sum amount" which is "all-inclusive"; All costs (professional fees, communications, consumables during field related missions, etc.) that could possibly be incurred by the Contractor needs to be factored into the proposed price.

UN Women will not withhold any amount of the payments for tax and/or social security related payments. UN Women shall have no liability for taxes, duties or other similar charges payable by the Individual Contractor in respect of any amounts paid to the Individual Contractor under this Contract, and the Contractor acknowledges that UN Women will not issue any statements of earnings to the Individual contractor in respect of any such payments.

2.Travel costs

The Consultant need to factor in international travel costs in the financial proposal.

3.Daily Subsistence Allowance

The Consultant may include in the financial proposal DSA applicable for mission days.

4.Currency of the price proposal

The applicants are requested to submit their price proposals in USD. In case of proposals in other currency, these shall be converted into USD using the official UN exchange rate for currency conversion to USD at the date of applications’ submission deadline.

Annex II: Price Proposal Submission Form

[Mandatory document for the Consultant to complete and submit]

To:       United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Ref:      ___________________________________________________________________________

            [ name of consultancy position ]

Dear Sir / Madam,

I, the undersigned, offer to provide professional consulting services to UN Women within the scope of the referred Assignment.

Having examined, understood and agreed to the Terms of Reference and its annexes, the receipt of which are hereby duly acknowledged, I, the undersigned, offer to deliver professional services, in conformity with the Terms of Reference.

My maximum total price proposal for the assignment is given below:

Costs	USD$
Daily fee, all inclusive
Cost of missions to consultancy duty stations (as per TOR) i.e. (travel, etc.)
Total price for up to ____________ working days, including missions to consultancy duty station (as per TOR)

I confirm that my financial proposal will remain unchanged.  I also confirm that the price that I quote is gross, and is inclusive of all legal expenses, including but not limited to social security, income tax, pension, etc., which shall be required applicable laws.

I agree that my proposal shall remain binding upon me for the duration of the contract timeline i.e. __________________________ days / weeks / months / year.

I understand that you are not bound to accept any proposal you may receive.

[ Signature ]

Date:

Name:

Address:

Telephone / Fax:

Email: