Gender Based Violence Expert - (Home-based)- Re-advertisement

Background

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (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. UN Women provides support to Member States’ efforts and priorities in meeting their gender equality goals and for building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women operationalizes this through Flagship Programming Initiatives (FPIs) developed to achieve transformative results for gender equality and women empowerment. The FPIs respond to the expanded agenda for Beijing+20 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Flagship Programming Initiatives under this impact area aim to end the cycle of violence against women and girls in private and public spaces. Together, they prevent violence against women from happening in the first place, stop its re-occurrence, respond to the multiple needs of survivors, address impunity and the long-term impacts through the provision of quality essential services.

The main objective of UN Women’s support in the area of Ending Violence against Women (EVAW) is to advocate for the adoption of comprehensive legislative and policy frameworks to address VAWG. A comprehensive legislative approach would encompass the criminalization of all forms of VAWG, the effective prosecution and punishment of perpetrators, and the prevention, empowerment, support and protection of survivors. In addition, UN Women ROAS adopts an inclusive, multi-stakeholder approach, drawing on the complementary expertise of UN agencies, governments, women’s groups and other community groups; providing policy advice and enhancing the capacity of key stakeholders to develop interventions in line with international standards; and developing and disseminating guidance, implementation tools and resources. UN Women ROAS works to change social norms and gender stereotypes and support service delivery for survivors of violence.  Violence is anchored in the persistent social acceptance of discrimination against women among both males and females in the region. UN Women works with civil society organizations, media, religious leaders and key actors to change attitudes to violence against women. 

Against this background, UN Women ROAS is supporting the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to establish a subsidiary women’s organization, namely the ‘OIC Women’s Development Organization.’ The organization will be established to achieve the following objectives:

• Highlight the role of Islam in promoting and preserving the rights of the Muslim woman especially at the international fora in which the Organization is involved.

• Develop plans, programmes and projects necessary to implement policies, and decisions of the OIC in the area of women’s empowerment.
• Organize conferences, symposia, workshops and meetings in the area of women’s empowerment and development in the Member States.
• Conduct courses and training programmes aimed at strengthening and building capacity, skills and competences in the area of women’s empowerment and development them to their mission in society.
• Support and encourage national efforts in Member States to develop human resources in the area of women’s development.
• Organize activities aimed at upgrading the role of women and ensuring women’s full rights in Member States’ societies, in line with the Charter and the decisions of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
• Carry out studies to enhance the role of women in Member States.
• Activate the rights of women enshrined in the OIC Charter by working on the elimination of the barriers that will enable women to participate in community building.
• Suggest ways and methods of the society’s support for women.
• Establish an information network that will enable Member States to identify experiences and practices regarding women, including through the cooperation with civil society.

The Government of Egypt will host the Organization in Cairo, and it is expected to be operational by the end of the year 2020. To support its establishment, UN Women will engage a series of thematic experts to initiate the vision and policy development across three specific thematic areas, namely: Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE), Women’s Economic Empowerment, and Ending Violence against Women. For the purpose of this assignment, UN Women ROAS is seeking to recruit an expert in Violence against Women who can support in the development of the organization’s strategic vision for the thematic area of ‘Ending Violence against Women’ to guide the development and prioritization setting of the organization, in line with the ‘OIC Plan of Action for the Advancement of Women (OPAAW).’

In this, UN Women is supporting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Council of Women in Egypt in supporting the establishment of the new institution. In support of this, UN Women is hiring Gender Based Violence Expert on Applying a Gender Perspective to the Prevention of Extreme Violence with dual reporting lines between the President of the National Council of Women and the Directors of the Regional Offices of Arab States and of Asia and the Pacific.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the President of the National Council of Women and the Directors of the Regional Offices of Arab States and of Asia and the Pacific, the consultant will be responsible for the development and prioritization setting of the organization for the thematic area of ‘Ending Violence against Women.’ In line with the OPAAW, the consultant will be expected to:

1. Compile relevant information on Violence against Women in OIC Member States with the objective of highlighting potential areas of engagement, gaps, and best practices and lessons learned to inform programme design. 
2. Prepare a concept note which outlines the possible interventions for the new OIC Women’s Development Organization in the area/pillar of Violence against Women. The concept note is expected to be presented at the OIC Ad-Hoc Working Group of Experts Meeting, which will be expected to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in January 2020;
3. Develop a full-fledged proposal of the Violence against Women programme/pillar for the thematic work of the OIC Women’s Development Organization. The Proposal should include a detailed situation analysis, justification, results and resources framework, strategy and partnerships, risk and mitigation strategies, evaluation and knowledge management. The proposal will be presented at the OIC Ad-Hoc Working Group of Experts Meeting, which is expected to be held in May/June 2020. The proposal should be inclusive of a policy orientation, advocacy and outreach;
4. Develop a policy paper on Violence against Women in OIC member states, with proposed recommendations for further consultation with member states; the paper should be linked to OPAAW and should highlight areas where gaps still exist and where more policy attention is needed;
5. Provide technical assistance to the host government, which includes but is not limited to preparing relevant background documents as requested, and generating relevant knowledge to inform the work of the OIC Women’s Development Organization.

All deliverables and related documents will have to be reviewed and accepted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Egypt and the National Council for Women.

• Deliverable 1: Desk review on the status of Violence against Women in OIC Member States; 
• Deliverable 2: Concept note on the proposed programme for the Violence against Women thematic area/pillar of the OIC Women’s Development Organization;
• Deliverable 3: Full-fledged proposal on the on the proposed programme for the Violence against Women thematic area/pillar of the OIC Women’s Development Organization;
• Deliverable 4: Policy paper on Violence against Women in OIC member states;
• Deliverable 5: Reports on the type and details of technical assistance provided to the host government. 

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/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf?la=en&vs=637 

Functional Competencies:

• Expert knowledge in Violence against Women;
• Strong knowledge of international and regional normative frameworks;
• Proven ability to advocate and provide policy, substantive and strategic advice in Violence against Women;
• Ability to develop and maintain strong partnerships;
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Excellent analytical and communication skills required;
• Strong knowledge of UN programme management systems.

Required Skills and Experience