UN Women : National Consultant: Coordinator for Expert Panel Review of EmpowerHer Outcomes Document and Empower Conference – Manila

  • Location:
  • Salary:
    negotiable / YEAR
  • Job type:
    CONTRACTOR
  • Posted:
    2 weeks ago
  • Category:
    Conference and Meeting Services
  • Deadline:
    03/02/2025

JOB DESCRIPTION

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.

Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

The Philippines has made significant strides in advancing the rights and well-being of women, as exemplified by the Magna Carta of Women and the promotion of equal opportunities in the military and police. However, challenges remain in ensuring women’s equal representation and leadership within the criminal justice system. UN Women and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched the #EmpowerHer initiative to address these critical issues by:

  • Highlighting the importance of gender equality in the justice system.
  • Fostering women’s leadership and identifying solutions to existing challenges.
  • Advocating for informed policies and support programs that address the needs of women in the justice system

#EmpowerHer conducted a roundtable discussion (RTD) series beginning in March 2024, with an aim to address the challenges women face by law enforcement and criminal justice practitioners. The RTD series involved women in law enforcement and criminal justice sectors, to include practitioners in rehabilitation, cybercrime, corrections, maritime crime, prosecution, judges and justices, counterterrorism, and LGBTQ rights.

One of the major outcomes of the RTD series is the EmpowerHer Outcomes Document, which highlighted women’s contributions and developed actionable recommendations to improve recruitment, retention, and career advancement. The series emphasizes the need for gender-responsive recruitment, legislative reform, and capacity building to foster a more inclusive and effective law enforcement and criminal justice system, among others.

The outcomes document will undergo an expert panel review to validate the findings and recommendations gathered during the RTDs. The expert panel review sessions generally aim to critically review and validate the findings and recommendations outlined in the Outcomes Document from the RTDs and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs).

As a culminating activity, UN Women and UNODC will organize an EmpowerHer Conference. The Conference is envisioned as a venue for the presentation of the final reviewed Outcomes Document to a plenary, as well as action planning on the next steps based on the proposed recommendations in the Outcomes Document. 

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work

Under the supervision of the Senior National Programme Officer of the UNODC  and Programme Specialist of UN Women Philippines, the consultant will carry out the following activities for the period of February to April 2025:

  1. Lead the coordination for the conduct of Expert Panel Review meetings, to include:
    1. Assist UNODC and UN Women in the process of identifying the Panel Composition
    2. Drafting of Panel Review Methodology (processes and protocols), based on inputs from UNODC and UN Women
    3. Prepare Concept Note, Agenda, and Letters of Invitation
    4. Support in the facilitation and documentation of the series of Expert Panel Review meeting
  2. Synthesize Feedback from Expert Panel Review Session (Synthesis Report)With UNODC and UN Women, organize the EmpowerHer Conference in March 2025, with specific tasks including:
    1. Support in preparations (both admin and logistics) for the entire conference
    2. Mobilizing additional resources for the conduct of the conference, including concept notes, meetings with prospective partners.
    3. Preparing documentation reports (consolidated workshop reports and Final Report)
    4. Developing and disseminating communication materials/collaterals, photos, social media postings, mainstream media articles
    5. Documentation, i.e. Final Report of the Empower Her

Outline of the deliverables relating to the tasks indicated above:

  1. Roundtable discussion series outcomes document validation
    1. Workplan for Expert Panel Review sessions (pre-meetings, identification of panel composition,
    2. Panel review methodology)
    3. Documentation Report on the Expert Panel Review sessions
    4. Synthesis Report of the Expert Panel Review results
  2. EmpowerHer conference planning, organization and documentation
    1. Concept Note and Meeting Reports (Resource mobilization)
    2. Concept Note, Activity Design, Logistics Note, Invitation Letters – speakers and participants, communication materials for the summit
    3. Coordination meeting reports (pre-Conference)
    4. Plenary/Summit reports (2 reports, one internal/full, and the other for public distribution)

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

The National Consultant is expected to be home-based in Manila, Philippines, and will be expected to attend activities relevant to the engagement within Metro Manila. The expected duration of the assignment is between February to May 2025, unless revised upon mutual agreement between the consultant and UN Women. The National Consultant is expected to be home-based but if required to travel within the project areas, travel costs will need to be authorized by UN Women and arranged by WPS Unit following UN Women Travel Policy.

Competencies

Core Values:

  • Integrity;
  • Professionalism;
  • Respect for Diversity.

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 Values and Competencies Framework:

Functional Competencies:

  • Excellent analytical skills
  • Strong knowledge of UN Women processes and systems
  • Strong networking skills
  • Strong inter-personal skills, communicate effectively with staff at all levels of the organization;
  • Ability to work in a highly pressured environment
  • Excellent facilitation skill

Required Qualifications

Education and Certification:

  • Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in political science, international relations, women and gender studies, peace and security studies, or similar fields is required.
  • A first-level university degree in combination with two (2) additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

  • At least 2 year of experience in working and/or engaging with law enforcement agencies, justice systems, and/or local and national government units;
  • Proven experience in designing and conducting research through a publication, manuscript, or a policy brief;
  • Experience incorporating a gender lens/perspective in research, analysis, writing and other work; and
  • Previous working experience with UN agencies is an asset.

Languages:

  • Proficiency in English and Filipino in required.
  • Knowledge of BARMM languages/dialects an asset.

How to Apply

Kindly submit the following along with your application with:

  • A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page)
  • Submission of relevant sample works such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns, or other materials maybe requested from shortlisted candidates.

Statements :

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements