Consultant to provide advisory services on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide

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.

Through its programmes and projects, UN Women is providing technical assistance to national partners (governmental and non-governmental), including private sector, in the implementation of existing international and national commitments to women’s rights and gender equality, it facilitates networking and exchange of good practices and advocates for women’s rights and gender equality in all areas of life. Gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) are pervasive and enduring global issues, affecting more than one in three women worldwide. This alarming statistic has remained largely unchanged over the past decade. Recent global estimates indicate that, on average, more than five women or girls are killed every hour by intimate partners or other family members. Women and girls, in all their diversity, face multiple and intersecting forms of GBVF throughout their lives. These forms include emotional, economic, physical, and sexual violence, sexual harassment, harmful practices such as female genital mutilation, child, early and forced marriage, and sexual exploitation linked to human trafficking. Violence against women and girls occurs in both private and public spaces, as well as in online or digital contexts.

The work of UN Women in the Democratic Republic of South Africa is guided by its Country Strategic Note 2023 -2025 aligned to the UN-South Africa Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) and the UN Women Global Strategic Plan (SP) (2022-2025), and aims to contribute to the gender-responsive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 

UN Women South African Multi-Country Office (SAMCO) seeks to provide high-quality, evidence-based content, subject matter expertise, multilateral cooperation, and facilitating cross-regional knowledge exchange in support of the South African Government’s Presidency of the G20, particularly within the Empowerment of Women Working Group (EWWG). By supporting the South African government in the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group (EWWG), UN Women is advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women (GEWE) on a global scale. This effort aligns with the objectives of the Beijing Platform for Action and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly Sustainable Development Goal 5, which aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. Integrating gender perspectives into global governance fora like the G20 enhances the effectiveness and inclusivity of decision-making processes. It ensures that the needs and perspectives of women and girls are considered in policy development and implementation, leading to more equitable and sustainable outcomes.

The consultant will be reporting to UN Women EVAW Specialist, and will be supported by the Country Representative in close cooperation with Programme Coordinator.

 Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work:

The Consultant will work under the direct supervision of the UN Women SAMCO EVAW Specialist. The main objective of the assignment is to produce high-quality analytical output on the current state of the legal and regulatory environment with regards to GBVF in G20 Member States, in order to produce specific and realistic policy recommendations for possible legislative or regulatory changes. The Consultant will work alongside the Ministry in the Presidency responsible for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities (DWYPD) on GBVF and will mutually inform each other on the intermediary findings and recommendations of their work.

Contribute technically to the area of Gender Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF)

• Provide technical support to the South African Government in engagements on the prevention and response to Gender Based Violence and Femicide as required.
• Identify, analyze, and present promising practices in GBVF response and prevention, including promising practices on working with men and boys at different levels in combatting patriarchal masculinities. 
• Provide substantive inputs to the design and methodologies of research initiatives related to GBVF prevention and response.
• Contribute technical skills in identifying and localizing sustainable and local solutions to resourcing for GBVF prevention and response. 
• Provide technical advisory support to the DWYPD  on national and global development finance and gender responsive planning and budgeting for GBVF Technical understanding of international frameworks and guidelines on GBVF (e.g., IASC GBV Guidelines, CEDAW, UN Security Council Resolutions on Women, Peace, and Security).

Provide technical assistance and capacity development for the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group on GBVF

• Contribute to the development of GBVF knowledge products.
• Work with the DWYPD and the content creation workstream to generate content for different knowledge products including concept notes, policy briefs and project summaries.
• Provide technical support for G20 activities in the GBVF priority areas.
• Identify areas for support and intervention related to GBVF prevention and response, including resourcing for GBVF.

Provide technical assistance and capacity development for the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group on GBVF

• Technical support on issues and practices in the fields of judicial systems, legal reforms, gender equality, including all forms of violence against women.
• Technical understanding of legislative framework reform processes (penal code, code of criminal procedure, etc.)
• Professional understanding of the dynamics of the justice chain, vertical and horizontal relationships within and across ministries and departments; knowledge of the interface between civil, criminal, informal and quasi justice systems or approaches.
• Technical support of the prevention evidence base and entry points for undertaking prevention work along the socio-ecological model.

Provide coordination support and technical inputs to the monitoring and reporting for the G20 Empowerment of Women Working Group on GBVF

• Contribute technical content for concept documents related to GBVF and support the DWYPD to refine contributions from other stakeholders to such documents.
• Technically support the DWYPD, UN Women and stakeholders to conceptualize, plan and execute build up activities leading to the positive masculinities side event during the Ministerial working group meeting
• Technically support the DWYPD to collate data from different workstreams on GBVF and draft requisite reports for review by the DWYPD, the donor and UN Women and dissemination to the relevant stakeholders.
• Prepare relevant documentation including but not limited to project summaries, conference papers and briefing notes.

Provide substantive inputs to advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts

• Develop background documents, concept notes, policy briefs and presentations related to GBVF.
• Coordinate the development of knowledge management methodologies, and products on GBVF.
• Contribute to the development of outcome documents for priority three (GBVF)

Deliverables:

 The Consultant will undertake the following activities for the duration of the program:

• Coordination of the GBVF priority three working group and content creation workstream
• High-level technical advisory services provided through speaking points and briefing notes to UN Women, Department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, including conceptual frameworks, discussion papers, etc 
• Position papers and policy briefs developed for GBVF as guided by the DWYPD
• Participation in and provision of technical guidance in the planning and working group meetings
• A recommendations report produced to feed into the Outcome document
• Monthly reports produced and shared with the DWYPD and UN Women for integration into quarterly reporting and reporting to the donor.
• Work closely with the M&E from the DWYPD and UN Women to ensure reporting on G20 is aligned to the relevant indicators in the two entities.
• Coordination, planning and execution of activities preceding and leading up to the side event on positive masculinities on the sidelines of the Ministerial working group meeting

Special conditions

Maintaining confidentiality and handling sensitive information with discretion. It is not allowed to share information relating to the EWWG without the consent of the South African Government.

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is an onsite assignment. The consultant will be required to travel to W20 meeting sites and to the Department of Women Youth and Persons with Disability as part of this assignment. Any travel will be coordinated in advance and aligned with UN Women travel policies.

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:

• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation skills.
• Strong budget and finance skills
• Strong knowledge of Results-Based Management
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports for management and strategic decision-making.
• Strong analytical skills
• Good knowledge of UN programme management systems.

Required Qualifications

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree in a field of relevance for EVAW ( social sciences, Gender Studies, Anthropology, Management, Public Policy, Social Work ).
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of professional experience working in one or more of the following areas: legal and policy reform and drafting, VAW and Data, VAW and networking and advocacy, gender-based violence (GBV), public policy analysis/development, strategic and action planning, gender-responsive budgeting, data collection and data analysis, and gender equality/women empowerment training.
• Experience in EVAW with at least 2 written works/ briefs/ products developed and endorsed in EVAW is required.
• Experience in the developing and delivering training programs, toolkits, evaluation, and monitoring matrices, and mentoring on VAW is required.
• Technical understanding of national, regional and international policy frameworks and guidelines on GBVF would be an asset Experience working in contexts in global is an asset.
• Research, writing, and analysis skills in the subject area is required. 

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of French or any other UN official language is an asset.

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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.