Consultancy on Gender Strategy development for IOM’s Migration, Business and Human Rights in Asia programme

A. BACKGROUND:

Established in 1951, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is a related organization of the United Nations (UN), and as the leading UN agency in the field of migration, works closely with governmental, intergovernmental, and non-governmental partners. IOM is dedicated to promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It does so by providing services and advice to governments and migrants. As part of its commitment to gender equality and empowerment, IOM acknowledges the need to integrate a gender-mainstreaming approach into its core activities. Evidence across migration corridors confirms that women migrant workers are more vulnerable because countries of origin often either require spousal consent for women to migrate, or ban the migration of women which may push them towards irregular pathways, gender-irresponsive recruitment agencies, gender-stereotyping in job selection processes, wage discrimination in destination countries, psychosocial risks associated with family separation, and at its most extreme, physical or mental abuse including sexual and gender-based violence, trafficking and forced labour. At the same time, some corridors and sectors may associate specific risks and vulnerabilities with men. Recognizing these varied dynamics underscores the importance of understanding different nuances and intersectionality that may influence and impact IOM’s programming.

In 2017-2023, IOM implemented a number of projects in the area of Migration, Business and Human Rights (MBHR), particularly the Corporate Responsibility in Eliminating Slavery and Trafficking (CREST), funded by the Government of Sweden, CREST Fashion funded by Laudes Foundation, and other related projects funded by institutional donors and private sector partners. These projects aimed to realize the potential of business to uphold the human and labour rights of migrant workers in their operations and supply chains in Asia.

Building on the results, partnerships and resources of IOM’s projects in the area of MBHR, IOM has developed a new Theory of Change and is launching a Migration, Business and Human Rights programme (MBHR) Programme in Asia which aims to promote full respect for the human and labour rights of migrant workers, especially women and migrants in situations of vulnerability within supply chains in Asia. It will focus on key regional labour migration corridors in Asia, encompassing both countries of destination and origin, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, the Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam. IOM further implements a comprehensive regional component in this Programme, involving Asia as a region, through collaboration with relevant regional bodies and fora, such as, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), regional consultative processes, national governments as well as partnerships with civil society and labour unions, migrant networks and private sector entities and associations, amongst others.

Gender mainstreaming in above projects was largely guided by the CREST Gender Strategy (internal), which was developed in collaboration with the International Women’s Rights Action Watch (IWRAW) Asia Pacific. The Gender Strategy’s purpose was to mainstream gender concerns throughout the project implementation including in private sector partnerships.

The final external evaluation of the CREST and CREST Fashion programmes included a review of gender responsiveness. It outlined that the project mainstreamed gender equality throughout its work by integrating gender equality principles across most of its tools and knowledge products; conducting some research studies that included an examination of specific issues facing women migrant workers; producing a guidance document on addressing women migrant worker vulnerabilities in supply chains; integrating gender-sensitive language; trying to ensure that women migrant workers equally benefitted from the programme interventions; and collecting and reporting on gender-disaggregated data wherever possible.

Nonetheless, there was considerable room for the initiative to have further designed and targeted its programming towards the promotion of gender equality through a more intentional gender transformative approach designed to challenge the norms and institutional structures that promote gender inequality and inequity. One of the lessons learned was that migration programming can have a more meaningful impact on addressing gender inequalities when it is geared towards gender transformative programming as opposed to gender mainstreaming by empowering organizations that represent women migrant workers, advocating for changes in government legislation and policies that discriminate against women migrant workers and other gender groups, and empowering private sector actors to use gender equality strategies as a means to adhere to the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs).

IOM prioritizes key sectors and supply chains that employ large numbers of migrant workers where migrant workers are at heightened risks of exploitation and with potential for meaningful stakeholder engagement.

The programme will help advance the implementation of the “Protect, Respect and Remedy” framework of the United National Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) and as well as the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (GCM). Highlighting the responsibility of the private sector in addressing the human and labour rights risks experienced by migrant workers in supply chains, MBHR Asia will directly apply the three main concepts of the UNGPs: human rights due diligence, meaningful stakeholder engagement and addressing harm.

Throughout the implementation of the MBHR in Asia programme, IOM will aim to adopt a gender-transformative approach to programming by integrating gender equality principles in its work. When partnering with business, IOM will commit to strengthening corporate human rights policies, human rights due diligence and remediation framework to better address the gender dimensions of migrant workers in company operations and supply chains.

B. ORGANIZATIONAL DEPARTMENT / UNIT TO WHICH THE CONSULTANT IS CONTRIBUTING: IOM Migration, Business and Human Rights (MBHR) in Asia programme

C. OBJECTIVES OF THE CONSULTANCY:

Given the diverse challenges faced by migrant workers, including gender-based discrimination, violence, and exploitation, IOM seeks to engage a qualified Gender Specialist/Service Provider to provide technical support to improve the gender responsiveness of IOM’s MBHR programming.

D. DELIVERABLES AND TIMEFRAME: The selected Gender Specialist/Service Provider will be responsible for:

• Reviewing and updating the Gender Strategy, to align with the MBHR programme’s commitment to gender transformative programming, programmatic Theory of Change (TOC) as well as the UNSWAP 2.0 on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment, Women Empowerment Principles and the GCM.
• Conducting an analysis of the four tools for business: Migrant Worker Guidelines for Employers; Labour Migration Process Mapping Guide; Operational Guidelines for Businesses on Remediation of Migrant Worker Grievances and Fair and Ethical Recruitment Due Diligence Toolkit to identify gaps and areas where gender perspectives can be integrated to enhance the capacity of businesses to address gender-related issues and advance gender equality within their supply chains.
• Designing a sub-tool (annex) to be integrated into any of the above tools for business to support companies to promote gender equality and inclusivity in their supply chains that hire migrant workers. The sub-tool should consider the inclusion of gender-responsive cross-cutting themes such as gender-based violence, gender equality, women’s empowerment, and the needs of vulnerable groups.
• Providing training to IOM staff in applying gender-transformative approaches when implementing MBHR Asia programme activities.

Deliverables will include:

1. A revised MBHR Gender Strategy that is aligned with the UNSWAP 2.0 on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment and the GCM.
2. Gender inclusivity sub-tool for the, as informed by the analysis under Deliverable 1.
3. An online training to IOM on implementing gender- transformative programming in the context of migration, business and human rights, including a session/briefing on the gender-inclusivity sub-tool. This deliverable also includes a standard slide deck

Budget: IOM expects the Gender Specialist/Service Provider to submit an all-inclusive fee for the services with a detailed breakdown of costs and total number of working days per deliverable.

Time schedule: The assignment is expected to commence on 11 March 2024, with the final deliverables expected by 10 May 2024. The timeline of the deliverables will be agreed with the selected Consultant/Service Provider.

E. EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE AND/OR SKILLS REQUIRED:

At a minimum, the Gender Specialist/Service Provider should possess the following qualifications:

• Proven expertise and experience in gender mainstreaming, developing gender-responsive training materials, and conducting gender analysis in diverse cultural contexts.
• Advanced university degree in gender studies or a related field for individual consultant. For service provider, team members with expertise in gender, labour migration, private sector partnerships are required. Additional studies or experience in migration, human rights, or international development would be an asset.
• Familiarity with international standards and frameworks on gender equality, women’s rights, and gender-based violence.
• Excellent communication and facilitation skills, with the ability to conduct engaging and interactive training sessions for diverse audiences.
• Excellent analytical and writing skills.
• Proficiency in English is required.

F. COMPETENCIES

Values:

1. Inclusion and respect for diversity: respects and promotes individual and cultural differences; encourages diversity and inclusion wherever possible.
2. Integrity and transparency: maintains high ethical standards and acts in a manner consistent with organizational principles/rules and standards of conduct.
3. Professionalism: demonstrates ability to work in a composed, competent and committed manner and exercises careful judgment in meeting day-to-day challenges.

Core Competencies – Behavioral Indicators:

1. Teamwork: develops and promotes effective collaboration within and across units to achieve shared goals and optimize results.
2. Delivering results: produces and delivers quality results in a service-oriented and timely manner; is action-oriented and committed to achieving agreed outcomes.
3. Managing and sharing knowledge: continuously seeks to learn, share knowledge and innovate.
4. Accountability: takes ownership for achieving the Organization’s priorities and assumes responsibility for own action and delegated work.
5. Communication: encourages and contributes to clear and open communication; explains complex matters in an informative, inspiring and motivational way.