International consultant on Public Finance Management and Gender Responsive Budgeting

Background

Background/Context

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, the UN Women leads and coordinates the United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. 

The work of UN Women in Moldova is guided by its , aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for Moldova (2023-2027),  , National Programs and Strategies and aims to contribute to the gender-responsive implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Strategic Note focuses on four main areas: 1) Ending Violence against Women; 2) Women’s Leadership and Governance; 3) Women’s Economic empowerment and 4) Humanitarian and Peace development nexus and UN Coordination on Gender equality.  

Based on the European Commission Implementing Decision on the Annual Action Plan in favour of the Republic of Moldova for 2022 , UN Women Moldova CO is implementing a four-year project (November 2023 – October 2027) under the name “Ending Violence, Expanding Livelihood Opportunities for Women and Accelerating Gender Governance in Moldova” (hereinafter EVOLVE4GE). The project is implemented in line with and in contribution to the of European Commission ” Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in External Action 2021–2025″, adopted in November 2020, and its which aim to accelerate progress on empowering women and girls, and safeguard gains made on gender equality during the 25 years since the adoption of . It will also support the Government to advance implementation of the gender equality commitments aligned with the EU candidacy status granted to the Republic of Moldova in June 2022.

The project builds on UN Women’s advocacy and past work in strengthening capacities for gender responsive governance, on the Country office best practices around women’s economic empowerment through business development and increased participation of women in sectors with high economic potential and high gender gap, as well as on lessons learned collected through the support provided to the Government in the development of integrated – survivor oriented – provision of assistance and establishment of specialist services for survivors of violence against women and girls.

The interventions will contribute directly to the implementation of the national priorities set the Government Programme on Gender Equality (2023-2027), The RoadMap for Economic Empowerment of Women, the National Programme on Ending Violence against Women (2023-2027), as well as to the gender responsive provisions of the  (2023-2030) and Public Administration (2023-2030).

The project, initiated in November 2023, and is funded from the European Union. Its overarching goal revolves around the following outcome: By 2027, women and girls actively contribute to and reap the rewards of enhanced gender-responsive policies, customized economic empowerment initiatives, and easily accessible quality essential services.

One of the anticipated results of the EVOLVE4GE project is the enhancement of the capacity of both Central and Local Government authorities to design and implement gender-responsive policies. To achieve this, the project aims to strengthen the capacity of central and local Gender Equality Mechanisms (GEMs); offer customized assistance to the Ministry of Finance and other central budget users to integrate gender considerations into public finance management; build the capacity of public oversight institutions to incorporate gender perspectives into oversight and audit practices; and by providing comprehensive support to Local Public Administration for piloting gender-responsive budgets.

In this framework, UN Women within EVOLVE4GE project seeks to contract a consultant (here and after “The Consultant”) to entail provision of multi-faceted, expertise to state institutions including but not limited to Ministry of Finance (MoF), Ministry of Labour and Social Protection  (MLSP), Ministry of Economic Development and Digitalisation (MEDD) and other sectoral ministries to enable institutionalized introduction of GRB in Moldova, and recommendations from the – and in line with the newly adopted and SDG indicator 5.c.1.

Duties and Responsibilities

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

More specifically, the consultant will be responsible for the following tasks, including but not limited to:

• Conduct a comprehensive analysis aimed at identifying strategic entry points for Gender-Responsive Budgeting (GRB) within the framework of the new Public Financial Management (PFM) reform.
• Develop guidelines for line ministries and establish a quality assurance mechanism involving the Ministry of Finance and other institutions coordinating gender equality efforts.
• Practice developed guidelines and procedures for GRD policy planning and budgeting in specific selected ministries.
• Develop methodology for GRB implementation for Budget Users and deliver trainings for budget users, based on the requirements in the budget circular.
• Design and deliver comprehensive training sessions for budget users, ensuring alignment with the specifications outlined in the budget circular.
• Provide technical support and mentoring to Ministry of Labour and Social Protection to apply GRB in the planning and execution of one budgetary programme, in line with the instructions from MoF.
• Support the MLSP to develop a GRB progress reports using consolidated gender budgeting documentation (plans and performance reports) to identify alignment with National Gender policies.
• Develop final report summarizing results (changes in capacities, key results achieved, lessons learned and recommendations).

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy, with the possibility of traveling to Moldova.

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:  

Functional Competencies:

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Shares knowledge and experience
• Seeks and applies knowledge, information, and best practices from within and outside UN Women
•  Actively works towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more practice areas, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills
• Development and Operational Effectiveness
• Demonstrates excellent written and oral communication skills. Communicates sensitively, effectively and creatively across different constituencies
• Demonstrates very good understanding of and experience in communications and outreach/advocacy
• Ability to perform a variety of standard specialized and non-specialized tasks and work processes that are fully documented, researched, recorded and reported
• Ability to review a variety of data, identify and adjust discrepancies, identify and resolve operational problems
• Uses Information Technology effectively as a tool and resource

Leadership and Self-Management

• Focuses on result for the client and responds positively to feedback
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure
• Proven networking skills and ability to generate interest in UN Women’s mandate
• Identifies opportunities and builds strong partnerships with clients and partners

Work in teams: 

• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds. 

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree in public administration, social studies, development studies, gender studies and/or international relations, or any other degree relevant to the requirements of the TOR.
• 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:

• Up to 10 years of relevant professional experience in gender responsive governance and/or budgeting application either at the central or local level is required.
• At least 7 years of experience in designing and delivering training and/or mentoring programmes on gender equality and gender mainstreaming in policy making and budgeting is required.
• At least 7 years of experience in working on central government finance policies and processes – including medium-term budgeting program (MTBP), budgeting methodologies and approaches is required.
• Demonstrated experience in drafting and writing policies, reports, or guidelines, preferably in the context of gender analysis, budgetary programs, or gender-responsive budgeting initiatives; (Samples of previous work will be required.)
• Familiarity with country and regional context on gender equality is considered an asset.
• Previous experience working with international organizations is considered an asset.

Languages:

• Fluency in written and verbal English is required.
• Knowledge of Romanian or Russian language is an asset.