National Consultant for documenting project human impact stories

Background

UN Women, the UN Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women has been created to accelerate up the process of meeting the needs of women and girls across the world. UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programs and services needed to ensure that the standards are effectively implemented and truly benefit women and girls worldwide. UN Women is at the forefront of the global drive to remove gender barriers and end discrimination, because we believe in a world of justice and human rights for everyone.

The UN Women development partner – the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Tajikistan, for the last five years, has focused on supporting national social protection and safety nets, nutrition, climate change adaptation, resilience-building and disasters risk reduction, whilst aligning to national priorities and in synergy with the action of other partners in an inclusive manner that leaves no one behind.

Considering that Gender Equality is at the core of its humanitarian and development work, WFP intends to collaborate with UN Women, through leverage of professional expertise and resources to promote better gender transformative practices, enhance the role of women and girls in resource management, application of participatory gender-and nutrition SBCC methodologies.

UN Women in Tajikistan is seeking for a Consultant to document project success stories, who will work with local communities, and families supported by WFP projects; collect evidence; provide multimedia content (written, audio, video and photo); develop up to 3 inspiring stories, portraying (in a visually compelling way); families, women, their journey for a better life, finding job, sharing responsibilities with other family members; struggling for a life free of all forms of violence and discrimination. The consultant will work closely with the communities; families (beneficiaries of WFP) to identify best local practices increasing the role of women in local communities, their contributions to improved well-being of their communities, and how these practices can be replicated and sustained during and after the project completion. The Consultant will be report to the Coordinator from UN Women Tajikistan Office and WFP project manager and shall be able to travel to the selected fields during the assignment.

Goal and objectives:

The overall goal of the proposed consultancy is to support UN Women in Tajikistan to document and share with wide audience and key stakeholders the WFP 3 (three) human impact stories on gender transformation, results and best models for sustainability.

The consultant’s narrative should describe about the role of the project in the life of women received support and about the accomplishments they achieved with the help of WFP project specialists.

Each story should narrate specific improvements achieved by the women and their families, like “before” meeting the project, and how exactly it improved “after’’ including quotes.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the supervision of the UN Women and WFP Program Coordinator, the Consultant will perform the following tasks, that include but are not limited to the following:

• Provide up to 15 high resolutions photos for each story/ protagonist, that will present a variety of different shots and angles. For 3 stories (2 pages of narrative max. each), from targeted districts, a photo essay may be required, in which case the Consultant will need to portray a visual essay through photos. Travel will be required to the subjects` location to capture their stories. The consultant agrees to abide by UN Women Photo Policy. The subject must sign the official consent form (to be annexed).

Please note: Children under 18 should not be the focus of UN Women project. If children are quoted in a private setting, their guardian must sign the official consent form.

• Provide full information (caption) about each photo: include full name of the subject; city or town or village or district; country; date; and descriptive information, written in complete sentences.
• Select the hero of the story, the consultant will discuss with the WFP coordinator in advance, since they have sufficient information and will help arrange a personal meeting with him and warn him that this conversation will be confidential, and without his consent the information will not be disseminated.
• Provide up to 3-4 high quality audio/video bytes of some of the interviews taken during the storytelling project. The protagonists of the audio interviews shall provide their agreement in advance. Videos should be up to 2 minutes per each story. Videos should convey the protagonist’s story in a visually compelling way.
• Demonstrate in prepared materials women and communities in the process of change: finding positive solutions, overcoming challenges to achieving women’s economic and social rights, and/or the subjects’ role in developing and implementing actions that protect and uphold women’s rights and empower women.

Number of days to visit each targeted area will be set up according to the number of interviews and other logistical aspects. Number of travel days may change and will be approved by UN Women prior to field visit.

Stories, photos, or any other products that will reflect the process should be provided to UN Women Team for their review. Stories should be written in Tajik or Russian (and translated or with English subtitles).

Stories would be shared with Donor and to the extent possible, demonstrate joint nature of the project and its benefits.

The final report on deliverables, recommendations and lessons learnt would be submitted at the end of the assignment.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Be client-oriented – ability to listen all parties and to facilitate the process for mutual satisfaction and consensus
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment and in a team.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

• Good knowledge of technical area.
• Good organizational skills and ability to pay close attention to detail.
• Proven excellent communication and facilitation skills.
• Experience in report writing.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree or equivalent in social science, journalism, communications, or other fields relevant to the requirements of the assignment.
• Good knowledge of MS Office, Corel Draw and Photoshop is an asset.

Working Experience:

• At least 5 years of experience in PR and communications, media, with a specific focus on women’s rights and gender equality, migrants’ life, nutrition.
• Experience in writing human stories and video scenarios.
• Ability to film lively interviews.
• Outstanding oral and written editorial skills, with proven ability to produce content for online platforms and social media.
• Prior experience in the work environment of an international agency, NGOs, UN Agencies.

Knowledge of languages & additional requirements:

• Proficient knowledge of Tajik & Russian languages; knowledge of English language is an asset.
• Applicants must submit proven previous communication materials (publications, briefs, stories, etc.).

Application Process

The application should include:

– A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page);

– Personal History Form (P-11 form) – including past experience in similar assignments; can be downloaded by following link: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc a signed [scanned] copy should be submitted.