National Consultant to Write a Book Focused on Women’s Empowerment and Well-being (Open to Moldova Nationals Only)

Background

UN Women is the UN organization delivering programmes, policies and standards that uphold women’s human rights and ensure that every woman and girl lives up to her full potential. Grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, UN Women 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.   

The work of UN Women in Moldova is guided by its new 2023-2027, 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.  

Aligned with these strategic priorities, UN Women Moldova recognizes the critical role of targeted, accessible resources in advancing these goals. Acknowledging that sustainable development and gender equality extend beyond policy into the daily experiences of women, there is a clear need for practical tools that address the real-world challenges faced by women.

In this context, UN Women Moldova is commissioning a book to empower women, particularly addressing their mental and physical health, and challenges in personal and professional life.

The book is envisioned as a vital resource to educate and inspire women, encouraging them to take control of their mental, physical, and financial well-being. It aims to address the unique challenges women face in Moldova, such as societal pressures, gender-based violence, and limited access to support systems.

Duties and Responsibilities

The author will be responsible for creating comprehensive and insightful content that addresses key areas crucial to women’s mental, physical, and financial well-being and thus equipping women with essential tools and skills to prevent violence to benefit from a life free of gender-based violence and discrimination. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Educating on the importance of self-responsibility in mental, physical, and financial health.
• Guiding on the selection of a supportive social circle and establishing healthy communication boundaries.
• Offering strategies for discipline and effective time management, with a special focus on prioritizing personal needs, especially during the post-natal period.
• Explaining the impact of hormonal changes on mental health across different life stages.
• Highlighting the role of nutrition and physical activity in maintaining mental well-being.
• Emphasizing the significance of adequate sleep, particularly during periods of post-natal adjustment.
• Identifying signs of depression and providing preventative strategies.
• Educating on recognizing and dealing with psychological manipulation and toxic relationship dynamics.
• Outlining approaches to safely exit toxic relationships and strategies for protection against domestic violence.

The book will have a volume of about 150 pages and will cover topics related to effective communication techniques, personal development strategies, and methods for overcoming societal challenges, thereby fostering self-respect skills and empowerment among readers.

The book will include contributions and reviews from mental health specialists, preferably a psychiatrist and/or a psychologist, to ensure the content’s accuracy, relevance, and adherence to established psychological principles.

The content will be crafted in an accessible, engaging, and reader-friendly manner, making complex concepts understandable and relatable to a broad audience.

The author will ensure that the content is culturally sensitive and relevant to the Moldovan context. This involves tailoring the material to resonate with the local audience, taking into consideration the unique cultural, social, and economic factors that influence women’s lives in Moldova.

Post-publication, the author will actively participate in a comprehensive promotional campaign. This includes involvement in various interviews, public talks, and appearances on TV shows, to maximize the book’s reach and impact. The author will also engage in community events and discussions to foster a broader dialogue on the topics covered in the book.

More specifically, the following tasks shall be undertaken by the author: 

Tasks and Activities	Estimated Workload (Workdays)
1. Coordination of book outline: Collaborate with UN Women to define and structure the book’s outline, including chapter breakdowns and key themes.	Up to 10 days
2. Content development and research: Conduct comprehensive research and gather information relevant to the book’s themes. Develop content covering mental, physical, and financial well-being; effective communication; personal development; and strategies for overcoming societal challenges. Integrate information on psychological health, healthy relationships, and empowerment strategies.	Up to 40days
3. Regular reporting and communication: Provide regular updates and progress reports to UN Women on content development, promotional plans, and post-publication activities including challenges in undertaking the task. Maintain open and effective communication with UN Women throughout the project.	Up to 10 days
4. Ensuring expertise from qualified specialists: Coordinate with psychiatrists and/or psychologists and other relevant expertise for content review and input. Incorporate expert feedback to ensure accuracy and reliability of the content.	Up to 10 days
5. Manuscript writing and revision: Draft the manuscript, ensuring clarity, engagement, and cultural relevance. Revise and refine the manuscript based on feedback from UN Women CO staff.	Up to 35 days
6. Promotion, engagement, and post-publication activities: Develop and implement a plan for promotion, including pre- and post-publication activities such as media interviews, public talks, TV appearances, and participation in community events to enhance the book’s visibility and impact.	Up to 25 days
Total	Up to 130 days

Note: The estimated workload is indicative and may be adjusted based on the process progression and specific needs.

 

The assignment is to be carried out over a period of 6 months, not exceeding 130 working days. The incumbent will be responsible for delivering the following outputs:

• Monthly Updates and Progress Reports: Provide regular, monthly updates and progress reports to UN Women on content development with drafts, promotional plans, and post-publication activities.

Financial arrangements: Payment will be disbursed on a monthly basis, upon submission and approval of deliverables and timesheets with actual days worked and certification by the UN Women CO staff that the services have been satisfactorily performed.  

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:        

• Romanian language native speaker.
• Strong skills in writing in Romanian, with the ability to produce compelling and well-structured text.
• Demonstrates excellent communication skills, capable of engaging creatively and sensitively with diverse audiences.
• Proven experience in outreach and advocacy, particularly in topics related to gender equality and women’s empowerment.
• Demonstrated ability to produce high-quality written content.
• Skilled in crafting messages that resonate with various audiences, maintaining clarity and impact.
• Communicative, results-driven, ability to work in teams. 
• Uses Information Technology effectively as a tool and resource.
• Ability to work under pressure and within limited time frames.
• Familiarity with UN Women and gender related vocabulary in Romanian.
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.
• Ability to work in an independent manner and organize the workflow efficiently. 

Required Skills and Experience

Education 

• Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, communication, law, international relations, or other related fields. 

Experience 

• At least five (5) years of experience in creating high-quality content. This includes writing books, articles, or similar works that demonstrate skill in storytelling, information presentation, and audience engagement.
• Demonstrated proficiency and substantial experience in utilizing digital platforms for advocacy related to women’s issues. The candidate should have a well-established online presence, characterized by impactful engagement and dissemination of information on issues critical to women’s psychological health and emotional well-being.
• Proven ability to effectively communicate and engage with diverse audiences on social media platforms, particularly Facebook. The candidate should have a history of creating content that resonates with and is easily accessible to a broad audience, demonstrating a tangible impact on public awareness and understanding of women’s mental health and well-being.
• Evidence of the candidate’s online influence and advocacy work being highly regarded and widely recognized.

Language Requirements 

• Native language Romanian. 
• Excellent command English language, Russian is an advantage.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND SUBMISSION PACKAGE 

Interested candidates must submit via online submission system the following documents/ information to demonstrate their qualification: 

• Letter of Intent with justification of being the most suitable for the work, vision and working approach.
• Duly filled Personal History Form (P11) and/or CV, including records on past experience in similar projects/assignments and specific outputs obtained; P11 can be downloaded at ;  
• Financial proposal (in MDL) – Specifying a total lump sum amount for the tasks specified in this Terms of Reference). The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (daily rate and number of anticipated working days and any other possible costs); Please see Annex I: Price Proposal Guideline and Template and Annex II: Price Proposal Submission Form    

Evaluation and Interviewing Procedure 

The individual consultants will be short-listed based on the above-mentioned qualification criteria. The short-listed individual consultants will be further evaluated based on a cumulative analysis scheme, with a total score being obtained upon the combination of weighted technical and financial attributes. Cost under this method of analysis is rendered as an award criterion, which will be 30% out of a total score of 500 points.  

Evaluation of submitted offers will be done based on the following formula: 

where:  

T	is the total technical score awarded to the evaluated proposal (only to those proposals that pass 70% of maximum 350 points obtainable under technical evaluation);
C	is the price of the evaluated proposal;
Clow	is the lowest of all evaluated proposal prices among responsive proposals; and
X	is the maximum financial points obtainable (150 points)
No.	Criteria for technical evaluation	Max. points
1	Bachelor’s degree in social sciences, communication, law, international relations, or other related fields.  (60 points for bachelor’s degree, 70 points for master’s degree).	70
2	At least five (5) years of experience in creating high-quality content. This includes writing books, articles, or similar works that demonstrate skill in storytelling, information presentation, and audience engagement. (5 years – 80 points, each year over 3 years – 10 points, up to a maximum of 100 pts)	100
3	Demonstrated proficiency and substantial experience in utilizing digital platforms for advocacy related to women’s issues. The candidate should have a well-established online presence, characterized by impactful engagement and dissemination of information on issues critical to women’s psychological health and emotional well-being. (yes – 40, no – 0)	40
4	Proven ability to effectively communicate and engage with diverse audiences on social media platforms, particularly Facebook. The candidate should have a history of creating content that resonates with and is easily accessible to a broad audience, demonstrating a tangible impact on public awareness and understanding of women’s mental health and well-being. (yes – 40, no – 0)	40
5	Evidence of the candidate’s online influence and advocacy work being highly regarded and widely recognized. (yes – 40;  no – 0)	40
6	Native language Romanian.  (yes – 30 points, no– 0 points)	30
7	Excellent command English language. (yes – 30 points, no– 0 points)	30
	Total:	350

The technical evaluation will be carried out through desk review of applications. 

A) Technical Evaluation: The technical part is evaluated on the basis of its responsiveness to the Terms of Reference (ToR).  

B) Financial evaluation: In the Second Stage, the financial proposal of candidates, who have attained minimum 70% score in the technical evaluation (at least 245 points), will be compared. 

WINNING CANDIDATE 

The winning candidate will be the candidate, who has accumulated the highest aggregated score (technical scoring + financial scoring) 

 

Application Procedure:

Interested candidates are invited to submit their online applications by 22 January 2024 with the following documents:

• Duly filled Personal History Form PHF11/CV (downloadable from ;
• Letter of Intent to include a brief overview about which of your previous experiences makes you the most suitable candidate for the advertised position.
• Financial proposal – specifying a total lump sum amount for the task specified in Terms of References. The Financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (daily rate).  Please see below ANNEX I and ANNEX II.

Please note that only applicants who are short-listed will be contacted.

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.

The United Nations in Moldova is committed to workforce diversity. Women, persons with disabilities, Roma and other ethnic or religious minorities, persons living with HIV, as well as refugees and other non-citizens legally entitled to work in the Republic of Moldova, are particularly encouraged to apply.

 

Annex I: Price Proposal Guideline and Template

 

The prospective national consultant should take the following explanations into account during submission of his/her price proposal.

 

1. Daily fee

The daily price proposal should indicate a “lump sum amount” which is “all-inclusive”. All costs (professional fees, communications, consumables during field related missions, etc.) that could be incurred by the Contractor needs to be factored into the proposed price.

UN Women will not withhold any amount of the payments for tax and/or social security related payments. UN Women shall have no liability for taxes, duties, or other similar charges payable by the Individual Contractor in respect of any amounts paid to the Individual Contractor under this Contract, and the Contractor acknowledges that UN Women will not issue any statements of earnings to the Individual contractor in respect of any such payments.

2. Travel costs

No travels are envisaged under the current assignment. In the case of unforeseeable travel, UN Women will ensure transportation outside Chisinau. UN Women will not cover transportation cost within Chisinau.

3. Daily Subsistence Allowance

Not applicable.

4. Currency of the price proposal

The applicants are requested to submit their price proposals in MDL. In case of proposals in other currency, these shall be converted into MDL using the official UN exchange rate for currency MDL conversion to MDL at the date of applications’ submission deadline.

 

Annex II: Price Proposal Submission Form

 

To: United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

Ref: Author to Develop a Motivational and Support Book Focused on Women’s Empowerment and Well-being 

 

Dear Sir / Madam,

I, the undersigned, offer to provide professional consulting services to UN Women within the scope of the referred Assignment.

Having examined, understood, and agreed to the Terms of Reference and its annexes, the receipt of which are hereby duly acknowledged, I, the undersigned, offer to deliver professional services, in conformity with the Terms of Reference.

My maximum total price proposal for the assignment is given below:

Deliverables	Proposed Price, MDL
Daily fee all inclusive
Total price

I confirm that my financial proposal will remain unchanged. I also confirm that the price that I quote is gross, and is inclusive of all legal expenses, including but not limited to social security, income tax, pension, etc., which shall be required applicable laws.

I agree that my proposal shall remain binding upon me for 30 days.

I understand that you are not bound to accept any proposal you may receive.

 [Signature]

 

Date:

Name:

Address:

Telephone/Fax:

Email: