Research and Capacity Building Consultant

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 for women as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.  Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, the UN Women will lead and coordinate United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

Based on UN legislative mandates and the UNW Strategic Plan, the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific is tasked with providing strategic programme development, policy / technical advisory services and quality assurance support to Multi Country Offices and Country Offices. It undertakes or coordinates regional research and data analysis; advises on norms, policies and strategies for achieving the internationally and regionally agreed goals related to gender equality and women’s empowerment issues. It acts as a knowledge hub at the regional level, collecting evidence on progress and emerging issues and sharing knowledge on innovative approaches and lessons learned in implementation. 

Assignment Background

Over the last decade, increasing natural hazards, climate-related emergencies, mounting insecurity and crises in Asia and the Pacific are eroding development gains, posing significant challenges in the transition to low-carbon, resilient societies. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the world was off-track to meet the transformational environmental, social, and economic changes required to achieve gender equality, address climate change, and realize human rights for all. The pandemic set back sustainable development progress while further increasing inequalities. Women and girls, especially those facing multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, have faced disproportionate fallout. 

Environmental degradation and climate and disaster impacts are unequally felt across the region. For women, people living in poverty and other marginalized groups, pre-existing discriminatory social norms and pervasive gender inequalities increase exposure to risks while undercutting the ability to cope and recover from shocks. Women’s livelihoods are often the first to decline due to climate-related hazards and disasters. Further, inequalities in access to resources, finance and technologies leave women with greater challenges in coping and rebuilding after a crisis.

The low-carbon transition and social transformation required to solve the climate crisis pose significant opportunities to redress gender inequalities and promote human rights. By placing women and other marginalized groups at the centre, this transition can advance gender justice and occur more quickly with empowered women and marginalized groups acting as change agents.

UN Women, in partnership with the UN Environment Programme, is implementing the second phase of the EmPower: Women for Climate Resilient Societies Programme to scale up results and promote gender-responsive and human rights-based climate action by supporting key regional and country stakeholders to achieve a broader impact across the Asia-Pacific region. The project is a joint project implemented with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), with financial support from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency.

The EmPower Programme is working to ensure that women and girls, especially those most marginalized, are at the centre of climate action, renewable energy solutions, and disaster risk reduction measures. Reporting directly to the Programme Coordinator on climate change and gender, the Capacity Building Consultant is responsible is to develop comprehensive LNOB guidance that can be operationalized across the Programme’s various streams of work.

The consultant will be reporting to Programme Coordinator Climate Change, who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

Duties and Responsibilities

•  Coordinate network of government gender and climate change/environment focal points, providing technical support and linking network members to appropriate resources and opportunities

•  Develop a series of key messages on gender responsive just transition, women’s leadership in climate action, gender-responsive climate finance that draws on the EmPower publications and UN Women’s global/regional publications related to gender and climate action

•  Monitor trends on gender equality in climate change policies and plans, including NDCs, and support write up of briefs, research findings for publication

•  Support to climate change and resilience team on developing concept notes, talking points and coordination ahead of COP29, World Women’s Forum and other key regional/global convenings

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a Bangkok-based consultancy with travel within the Asia-Pacific region as required during May – December 2024.

Evaluation

The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria: 

Competencies

In addition to aforementioned requirements and qualifications, it is important that the consultants share the core values and core competencies of the organization. 

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: 

• Technical credibility in the field of climate change/environment
• Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Excellent analytical skills
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills
• Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation

Strong networking and partnership building skills.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification

• Master’s degree in Climate Change, Capacity Building, Gender and Development, Disaster Management, Sociology, Statistics, Environmental science, or other relevant disciplines.
• 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

• A minimum of 1 years of relevant progressively responsible experience in providing policy and program advice on climate change, disaster risk reduction and/or environmental action and conducting assessments with a focus on advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment within climate change discourse.
• Demonstrated experience working with government and non-government stakeholders to advance gender equality in disaster risk reduction and address climate change and environmental changes, particularly within the Asia and Pacific region. 
• Experience in organizing capacity development initiatives on gender equality, such as training workshops and seminars, contributing to the advancement of gender-responsive climate change disaster risk reduction.  
• Having UN experience and international organization will be an advantage.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of other languages spoken in the Asia-Pacific region, or any UN official language is an asset.

How to Apply:

Interested candidates are encouraged to submit an electronic application to   with and in copy, not later than  3 May 2024, 23:59 hrs. Bangkok time. 

Submission package includes.

• Personal History Form (P11) which can be downloaded from
• Application letter explaining your interest in the consultancy and why you are the most suited candidate for this position.
• Updated CV

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11).

If applying through the system, Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. So please consolidate your (all) required documents into 1 file prior to attachment.

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. Please merge all documents into one document to attach.

Payments

Payments for this consultancy (monthly full-time) will be based on the achievement of each deliverable and certification that each has been satisfactorily completed. Payments will not be based on the number of days worked but on the completion of each stated deliverable within the indicated timeframes.

UN Women Statement

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.)