National consultant to perform mid-term evaluation of the National Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027 and develop the second Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027

Background

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; the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development; human rights; as well as humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women Programme Office in the Republic of North Macedonia in line with its priorities set in the UN Women strategic plan and in the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework, supports the country on the normative commitments and is working in two thematic areas – governance and national planning and ending violence against women. In fulfilling its mandate, UN Women is cooperating with UN, the government and the CSOs to advocate for women’s empowerment and advancement of gender equality.

UN Women North Macedonia is implementing the project “Promoting Gender Responsive Policies and Budgets: Towards Transparent, Inclusive and Accountable Governance in Republic of North of Macedonia – phase 2” funded by Switzerland and the programme “Promoting Gender responsive governance in North Macedonia” funded by Sweden. Both initiatives are aimed towards more accountable, transparent and inclusive governance, which would improve the lives of women and girls and advance gender equality in North Macedonia.  Programme/project interventions, inter alia, focus on strengthening the role of the National Gender Mechanisms in establishing an effective institutional capacity development on Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) and systematic integration of gender perspective in Public Finance Management. Along these lines the project/programme contributes to effective application of GRB in national and local policymaking processes in line with Government’s priorities set in the National Strategy for Gender Equality (2022-2027). 

A new National Strategy for Gender Equality (NSGE) 2022-2027 was adopted providing a comprehensive strategic framework for establishing an effective system for gender mainstreaming, cross-sectoral perspectives to achieve universal social, economic and political rights and building a culture of non-violence and non-discrimination. Given the leading role of the Ministry of Social Policy, Youth and Demography (MSPYD) in the implementation of the National Strategy on Gender Equality (2022-2027), the project/programme aids in developing and executing operational documents that promote gender equality in the country, aligning with the government’s commitments outlined in the national strategy. UN Women has longstanding cooperation with the MSPYD in advancing gender equality in North Macedonia and specifically supporting the introduction of gender perspective in the national policy making and budgetary processes.

To support the Ministry of Social Policy, Youth and Demography, and in particular to strengthen the role of the National Gender Mechanism, UN Women is seeking to recruit a national consultant to perform mid-term evaluation of the National Strategy for Gender Equality for the period 2022-2024 and to provide support in developing the second National Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027.

Duties and Responsibilities

The objective of the assignment is to provide support to the Ministry of Social Policy, Youth and Demography, hence strengthen the role of the National Gender Mechanism, in carrying out mid-term evaluation of the National Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027 and to provide support in developing the second Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027.

With this ToR, UN Women is seeking to hire one (1) National consultant to perform mid-term evaluation of the National Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027 and to provide support in developing the second Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027.

Based on the above-described objectives of the assignment the national consultant is expected to undertake the following tasks and responsibilities: 

• Submit work plan and methodology for the mid-term evaluation
• Conduct desk review of the Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027, Action Plan 2022-2024 and other relevant operational, strategic or scientific documents to support the assessment of changes and updates since the initial implementation of the NSGE.
• Gather data and metrics including quantitative data to key performance indicators (KPIs) set in the Strategy and qualitative input from stakeholders or any other relevant party to support the mid-term evaluation of the NSGE.
• Conduct Stakeholders Interviews/ collect stakeholders’ insights on the Strategy’s effectiveness.
• Carry out performance analysis to compare actual performance vs. set targets and identify areas where performance has exceeded or fallen short.
• Prepare Mid-Term evaluation report that should include, but not limited to, performance analysis, evaluation of the relevance of the strategic goals, identified success and challenges, assessment of risk management, recommendations for updating of the document and/or further steps to be considered in the implementation of the NSGE.
• Submit work plan for the development of an Action Plan (AP) for Gender Equality for the period 2025-2027.
• Support the development of the National Action Plan for Gender Equality for the period 2025-2027 based on the current NSGE that includes specific goals and objectives, key actions and tasks required to achieve each objective, assigned responsibilities, set timelines, determined resources for each activity, defined key performance indicators (KPIs), established criteria for evaluating progress and performance, identified potential risks and mitigation methods.
• Develop monitoring plan to track progress and to evaluate the whole Strategy for Gender Equality and the Action Plan with the view to be utilized for further evaluation according to the needs of the MSPYD.
• Present Findings and Action Plan. Share the evaluation report with relevant stakeholders, discuss key findings and recommendations.
• Submit final report on the assignment (in English).

Reporting

Under the overall supervision of the Programme Analyst at the UN Women Office in North Macedonia and guidance of the UN Women Programme team that coordinates the overall activities under the GRB portfolio, the national consultant will create and deliver the above listed deliverables in accordance with the indicative timeframe, along with a timesheet, report, and other relevant materials.

The national consultant will be expected to complete the below tasks within the indicative timeframe:

Tasks	Deliverables	Working days
Submit work plan and methodology for the mid-term evaluation	Work plan and methodology	By 18 October 2024
Conduct desk review of the Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027, Action Plan 2022-2024 and other relevant operational, strategic or scientific documents to support the assessment of changes and updates since the initial implementation of the NSGE.	Desk review report with summarized key entry points for the mid-term evaluation of the Strategy	By 25 October 2024
Gather data and metrics including quantitative data to key performance indicators (KPIs) set in the Strategy and qualitative input from stakeholders or any other relevant party to support the mid-term evaluation of the NSGE.	Data report / summary of collected data to be used for the evaluation	By 29 November 2024
Conduct Stakeholders Interviews/ collect stakeholders’ insights on the Strategy’s effectiveness.	Data report / summary of collected data to be used for the evaluation	By 29 November 2024
Carry out performance analysis to compare actual performance vs. set targets and identify areas where performance has exceeded or fallen short.	Summary of the analysis to be included in the Mid-Term evaluation report	By 13 December 2024
Prepare Mid-Term evaluation report that should include, but not be limited to, performance analysis, evaluation of the relevance of the strategic goals, identified success and challenges, assessment of risk management, recommendations for updating of the document and/or further steps to be considered in the implementation of the NSGE.	Mid-Term Evaluation Report	By 27 December 2024
Submit work plan for the development of an Action Plan (AP) for Gender Equality for the period 2025-2027	Work plan for development of AP	By 20 November 2024
Support the development of the National Action Plan for Gender Equality for the period 2025-2027 based on the current NSGE that includes specific goals and objectives, key actions and tasks required to achieve each objective, assigned responsibilities, set timelines, determined resources for each activity, defined key performance indicators (KPIs), established criteria for evaluating progress and performance, identified potential risks and mitigation methods.	National Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027	By 16 December 2024
Develop monitoring plan to track progress and to evaluate the whole Strategy for Gender Equality and the Action Plan with the view to be utilized for further evaluation according to the needs of the MSPYD.	Monitoring plan and matrix to track and evaluate progress on the implementation of the Strategy for Gender Equality 2022-2027 and the Action Plan for Gender Equality 2025-2027	By 16 December 2024
Present Findings and Action Plan. Share the evaluation report with relevant stakeholders, discuss key findings and recommendations.	Presentation	By 10 January 2025
Submit final report on the assignment (in English).	Final individual report, timesheet.	By 15 January 2025
Total		35 working days

All deliverables of an acceptable standard and quality should be submitted to and approved by the UN Women Office in North Macedonia in Macedonian language, unless specified differently in the above table.

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy. The assignment requires intermittent presence on UN Women premises for coordinative purposes. As part of this assignment, there are no expected travels outside Skopje, North Macedonia. If such engagements are to occur, UN Women will cover the transportation and DSA.  

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
• Leadership and Self-Management
• Judgement/Decision-making
• Analytical Thinking
• Change Management

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification:

• A Master’s or higher degree in Gender Studies, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Public Policy, Human Rights, or other related fields.

• 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 5 years of demonstrated professional experience in the area of gender equality with focus on public policy development or implementation, in particular gender equality policies;
• Previous experience in conducting mid-term or final evaluations of national or international strategies, policies, or programs related to gender equality, development, or human rights.
• Experience in conducting gender analysis, data collection and implementing research methods;
• Knowledge on results-based management and strategic planning is a strong asset;
• Previous work experience working with governmental institutions is considered an asset;
• Previous experience working with international organizations would be considered as an asset;

Languages:

• Fluency in Macedonian and English is required.

How to Apply 

• Personal CV or P11 (P11 can be downloaded from:
• A short cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) including financial proposal in local currency (MKD), indicating a total lump sum for the delivery as per above description. The financial proposal shall include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (daily consultancy fee, travel and any other possible costs)
• Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns, or other materials.