Programme Consultant – Women’s Economic Empowerment

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; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women currently implements programmes that supports harnessing the gains of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Kenya, the national care policy development process, gender equality and disability inclusion, the National policy on Women Economic Empowerment, Gender Responsive Procurement (AGPO, Women Empowerment Principles_WEPs), African Girls Can Code Initiative-AGCCI as well Digiken which looks to foster a thriving Kenyan digital ecosystem for sustainable development. UN Women will continue to sustain outcomes of the Women Economic Empowerment through Climate Smart Agriculture project that has just ended, and which increased women’s participation in the economic space and in the county planning processes. It also increased their resilience to climate change by increase their productive capacity. Advancing gender equality in an age of climate change is arguably the most pressing global issue of our time. Women’s greater dependence on, and unequal access to, natural resources, public services and infrastructure means that they are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation and climate change. Climate change causes devastating social, cultural, economic, health and human rights impacts by for example negatively affecting women and girls’ ability to safely secure resources and generate income, exacerbating harmful social norms and structural inequalities, and by creating tensions and stressors in the homes and communities.

The Horn of Africa faces a worsening humanitarian crisis due to five consecutive below-average rains, leaving 22 million people food insecure and 5.1 million children and women acutely malnourished. In addition, over 16.2 million people lack sufficient water, and health risks are rising, including cholera outbreaks2. Due to the drought and increased insecurities, families are taking desperate measures to survive, and more than 1.3 million people have left their homes in search of food, pasture, water and alternative livelihoods. In the Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASALs) region of Kenya, pastoralists are trekking long distances to find water and pasture for livestock, leading to resource-based and inter-communal tensions and conflicts. Displacement in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Somalia mainly affects women. Drought-induced challenges extend to girls facing longer walks for water, which increase their vulnerability to violence. Food insecurity and increased poverty rates also lead to girls dropping out of school, teenage pregnancies, increased cases of female genital mutilation and child marriages, malnutrition and people discontinuing treatment for diseases such as HIV. Displacement also creates barriers in reporting violence and in accessing essential health and social services.

During crises related to for example climate change or the current inflation/deflation of the Kenyan shillings, people adopt negative coping strategies which are exacerbated by cultural norms. This negatively impacts women’s well-being. Evidence shows that climate change increases the incidence of violence against women and girls (VAWG) 3, and recently some counties have experienced higher prevalence of gender-based violence (GBV) and female genital mutilation (FGM), some as high as 42%4. There is however an overall positive trend. Data from the Kenya Demographic Health Survey (KDHS), published in January 2023, show that there has been a decrease in physical violence (20% to 16%), sexual violence (7.6% to 6.42%) and Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) (38% to 15%) between 2022 and 2014. Another major barrier for women’s participation in economic activities in Kenya is the fact that women spend 4.6 times more time on unpaid care and domestic work than men5. The Time Use Survey revealed that there is a gender-unequal distribution of unpaid tasks within the sphere of unpaid work. This gap is higher for sub-Saharan Africa (2.9 times) than the rest of the world (2.4 times). Within the region, Kenya ranks 3rd from the top for time spent by women in unpaid work (with 278 minutes per day).

Poverty in Kenya has a predominantly female face and according to the Country Gender Profile Report 2022 for Kenya, women are more likely than men to be multidimensionally poor (65% relative to 56%), in addition to being overrepresented among the poor and the poorest6. The causes of poverty are structural and systemic and depend on the social institutions that force women to a position of lesser power over resources, decision-making in managing national affairs and access to opportunities. This further limit women’s participation, leadership, and agency. While Kenya has made progress in women’s participation, and political strides include increased female representation as seen in the 2022 General Elections, challenges persist such as resistance in political parties and violence against women in elections. Despite the development of gender-responsive policies, implementation is still a challenge and limited gender-responsive budgeting hinder progress. Interlinkages between challenges and thematic areas thus highlight the need for a comprehensive investment in gender equality to make a transformative difference in Kenyan lives.

UN Women Kenya is working on harnessing the gains of gender equality and women’s empowerment, the National Care Policy development process, Care and disability inclusion joint programme, and the National Policy on Women Economic Empowerment development, through promoting an inclusive, gender-responsive and transformative care policies in the public and private sectors and fostering enabling markets for gender equality and women’s empowerment. These programmes adopt a systematic approach for women’s economic empowerment that promotes job creation, the 5Rs framework principles on care and domestic work, and the full realization of women’s rights, agency, leadership and economic autonomy and attainment of decent working conditions free from violence and harassment and tackles discriminatory social and legal norms through policy and programmatic change.

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the WEE Team Lead, the Programme Analyst Consultant, is responsible for supporting  the Women Economic Empowerment (WEE) Unit and all its programmes (UAE SPF in Kenya component, the National Care Policy , gender and disability inclusion joint programme, WEPs, AGCCI, AGPO) as well as  the National Policy on Women Economic Empowerment while working closely with other units namely: Women Peace and Security, Eliminating Violence Against Women and Girls, Devolution and Governance and Coordination to allow for holistic and innovative programming.

Reporting to the Team Lead for Women’s Economic Empowerment, the consultant contributes to the effective management of UN Women WEE Unit programmes in the country office by providing substantive inputs to programme design, formulation, implementation, reporting and evaluation.  The consultant will guide and facilitate the delivery of UN Women programmes by monitoring results achieved during implementation and ensuring appropriate application of systems and procedures and develops enhancements if necessary.  The consultant will work in close collaboration with the programme and operations team, UN Women Country and Regional personnel, Government officials, multi and bi-lateral donors and civil society ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation under the WEE portfolio.     

Duties and Responsibilities

The main duties and responsibilities of the national consultant will be to:

1. Support the UAE SPF, the National Care Policy, Gender and Disability inclusion, Digiken, National Policy on Women Economic Empowerment project set up in Kenya

• Develop 6 months costed Activity Work Plans and Procurement Plans
• Develop stakeholder management matrix for the WEE Unit programmes.
• Build capacities of the WEE Unit programmes stakeholders

2. Support UAE SPF component on harnessing the gains of gender equality and women’s empowerment in Kenya.

• Build capacity stakeholders capacities and Promote Gender responsive procurement (GRP) in both the public and private sectors.
• Manage the technical implementation of the (strategic partnership framework) SPF component and ensure that all activities are align with the goals of harnessing the gains of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.
• Support the governments and private sector organizations to adopt gender-responsive procurement laws and policies, and increase procurement spend from women-owned, led, and gender-responsive businesses.
• Promote a participatory approach on collaborations and partnership with the private sector and civil society on women’s economic empowerment and gender balance.

3. Provide policy guidance, technical assistance, and capacity development.

• Support the Inclusion of care work in the National Development Plan (Medium Term Plan IV 2023-2027) of Vision 2030
• Support the development, adoption, and implementation of an inclusive, gender responsive and transformative national care policy at both the national and county level.
• Provide training and capacity-building sessions for OPD members on unpaid care and domestic work, partner with OPDs to advocate for disability-friendly policies at national and regional levels,
• Build the capacity of national stakeholders in the care economy to enhance their capacity for developing disability-inclusive and gender-transformative care and support policies, plans, and systems, aligned with the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) principles and rights.

4. Support knowledge management on public and private

• Map out and analyze all the relevant public and private care and support services in Kenya.
• Conduct a comprehensive national review and analysis of care and support policies, strategies, and plans, incorporating a disability lens.

5. Provide support for advocacy and stakeholder and partner engagement initiatives related to public and private.

• Work closely with the UN Women team in organizing consultative forums with Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs) to discuss caregiving models and standards in Kenya,
• Conduct joint awareness campaigns to promote disability awareness and inclusion in care work,
• Provide technical assistance for the dissemination of the Care policy and agenda through workshops and advocacy efforts.

6. Performs any other duty as assigned by the supervisor as deemed necessary. These include reporting, concept and proposal development and representation in different WEE fora.

 

Duties and Responsibilities

Contribute technically to the development of programme strategies in the area of WEE

• Provide technical inputs to the design and formulation of programme/ project proposals and initiatives related to WEE Unit

Provide technical support to the implementation and management of the WEE programme

• Lead the development of annual workplan and budgets as required for all new initiatives under the WEE unit;
• Coordinate and monitor the implementation of programme activities;
• Coordinate the call/request for proposals, including the organization of technical review committees, and capacity assessment of partners;
• Review and coordinate the submission of implementing partner financial and narrative reports;
• Train partners on Results Based Management.

Provide technical assistance and capacity development support to project/programme partners

• Provide technical support to and technically oversee the implementation of programme activities with partners;
• Identify opportunities for capacity building of partners and coordinate and facilitate technical/ programming support and trainings to partners as needed.

Provide technical inputs to the monitoring and reporting of the programme/ project

• Monitor progress on programme activity, results and indicators;
• Monitor the implementation of proposals by responsible partners;
• Provide inputs to quarterly reports, donor reports and other reports on outputs, results outputs and outcomes.

Provide technical inputs to the management of people and finances of WEE programme

• Monitor budget implementation and programme activity expenditures and perform budget revisions when required;
• Provide inputs to financial reports;
• Oversee the work of Programme Associates and Assistants as needed.

Contribute to building partnerships and resource mobilization strategies

• Provide inputs to resource mobilization strategies; analyze and maintain information and databases;
• Provide inputs to relevant documentation such as project summaries, conference papers, briefing notes, speeches, and donor profiles.

Provide inputs to advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts

• Provide technical inputs to background documents, briefs and presentations related to WEE;
• Coordinate and support the organization of advocacy activities and campaigns events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products;
• Provide inputs to the development of knowledge management products on WEE.

Deliverables

The national programme Analyst consultant deliverables will be:

Deliverables	Expected completion time (due day)	Payment Schedule (optional)
Support development, quality assurance and submission of project reports including in UNINFO	By contract end	Monthly
Lead in planning and capacity building of stakeholders in the WEE Unit projects	By contract end	Monthly
Contribute to design and development of new WEE project proposals
The UAE SPF, the National Care Policy, Gender and Disability inclusion, Digiken, National Policy on Women Economic Empowerment projects set up with workplans and budgets in place	By contract end	Monthly
Increased number of WEPs signatories	By contract end	Monthly
Increased awareness and uptake of AGPO as a GRP in the 5 select counties of work (Garissa, Kilifi, Kwale, Homabay, Turkana)	By contract end	Monthly
Increased awareness and capacity of care work in the 5 select counties of work	By contract end	Monthly
Strengthened stakeholder engagement within WEE including with private sector, Govt, KCO units	By contract end	Monthly

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is an office-based consultancy: the officer will be based in the UN Women Nairobi Office.

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:  Demonstrated achievement in the field of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment including private sector work and the area of care policies and models (either child, PWD, eldercare and/or disability). Excellent knowledge of public and private gender-responsive care policies, laws and regulations Ability to interact effectively with peers, partners, stakeholders, donors, and the UN system. Excellent analytical and drafting skills Excellent communicator, Ability to identify trends and opportunities relevant to programmatic area. Excellent knowledge of programme development, implementation, and reporting Strong knowledge of UN systems and procedures Capable and committed team player

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification:	Master’s degree or equivalent in economics, international development, gender studies or a related field is required. A first-level university degree in social sciences in combination with 2 additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. A project/programme management certification would be an added advantage.
Experience	At least 5 years progressively responsible experience gender equality and women’s economic empowerment At least 5 years of experience in managing women’s economic empowerment programs and strategic planning is required. Experience in gender-responsive procurement is required, as well as knowledge in national procurement regulations is desirable. Experience in preparation of knowledge products related to the women´s economic empowerment is required. At least 5 years of experience in coordinating teams is required. Excellent analytical skills with strong drive for results and capacity to work independently. Excellent English communication and writing skills; (Samples of previous work will be required.) Experience in working in the UN system is desirable. Experience in UN Coordination will be an asset
Languages	Fluency in English and Kiswahili is required. Knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset.

 

How to Apply 

• Personal CV or P11 (P11 can be downloaded from: )
• A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page)

Please note that the system will only allow one attachment and candidates are required to include in the P-11 form links for their previously published reports and articles completed within the last two years. Applications without the completed and signed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Note:

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.

Diversity and inclusion:

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.