Associate Coordination Consultant for Gender Evaluation/Audit of the Office of the Special Envoy for Yemen (OSESGY)

The Office of the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for Yemen (OSESGY) has played an active role since 2012 in developing comprehensive and enduring mediation efforts towards the establishment of an inclusive peace process for the country. OSESGY seeks to create an environment conducive to inclusive dialogue and a shift in perceptions. This transformative approach aims to bridge divisions and alleviate tensions in order to establish a sustainable and lasting peace in Yemen.

OSESGY is committed to the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of United Nations Charter and the SDGs, particularly Goal 5, which focuses on Gender Equality and the empowerment of women and girls. Its mission includes eliminating gender discrimination, empowering women, and achieving equality between women and men as equal partners and beneficiaries in fostering inclusive peace and security. Gender mainstreaming is a key component of OSESGY’s work and constitutes a vehicle for ensuring for effective implementation of the WPS agenda which falls within its mandate. OSESGY is committed to ensuring gender equality across all facets of its operations. Gender equality must be integrated into an organization’s programming and organizational practices to bring about sustainable change toward achieving real equality. 

To strengthen this commitment, OSESGY is commissioning a gender evaluation/audit to assess and enhance gender integration in its operations, programmes, outreach, and human/financial resources.  A gender audit is a tool for promoting organizational learning on mainstreaming gender effectively and creating gender-equitable work environments.

It is within this scope that OSESGY seeks to hire an international individual consultant to conduct a Participatory Gender Audit for OSESGY. The audit will establish a baseline, identify critical gaps and challenges, and recommend ways of addressing them. The gender audit will build upon the Gender Inclusion Strategy, gender advisory support and the gender inclusion efforts to date within OSESGY. The results of the gender audit will conclude in the development of an organization-wide Gender Action Plan which will guide operations.

The consultant will report to the Chief of Staff and the Senior Gender Affairs Officer.

Timeframe: The expected duration of work is 4 months, starting from 1 November  2024 until 28 February, 2025. 

Specific Objectives 

• To assess the extent of integration of a gender perspective in the policies, strategies, and initiatives of the organizations. 
• To document good practices and identify gaps in gender mainstreaming and build organizational ownership on gender responsiveness. 
• To contribute to building a baseline on gender mainstreaming within OSESGY. 
• To identify the existence of internal practices, policies, and related support systems for gender mainstreaming and their effectiveness. 
• To assess the progress in achieving gender equality and equity in access and retention. 
• To identify the current challenges and areas of concern in regard to gender mainstreaming. 
• To formulate recommendations to ensure organizations effectively address identified gaps. 

Scope of Work 

The Gender Audit will cover the gender mainstreaming work of OSESGY to provide a baseline for progress on gender mainstreaming, inform the development of Gender Action Plan, and guide the work on gender mainstreaming. A two-pronged approach will be used focusing on both the internal level of the office as well as the external level of engagements.  The internal audit will assess aspects like institutionalizing gender policies, governance structures, recruitment practices, workplace culture, budgets and internal communications from a gender perspective. Externally, the audit will examine how gender is integrated into program design, planning, partnerships, advocacy, research and engagement with stakeholders.

 The gender audit will focus on the following issues:

• Leadership and decision making. 

• Staff capacity. 

• Gender mainstreaming in program and policy. 

• Tools and resources. 

• Planning and budgeting. 

• Monitoring and evaluation. 

• Organizational culture such as workplace issues including harassment and discrimination. 

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of OSESGY’s Chief of Staff and the Senior Gender Officer, the Senior Consultant will undertake the following duties and responsibilities: 

Support the senior consultant with organizing one or more meetings with the organization to introduce the Participatory Gender Audit methodology, objectives, and process. 

Obtain consent and ensure commitment to achieving gender equality within the organization. 

2. Document Review 

Solicit documentation and support the desk reviews of: 

• Internal policies and regulations 

• Strategic plans 

• HR practices, policies and regulations 

• Administrative and financial rules 

• Resource practices and resource allocation

• Relevant literature, including strategies, action plans, research papers, assessments, programs, services, reports, practices, and personnel. 

• Provide all logistical arrangements related to the development of the assessment outline in coordination with the OSESGY Team. 

• Conduct interviews and focus group discussions with senior management, staff and  stakeholders.

• Support in identifying gender gaps in specific areas of the organization. 

• Draft recommendations for amendments, improvements, or new initiatives. 

• Assist the organization in creating its Gender Action Plan based on identified gender gaps. 

• Present the results of the review and main recommendations outlining gender issues, along with clear strategies and recommendations to the organization for separate discussion and review. 

• Prepare all graphics and data for the final report in English for OSESGY’s endorsement. 

• Produce a comprehensive Gender Action Plan for the organization. 

Timeframe 

The expected duration of work is up to 4 months, starting from 1 December 2024 until 31 March 2025.

Deliverables 

The consultant is expected to deliver a final gender audit report indicating the gender issues for the office with clear strategies and recommendations on how to address them.

• Initial Report: A detailed work plan and methodology to be submitted within two weeks of the start date.

• Interim Report: A progress report outlining initial findings and any challenges encountered, to be submitted to the Chief of Staff and the Senior Gender Affairs Officer halfway through the consultancy period.

• Draft Report: A comprehensive draft report for review and feedback from OSESGY.

• Presentation: An executive summary and presentation of key findings and recommendations to OSESGY leadership.

• Final Report.: A finalized report incorporating feedback and providing detailed findings and recommendations.

Education:

Advanced degree in social and natural sciences or technical field focused on quantitative and qualitative analysis/planning or a bachelors degree with additional two years of experience. 

Experience:

The Consultant must have the following qualifications: 

• Proven experience of at least 5 years in supporting strategic planning and administration within UN Secretariat missions and agencies in the Middle East.

• Strong knowledge of UN gender equality principles and gender mainstreaming practices, gender parity issues within the UN or international organizations in the Middle East is required.

• Excellent analytical, communication, and report-writing skills is required. 

• Ability to work collaboratively and engage with diverse stakeholders is required.

• Familiarity with the cultural and social context of Yemen and the Middle East region is a requirement

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 

• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses ( they take around 4 hours to complete)  in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.