UN Women: International Consultant, Expert on Gender and Disability in Crisis and Recovery Settings (Retainer), Home-Based

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. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, the UN Women leads and coordinates the 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’s triple mandate, along with its global network and deep policy and programming expertise, continues to endow the Entity with a unique capacity to: (i) support Member States to strengthen global norms and standards for gender equality and women’s empowerment, and mainstream gender perspectives in other thematic areas; (ii) promote coordination and coherence across the UN system to enhance accountability and results for gender equality and women’s empowerment; and (iii) undertake operational activities to support Member States, upon their request, in translating global norms and standards into legislation, policies and strategies at country level. 

UN Women plays an innovative and catalytic role in the State of Palestine since its inception in 1997 (as UNIFEM). In line with the national priorities, the work of UN Women for the period 2023-2025 is aligned with three of the Palestine United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework’s (UNSDCF) outcomes:

•     Palestinians have greater access to economic opportunities that are inclusive, resilient, and sustainable, including decent employment and livelihoods opportunities in an empowered private sector.

•     Palestinians, including the most vulnerable, have equal access to sustainable, inclusive, gender responsive and quality social services, social protection, and affordable utilities.

•     Palestinian governance institutions, processes, and mechanisms at all levels are more democratic, rights-based, inclusive, and accountable.

Its three-year Strategic Note supports the efforts to achieve measurable results in country in terms of four UN Women global Strategic Plan impacts (2022-2025): (SP Impact 1). Governance and participation in public life; (SP Impact 2). Women’s Economic Empowerment; (SP Impact 3). Ending Violence Against Women and Girls; SP Impact 4. Women peace and security, Humanitarian & Disaster Risk Reduction. 

Women and girls with disabilities face multiple and intersecting barriers in accessing protection services, recovery opportunities, justice, information, participation mechanisms and decision-making processes. These barriers have been exacerbated by the ongoing crisis in Gaza. Strengthening collaboration between WLOs and OPDs, improving accessibility of services, generating evidence, and ensuring meaningful participation of women with disabilities are critical components of an inclusive recovery process. 

The consultant will provide technical expertise to UN Women and partners across multiple recovery, resilience, protection, livelihoods, women's economic empowerment, governance and social-cohesion initiatives implemented in Gaza. The consultant will ensure that disability inclusion is systematically integrated across programme design, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and knowledge generation, with particular attention to the rights and participation of women and girls with disabilities.

The consultant will support disability-inclusive approaches across a range of sectors including women’s economic empowerment and livelihoods, protection and gender-based violence prevention and response, care economy initiatives, community resilience and social cohesion, recovery planning, institutional capacity strengthening, localization and women's leadership. The consultant will work closely with UN Women programme teams, WLOs, OPDs, UN agencies, civil society organizations, service providers and national stakeholders to promote inclusive recovery and ensure that no one is left behind.

The consultant will report to the UN Women Programme Analyst (Humanitarian and Early recovery) and work closely with UN Women programme staff, WLOs, OPDs, service providers, national stakeholders and Joint Programme partners.

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work

1. Disability-Inclusive Programme Design, Recovery and Mainstreaming

• Provide technical guidance to integrate gender-responsive disability inclusion across UN Women's recovery, protection, livelihoods, economic empowerment, governance and resilience programming.
• Support disability-inclusive approaches in service delivery, infrastructure, livelihoods, social protection, GBV prevention and response, and recovery planning including technical guidance on disability-inclusive measures and SOPs.
• Advise on accessibility, universal design, reasonable accommodation and inclusive participation throughout the programme cycle.
• Support disability mainstreaming across Joint Programmes and recovery initiatives to ensure alignment with LNOB commitments and disability-inclusive recovery standards.

2. Capacity Development, Institutional Strengthening and Partnerships

• Strengthen the capacities of Women's-Led Organizations (WLOs), Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), service providers and national institutions on gender-responsive disability inclusion.
• Support organizational strengthening of OPDs, particularly organizations representing women with disabilities, to enhance their participation, advocacy and leadership in recovery processes.
• Facilitate partnerships and collaboration between WLOs, OPDs, service providers, UN agencies and national stakeholders.
• Promote the meaningful participation and leadership of women and girls with disabilities in programme design, implementation, monitoring and recovery decision-making processes.

3. Evidence Generation, Monitoring and Disability Data Systems

• Advise on gender-responsive and disability-inclusive eligibility criteria, collect sex-, age- and disability-disaggregated data, and monitor equitable access to productive assets, grants, cash, training, paid work, enterprise support and markets. 
• Support the collection, analysis and use of sex-, age- and disability-disaggregated data, including the application of Washington Group Questions where appropriate.
• Conduct disability and gender analyses, accessibility assessments and inclusion reviews to identify barriers and opportunities.
• Support strengthening disability-inclusive monitoring, accountability and information management systems.
• Develop practical guidance, tools, knowledge products and recommendations to inform disability-inclusive recovery planning, programming and policy development.

4. Disability-Inclusive Protection, Economic Empowerment and Access to Services

• Advise on inclusive approaches to protection, GBV prevention and response, livelihoods, employment, entrepreneurship and women's economic empowerment initiatives including disability-inclusive workplaces, training centres, protection hubs and other services.
• Support improved accessibility of services, referral pathways, safe spaces, community facilities and economic opportunities for women and girls with disabilities.
• Promote integrated approaches that strengthen access to rehabilitation, assistive devices, psychosocial support, SRHR, livelihoods and other essential services.
• Provide technical support to ensure that women and girls with disabilities are effectively reached through recovery interventions and are able to exercise leadership, agency and economic participation.
• Advise on disability and gender inclusive measures, such as accessible information and registration, childcare or care referrals, flexible and proximate delivery, safe mobility support, reasonable accommodation, suitable PPE, safe working conditions, equal remuneration and accessible feedback mechanisms.
• Assess and identify barriers to participation for women (and girls) with disabilities including accommodation needs, and accessibility of worksites, training, productive assets and enterprise services. Advise on required support which may include adapted information, assistive technologies, accessible workstations, communication support and flexible delivery. 

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy, without travel. 

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

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 Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

• Strong technical expertise in gender-responsive disability inclusion. 
• Knowledge of disability-inclusive humanitarian and recovery programming. 
• Experience strengthening OPDs, WLOs and civil society organizations. 
• Ability to conduct gender and disability analysis and translate evidence into practical recommendations. 
• Experience developing accessibility and inclusion tools and guidance. 
• Strong facilitation, coordination and capacity-development skills.

Education and Certification:

• Master's degree in Disability Studies, Gender Studies, Human Rights, Social Policy, Social Sciences, International Development, Public Policy or a related field is required. 
• A first-level university degree combined with two additional years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced degree.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressive experience in disability inclusions and gender equality is required. 
• Demonstrated experience mainstreaming disability inclusion across multiple sectors, including livelihoods, economic empowerment, protection, governance or recovery programming is required. 
• Proven experience engaging with OPDs, WLOs, civil society organizations and national institutions is desirable. 
• Experience conducting gender and disability analysis and developing evidence-based recommendations is desirable. 
• Experience conducting accessibility audits and disability inclusion assessments is desirable.
• Experience designing and delivering capacity-building programmes is desirable. 
• Experience developing disability-inclusive tools, guidance and monitoring frameworks is desirable. 
• Experience in humanitarian or crisis-affected contexts is required. 
• Experience in Palestine and/or the Middle East region is highly desirable. 
• Previous experience working with UN agencies and international organizations is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Working Knowledge of Arabic is desirable.

Statements :

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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.