International Consultant: Capacity Assessment OF The Gender Machinery Of The Government Of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa

International Consultant: Capacity Assessment OF The Gender Machinery Of The Government Of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa

INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANT: CAPACITY ASSESSMENT OF THE GENDER MACHINERY OF THE GOVERNMENT OF ETHIOPIA

Location : Addis Ababa, ETHIOPIA Application Deadline : 05-Mar-12 Additional Category Management Type of Contract : Individual Contract Post Level : International Consultant Languages Required :

English   Starting Date :

(date when the selected candidate is expected to start) 06-Mar-2012

Duration of Initial Contract : 30 working days Expected Duration of Assignment : 30 working days  

Background

A legal, administrative and policy environment conducive to promote gender equality was created over the past two decades. The most important gender and development measures taken by the government include the issuance of the National Policy on Women (1993) which aimed to “institutionalize the political and socio-economic rights of women by creating appropriate structures in government institutions.” The 1995 Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) recognizes the rights of women which, among others, include the right to equality and, owing to past inequality and discrimination that Ethiopian women suffered, the entitlement to affirmative measures. Other relevant measures also include the Revised Family Law (2000) and the Revised Criminal Code (2005), Ethiopian Women Development and Change Package (2006) and the National Action Plan (NAP-EG) and adoption of MDGs as guiding framework for planning.

The Ethiopian government is a signatory to most international instruments, conventions and declarations, and adopted international instruments such as; the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women /CEDAW (1979), the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women/DEVAW (1993), the Beijing Platform for Action/BPA (1995) including the domestication of the international instruments.

Ethiopia ratified and adopted the UN charter on Human Rights and other conventions, such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1981. Its outline addresses political, social, economic and legislative issues. The convention stipulates that signatories need to work for eliminating discrimination against women, and creating equality between women and men.

In terms of structure, in 1992, the GoE established the Office of Women’s Affairs (OWA) within the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). Its mandate was coordination and facilitation of the national efforts to promote gender equality in the field of development as well as to oversee and coordinate activities for effective implementation of the NPW. The OWA was, in 2005, replaced by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs (MoWA) which assumed a broader and clearer mandate. Departments of Women Affairs (DWA) were also created across line ministries at the federal level. The DWAs had close work relations with MoWA. Corresponding institutional arrangements existed at regional level to facilitate implementation of the national policy on gender. The institutions included the Bureaus of Women’s Affairs (BoWA), the Zonal and Woreda Women’s Coordination Desks and DWAs in the regions’ sectoral line institutions.

 In 2010, the federal MoWA was once again re-structured by Proclamation No. 691/2010 with expanded mandate to encompass children and youth affairs and, hence, became the Ministry of Women, Youth and Children Affairs (MoWYCA).  Within its area of jurisdiction, the Ministry has the following powers and responsibilities (Articles 10 and 30):

Enter into contracts and international agreements in accordance with the law;Address women and youth affairs in the preparation of policies, laws and development programs and projects;Create awareness and movement on the question of women, children and youth;Collect, compile and disseminate to all stakeholders information on the objective realities faced by women, children and youth;Ensure that opportunities are created for women and the youth to actively participate in political, economic and social affairs of the country;Encourage and support women and the youth to be organized, based on their free will and needs, with a view to defending their rights and solving their problems;Design strategies to follow up and evaluate the preparation of policies, legislations, development programs and projects by federal government organs to ensure that they give due considerations to women and youth issues;Undertake studies to identify discriminatory practices affecting women, facilitate the creation of conditions for the elimination of such practices, and follow up their implementation;Devise means for the proper application of women's right to affirmative actions guaranteed at the national level and follow the implementation of same;Ensure that due attention is given to select women for decision-making positions in various government organs;Coordinate all stakeholders to protect the rights and well-being of children;Follow up the implementation of treaties relating to women and children and submit reports to the concerned bodies;Undertake capacity building activities;Provide assistance and advice to regional states, as necessary; and provide coordinated support to regional states eligible for affirmative support;

The new arrangement at the regional level is that the Bureaux of Women Affairs (BoWA) become the Bureaux of Women and Children Affairs (BoWCA) with new mandates on children issues. At the sub-regional levels, there are also corresponding institutional arrangements, i.e. the Zonal and Woreda Women and Children Affairs Offices.

 The gender institutions at various levels have developed a system of consultations, coordination and information exchange.  The regional Bureaux and the federal DWAs share their progress reports with MoWYCA. The latter provides technical feedback and support to build their capacities and mainstream gender-related planning and management. They also organize annual fora where they learn from one another and map out future directions for gender activities in Ethiopia.

 In 2010, the UN and GoE embarked on a joint programme on gender equality and women empowerment. The programme aimed to contribute around four major areas identified as key priorities, which are:

1.      Enhanced economic empowerment of women

2.      Improved access to and completion of secondary and tertiary education for girls and women

3.      Strengthened institutional capacity of gender mainstreaming

4.      Enhanced protection of girls and women’s rights

The programme also aimed to contribute to capacity development of MoWYCA and WADs at the federal level to better access and effectively use donor resources.

As part of institutional strengthening of the gender machinery, GoE and UN would like to undertake a comprehensive capacity assessment of the Gender Machinery.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objectives of the Capacity Assessment (CA):

The objective of the CA is to assess the integrated capacity (institutional, organizational and individual capacities) of the gender machinery at all levels to enable the GoE and UN formulate comprehensive capacity development responses. The specific purposes of this assessment include: 

To undertake a comprehensive capacity assessment of the MoWCYA and BoWCYA to effectively implement their mandate based on UNDP Capacity Assessment Framework Based on the results of the assessment, to provide a comprehensive, costed capacity development package with clear prioritization of interventions.

Scope of the Assignment:

This assignment involves the following activities: initial planning, data collection and analysis of results, presentation on the findings and submitting of final report. It also involves a field mission to a minimum of two regional states. The CA team shall give more focus on MoWYCA and BoWCA, but it shall also cover selected DWAs at federal and regional levels and selected Zonal and Woreda offices in regional states.

Methodology and Analysis:

Within the UNDP Capacity Assessment Framework, the CA team will employ the following methods for data collection:

Desk review of key documents, including legal and policy documents;Self-assessment questionnaire;Focused group discussion;Conduct individual interviews;Observations and meetings.

The CA team will summarize the data and information collected and carefully interpret the results. The results should identify capacity constraints and capacity development opportunities based on which it is required to formulate alternative capacity development interventions. The findings of the assessment will be included into the CA reports.

Expected Deliverables:

The CA team will deliver:

An Inception Report which includes a clearly defined work plan and schedule for the implementation of the assessment together with an assessment tools (to be done in the first week);A comprehensive analytical capacity assessment report and presentation of the findings to key stakeholders;A comprehensive capacity development proposal including indicative budget, timeframe and prioritization of interventions.

Competencies

A minimum of 10 years of professional experience and proven expertise and experience in conducting capacity assessments (particularly that of gender machineries) and formulating capacity development responses. The international expert should have experience in working in/with developing countries and in cross-cultural setting;Ability to translate strategic thinking and innovative ideas into practical operational recommendations;Proven expertise in gender;Solid analytical and presentation skills;Excellent interpersonal, communication and negotiating skills;Fluency in English language, both written and spoken;A minimum of 10 years of professional experience and proven expertise and experience in conducting capacity assessments (particularly that of gender machineries) and formulating capacity development responses. The international expert should have experience in working in/with developing countries and in cross-cultural setting.

Supervision and Work Relations:

The CA team will work under the direct supervision and guidance of UNDP. The CA teams will closely work with key stakeholders for the successful implementation of the assignment.

Time frame for the Assignment:

This assignment will last no more than 30 working days.

Required Skills and Experience

The CA team will be comprised of an international expert and a national expert. The experts should have: A minimum of Masters Degree in the social science, development studies, gender studies or in related field.

Documents to be included when submitting the proposal: 

Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

1. Proposal: (not more than 450 words)

(i) Explaining why they are the most suitable for the work

(ii) Provide a brief methodology on how they will approach and conduct the work (if applicable)

2. Financial proposal: Please submitted Lump sum (inclusive of DSA, Ticket and other costs if any)

3. Personal CV including past experience in similar projects and at least 3 references.

Financial Proposal:

Please submit financial proposal in a separate sheet to our e-mail Procurement.et@undp.org;

Evaluation:

Individual consultants will be evaluated based on the following methodologies:

Cumulative analysis:

The award of the contract shall be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

a) responsive/compliant/acceptable, and

b) Having received the highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

* Technical Criteria weight; 70%

* Financial Criteria weight; 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 point and above would be considered for the Financial Evaluation

Criteria

Weight

Max. Point

Technical  (based on CV, Proposal and Interview)

Minimum educational background and work experience (CV)

10%

10

Understanding of scope of work and methodology (From Proposal)

20%

20

Individual Competencies (Interview)

40%

40

Financial

30%

30

Note: Submission of Technical and Financial proposal is mandatory failing to submit one of the proposals will be automatically disqualified.

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

 

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