Duration: 3.5 months
Location: Remote based supporting UNFPA Geneva office
Purpose of Consultancy:
UNFPA has committed to accelerate the reduction in gender-based violence (GBV) and harmful practices by 2025, that is one of the three outcomes of UNFPA Strategic Plan 2022-2025. To achieve this vision, UNFPA aims to protect women and girls, especially those affected by crisis, empowering them to enjoy their rights free from violence. Everyday displacement, insecurity and conflicts exacerbate the many risk factors for exposure to multiple forms of GBV and create barriers to accessing GBV response services. Protecting populations affected by humanitarian emergencies, especially women and girls, from the risk of GBV stems from all actors’ essential duty to protect those affected by crisis.
GBV risk mitigation is a critical part of GBViE programming. The IASC Guidelines for Integrating GBV Interventions in Humanitarian Action invite all humanitarian actors to promote women’s and girls’ safety, and reducing the risk of GBV. It refers to actions that are taken in humanitarian sectors and areas of work to reduce risks and exposure to GBV and improve safety and dignity in the intervention. While all humanitarian actors, regardless of their mandate and area of work have a responsibility to mitigate GBV risk, applying the do no harm principle and upholding the Centrality of Protection principle, UNFPA has an advocacy and technical support role to ensure that humanitarian interventions across all sectors:
(1) do not cause or increase the likelihood of GBV;
(2) proactively seek to identify and take action to integrate GBV risks in the environment and in programme design and implementation;
(3) proactively facilitate and monitor vulnerable groups’ access to services.
This role is in line with the Minimum Standards for GBV in Emergency Programming (Standard 9) which highlights that GBV specialists should play a supportive role in engaging actors from key sectors towards the common goals of mitigating GBV risk and includes advocating for and providing guidance, training and recommendations to facilitate the role of technical staff implementing risk mitigation measures.
To fulfil this role, GBV Specialists should maintain linkages with a broad set of stakeholders, including sector-working groups, governments counterparts as appropriate and community leaders, to help them be aware of existing and emerging risks. They have a role in supporting humanitarian actors and other stakeholders to integrate GBV in monitoring and assessment initiatives as well as to contextualize and apply the IASC GBV Guidelines in all stages of project management, from planning to implementation. GBV specialists should also contribute to reducing risk of GBV by providing accurate and accessible information on available GBV services and referral pathways. They finally must ensure that other actors know how to refer survivors to needed services and that disclosure of GBV incidents happen in a safe and ethical way. Furthermore, it is crucial that they receive inputs and feedback from communities and engage with women and girls as well as women-led organizations.\
At the global level, UNFPA serves on the GBV Guidelines Implementation Support Team and the Reference Group and has supported the development of the inter-agency training on GBV risk mitigation for non-GBV actors. At the country level, UNFPA supports GBV Specialists and Coordinators to perform their role as defined in the GBV Minimum Standard 9. In this regard, a capacity gap has been identified both through the findings of a GBViE Capacity Assessment conducted in 2022 in occasion of the development of a Three-Year GBViE Capacity Development Plan and considering the “unsuccessful/non-received” applications from UNFPA employees and other GBV specialized actors to the inter-agency training on GBV risk mitigation for non-GBV specialists. Additionally, a need to strengthen the engagement of women and girls as key to better target risk mitigation strategies has been identified.
In addition to the need to develop stronger capacity in GBV risk mitigation of GBV specialists, UNFPA identified the need to further develop tools, guidance and learning materials on engaging with women and girls as well as WLOs to mitigate the risk of GBV in their communities. Minimum Standard 9 highlights that they are the best source of information about GBV and should be involved and supported to plan and implement GBV risk mitigation strategies. Operational approaches for participatory methods in relation to GBV risk mitigation can be strengthened and use of existing tools may be better integrated, and humanitarian actors from all sectors need to enhance their capacity to listen to women and girls and involve them and their organizations in decision making for risk reduction.
Scope of work :
The Consultant for the development of the blended Short Courses on GBV Risk Mitigation will produce the following key deliverables:
(1) Outline with topics and subtopics, learning objectives and suggested interactivity of two three-week modules on 1) GBV Risk Mitigation for GBV Specialists and other GBV Specialized Actors 2) and Engaging Women, Girls and WLOs to mitigate the risk of GBV in their communities
(2) Full content of two modules– and facilitator guide following accepted best practice for adult learning, on the [Eduflow] platform. Each unit should consist of, at minimum, a combination of readings, videos, discussion fora, narrated presentations, webinars, assignments/exercises and additional resources. Specific multi-format content for the learning units will be determined based on the learning objectives detailed under output 1 above. Assignments/exercises should have clearly defined learning objectives (either knowledge or skills based or both) that align with the objectives of the overall learning unit and a review rubric for facilitators.
In order to achieve the above, the consultant will:
● Participate in briefing with the UNFPA GBViE Specialist, GBV AoR Coordinator, other relevant members of the GBV Guidelines Team to understand the existing available content, extent of specific capacity gaps and the broader framework of needs related to the development of the GBV Risk Mitigation Courses.
● Based on the discussion above, clearly define the target audience for the online courses and the differential needs/learning objectives of the GBV specialized audience (as compared to the non-GBV
specialized audience for the existing online course materials)
● Produce a work plan and timelines in collaboration with UNFPA GBViE Specialist for the development of the deliverables.
● Liaise with relevant counterparts in UNICEF, IOM and other selected UN Agencies to assess specific needs that the coordination of priority sectors such as Food Security, WASH and Child Protection have when it comes to the support provided by GBV specialists and to their capacity to engage with women,
girls and WLOs.
● Participate in a GBV Risk Mitigation Course curriculum mapping exercise with selected members of
UNFPA GBViE Team and the GBV Guidelines Team to ensure that all relevant aspects of modules development are taken into consideration.
● Review existing learning materials related to GBV risk mitigation, including external online courses,
training materials, webinars, videos/podcasts, and other resources.
● Review content in the “Assessments & Consultations” topic of the existing online GBV risk mitigation course and develop any necessary additional online learning materials (following the methodologies noted above) on “engaging with women and girls and women led organizations (WLOs) to identify GBV risk in their communities.” These materials should also be able to be used as standalone content as well
● Draft an outline for the two three-weeks GBV risk mitigation courses, including topics and subtopics, learning objectives and suggested interactivity.
● After validation of the outline from UNFPA GBV Specialist (and members of the GBV Guidelines Reference Group), draft the full content of the two three week-courses, including assessment questions, homework or reflection topics to be discussed in occasion of the final live session with other participants.
● Wherever possible and appropriate, incorporate new and/or existing interactive learning materials and methodologies (videos, webinars, etc.), guidance and tools in the content of the reading modules.
● Draft a short facilitator guide.
● Develop the script of a short video (3-5 minutes) on “engaging with women, girls and WLOs to
identify GBV risks in their community” for GBV risk mitigation
● Coordinate, give suggestions and review the storyboard with the vendor for the realization of the short video.
● Develop other learning and planning tools/materials on “engaging with women and girls and WLOs to identify GBV risk in their communities”, such as a short guidance note, a checklist, etc. Those tools will be embedded in the short Course and serve as stand alone materials for other learning vents/opportunities.
Required Expertise and Qualifications:
Education:
Master’s degree, preferably in one of the following areas: international relations, social and behavioral science, humanitarian response, gender studies, and political science or other related fields.
Knowledge and Experience:
● Minimum of seven years of relevant work experience in GBV in emergencies planning, programme
management, coordination and training;
● Experience in conducting GBV risk mitigation and implementing the Inter-agency GBV Guidelines
and GBV Minimum Standards are a must:
● Experience developing learning materials and delivering training modules on GBV also a must;
● Experience developing GBV risk mitigation-related learning contents and materials a distinct advantage;
● Demonstrated experience in using current adult learning methodologies (including online learning technologies and blended approaches) that drive improved humanitarian practice;
● Previous experience participating in assessments and mapping an assets;
● Familiarity with UNFPA’s GBV work in humanitarian contexts is desirable;
● Initiative, sound judgement and demonstrated ability to work harmoniously with staff members of different national and cultural backgrounds;
Languages:
● Fluency in English required. An additional UN language is desirable (French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese,
Russian)
How to Apply :
Please send your application and a short letter of motivation, with expected fees for this consultancy, with “Development of two short courses- GBV Risk mitigation " in the subject line to ho-recruitment@unfpa.org by deadline date.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advanced to the next stage of the selection process.
Note to applicants:
UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Fraudulent notices, letters or offers may be submitted to the UNFPA.via various means or Reporting: http://www.unfpa.org/help/hotline.cfm.
UNFPA 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.
We are no longer accepting applications for this position.
