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.

The UN Women MCO-Caribbean covers 22 countries and territories in the English and Dutch speaking Caribbean. Strides towards gender equality in the countries covered by the MCO have resulted in gains for women and girls in the Caribbean, relating primarily to high education rates and increases in employment rates. However critical gaps and inequalities remain which are further exploited during hazards like COVID-19 and other environmental hazards.

Women’s entrepreneurism remains disproportionately low in the region with evidence suggesting only 8% (approximately 228,000 persons) of the total employed Caribbean population are self-employed women[1]. Women entrepreneurs are also disproportionately operating micro enterprises with no, or few, employees, in low growth sectors, utilising little technology and innovation.[2] This a result of women’s limited access to capital, gender neutral lending practices and requirements, inadequate skill sets and the disproportionate unpaid care burden resting on women, which cumulatively can create obstacles and disincentives to entrepreneurism. As a result, Latin America and the Caribbean is the region with the second highest failure rate of women-led businesses[3]. The COVID-19 pandemic and its associated lockdowns has worsened this situation, disproportionately impacting women[4], forcing many MSMEs into precarity and further limiting capital flows. Women have been disproportionately impacted.

Within this context, UN Women is working to unlock capital for public and private investment in gender equality, inclusive growth and resilience building through evidence-based and innovative strategies. The LAC region faces a US $93 billion total credit gap for women-led SMEs[5]. Gender Lens Investing, that is investing in women-owned businesses, businesses providing services or products that improve the lives of women, or businesses promoting gender equality within their company, provides an enormous opportunity to fill these gaps. As of 2018, there was $2.8 billion in private markets (venture capital/private equity funds) with gender-based strategies.

The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women), and the United Nations Development Project (UNDP) will be launching the Joint Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Programme on Building Back Equal through Innovative Financing for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment for Bahamas and Bermuda. The purpose of the Joint SDG Fund Programme on Building Back Equal through Innovative Financing for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment is to pilot innovative financing tools for gender equality to enable women and youth entrepreneurs in The Bahamas and Bermuda to access additional capital, reduce risks and accelerate SDG achievement. The Joint Programme will address structural causes, improve access to innovative financing, and work with government to create a policy and financial environment that incentivizes private sector engagement in gender lens investment, and establishes robust Impact Measurement and Management practices to improve the use of data and metrics for the gender-equitable performance management.

In order to support the implementation of the Joint SDG Fund Programme on Building Back Equal through Innovative Financing for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment initiative in Bermuda, UN Women is seeking to hire a consultant to support project implementation in Bermuda.

[1] InfoDev. 2015. Profiling Caribbean Women Entrepreneurs: Business Environment, Sectoral Constraints and Programming Lessons. Washington, DC: The World Bank; Dohnert, S., Crespi, G., Maffioli. A., 2017. Exploring Firm-Level Innovation and Productivity In Developing Countries: The Perspective of Caribbean Small States. IDB.

[2] Ibid.

[3] G. Cardoz, A. Fernandez, C. Ilie, H. Tejada, Entrepreneurship and Gender in Latin America, INCAE Business School, February 2018.

[4] UN Women, 2021. Summary Status of Women and Men Report: The Impacts of COVID-19

[5] IDB Invest, 2019. Gender Lens Investing: How Finance can Accelerate Gender Equality.

Duties and Responsibilities

Objective of Assignment

Under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO Caribbean Representative, and day to day supervision by the National Private Sector Specialist, the consultant will be contracted to provide support to the UN Women MCO – Caribbean and the National Private Sector Specialist in implementing the Joint SDG Fund Programme on Building Back Equal through Innovative Financing for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment initiative in Bermuda.

Scope of Work and Deliverables

Under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO-Caribbean Representative and reporting directly to the National Private Sector Specialist, the consultant is expected to deliver the following results:

• Support the development of the overall project work plan.
• Support the implementation of the project.
• Support the monitoring of the programme, including the development of a monitoring and evaluation plan and logical framework to support tracking the progress of the implementation of the Joint SDG Fund Project activities.
• Identify and coordinate relationships with national partners to support implementation of UN Women’s projects, raise potential problems and suggest solutions.

• Identify capacity building needs and coordinate capacity building activities.
• Develop technical coherence strategy within the principles of the Joint SGD Fund Project, and close collaboration with the Joint SGD Fund Project implementing team.
• Coordinate missions to the Bermuda of the Joint SDG Fund Project implementing team and any relevant consultants.

• Compile and present the lessons learned from the project to inform the programme process to UN Women, national partners and other key stakeholders;
• Contribute to the exchange of information and provide inputs to the development of knowledge products internally and externally of the programme;
• Coordinate the organization of major advocacy campaigns, events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products.

Reporting Requirements

The consultant will work under the overall supervision of the UN Women MCO Caribbean Representative, with day-to-day supervision by the Private Sector Specialist.

 Key Performance Indicators

• Timely and quality implementation of Programme/Portfolio activities against set workplans, timelines, and budgets, in line with the Strategic Note
• Quality and timely reporting
• Strong relations with partners and stakeholders
• Regular and timely monitoring of activities 
• Enhanced best practices and lessons learned documented and circulated

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:  https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

• Good programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Ability to maintain networks and partnerships with UN agencies and other local and international  organisations and the Government of Bermuda
• Knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to gather and interpret data, reach logical conclusions and present findings and recommendations
• Good analytical skills
• Knowledge of UN programme management systems

Required Skills and Experience

The Consultant should meet the following criteria:

Education and Certification:

• Advanced University degree in social sciences e.g. Development Studies, Gender Equality, Management, Social sciences Business, Economics, Administration, or other related areas is required.
• A first-level university degree in the above areas, in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A project/programme management certification (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 2 years of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in managing complex and multi-component programme interventions with national partners, preferably related to thematic area;
• At least 5 years’ experience in Bermuda is preferred;
• Experience working in a multi-country context is an asset;
• Experience in coordinating, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating development programmes and projects is an asset.
• Experience with the UN is an asset.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Working knowledge of another official UN language, especially Spanish or French is an asset

Location and Duration:

• The consultancy will be based at a designated local Government office in Bermuda, with local travel with COVID-19 restrictions permitting.
• The consultant will be engaged for a maximum of 120 working days between March 15, 2023 and February 29 2024  

Remuneration

• The Consultant’s fee will be negotiated before contracting. Each payment will be based on a predefined and formal agreement between UN Women and the consultant and will be disbursed based on satisfactory completion of agreed deliverables.

• The remuneration for this contract type is an all-inclusive fee, the organization will not be liable for additional cost or benefits.  Hence, it is the responsibility of the consultant to take out adequate medical insurance for the duration of the contract and it is recommendable that the policy includes coverage for COVID-19 related illness.   The medical coverage should be international when the contract requires missions or international assignment.

• If selected for this vacant post, proof of medical coverage should be presented within the first two months of the contract.

Hardware, Software and Communication:

• The consultant must be equipped with a fully functional laptop, which must comfortably run Office 365 programs, using operating systems Microsoft Windows 10/11, or Mac OS X 10.11 or upward. The consultant must be reasonably accessible by email and telephone (preferably mobile). The use of reliable, internet-based (Skype or equivalent) is required.

References:

• Minimum of three client references that include the name of the contact person, title and contact information.

Documents to be submitted:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment; 
• Applications received without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.
• Please group all documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows one document to be uploaded. 

Notes:

Submissions to UNDP Jobs are limited to a maximum of 10 MB, virus-free or corrupted contents to avoid rejection, and no more than 1 email transmission.   All applications must be submitted through UNDP jobs.  Please do not send applications to UN Women staff as they will not be accepted.

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).