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.

UN Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE) portfolio in Malawi promotes gender equality through initiatives that empower women economically. Part of its 2024-2028 Strategic Note, the portfolio emphasizes digital skills development for girls and women through projects like Malawi Girls Can Code Too (MGCC2). This ICT-focused project, funded by the Embassy of Ireland and co-led by the Government of Malawi's Ministries of Education and Gender, aims to empower girls and young women through digital access across three districts.

As part of MGCC2, a consulting firm adapted the African Girls Can Code Training program to the Malawian context and developed a training manual for the MGCC and digitalized it through a Learning Management System (LMS, accessible by students in innovation hubs established by the project and beyond.  Following the implementation of this curriculum, several promising digital innovations have been developed by project beneficiaries underscoring the urgent need to safeguard and protect these innovations, the Training Manual and Learning Management System. This protection is critical for ensuring that UN Women and these creators can fully maximize the financial benefits and recognition associated with their work. Innovations, including a range of mobile applications, websites and AI Tools that have been created by students from Innovation Hubs and Coding Boot camps. 

Objectives of the Assignment:

The Consultant will work under the guidance of the UN Women Representative and the direct supervision of the WEE Programme Specialist.  The primary objective of this assignment is to develop a robust framework for IP protection tailored specifically for the training manual and the innovations. The Consultant’s main objectives are:

Objective 1: Assess current IP practices: Evaluate existing practices regarding IP protection within Innovation Hubs, Boot Camps, for the training manual and LMS.

Objective 2: Develop IP guidelines: Create comprehensive guidelines for identifying, registering, and protecting the training manual, LMS and digital innovations from MGCC.

Objective 3: Capacity building: Conduct training sessions targeting UN Women staff and key stakeholders on the significance of IP rights and how to leverage them for entrepreneurship ventures.

Objective 4: Support IP registrations: Register the training manual and LMS and assist the girls and young women innovators in the registration process of their innovations with relevant IP authorities. 

Objective 5: Create awareness: Raise awareness about economic potential of IP among girls boys and young women participating in MGCC programme, empowering them to commercialize their innovations.

Scope of Work:

Specifically, IP-Consultant will undertake the following activities:

1. Research and analysis:

• Review existing literature and practices regarding IP protection in the ICT and digital technology sector in Malawi, SADC and beyond.
• Identify key barriers faced by young innovators in protecting their innovations.

2. Framework development:

• Develop a tailored IP protection framework for MGCC Training manual, LMS and innovations; 
• Ensure the Training Manual, LMS, is protected before it is made public for anyone to access.
• Including step-by-step procedures for identifying and protecting innovations.
• Clear guidelines for documentation, registration, and maintenance of IP rights.

3. Training and workshops:

• Design and deliver interactive training workshops aimed at educating participants on:
• Types of IP rights (patents, copyrights, trademarks etc).
• The process and importance of IP protection.
• Best practices for commercialization of innovations. 

4. Legal support: 

• Liaise with legal experts, if necessary, to facilitate registration of the manual, LMS and innovations.
• Provide ongoing support to UN Women and participants during registration.

5. Monitoring and Evaluation:

• Establish metrics for evaluating the effectiveness IP practices among participants including UN Women.
• Prepare a final report detailing accomplishments, challenges and recommendations for future IP initiatives for MGCC program.

Key Deliverables:

Deliverable	Timeline
Deliverable1: An inception report detailing understanding of the assignment. IP-Assessment report – A comprehensive assessment of current practices and barriers	Due end of month 1
Deliverable 2:  IP Guidelines document outlining the IP-Framework and Procedures. Training materials – educational resources and workshop outline	Due end of month 2 Due 2 weeks before training session
Deliverable 3: Training sessions – training workshop/s conducted.	Due to the end of the 9th week of the assignment
Deliverable 4: Document the legal advice received MGCC Manual, and the LMS registered and protected	Due to the 11th week of the assignment.
Deliverable 5:  Final report – a detailed report on the evaluation metrics and summarizing how and what has been protected, activities, outcomes, and recommendations.	Due to the end of 3 months

Timeline

The assignment’s timeline is expected to span over 3 months, commencing from September 2025 to December 2025.

Reporting and Communication

The consultant will regularly update UN Women on the achievements of the deliverables. Any significant challenges or delays encountered during the assignment will be promptly communicated to the relevant parties.

Budget

The consultant is expected to submit a financial proposal detailing all necessary costs including travel, that aligns with a technical proposal with a detailed work plan. 

Intellectual Property Rights

UN Women will retain all intellectual property rights for the protected materials, including coding apps, Training manual, the LMS, and innovations.

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:

• Analytical and Research skills
• Strategic Planning and Risk Management
• Communication and Stakeholder Engagement
• Problem solving skills 

Qualifications and Experience Required 

Master’s degree in Intellectual Property Law, Business Administration, or related field is required.

• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• At least 5 years' experience in IP management, particularly within the technology sector.
• Familiarity with the challenges faced by young innovators, notably adolescent girls and women.
• Strong communication and training skills, with experience in facilitating workshops or seminars.

Languages

• Fluency in English and Chichewa is preferred.

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.