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. 

Consistent with the UN’s renewed focus on Financing for Development (FfD) following the 2015 Addis Ababa Agenda, UN Women has launched a comprehensive set of important initiatives to ensure that financing for gender equality is enhanced and financing for development embeds a gender lens. As we do this, UN Women seeks to maximize both the quality and quantity of financing to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and SDG 5. Through context-specific policy guidance, technical support and capacity strengthening on the mobilization, allocation and spending of high-impact financing aligned with gender equality objectives, UN Women aims to encourage and support the development and deployment of innovative financial instruments aligned with its vision for an equitable and just global economy. UN Women is equally committed to the development of frameworks, guidelines and standards, which are needed to make financing for gender equality accessible and transparent, and lead to lasting social change and positive effects for women’s economic and social rights, livelihoods, and wellbeing.

Given its gender expertise, convening capacity, and well-established partnerships with governments, UN entities, standard-setting bodies, international financial institutions (IFIs), and the private sector, UN Women is implementing its Sustainable Finance Programme to leverage these strategic relationships for the growth of credible feminist financing instruments and mechanisms. The Programme aims to contribute to reducing gender inequalities and strengthening women’s rights and economic autonomy at global, national, and local levels.

To support the effective delivery of this work, UN Women is recruiting a Communication Consultant to work on the development of effective program communications, and visibility strategies, a roadmap of program content development and management,  a package of digital products to ensure high visibility of the sustainable finance portfolio, as well as social media, newsletters, and event communications materials upon request.

Objective

The consultancy has two main objectives:

Primary Objective
To design and deliver a strategic communications package — including media assets and visibility products — that effectively showcases UN Women’s leadership, vision, and work on sustainable finance for gender equality. The package should:

• Highlight achievements, lessons, and impact of the Sustainable Finance Programme.
• Provide a communications and visibility strategy for Phase II of the Programme.
• Draw on trends and best practices in strategic communications, including benchmarking against the online presence of other actors in the field.
• Ensure all products are strategic, visually compelling, and accessible to diverse audiences—tailored to effectively engage specific stakeholder groups such as prospective donors, investors, and partners—while aligning with UN Women’s branding and advocacy priorities. The expert should also develop compelling content for the Knowledge Hub to support a strong launch, and recommend editorial angles and formats that resonate with target audiences.

Secondary Objective
To strengthen the Sustainable Finance Programme team’s capacity in content development and management by:

• Providing guidance on creating, using, and disseminating communications products strategically.
• Building sustainable practices that ensure consistent messaging and wider outreach beyond the consultancy period.
• Recommend relevant tracking tools to determine reach and influence of our engagement

Duties and Responsibilities:

Phase I: Communication and Visibility Planning

• Conduct a comprehensive review of programme results and map achievements against donor commitments and expected outcomes—highlighting alignment, challenges, and lessons learned—in close consultation with the Sustainable Finance Programme team. In addition, assess how these results are communicated to both existing and prospective donors by analyzing their priorities and language on sustainable finance, and recommend effective strategies to showcase alignment and impact to attract new funding partners.
• Coordinate early-stage document review processes with the Sustainable Finance team and relevant UN Women departments, including the Communications team, to ensure alignment with UN Women’s branding and messaging.
• Develop a detailed communications and visibility workplan, including key messages, proposed media tools, visualization formats, and dissemination strategy.
• Based on the above, provide an Inception Report to explain details of the final communication package, outlining methodology, timelines, and responsibilities.

Phase II: Content Development

• Draft initial structure/outline for each evidence-based and strategic communications product aligned with Programme results.
• Upon the endorsement by the program team to draft structures/outlines, draft content materials (including but not limited to brochure text, infographics, video scripts/storyboards, social media articles, and visual media assets).
• Provide communication support and knowledge dissemination support for roundtable, conference, workshops during the consultancy period upon demand.
• Harvest lessons learned and communication narratives from Phase I of the Sustainable Finance programme, while continuing to coordinate results management and communication for donor reporting during the reporting period.
• Ensure the integration of feminist finance innovations, good practices, and lessons learned into content development.
• Develop program presentation, workshop decks upon request for continued use beyond the consultancy. 
• Ensure all draft outputs are tailored for multiple audiences, including policymakers, IFIs, private sector actors, and civil society, and support content drafting for the UN Women Knowledge Portal.  

Phase III: Finalization of Communication Products and Dissemination

• Produce a comprehensive final deliverables package that demonstrates programme results and impact, including:

1. Final Programme Results Demonstration (covering 4 years of implementation, outcomes, challenges, and recommendations).
2. Programme Achievements Brochure (designed for donor and partner audiences).
3. 2–3 minute video package featuring impact highlights, and partner perspectives.
4. 5 knowledge briefs or articles for UN Women’s platforms and Knowledge Portal.

• Disseminate outputs through UN Women networks, global standard-setting forums, and partner platforms to strengthen visibility of results.
• Provide a short internal guidance note to the Programme team on use and dissemination of deliverables and support ad hoc communication needs beyond consultancy period.
• Ensure all products adhere to UN Women branding and donor reporting standards.

Deliverables and timeframe 

Deliverable	Expected Completion time (due day)	Payment schedule
Phase 1: Inception report (Including agreed communication product items) + detailed workplan	By January 2026	30% By 31 January 2026
Phase 2: Draft of Communication material in line with agreed activities in inception report	By mid- April 2026	40% By 30 April 2026
Phase 3: Final products	By May 2026	30% By 30 June 2026

• Duration of the Assignment

The assignment shall commence in November 2025 and shall expire in May 2026 in line with the indicative timeframe described under “Deliverables and Timeframe” section.

•  Inputs

The UN Women Sustainable Finance team will provide the Consultant with the background materials, project documents, as well as other relevant materials with regards to implementation of the tasks under this TOR.

• Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy, it does not require any travel. 

• Management Arrangements

The consultant will work under the supervision of the UN Women Sustainable Finance Specialist and in collaboration with the Sustainable Finance Analyst under the overall guidance of Head of Sustainable Finance. The Consultant will not be located in the premises of UN Women and will have to work remotely. However, the consultant is expected to have periodical coordination meetings with the Sustainable Finance team and participate in relevant staff meetings.

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:

Will be added separately for each position

Required Qualifications

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in evaluation or relevant social science 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 7 years of experience in strategic communications and content development media products development, editing, and strategic communication support, including in areas of development  finance and knowledge development.
• Proven track record in developing high-quality communication materials for international organizations.
• Experience in sustainable finance, gender equality, or the development sector desirable; applicants should also provide a writing sample on a related topic such as development finance, ESG, sustainability, gender lens investing, financial inclusion, capital markets, or financial sector policy and regulation.
• Experience in the development of materials on gender would be an asset.
• Three (3) years of experience in design, development and/or implementation of communication strategies and plans is required. 
• Experience of working in multilateral organizations, multinationals, development finance or capital markets, agencies and / or governmental institutions is desirable. 
•  Experience in the United Nations System is desirable. 
• Professional experience in the development of graphic and/or audiovisual design materials (photography and filming) is desirable. 
• Social media management experience is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of French and Spanish or any other UN official language is an asset.

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.