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.

In Belarus, UN Women is engaged as Non-Resident Agency and is working closely with the UN Country team to support national stakeholders in advancing gender equality agenda in the country, in line with the objectives and priorities set in the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for 2021 -2025 in particular in Outcome 4 of UNSDCF 2021-2025: By 2025, improvements in data collection, gender equality policies, and child and gender budgeting have created conditions for men and women of all ages, including those aged 65 years and older, as well as girls and boys, to better realize their rights and increase the quality of their lives and better protection from gender-based and domestic violence.

UNFPA is the United Nations agency, promoting gender equality and empowering women, aiming to end gender-based violence and harmful practices, assisting countries in the region with strengthening their capacity to understand and anticipate the population dynamics they are experiencing. 

UN Women and UNFPA jointly started implementation of the second phase of the programme “EU 4 Gender Equality: Together against gender-stereotypes and gender-based violence”. The programme works in countries of Eastern Partnership (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine) and has a regional component. The programme aims to reduce gender discriminatory attitudes and practices between women and men in institutional and community spheres, and to contribute to prevention of gender-based violence, by continuing and upscaling successful initiatives and interventions from the phase I, including but not limited to implementing innovative communication campaigns. 

Gender equality has been recognized and affirmed as a precondition for the realisation of sustainable development and defined as a key accelerator for the whole SDG Agenda. Despite considerable progress with gender equality in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia Region, including in Belarus, there are still challenges that persist and need to be addressed including prevailing gender norms and stereotypes, domestic violence and violence against women, unequal distribution of unpaid domestic and care work, gender pay gap, gender disparities in science, technologies, engineering and mathematics (STEM), limited employment opportunities for women with disabilities and those representing vulnerable groups and etc.

Gender stereotyping and discriminatory social norms have been identified by the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) as a persistent hidden barrier to gender equality and the empowerment of women. CEDAW concluding observations on the ninth periodic report of Belarus (CEDAW/BLR/9) highlight the importance to strengthen public awareness campaigns to address stereotypes concerning the roles and responsibilities of women and men in the family and in society and promote gender equality in the labour market. It further recommends that the State party adopt a comprehensive strategy to eliminate stereotypes in education, employment, the media, and advertising (p. 30). 

It also recommends to the state party (p.42) to:

(a)           Adopt and enforce legislation requiring equal pay for work of equal value, regularly review wages in sectors where women are concentrated, and implement measures to close the gender pay gap, including through gender-neutral analytical job classification and ensuring the regular collection of gender-disaggregated wage data;

                (b)           Take targeted measures to address women’s underrepresentation in higher-paid sectors, such as construction, manufacturing, STEM, and ICT, and promote women’s entry into these fields through career counselling, training, and mentorship initiatives;

                (c)           Remove any restrictions on women’s free choice of profession that are not strictly based on scientifically justified health and safety concerns, and facilitate women’s access to these professions through temporary special measures and workplace adaptations;

                (d)           Prohibit discriminatory practices in recruitment, including interview questions about marital status and parenthood, and eliminate indirect gender-based discrimination in hiring and career advancement;

                (e)           Improve parental leave benefits by ensuring that both maternity and paternity leave are fully paid, non-transferable, and extended, and that affordable, accessible childcare services are available across the State party, so that both parents can equally share caregiving responsibilities and women can fully participate in the workforce.

In Belarus, UNFPA and UN Women will unite efforts to carry out joint digital communication campaign to raise awareness on importance of women’s economic empowerment by tackling gender stereotypes and inequalities in the labour market. 

The campaign will cover but not limited to the following thematic areas:

• gender norms and stereotypes in the labour market;
• inclusion at the workplace and equality;
• the care economy (how care responsibilities, often placed on women, affect employment opportunities and economic empowerment; differing care needs and responsibilities across the life-course and in different contexts (women and girls living in rural areas, women and girls with disabilities, as well as older women and young girls); 
• policies supporting working parents effectively, empowering women in the workplace,
• Women’s Economic Empowerment principles (WEPs), and etc.;
• challenges that women with multiple vulnerabilities face in the labor market (women with disabilities, rural women, women raising children with disabilities and etc.);
• technology and innovation (the role of technology in women’s economic empowerment and closing gender gaps; girls and women in STEM; technology facilitated violence against women and girls (risks of online harassment and violence). 

Target groups of the joint digital campaign: women and men in Belarus, including female and male employees (18-60), and those representing vulnerable groups, private sector and HR focal points. 

Following this concept, UN Women is looking for a National Consultant to provide technical support and expertise in gender equality within digital communication campaign on women in the labour market in Belarus. The National Consultant will lead a team of national experts (apr. 2-3) engaged in development of draft information materials on the above-mentioned communication campaign and provide technical support to the company responsible for development and implementation of the communication campaign. The activity of the consultant will consist of providing technical assistance, guidance, regular exchange of knowledge and expertise.   

The National Consultant will be reporting to UN Women Project Coordinator in Belarus, who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues. 

Scope of work

The National Consultant will be responsible for provision of the technical support and expertise in gender equality within digital communication campaign on women in the labour market in Belarus, guiding a team of experts and production company ensuring gender-responsive content development on the situation of women in the labour market. 

More specifically, the consultant will be responsible for the following tasks, including but not limited to:

• assisting UNFPA and UN Women’s team in developing and designing of the campaign, overseeing the implementation of joint digital communication campaign in collaboration with UN Women Project Coordinator in Belarus, UNFPA Belarus;
• guiding and coordinating the team of national experts selected for development of the content of the campaign; participating in the coordination meetings (as required) with UN Women, UNFPA and a company engaged for implementation of the communication campaign for joint planning and coordination of the expert team work;
• organizing coordination meetings with a team of national experts as required but not less than once in two weeks; 
• facilitating meetings with representatives of the target groups including women with disabilities, older women, rural women, single mothers, mother raising children with disabilities, HR, and etc.) 
• in cooperation with a team of national experts providing guidance for development of the communication concept of the digital awareness raising campaign including Campaign narrative, main messages ensuring coherence and consistency;
• reviewing and revising all informational materials developed by the team of national experts and providing comments and feedback to ensure quality, coherence, and easy understanding by the target groups of the campaign. Materials will be based on agreed topics including useful resources for women with multiple vulnerabilities (older women, rural women, single mothers, mothers raising children with disabilities, women with disabilities and etc.) employers and HRs;
• reviewing and revising all campaign materials developed by the contracted communication agency before posting them on selected social media platforms to ensure they fully integrate gender equality perspectives, align with regional and global frameworks, and are inclusive and accessible (using gender-sensitive language, disability-friendly design, plain language, adapted formats such as captions and easy-to-read versions).
• ensuring that content is sensitive to the Belarusian context, minimizes reputational and political risks, and remains impactful and relevant throughout the campaign.
• providing monthly progress reports to UN Women on major tasks performed and the results, including detailed descriptions of carried out activities and provided support, collected data, recommendations provided, etc.

All written deliverables should be agreed with UN Women and UNFPA Belarus and be provided in Russian, in electronic copy. Deliverables from the consultants will be reviewed and approved by UN Women before they are considered final.

More specifically, the following tasks shall be undertaken by the national consultant: 

Payment Details  

Payments shall be made following certification by UN Women that the services are delivered based on the monthly progress reports submitted and have been satisfactorily performed. 

Monthly progress reports to UN Women should cover major tasks performed and the results, including detailed descriptions of carried out activities and provided support, collected data, recommendations provided, etc. The following to be attached to the monthly reports: materials revised from gender perspective with recommendations provided; agendas of the meetings/coaching sessions organized with relevant actors, target groups, etc., others attachments, as may apply. 

Payment will be done in Belarussian rubbles. 

Performance evaluation  

The consultant’s performance will be evaluated against performance criteria such as timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered, emphasizing the effective integration of gender considerations throughout the assignment.

Schedule of payments: Payment will be done on a monthly or quarterly bases upon provision of the signed and approved timesheet and monthly report. 

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel: This is a home-based consultancy. As part of this assignment, no travel is envisaged.

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:

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Ability to critically review relevant documents, including national legislation, policies, strategies in the employment sector, research reports;
• Ability to critically appraise and analyze data sets and published gender statistics in employment sector. Excellent written and oral communication skills;
• Ability to share knowledge and experience;
• Actively works towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more practice areas, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills;
• Ability to integrate and synthesize information collected from varied sources to make it useful and accessible to diverse beneficiaries and stakeholders; 
• Ability to perform a variety of standard specialized and non-specialized tasks and work processes that are fully documented, researched, recorded, and reported; 
• Uses Information Technology effectively as a tool and resource;
• Focuses on result and responds positively to feedback;
• Networking skills and ability to generate interest in UN Women’s mandate.  

Leadership and Self-Management

• Focuses on result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
• Proven networking skills and ability to generate interest in UN Women’s mandate;
• Identifies opportunities and builds strong partnerships with beneficiaries and partners.

Work in teams: 

• Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds. 

Education and Certification: 

• Master’s degree in sociology, gender studies, public relations, development studies and/or other social science related areas relevant for the assignment. 
• A first-level university degree in combination with 2 additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. 

Experience: 

• At least 5 years of experience in development of information materials, articles on gender equality and/or employment is required.
• At least 5 years of proven work experience in the sphere of employment and/or gender equality is required. 
• Experience in developing materials for communication campaigns on social issues and/or gender equality and empowerment of women is an advantage; 
• Proven expertise in gender equality within national and regional contexts is an advantage.
• Experience in working with international organizations is an advantage.  

Languages: 

• Fluency in written and oral Russian is required.  
• Working knowledge of English is an advantage.

APPLICATION PROCESS AND SUBMISSION PACKAGE 

Interested candidates are invited to submit their online applications with the following documents:

• A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) to include a brief overview about which of the relevant previous experiences that makes the candidate the most suitable for the advertised position.
• A sample of previously developed awareness raising/communication campaigns/materials/publications. Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns, or other materials.

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.