I. 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 support of the Arab Republic of Egypt’s Vision 2030 and the National Strategy for the Empowerment of Egyptian Women (NSEEW), the work of the UN Women Egypt Country Office (ECO) is grounded in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA). Under the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF 2023- 2027), UN Women ECO implements its triple mandate of supporting normative standard-setting to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment, working with the Government of Egypt, civil society, and the private sector on implementing international and national commitments and best practices, and strengthening UN system coordination in this regard.

The Government of Egypt has declared women’s empowerment to be an important goal with a high level of political support illustrated in both the Egypt’s Sustainable Development Strategy (Vision 2030) and the NSEEW. Women’s empowerment is also a main pillar of the UNSDCF 2023-2027. UN Women considers women’s economic empowerment – which includes facilitating gainful employment and decent work opportunities, including entrepreneurship as well as safe work environments – as central to realizing women’s rights and gender equality. Women’s economic empowerment includes women’s ability to participate equally in existing markets; their access to and control over productive resources, access to decent work, control over their own time, lives and bodies; and increased voice and meaningful participation in economic decision-making at all levels. Empowering women in the economy and closing gender gaps in the world of work are key to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and achieving the SGDs, particularly Goal 5, to achieve gender equality, and Goal 8, to promote full and productive employment and decent work for all; also Goal 1 on ending poverty, Goal 2 on food security, Goal 3 on ensuring health and Goal 10 on reducing inequalities.

Access to formal financial services (such as capital, savings accounts, loans and insurance) has been shown to help women sustain their own income, increase their access and control over resources, such as assets, and contribute to productive activities. It also contributes to reducing women’s financial dependency on male family members, increases their bargaining power within households and boosts their influence on decision-making besides making women less vulnerable and more resilient to crises like the COVID-19 through access to funds to meet unexpected expenses. Furthermore, access to financial technology makes it possible to access funds remotely.

“Women’s Financial and Economic Inclusion in Rural Egypt” programme contributes to the National Women’s Financial Inclusion Programme -known by “Ta7wisha” (means savings) implemented with the leadership of the National Council of Women and the Central Bank of Egypt in close partnership with UN Women Egypt and is funded by the European Union and the Embassy of the Netherlands.

“Ta7wisha” introduces a fully digital version of the traditional Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) through its innovative mobile application. The programme aims to benefit rural women and women living at risk of poverty through increased savings, access to individual and group bank accounts, and skills development including business management, leadership, entrepreneurship, digital and financial literacy. In addition, Ta7wisha supports the establishment of women-led productive clusters and integrate them in relevant value chains and markets. This transformative approach creates a unique opportunity for rural women to significantly advance their economic empowerment and financial independence.

Saving Groups (SGs) are comprised of 15-25 women from the same community, often neighbors in the same village, who express willingness and interest to join, pool their savings together, and give loans to their members out of the accumulated savings of the group. “Women’s Financial and Economic Inclusion in Rural Egypt” programme aims to reach to 160,000 women in 10 governorates (Beni Suef, Minya, Aswan, Luxor, Alexandria, Beheira, Kafr Elsheikh, Gharbia, Assiut and Sohag). To achieve this, the programme has two main outcomes:

Outcome 1: Rural women are socially and economically empowered through their participation in Savings Groups across Egypt to access basic financial services and build their financial and economic capabilities. (This is directly led and implemented by the NCW)

Outcome 2: Women are economically and financially empowered and women led clusters/enterprises are better integrated into existing value chains and markets. Through the below indicative activities:

• Facilitate partnerships and conduct dialogue with value chain stakeholders for integration of rural women led enterprises into selected value chains
• Provide SGs’ members with productive assets and/or tools of production which are tailored to the value chains.
• Capacity building of Saving Groups (SGs) members for developing and expanding their enterprises through connection with BDS service providers and other value chain stakeholders to provide business development/non-financial services.
• Provide technical support to women led clusters/enterprises to establish partnerships with Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs), enterprise development agencies, banks to be able to access credit.

The consultant will report to the Programme Analyst(s) at UN Women and will be supported by Programme Assistant who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work

The primary objective of this consultancy is to conduct a thorough analysis and produce a comprehensive documentation report that clearly articulates the operational lifecycle, performance metrics, key challenges, and scalable best practices of the Ta7wisha Programme. Specifically, the assignment aims to:

Document the Core Process: Create a clear, end-to-end process map of the Ta7wisha model, from mobilization to loan disbursement and fund rotation/graduation

Identify Challenges and Bottlenecks: Analyze operational constraints, digital adoption barriers, and institutional challenges encountered during implementation in diverse rural governorates.

Synthesize Best Practices: Extract scalable models and successful strategies, particularly relating to technology adoption, facilitator engagement, and achieving financial sustainability.

The consultant is required to conduct the following main tasks, which collectively cover the full scope of the required documentation:

1- In-Depth Process Mapping and Operational Analysis (The "How")

• Process Flowcharting: Develop detailed, visual process flowcharts mapping the entire Ta7wisha lifecycle, including:

*Facilitator recruitment and training process.

*Community mobilization and saving groups’ formation.

*Digital onboarding (KYC, joint bank account opening, Meeza card issuance).

*The digital transaction flow (savings deposits, loan application, repayment) via the mobile application.

*Group governance and fund management mechanisms.

• Stakeholder Interaction Model: Document the roles, responsibilities, and points of interaction between the National Council for Women (NCW), Central Bank of Egypt (CBE), Agricultural Bank of Egypt (ABE), eFinance, facilitators, and the saving groups members.
• Input/Output Documentation: Define the standardized inputs (e.g., training modules, official forms, technology requirements) and outputs for each process stage.

2- Performance and Data Analysis (The "What")

• KPI Review: Analyze existing project monitoring data to assess performance against key indicators, including:

*Number of women onboarded/active.

*Number of groups formed and digitized.

*Digital usage rate (transaction frequency).

*Loan repayment rates and default rates.

*Savings and lending accumulation volume.

• Gap Analysis: Compare intended operational targets (as per initial strategy) against actual achievements, quantifying the performance gaps and potential root causes.

3- Challenge Identification and Mitigation (The "Why Not")

• Field Research^[1]: Conduct primary data collection (interviews, focus group discussions) in Beni-Suef and Assiut with:

*Programme Facilitators [3 in-depth interviews in each governorate]

*Saving Groups Members [3 FGD in each governorate segregated based on their saving/lending volume]

*Implementing partners and policy makers [5 structured interviews/ key informant interviews with NCW, CBE, ABE, efinance, UN Women]

*Business models of women [1 in-depth interview in each governorate]

• Barrier Documentation: Systematically document the primary challenges encountered by the programme, categorized as:
• Digital: Access to smartphones/internet, trust in technology, usability of the app, and technical support gaps.
• Socio-cultural: Male guardian norms, community acceptance, and financial skepticism.
• Institutional/Operational: Infrastructure deficiencies in remote areas, delay in card issuance, and operational costs of field visits.

4- Extraction of Good Practices and Recommendations (The "What Works")

• Best Practice Synthesis: Identify and detail the most successful methodologies for replication, focusing on:

*The effectiveness of the human-centered facilitator model in bridging the digital divide.

*Strategies used to build financial literacy and digital confidence among women.

*Innovative mechanisms for collateral replacement (group accountability model).

• Recommendations: Provide clear, actionable recommendations for the scale-up, institutionalization, and continuous improvement of the Tahwisha model in Egypt and for potential adaptation in other regional contexts.

5- Documentation of Integrated Livelihoods Support (The "Value-Add")

This task is focused on documenting the specific economic empowerment component integrated into the financial inclusion process in the four Upper Egypt governorates (Assiut, Sohag, Minya, and Beni-Suef).

• Training Content and Delivery: Document the curriculum, delivery mechanisms, and participant feedback for the specialized technical training provided on: solar MAPs and crop drying, oil extraction, waste management, grain milling, and juice/jam/pickles production.
• Asset Transfer and Business Establishment: Map the process for asset transfer (equipment, initial inventory, etc.) and the formal establishment of 20 businesses.
• Market Linkages: Document the strategies and mechanisms used to create formal linkages with the market for these 20 businesses, including partnership models, supply/value chain integration, and capacity building for group-based marketing.
• Integrated Model Analysis: Analyze how the provision of digital financial access (Ta7wisha app) is leveraged and integrated with technical and market support to create a holistic economic empowerment model, if any.
• KPI review: Effectiveness of formal market linkages (e.g., contracts secured, sales volume).

METHODOLOGY & APPROACH

A blended qualitative and quantitative approach is expected, including but not limited to:

• Desk Review: Review of all existing project documents, training materials, performance reports, and the Ta7wisha application interface.
• Quantitative Data Analysis: Statistical analysis of aggregated data provided by the implementing partners on key performance indicators (KPIs).
• Qualitative Field Research: Structured interviews, Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with all relevant stakeholders, especially rural saving groups members and field facilitators, in two geographically distinct governorates [Beni-Suef and Assiut].

DELIVERABLES

Under the supervision of the UN Women Programme Coordinator and in consultation with the National Council for Women, develop a comprehensive process documentation report for Ta7wisha programme, carry out interviews and focus group discussions with programme facilitators and saving groups members in Beni-Suef and Assiut governorates, outline best practices and recommendations for improvement and/or scalability, develop and deliver presentation of key results of the report. Note that each delivery is to be provided as seen on the deliverables’ table below:

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy. 

As part of this assignment, there will be possible trips to Assiut, Beni Suef, Sohag, Minya.

II. 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:

• Financial management
• Monitoring and evaluation
• Ability to communicate sensitively across different focal points
• Stakeholder engagement
• Demonstrates excellent oral and written communication skills
• Data management and analysis
• Logistics management
• Excellent facilitation and coordination skills
• Knowledge and understanding of the UN system and familiarity with inter-governmental processes

III. Required Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in finance, social sciences, economics, gender development studies, or other relevant areas of expertise 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.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible work experience in project implementation and areas of focus is required.
• Familiarity with gender issues, development challenges and context of rural Upper Egypt is required.
• Ability to work with government partners, NGOs, and community stakeholders is required.
• Solid understanding of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment issues is required.
• Excellent analytical skills with strong drive for results and capacity to work independently is a plus.

Languages:

• Fluency in English and Arabic is required.
• Knowledge of any other UN official (French) is an asset.

IV. 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.