Background/Context

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works toward the elimination of discrimination against women and girls and the achievement of gender equality and empowerment of women. In North Macedonia, UN Women implements the programme “Promoting Gender Responsive Governance in North Macedonia,” funded by Sweden, with the overall goal of ensuring that women and girls benefit from accountable, transparent, and gender-responsive governance. The programme supports national institutions in aligning strategic planning, public finance management, and national legislation with EU Gender Equality acquis, while strengthening institutional capacities for gender mainstreaming.

Within this framework, the Gender Equality Facility (GEF) focuses on supporting EU accession processes and improving national systems through gender-responsive policy development, IPA programming, and strengthened inter-institutional cooperation. 

While gender equality is a core value of the EU and embedded across multiple policy domains, gender considerations are often treated in a fragmented manner within accession negotiations. There is a growing need for a structured, strategic, and coherent approach that systematically integrates gender equality and women’s empowerment across all stages of the EU accession process, including policy alignment, institutional reform, budgeting, monitoring, and stakeholder engagement.

In the context of European Union (EU) accession processes, candidate and potential candidate countries are required to progressively align national legislation, policies, and institutional frameworks with the EU acquis communautaire across negotiation clusters and chapters.

Over the past years, the Government of North Macedonia, supported by UN Women and Embassy of Sweden, has made significant progress in mainstreaming gender equality within national reform agendas. The recently held conference, “Gender Equality at the Core of EU Accession: North Macedonia’s Path Forward”, organized by the Ministry for European Affairs of North Macedonia and UN Women brought together decision-makers, gender equality advocates, civil society representatives, academia, business sector and international partners to discuss how gender perspectives can be systematically integrated across the EU accession process. Gender equality and women’s empowerment are fundamental EU values and integrating them across all negotiation chapters ensures policies that are responsive, resilient, and transformative.

A central priority outcome of the Conference is the recognition that North Macedonia needs a comprehensive Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process. The Roadmap must be aligned with EU standards, including gender mainstreaming obligations derived from the EU acquis, the European Institute for Gender Equality tools, and relevant European Council directives. Its purpose would be to ensure that gender equality becomes systematically embedded, resourced, and monitored throughout the accession process.

To address this, UN Women seeks to engage a national consultant to develop a comprehensive Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process. The Roadmap will serve as a practical and strategic tool to support national institutions, EU integration structures, and relevant stakeholders to mainstream gender equality across all EU accession stages, including through strengthened implementation of Berlin Process commitments and increased participation of women in negotiation teams and accession-related decision-making structures.  

The development of the Roadmap will build on the key findings and recommendations of ten Gender GAP analyses commissioned by UN Women and developed by international and national experts. These analyses cover critical sectors, including home affairs, justice, public administration, regional and local development, innovation and competitiveness, education, employment and social policy, climate change and environment, agriculture and rural development, Roma integration, and public finance management. Together, they provide a robust evidence base and sector-specific recommendations for aligning national policies, institutional reforms, and implementation practices with the EU Gender Equality acquis, and will serve as a foundational reference for the design and prioritization of actions within the Roadmap.

To enable this, a national consultant will be engaged to provide specialized technical expertise to develop a comprehensive, evidence-based Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process, through in-depth analysis, inclusive stakeholder consultations, and alignment with EU standards, international human rights obligations, the Berlin Process commitments, and the Sustainable Development Goals.

The consultant will report directly to the UN Women GEF Coordinator in North Macedonia, in coordination with the Head of Office. Close collaboration with the Deputy Minister for European Affairs and her cabinet is expected throughout the assignment.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Under the overall guidance of UN Women and in close coordination with designated national counterparts, the expert will undertake the following tasks:

1. Desk Review and Analytical Assessment

• Review  relevant EU accession framework, negotiation chapters, national legislation, policies, strategies, and institutional mechanisms related to gender equality and EU integration and enlargement methodology. 
• Analyse the alignment of national EU accession processes with Berlin Process commitments on gender equality, women’s leadership, and inclusive governance.
• Analyse existing Gender GAP analysis for the sectors of internal affairs, justice, public administration, regional and local development, innovation and competitiveness, education, employment and social policy, climate change and environment, agriculture and rural development, Roma integration, and public finance management, other assessments, analysis, reports and studies relevant to the EU accession process.
• Assess the representation and participation of women within EU accession negotiation teams, coordination bodies, and technical working groups.
• Map existing gender mainstreaming practices within accession-related processes and institutions.

2. Stakeholder Mapping and Consultations

• Identify and map key stakeholders involved in the EU accession process, including government institutions, EU integration structures, gender equality mechanisms, civil society organizations, academia, and development partners.
• Design and conduct structured consultations (interviews, focus groups, or workshops) with relevant key stakeholders to gather inputs, validate findings, identify institutional gaps, capacities, and good practices and ensure ownership.
• Facilitate inclusive and gender-responsive consultation processes.
• Ensure inclusive and participatory approaches, with attention to diverse groups of women and intersecting forms of discrimination.

3. Development of the Gender-Responsive EU Accession Roadmap

• Develop a comprehensive and evidence-based Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process, clearly aligned with EU standards, international human rights obligations, and the SDGs.
• Identify priority areas and concrete actions for integrating gender equality across negotiation clusters/chapters (e.g. fundamentals, internal market, competitiveness and inclusive growth, green agenda, resources, agriculture, cohesion, external relations).
• Define strategic priorities, objectives, actions, timelines, roles, and responsibilities for integrating gender equality across all relevant negotiation chapters. 
• Propose concrete measures, indicators, and monitoring mechanisms to support implementation, accountability, and tracking of progress.
• Propose clear roles and responsibilities for key national institutions and coordination mechanisms. 
• Propose concrete, actionable measures to increase the meaningful participation of women in negotiation teams and accession-related decision-making structures, in line with EU standards and Berlin Process commitments.
• Integrate recommendations on women’s leadership, gender-balanced representation, and inclusive negotiation practices into the Roadmap’s strategic priorities, actions, and monitoring framework
• Propose gender-responsive indicators and monitoring mechanisms aligned with EU reporting and national M&E systems.
• Identify capacity development needs and propose targeted measures to strengthen national institutional capacities.
• Ensure coherence with national gender equality frameworks and EU integration processes.

4. Validation and Finalization

• Prepare a draft Roadmap and present it to UN Women, the Ministry for European Affairs (MEP) and key stakeholders for feedback. 
• Support validation processes, including technical meetings or workshops, as required.
• Incorporate comments and recommendations to finalize the Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process in line with UN Women quality standards.

• Submit a finalized Roadmap, including an executive summary and implementation matrix.
• Provide policy-relevant recommendations to strengthen institutional capacities for gender-responsive EU accession.
• Prepare a concise final report summarizing activities undertaken, key findings, challenges encountered, collaboration with UN Women and MEP staff, and recommendations for next steps. 

The national consultant is expected to deliver the following:

1. Inception Report outlining methodology, workplan, and stakeholder engagement approach.
2. Analytical Assessment summarizing key findings from the desk review and consultations.
3. Draft Roadmap for a Gender-Responsive EU Accession Process.
4. Presentation materials for validation meeting/workshop.
5. Final Roadmap incorporating stakeholders’ and UN Women feedback.

All deliverables shall be submitted in Macedonian language in editable electronic Word format.

• 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 

• Gender Equality Expertise: Strong knowledge of gender equality and women’s empowerment, gender mainstreaming, and intersectional approaches, including familiarity with international human rights frameworks and the SDGs.
• EU Accession and Policy Alignment: Solid understanding of the EU accession process, enlargement methodology, negotiation chapters/clusters, and EU gender equality acquis, with the ability to translate standards into practical policy actions.
• Analytical and Research Skills: Proven ability to conduct policy and institutional analysis, synthesize complex information, and develop evidence-based strategic frameworks such as roadmaps and action plans.
• Stakeholder Engagement: Demonstrated experience in stakeholder mapping, consultations, and facilitation of inclusive and participatory processes with government institutions, civil society, and development partners.
• Strategic Planning and RBM: Experience in strategic planning, results-based management, and development of indicators, monitoring frameworks, and accountability mechanisms aligned with national and EU systems.
• Capacity Development: Ability to identify institutional capacity gaps and propose targeted measures to strengthen coordination and gender mainstreaming across sectors.
• Communication and Drafting: Excellent drafting, presentation, and facilitation skills, with the ability to produce high-quality policy and strategic documents in Macedonian.
• Professionalism: Ability to work independently, meet deadlines, and collaborate effectively with UN Women and national counterparts, demonstrating integrity and accountability.

Education and Certification:

Specialist/Advisor levels:

• Advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in gender studies, European studies, law, public policy, political science, international relations, or a related field.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of proven experience in gender equality, gender mainstreaming, and EU accession processes.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the EU acquis communautaire and enlargement methodology.
• Proven experience in policy analysis, strategic planning, and development of roadmaps or action plans.
• Previous experience in working with UN Women, other UN agencies, and other development actors will be considered as an advantage.
• Strong facilitation and stakeholder engagement skills.

• Excellent analytical, drafting, and communication skills.

Languages:

• Native Macedonian; and
• Fluency in English is required.

• Personal CV or P11 (P11 can be downloaded from: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc )
• A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page)
• 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.