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 is implementing the initiative Transformative Outcomes: Leveraging Gender Data in Conflict and Crisis Settings, funded through the Complex Risk and Analytics Fund (CRAF’d). The project aims to strengthen the availability, quality, ethical use and influence of gender data in conflict, disaster and complex risk contexts, enabling more effective and gender-responsive humanitarian and crisis-related decision-making.

Women, girls and gender-diverse people often remain invisible within humanitarian data systems, despite facing distinct risks, barriers to assistance, shifts in gender roles, and heightened protection concerns. The CRAF’d project seeks to close these data gaps by improving indicators, methodologies, information management (IM) systems, partnerships and data flows within UN Women and across the wider humanitarian ecosystem.

As part of the CRAF’d workplan:

• UN Women has drafted a core global set of indicators to track gender in humanitarian action. These now require technical refinement, validation with UN agencies and clusters, and alignment with feasible secondary data sources.
• UN Women Country Offices (COs) require strengthened qualitative approaches to capture shifts in gender relations, agency, access/control of resources, decision-making and barriers to assistance—areas often missed in standard humanitarian assessments.
• There is a need for a coherent strategy and plan to strengthen information management, data collection, analysis, visualisation and use across UN Women COs, ensuring alignment with humanitarian standards and integration into HPC processes.
• The project also requires Data Sharing Agreements (DSAs) with key UN agencies and humanitarian partners to support responsible global and country-level data exchange, including integration into the Women Count platform.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Under the supervision of the Research and Knowledge Management Humanitarian Specialist, the consultant will support UN Women to strengthen its systems, tools and partnerships for gender data generation, analysis and use in crisis settings by:

1. Finalizing a draft set of core global indicators on gender in humanitarian action.
2. Developing a light, practical methodology and system for collecting and analysing qualitative gender data.

Drafting Data Sharing Agreements (DSAs) to facilitate global and country-level data flow and integration into Women Count.

Deliverables

Objective 1: Finalise the Global Indicator Set

• Review and refine UN Women’s draft indicators for gender in humanitarian action.
• Ensure alignment with:
  • IASC Gender Handbook
  • GiHA commitments
  • Sectoral guidance (GBV, WASH, CASH, Protection)
  • UN Women Humanitarian Strategy 2022–2025
• Map feasible secondary data sources (HNO/HRP, OCHA/UNHCR datasets, protection monitoring, GBVIMS, cluster 5Ws, CASH WG, WASH assessments).
• Support virtual inter-agency consultations and validation workshops with relevant UN agencies and clusters to finalise the indicators.
• Produce final indicator list, metadata sheets, disaggregation guidance and reporting pathways.

Objective 2: Develop Methodology for Qualitative Gender Indicators and Support Piloting and Light Testing of Tools in country contexts

• Identify 3–5 qualitative indicators aligned to:
  • Changes in gender roles
  • Decision-making power
  • Agency and control over resources
  • Barriers to accessing assistance
  • Intersectional factors (age, disability, SOGIESC, displacement status)
• Develop qualitative data-collection tools:
  • FGD guides for diverse groups
  • Key Informant Interview (KII) tools
  • Remote/rapid data-collection options
  • Ethical and safe data-protection protocols (PSEA, GBV, disability inclusion)
• Design:
  • A light data system (Excel/Kobo-compatible templates)
  • Analysis framework and coding structure
  • Guidance for CO-level use, visualization and reporting
• Pilot the use of these tools: 
  • Conduct light testing of tools in 6 CRAFd countries
  • Update the tools and guidance accordingly for final roll out

Objective 3: Draft Technical Components of Data Sharing Agreements (DSAs)

• Draft inputs to global-level data-sharing agreements with key UN agencies and humanitarian data partners.
• Prepare adaptable CO-level DSA templates.
• Ensure compliance with:
  • UN Women’s data protection and privacy standards
  • GBV safety principles
  • Do-No-Harm, informed consent and data minimization standards

Develop a guidance note on operationalizing DSAs, including risk management, secure transfer protocols and metadata requirements.

Competencies

Core Values: 
•     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 

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:  https://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment/application-process#_Values 

 Education and Certification:

• Masters degree or equivalent in gender studies, economics, statistics, public policy, social science or related discipline.
• 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:

• A minimum of seven years of combined professional experience at the national and/or international levels in gender data and statistics for monitoring and reporting, particularly in humanitarian crisis and conflict settings. 
• Strong knowledge of gender-specific data and assessment tools related to humanitarian emergencies and women, peace and security in conflict-affected contexts, such as Multi-Sector Needs Assessments, humanitarian cluster–specific monitoring indicators, women peace and security facts and figures; and international monitoring frameworks, including the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) Gender Accountability Framework (GAF), Women, Peace and Security monitoring frameworks, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (in particular Goal 5: Gender Equality, Goal 13: Climate Action, and Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions). 
• Demonstrated experience in drafting technical guidance, toolkits, and/or reports; developing surveys, questionnaires, and indicators (both qualitative and quantitative). 
• Experience in designing or strengthening IM systems in humanitarian or crisis contexts, including using AI for data collection, analysis and visualization.
• Familiarity with ethical data standards, GBV data protection, disability inclusion and SOGIESC-inclusive approaches.
• Familiarity with, and experience working within, the UN system at the country, regional, and/or global levels is an asset. 

• Experience working and coordinating with multiple stakeholders, including civil society organizations, UN entities, government counterparts, and academic institutions.

Key Performance Indicators

• Timely delivery of high-quality substantive inputs to the activities and production of the deliverables listed above, as well as to any additional activities or deliverables arising from required adjustments.
• Effective collaboration with UN Women staff and key stakeholders.

• Adherence to UN Women standards, policies, and procedures.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.

• Knowledge of the other UN official working language, especially French or Spanish, 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.