A series of UN General Assembly and ECOSOC resolutions have reaffirmed the United Nations’ accountability towards advancing gender equality and the empowerment of women.  Crucially, at the 59th Session of the UN General Assembly, Member States, in adopting the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR) of Operational Activities for Development of the UN System, called on all UN organizations to: “mainstream gender and to pursue gender equality in their country programmes, planning instruments and sector-wide programmes and to articulate specific countrylevel goals and targets in this field in accordance with the national development strategies”. 

As a direct follow-up to the TCPR, and to ensure a comprehensive response to many of its recommendations, the UN Sustainable Development Group (UNDG, now UNSDG) created a Task Team on Gender Equality. The goals of the Task Team are to support more consistent and coherent action among UNDG member agencies to mainstream gender equality and promote women’s empowerment at the country level; and to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment are mainstreamed into the tools and processes that emerge from the UNDG for UN Country Teams (UNCTs). 

In 2006, the UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality commissioned a background paper on accountability mechanisms in UNDG agencies. This paper reviewed accountability for programming in support of gender equality in ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and WFP and found that: “A common understanding of how to apply gender mainstreaming in UN operational activities is needed. This is because if there is no agreement on what constitutes a minimum level of actions to support gender equality, how will it be possible to hold agencies and UN Country Teams accountable for this. Reaching agreement across agencies on what constitutes a minimally acceptable performance to support gender equality, through an agreed set of indicators, would contribute to stronger guidance and accountability”. Subsequently this background paper was endorsed at the UNDG Principals’ meeting in July 2006, where agreement was reached on development of a UNCT-level “Accounting for Gender Equality” Scorecard that sets minimum requirements for UNCTs to assess their performance across the system. 

The 2016 Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR) called for the United Nations development system to expand and strengthen the use of the Gender Scorecard as a planning and reporting tool for assessing the effectiveness of gender mainstreaming in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs). 

As of 2023, there is now an updated version of the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard, which was developed by the global UNSDG Task Team on Gender Equality under the Results Group on Voice, Values and Norms, to align the Action Plan with the SDGs and to it with its entity level equivalent, the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan, drawing on good global practices with motivating, managing and measuring institutional change processes. Furthermore, the 2019 UNSDG United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework Guidance calls for UN entities to “put gender equality at the heart of programming, driving the active and meaningful participation of both women and men, and consistently empowering women and girls, in line with the minimum requirements agreed upon by the United Nations Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG) in the UNCT System-wide Action Plan (SWAP) Gender Equality Scorecard” (para 20). 

The UNSDCF Turkmenistan for 2026-2030 articulates the strategic Programme planning framework for collaboration between Turkmenistan and the UNCT.  The UNSDCF responds to Turkmenistan’s national sectoral strategies and priorities reflected in the policy framework and flagship Government initiatives, along with ratified international human rights instruments and other global normative standards. 

As per the requirements of the UNSDG, in 2023, 2024, and 2025 the UNCT conducted its UNCT-SWAP annual report under the previous UN Cooperation Framework (2021-2025) which informed the development of the UNSDCF 2026-2030. The UNCT Turkmenistan will now undertake the first Comprehensive UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard procedure. 

The results of the UNCT-SWAP Scorecard will ensure better accountability of the UNCT towards gender equality and women’s empowerment in line with UNSDCF 2026-2030 and global UN GA requirements and to assess status of implementation of commitments, and to identify gaps and corrective actions. The UN Thematic Group on Gender and Human Rights will implement this process to complete the UNCT-SWAP process in a participatory and timely manner. 

The main objective of this consultancy is to support the UNCT Turkmenistan in the implementation of the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard and in so doing, to assess the effectiveness of the UN Country Team in gender mainstreaming, promoting of gender equality and women’s empowerment, allocation of resources, progress on gender parity, among other issues as well as to provide a set of actions for improvements. This will also impact UNCT programming under the new UNSDCF cycle.

The international consultant will work in collaboration with the Interagency Assessment Team (IAT) and the UN thematic group on HR and Gender on the following:

• To assist UNCTs in identifying areas in which they are meeting or not meeting minimum UNSDG requirements on gender mainstreaming practices and performance.  
• To stimulate a constructive dialogue within the UNCT about the status of support for gender equality and women’s empowerment, and how it can be improved. 
• To identify where technical assistance can support the achievement of minimum requirements. 

• To share and reflect on existing practices to advance gender equality and women’s empowerment.

The UNCT Comprehensive SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard methodology has been designed for in-country self-assessment as a means of fostering deeper understanding and ownership of results. The international consultant will facilitate the exercise and apply participatory methods to ensure the assessment team is formed from the beginning of exercise, leads, and owns the process. 

The duration of this consultancy is 20 working days from May 14, 2026 to September 10, 2026 including operational closure of the contract. To guide and support the UN Gender Theme Group in Turkmenistan and UNCT SWAP Inter-agency Assessment Team (IAT),  the consultant will conduct the following activities within the stipulated timeframes:

• Background document review (home-based, 4 working days): 
  • UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard Technical Guidance and Framework   
  • The 2025 UNCT Turkmenistan’s Gender SWAP  annual report 
  • Current country CCA and UNSDCF 2021-2025 and 2026-2030 and subsequent planning, monitoring, evaluation, reporting and budgeting files. 
  • Any key nationally generated reports on the status of women and gender equality. 

• Assistance and support for the UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group and IAT, including  4-day in-country self-assessment: (8 working days) 

(i) Pre-mission including virtual briefings:

• Build understanding of the IAT and UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group of the UNCT-SWAP Gender Scorecard guidance and methodology

  • Individual briefings for SWAP indicator working groups on relevant indicators and assessments, including the collection of complementary data and evidence to rate indicators. 
  • Conduct gender analysis of verification documents required to help the UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group and IAT rate areas of performance.
  • Facilitate working sessions and a constructive dialogue as needed and provide technical support to the IAT members  to discuss and score areas of performance. 
  • Facilitate interactive working sessions with the IAT to develop the SWAP implementation Action Plan, including considerations for interlinkages with the UN system-wide Gender Equality Acceleration Plan (GEAP) expectations. 
  • Complete the rating matrix based on UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group and IAT discussions and agreements. 

  (ii) In-country mission 

• Reporting (8 working days) 
  • Follow up after mission on any outstanding issues with HRGTG/IAT members
  • Draft UNCT-SWAP narrative report, reflecting recommendations of the UNCT and with inputs from UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group. 
  • Consolidate the Action Plan based on agreed follow-up action points identified through the assessment and in-country discussions. 
  • Complete the final draft of the UNCT-SWAP narrative report and Action Plan based on feedback, including from the UNCT. 
  • Presentation of the final Assessment to the UNCT

Deliverable 1. Inception report outlining the methodology  by May 19, 2026.

Deliverable 2. Gender analysis of verification documents and Rating matrix based on IAT discussions and agreements by May 30, 2026

Deliverable 3. Draft UNCT-SWAP narrative report, with inputs from UN Human Rights and Gender Theme Group and IAT by July 15, 2026.

Deliverable 4. Finalized Action Plan based on inputs from the HRGTG and IAT and agreed follow-up action points identified through the assessment by August 10, 2026

Deliverable 5. Final draft of the UNCT-SWAP narrative report and Action Plan based on feedback, including from the UNCT and Final consultancy report  by August 20, 2026

*Dates of deliverables may be shifted based on expert’s availability and local arrangements

The UNFPA Turkmenistan Head of Office will monitor the International Consultant’s work through reviewing submitted materials. The consultant will weekly provide an update on progress by email or ad-hoc, on challenges encountered and support needed. 

Ethical Considerations

UNFPA requires its consultants to adhere to ethical principles and standards when doing research. The selected consultant should clearly identify any potential ethical issues and approaches, as well as the processes for ethical review in the inception report.

National Ownership

The involvement of appropriate national partners will be a critical condition for the development of all the mission outcome materials in ensuring stakeholder ownership and its subsequent utilisation.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work 

Under the overall supervision of the UNFPA Head of Office in coordination with the UN Resident Coordinator and RCO Team Leader a consultant will be contracted to support the implementation of the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard. 

The UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard methodology has been designed for in-country self-assessment as a means of fostering deeper understanding and ownership of results. The international consultant will facilitate the exercise and apply participatory methods to ensure the assessment team is formed from the beginning of exercise, leads, and owns the process.

Education: 

• Advanced (Masters) degree in social and political sciences, human rights, gender equality  is required. 

Work experience: 

• At least 7 years of practical experience of work on gender mainstreaming in development, required. 
• programmes/projects evaluations or assessments at national and international levels, is required. 
• Previous experience with the UN on gender equality is considered an asset. 
• At least 3 years’ experience of work on results-based management, review and/or evaluation is required. 
• Experience in gender data collection and analysis, including interviews, survey and focus groups, is preferred. 
• Previous experience with the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard, narrative report and follow-up matrix is preferred. 
• Experience on conducting gender training for staff of development agencies is preferred.

Languages: 

• Proficient in written and verbal English. 

The consultancy fee will be calculated based on the P-4 level of the of the UN Salary Scale for Professional and higher categories effective 1 January 2026 and will be paid in a lump sum upon successful completion of deliverables.

UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process. Persons with disabilities, and individuals of other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity.