Consultant - Retreat Facilitator

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.

The UN Women South Africa Country Office (SACO) is based in Pretoria, South Africa. The Country Office collaborates with the government, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), and the Private Sector to contribute to gender equality by formulating and implementing norms, laws, policies, programs, and services that ensure the human rights of women and girls, as well as increase their economic participation. SACO’s responsive programs include increasing women’s political participation and leadership, securing women’s economic rights, strengthening women's involvement in peacebuilding, ending violence against women, and promoting gender-transformative policies in government budgets.

The intensity and the scope of the work undertaken by UN Women South Africa Country Office, requires a high-functioning and resilient team, clear on the mandate, effective and professional in communicating, focusing on achieving office vision, and delivering on the programme, projects targeted results and joint initiatives.

UN Women South Africa Country Office seeks to hire an experienced consultant to support the objectives of the planned staff retreat as outlined below through well-structured discussions and engaging activities.  Reporting to the UN Women Country Representative with dotted line supervisory to the Deputy Representative and Operations Manager South Africa Country Office the retreat consultant will deliver on the following objectives.

Objectives of the retreat:

• Building from previous retreats, continue to support the team in strengthening team building spirit and foster the bond across teams toward a more coordinated, peaceful, and productive working culture;
• To define major priorities and activities for the period 2026-2027
• To use tools that promote understanding, motivation, and teamwork, ultimately enabling us to effectively meet our targets.;
• Examining the SACO strengths, challenges, best practices, and takeaways from its accomplishments in prior years and identifying areas for improvement and, explore innovative approaches and potential solutions to address the identified challenges;
• Support the team to have constructive dialogue on vision, priorities, systems and dynamics that shape UN WOMEN’s work in the changing context of our work;
• Identify and discuss challenges and opportunities for Country Office
• To ensure an inclusive process and full ownership of the retreat agenda and outcomes, the planning team sought inputs from all participants for collective leadership and ownership of a successful planning and conduct of the retreat;
• To explore new ideas, innovative approaches and make suggestions that can strengthen accountability and enhance the office's performance and efficiency.

Scope of Work:

Under the direct supervision of the Senior Management in South Africa Country Office, the retreat facilitator is expected to facilitate and moderate the session. The session should be very engaging, participatory, and creatively organized in a culturally sensitive manner with the aim of helping staff reflect on the previous joint discussions with all staff such as all staff retreat held earlier and forge strategies for the following/upcoming year.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• In collaboration with the retreat planning teams, finalize the methodology, agenda incorporating feedback from previous staff retreats/meetings to ensure that issues raised previously are addressed. 
• Facilitate and moderate key sessions of the retreats, ensuring maximum participation of the participants and the achievement of the retreats objectives and expected results. 
• Facilitate team building activities during the retreats and conduct daily reflections highlighting day key discussions.
• In consultations with the retreat planning team, produce retreats reports that will highlight daily deliberations and key actions points.
• Clarify expectations regarding participant feedback, self-assessment, and any post-retreat evaluations.
• Fostering a positive and inclusive environment.

Deliverables table:

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a homebased consultancy.  Facilitator required for 1 day retreat session in November 2026

As part of this assignment, there will be travel trips to City where the retreat is held.

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:

• Team Building for staff including senior management level teams skills;
• Ability to produce clear reports and guidance with in-depth analysis and strategic recommendations in English in the relevant field;
• Good communication and interpersonal skills;
• Stakeholder Management skills;
• Ability to complete complex assignments in a timely manner and delivery quality results.

Required Qualifications and Experience

Education and Certification:

• Master’s in international development, Human Rights, Law or related field, with a strong expertise in Gender and Governance or related field; 
• 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 5 years of experience in facilitating retreats, team-building and leadership workshops is required; 
• Demonstrable experience in facilitating group discussions, workshops, or meetings is essential. This could include leading team-building activities, moderating panel discussions, or facilitating strategic planning sessions is required.
• Experience working in relevant areas such as organizational development, strategy, leadership, or change management is a requirement.
• Experience in building and maintaining relationships with clients or stakeholders, understanding client needs, and effectively managing expectations throughout the retreat process is required.
• Strong understanding of policy and legal frameworks on gender equality, human rights and gender-responsive Peace & Security programming is required.
• Experience in reporting and analytical skills is a requirement.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Working knowledge of another official UN language 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.