Consultant
Closes 22 Aug 2026 · 8 days
Type of contract : Consultant Contract
Level : Level 2 - Middle
Hiring Unit : Education Sector (ED)
Duty Station : Dar-es-Salaam
Work location : Remote
Duration of contract : 3 months
Hiring open to : External candidates
Application deadline (Midnight UTC+3 Time) : 22/08/2026
UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, Professionalism
UNESCO, in partnership with Beijing Normal University and in collaboration with the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, is implementing the project “Closing the Digital Divide: Ensuring Gender-Transformative Digital Skills Education for Women and Girls”. The project aims to advance inclusive and gender-transformative digital education by addressing systemic barriers that continue to limit the meaningful participation of women and girls in digital learning, ICT, and technology-driven opportunities.
The initiative responds to persistent gender disparities in access to digital technologies, digital skills development, and participation in ICT-related education and career pathways. Although Tanzania is experiencing rapid digital transformation and an increasing demand for digital competencies, many girls, particularly in public secondary schools, continue to face interconnected barriers, including limited confidence in using digital technologies, inadequate exposure to female role models in ICT and STEM, entrenched gender stereotypes, and socio-cultural norms that constrain their participation, aspirations, and progression in digital fields.
To address these challenges, the project focuses on increasing girls' exposure to ICT through school-based extracurricular initiatives that nurture their interest, confidence, and digital competencies while challenging gender stereotypes and broadening awareness of ICT studies and career opportunities. These interventions include the establishment and strengthening of school-based ICT Clubs, complemented by mentorship programmes, ICT and STEM workshops, innovation boot camps, STEM hackathons, ICT clinics, and other experiential learning opportunities implemented in collaboration with national and local partners.
The ICT Clubs will serve as structured platforms for experiential and empowering learning, providing safe and supportive environments where students, particularly girls, can develop digital skills, collaborate on innovative projects, engage with mentors, and gain practical exposure to ICT and STEM. Beyond strengthening technical competencies, the clubs are intended to build girls' confidence, leadership, problem-solving skills, and aspirations while fostering their active participation in digital innovation and future ICT careers.
In line with the project's gender-transformative objectives, the ICT Clubs will prioritize girls' participation while remaining inclusive to all learners. Implementation will ensure at least 50% female participation, while actively promoting girls' leadership, meaningful engagement, and sustained participation throughout all project activities.
While these interventions are expected to expand girls' participation in digital learning, achieving meaningful and sustainable outcomes requires more than equitable participation. It requires a deliberate gender-transformative approach that addresses the underlying social, cultural, and institutional barriers affecting girls' engagement, strengthens their agency and self-confidence, and creates enabling learning environments that support their continued participation and success in ICT education and careers.
To support the effective implementation of these interventions, UNESCO seeks to establish a gender technical support mechanism comprising one Lead Gender Expert and three Supporting Gender Specialists to provide specialized expertise in gender equality and gender-transformative programming throughout project implementation.
Working under the technical guidance and supervision of the Lead Gender Expert, each Supporting Gender Specialist will have distinct and exclusive responsibility for 5 assigned schools, covering 15 of the 20 schools. The Lead Gender Expert will have direct responsibility for the remaining 5 schools while retaining overall technical oversight, coordination and quality assurance in 20 schools. Within their respective school clusters, the Supporting Gender Specialists will work closely with the technical implementing partner, education authorities, school leadership, teachers, mentors and other stakeholders to ensure that gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches are effectively integrated into ICT Clubs and related extracurricular activities. Each Specialist will monitor implementation, provide on-site technical guidance, document school-level results and lessons, and submit reports on his/her five assigned schools to the Lead Gender Expert.
To engage 3 qualified Supporting Gender Experts to provide direct technical support for the implementation of the gender component of the UNESCO–BNU Project in assigned schools, ensuring that ICT Clubs and related extracurricular interventions are implemented through gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches that strengthen girls' meaningful participation, leadership, empowerment, and sustained engagement in ICT education and digital innovation, under the technical guidance and supervision of the Lead Gender Expert.
Specifically, the assignment aims to:
a. Support the co-design and implementation of gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches in ICT Clubs and related extracurricular activities in the 5 schools specifically assigned to each Supporting Gender Specialist, in collaboration with the Lead Gender Expert and the technical implementing partner.
b. Provide technical guidance and mentoring to teachers, mentors, school focal persons, and the technical implementing partner, including the design and incorporation of gender-transformative content that challenges gender norms and stereotypes and strengthens girls' meaningful participation, leadership, safety, confidence, and retention in ICT education.
c. Monitor implementation in assigned schools, identify gender-related challenges and opportunities, recommend practical solutions, and report progress to the Lead Gender Expert.
d. Support the co-design, planning and implementation of mentorship programmes, ICT/STEM clinics, the Girls' ICT Innovation Bootcamp, STEM hackathons, and other project activities, including the identification and preparation of female ICT/STEM role models and the design of mentorship engagements that expand girls' awareness of studies, careers and opportunities in technology.
e. Document achievements, lessons learned, good practices, challenges and recommendations from the five (5) assigned schools and submit school-specific technical inputs to the Lead Gender Expert for consolidation across all 20 participating schools.
ASSIGNMENTS
Working under the technical guidance & supervision of the Lead Gender Expert, each Supporting Gender Specialist shall:
a. Provide field-based technical support for the integration of gender-responsive and gender-transformative approaches into ICT Clubs and related extracurricular interventions within their 5 assigned schools.
b. Provide technical guidance to teachers, mentors, school focal persons and the technical implementing partner to strengthen girls’ meaningful participation, leadership, confidence, safety, inclusion and empowerment throughout project implementation.
c. Contribute to the co-design of gender-transformative approaches and content for ICT Clubs, mentorship engagements, the Innovation Bootcamp and related project activities, drawing on implementation experience and emerging needs within their assigned schools to ensure that activities effectively address gender norms and stereotypes and strengthen girls’ agency, leadership, confidence and aspirations in ICT and STEM.
d. Contribute to the identification and preparation of appropriate female ICT and STEM role models and mentors and to the design and delivery of mentorship and career-exposure engagements, including identifying relevant needs, interests and opportunities emerging from their assigned schools.
e. Support the integration of gender-transformative content and approaches into project methodologies, facilitation processes, implementation tools and school-level activities, ensuring their practical application within assigned schools
f. Support the implementation of ICT Clubs, mentorship engagements, the Innovation Bootcamp and related project activities to ensure that girls are meaningfully engaged and provided with opportunities to assume technical and leadership roles, participate in collaborative learning and innovation, and develop and present digital projects addressing issues relevant to them.
g. Monitor implementation of the gender component within their assigned schools, identify emerging gender-related barriers, challenges and opportunities, and provide practical recommendations and follow-up support to strengthen implementation.
h. Document achievements, lessons learned, good practices, challenges and recommendations from their assigned schools and provide timely technical inputs to the Lead Gender Expert to support project monitoring, learning and adaptive implementation.
i. Prepare & submit school-level monitoring reports & a consolidated report covering their 5 assigned schools to the Lead Gender Expert, in accordance with the agreed reporting arrangements and timelines.
The assignment is expected to run for two (2) months between August and November 2026.
Under this assignment, each Supporting Gender Specialist will be individually accountable for deliverables relating to his/her 5 assigned schools. Each Specialist will be expected to deliver:
a. Report on technical support provided during the inception and teacher orientation workshops, including inputs on gender-transformative approaches, gender norms and stereotypes, and inclusive ICT Club implementation.
b. Provide reports for the assigned 5 schools, including achievements, challenges and recommendations.
c. Reports on gender integration in ICT Clubs and related project activities implemented in the assigned schools, including gender-transformative content, mentorship and role-model engagements, girls' participation and leadership, and emerging gender-related issues.
d. Final technical report documenting achievements, lessons learned, good practices and recommendations from the assigned schools, including contributions to mentorship and role-model engagement, for consolidation by the Lead Gender Expert.
For detailed information, please consult the UNESCO Competency Framework.
EDUCATION
A university degree in Gender Studies, Education, Social Sciences, Development Studies or a related field.
WORK EXPERIENCE
a. At least 5 years of professional experience in gender equality, girls' empowerment and gender-transformative programming.
b. Demonstrated experience integrating gender into education, ICT, STEM, youth or community development programmes.
c. Experience working with schools, adolescents, teachers and community stakeholders.
d. Experience working with government institutions, development partners or international organizations would be an added advantage.
SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES
Strong facilitation, mentoring, communication, analytical and report-writing skills.
LANGUAGES
Excellent written and spoken English and Kiswahili languages
Please note that all candidates must complete an on-line application and provide complete and accurate information, by the above deadline.
To apply, please visit the UNESCO Careers website. No modifications can be made to the application once submitted.
After submitting the obline applivcation, each interested consultant should sibmit to UNESCO the following:
Submission of the CV and budget should be done through f.shayo@unesco.org with the email subject (APPLICATION FOR A SUPPORTING GENDER EXPERT)
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