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.

Generation Equality was initiated to disrupt decades of under-investment and lack of progress on gender equality implementation. The initiative intends to support the achievement of the SDGs and the realization of the 1995 Beijing Platform for Action on women’s rights. With the intersecting challenges to gender inequality of COVID-19, the climate crisis, growing conflicts and intensified economic and political instability, the initiative aims both to stop reversals in women’s and girls’ rights as well as accelerate concrete progress.

Generation Equality was launched in 2021 at events in Mexico and France, and in the presence of Heads of State, VIPs, CEOs and civil society and youth leaders and activists. Initially conceived as a five-year initiative, work will continue through and beyond 2026 to enroll new commitment makers, press for collective action on gender equality and ensure accountability.

The Coordination Hub was established in the Office of the Executive Director to foster, promote and enable a whole-of-organization approach to UN Women’s role as convenor of Generation Equality in line with the Generation Equality Phase II Project Document “Generation Equality: Commitments, Accountability and Collective Action”. In this function the Coordination Hub liaises with internal partners from different Business Units, UN Women’s leadership, senior management and Regional and Country Offices for a coordinated and cohesive implementation of Generation Equality, as well as with external stakeholders and partners for crosscutting activities and priorities across the initiative. In June 2024, the Deputy Executive Director for Normative Support, UN System Coordination and Programme Results, was appointed Project Executive of Generation Equality. The Coordination Hub is now integrated under this Pillar.

The Coordination Hub is tasked with coordinating and overseeing Generation Equality related efforts in the areas of strategic planning, quality assurance, project management, monitoring, evaluation and reporting, knowledge management, internal and external communications, stakeholder engagement, resource mobilization, and in fostering and promoting a whole of UN Women engagement in Generation Equality.

The consultant will be reporting to the Special Advisor, Generation Equality Coordination Hub, and will be supported by Operations Associate, who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

Stakeholder Engagement

• Contribute to the development, implementation and monitoring of internal and external coordination and stakeholder engagement strategies in line with the Generation Equality Phase II Project Document and in compliance with UN Women policies and procedures.
• Identify, plan and contribute to the delivery of forward-looking, co-created stakeholder engagement opportunities across Generation Equality. Lead the planning, coordination, co-creation, delivery and assessment of stakeholder consultations and exchanges on key issues of Generation Equality.
• Identify and contribute to the planning of opportunities to feature Generation Equality in global policy-making processes and events and lead the planning and delivery of corporate Generation Equality events and milestones, such as at CSW69, HLPF and UNGA80
• In coordination with relevant teams/units across UN Women, contribute to the planning and implementation of priority engagement and advocacy opportunities for other key stakeholders of Generation Equality.
• Manage the planning of the work of the Multi-Stakeholder Leadership Group and the effective preparation and engagement of the Group’s members in their advisory role to UN Women.
• Contribute to Regional and Country Offices’ stakeholder engagement efforts as part of increased action of Generation Equality at country and regional level.
• Lead the drafting of relevant briefing notes, updates, presentations, etc., for UN Women’s leadership to proactively engage with stakeholders on Generation Equality.

UN System engagement

• Develop and coordinate the implementation of a UN System engagement strategy for Generation Equality.
• Identify and contribute to strategic opportunities to leverage UN Women’s coordination mandate and global and local levels to promote UN collective leadership and action for Generation Equality.

Collaboration across the Action Coalitions and with the WPS-HA Compact

• Identify opportunities for strengthened and systematic collaboration across the thematic Action Coalitions and with the Compact for WPS-HA to break up siloes, advance thematic synergies and foster collective action.
• In close coordination with the Action Coalitions and the Compact teams, and in partnership with Regional and Country Offices, contribute to the planning, implementation and assessment of these opportunities to strengthen existing partnerships, foster new ones, and to deliver on collective commitments.
• Working closely with communications and knowledge management colleagues, identify and contribute to opportunities to share and promote intersectional and collaborative ways of working.

Internal coherence, coordination, knowledge building and sharing

• Contribute to the development and dissemination of good practices and lessons learnt and ensure their incorporation in the areas of work and responsibility of the Coordination Specialist.
• Ensure effective information flow, communication and coordination between the Coordination Hub and other units/teams across the organization with responsibility for delivering stakeholder engagement.

Deliverables

• Generation Equality and the multistakeholder partnerships approach strategically positioned at CSW69, HLPF and UNGA80, including through the delivery of corporate Generation Equality events
• Draft vision for multistakeholder partnerships for 2026 and beyond, co-created with UN Women teams and Generation Equality partners through the dedicated joint working group
• Reflection of Generation Equality learnings, results and impact in key internal and external communication channels, including on Beijing+30 and the development of the next UN Women Strategic Plan
• Coordination of knowledge Product capturing the value add of multistakeholder partnerships, prepared in coordination with UN Women teams/units, Generation Equality partners and through a dedicated vendor.

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy, and official travel will be required. Any travel and related costs will be covered separately by the Hiring Unit.

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:

• Excellent communication skills, both written and oral;
• Strong planning, goal-setting, prioritization and organizational skills;
• Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation;
• Ability to demonstrate a sense of humor and collegiality with solid interpersonal skills;
• Defined sense of responsibility, confidentiality and accountability;
• Strong networking skills.
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;

Required Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in social sciences, political science, international relations, business administration or management, public administration, or related field is required.
• 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 progressively responsible work experience in coordination and stakeholder engagement is required.
• Experience working on gender equality and women’s empowerment is required.
• Experience working with and building partnerships with a wide range of stakeholders internationally, including governments, donors and civil society organizations is required.
• Experience with UN System coordination is required.
• Experience of working in the United Nations system is desirable.
• Experience of working in the field is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of any other UN official 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.)

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements