What are the responsibilities and job description for the Consultant to Develop a Strategy for Prevention of Violence against Women position at UN Women?
Job Description
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.
Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women supports UN member states as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programs and services needed to implement these standards. It stands behind women’s equal participation in all aspects of life, focusing on five priority areas: (1) increasing women’s leadership and participation; (2) ending violence against women; (3) engaging women in all aspects of peace and security processes; (4) enhancing women’s economic empowerment; and (5) making gender equality central to national development planning and budgeting. UN women coordinate and promote the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality.
Ending Violence against Women and Girls is one of the priority areas of UN Women. The Ending Violence against Women Section in New York is part of the Policy Division at UN headquarters. It works to prevent and respond to violence, to increase access to services for survivors, and to make private and public spaces safer for women and girls. At the global level, we work to advance international policies, providing support to the United Nations General Assembly and the Commission on the Status of Women and ensuring that all development agenda includes specific targets to end violence against women and girls.
Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW) is a central pillar of UN Women’s strategy to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment by 2030, as articulated in its Strategic Plan 2022-2025, reflected in the Gender Equality Accelerator on EVAW and outlined in the Action Coalition on GBV. This recognises that VAWG is both a cause and consequence of gender inequality and a barrier to achieving the SDGs, and it promotes a comprehensive and whole-of-society approach.
Violence and women’s fear of it limit women’s choices in virtually all spheres of life. It has long-term, as well as short-term, consequences on women’s physical and emotional well-being. It detrimentally affects women’s ability to gain an education, earn a livelihood, develop human relationships and participate in public activities, including development programmes. Over the past few years, UN Women has played a critical role in coordinating and shaping the programming approaches to the prevention of VAW. Notable among these efforts are.
Objective
UN Women EVAW section is seeking to recruit a consultant to develop a prevention strategy that analyses the current prevention ecosystem, UN Women’s vantage points and footprints in the field of prevention over the years and proposes pathways for prevention programming and policy advocacy that is aligned to what is happening in the prevention field, who we are and what we can do well. The consultant will synthesize already existing documents in the field of prevention, including those developed by UN Women., speak with UN Women staff from Cos, ROs, and HQ, as well as with a few colleagues from other thematic areas that work closely with the EVAW thematic area and engage with other UN agencies, Development Partners and CSOs who play central roles in the field of prevention of VAW to help put together a strategy to inform our EVAW prevention direction for the 4-5 years.
Description Of Responsibilities /Scope Of Work
The consultant will be reporting to the Policy Specialist- Prevention and shall undertake the following tasks:
Deliverable Expected completion time (due day)
Synthesis report summarizing key trends, gaps, challenges, and opportunities in prevention, with actionable insights. April 15, 2025
Draft prevention strategy document for review, including a vision, objectives, and proposed actions for 4-5 years. May 10, 2025
Final prevention strategy document, incorporating feedback and providing a clear and coherent framework for action. May 30, 2025
All the deliverables will be provided in English and electronic copy.
Education and Certification:
Education:
Excellent verbal and written English skills.
Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel
This is a home-based consultancy, with no expected travel.
Competencies :
Core Values:
Functional Competencies:
This is a home-based consultancy, with no expected travel.
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.)
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.
Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women supports UN member states as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programs and services needed to implement these standards. It stands behind women’s equal participation in all aspects of life, focusing on five priority areas: (1) increasing women’s leadership and participation; (2) ending violence against women; (3) engaging women in all aspects of peace and security processes; (4) enhancing women’s economic empowerment; and (5) making gender equality central to national development planning and budgeting. UN women coordinate and promote the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality.
Ending Violence against Women and Girls is one of the priority areas of UN Women. The Ending Violence against Women Section in New York is part of the Policy Division at UN headquarters. It works to prevent and respond to violence, to increase access to services for survivors, and to make private and public spaces safer for women and girls. At the global level, we work to advance international policies, providing support to the United Nations General Assembly and the Commission on the Status of Women and ensuring that all development agenda includes specific targets to end violence against women and girls.
Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW) is a central pillar of UN Women’s strategy to achieve gender equality and women’s empowerment by 2030, as articulated in its Strategic Plan 2022-2025, reflected in the Gender Equality Accelerator on EVAW and outlined in the Action Coalition on GBV. This recognises that VAWG is both a cause and consequence of gender inequality and a barrier to achieving the SDGs, and it promotes a comprehensive and whole-of-society approach.
Violence and women’s fear of it limit women’s choices in virtually all spheres of life. It has long-term, as well as short-term, consequences on women’s physical and emotional well-being. It detrimentally affects women’s ability to gain an education, earn a livelihood, develop human relationships and participate in public activities, including development programmes. Over the past few years, UN Women has played a critical role in coordinating and shaping the programming approaches to the prevention of VAW. Notable among these efforts are.
- Collaborating with WHO and other UN agencies to develop frameworks for prevention, including The Framework to Underpin Action to Prevent Violence against Women and the RESPECT Women: Preventing Violence against Women and its implementation package,
- Facilitating a transformative approach to promoting positive social norm change, including through addressing toxic masculinities,
- Promoting a whole of government approach to preventing violence against women through supporting the formulation of national action plans on VAWG prevention and
- Strengthening programming through the development of frameworks and tools to inform practice and evidence-based programming
Objective
UN Women EVAW section is seeking to recruit a consultant to develop a prevention strategy that analyses the current prevention ecosystem, UN Women’s vantage points and footprints in the field of prevention over the years and proposes pathways for prevention programming and policy advocacy that is aligned to what is happening in the prevention field, who we are and what we can do well. The consultant will synthesize already existing documents in the field of prevention, including those developed by UN Women., speak with UN Women staff from Cos, ROs, and HQ, as well as with a few colleagues from other thematic areas that work closely with the EVAW thematic area and engage with other UN agencies, Development Partners and CSOs who play central roles in the field of prevention of VAW to help put together a strategy to inform our EVAW prevention direction for the 4-5 years.
Description Of Responsibilities /Scope Of Work
The consultant will be reporting to the Policy Specialist- Prevention and shall undertake the following tasks:
Deliverable Expected completion time (due day)
Synthesis report summarizing key trends, gaps, challenges, and opportunities in prevention, with actionable insights. April 15, 2025
Draft prevention strategy document for review, including a vision, objectives, and proposed actions for 4-5 years. May 10, 2025
Final prevention strategy document, incorporating feedback and providing a clear and coherent framework for action. May 30, 2025
All the deliverables will be provided in English and electronic copy.
Education and Certification:
Education:
- A master’s degree in social sciences, human rights, gender/women's studies, international development, or a related field is required. A PhD in a relevant field is an advantage.
- A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
- Minimum 10 years of proven experience at the international level in the design, planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of ending violence against women programs.
- Technical expertise and thought leadership in evidence-based approaches to preventing violence against women and girls
- Proven experience in designing and conducting participatory approaches to research, particularly in the field of EVAW, is a strong asset
- Strong communication skills (ability to moderate meetings and give presentations)
Excellent verbal and written English skills.
Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel
This is a home-based consultancy, with no expected travel.
Competencies :
Core Values:
- Integrity;
- Professionalism;
- Respect for Diversity.
- Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
- Accountability;
- Creative Problem Solving;
- Effective Communication;
- Inclusive Collaboration;
- Stakeholder Engagement;
- Leading by Example.
Functional Competencies:
- Good knowledge of gender equality and women’s rights issues
- Excellent writing and analytical skills in English
- Knowledge and understanding of UN system and familiarity with inter-governmental processes
- Flawless attention to detail and organizational skills
- Strong sense of responsibility, confidentiality, and accountability.
- Strong problem-solving and analytical skills.
This is a home-based consultancy, with no expected travel.
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.)
