Policy Development Specialist - Local post for nationals of Pakistan

Background

Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women is working closely with national and provincial women machineries, women commissions, women parliamentary caucuses and especially Women Development Departments (WDD) to develop their capacities in initiating, promoting, and implementing pro-women policies, legislation, initiatives, and services. In KP and Balochistan, UN Women is supporting the provincial governments’ efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into effective action in the province.

The implementation of the GEWE Policy 2020-2024 also posed challenges during its lifeline and with new developments taking place the policy requires alignment. UN Women in collaboration with the Women Development Departments of KP and Balochistan, is planning to Update,  and review, the provincial Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) policy in both provinces to determine its alignment and compatibility with the Rule of Law Roadmaps of both provinces and other Pro Women Initiatives conceived since 2021 and finally with the international human rights instruments. The aim is to provide recommendations and technical assistance to help concerned provincial departments to improve the GEWE Policy in all aspects – i.e., social, economic, and political empowerment, Rule of law, Justice Sector Institutions, as well as already identified the 13 key thematic areas identified in the GEWE Policy 2020-24.

For this purpose, UN Women seeks to recruit a consultant to assist Social Welfare and WDD of both provinces for updating and revising along with the developing costed action plan and a well guided implementation framework for action for provincial Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) 2025-2029 policy in KP & Balochistan.

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the heads of Sub offices UN Women in KP and Balochistan with close liaison with Secretaries of Social Welfare and Women Development Department.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of Portfolio Lead EVAW, Governance & HR the Policy Development Specialist will:

• Conduct a thorough analysis of existing policies, structures, institutions, and mechanisms relevant to the GEWE Policies in KP and Balochistan.
• Conduct a detailed mapping exercise of all data collection platforms related and specific to Women platforms and Gender i.e., CEDAW, Treaty Implementation Cell in IPC, PIMS at DU, NGDP, and other platforms and provide an analysis of the data produced and identify gaps.
• Undertake a desk review of international best practices of government-wide coordination, implementation, monitoring and accountability systems for gender equality and women’s empowerment policies to inform the decision makers.
• Assess the gaps in the current GEWE Policy Balochistan and the potential for adjusting/ establishing new mechanisms and structures to improve the government’s accountability for gender equality and women’s empowerment commitments.
• Apply consultative process with  multi-stakeholder groups including relevant government departments,  women’s machinery (CSW, Women’s Parliamentary Caucus, Ombudsperson Office), Justice Sector institutions, civil society organizations including EVAWG Alliance and other key actors, to analyze gaps and provide recommendations – consultations to be held in different divisions of Balochistan in order to include rural and urban aspects of women’s development.
• The consultant will be Updating, Reviewing the current policy, Re- Aligning the policy with Rule of Law Roadmap 2023-2027, WDD Sector Plan 2022 and other pro women instruments conceived after 2021, and developing costed action plan and a well guided implementation framework for action.
• Update and revise the GEWE Policy and implementation plan based on stakeholders’ feedback, as well as comments from WDD and UN Women.
• Finalize and share the draft policy along with required deliverables with WDD and UN Women for endorsement.
• Revise and finalize the drafts with feedback received. 

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

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 Core Values and Competencies:

Required Skills and Experience

Qualifications:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in gender, women’s studies, social sciences, international development, international relations or other development-related fields;
• A minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience in development, focused on policy development, technical assistance and/ or programming around gender equality, women’s empowerment and women’s rights issues;
• Experience of writing analytical documents and reports, policy analysis and development of implementation plans;
• Experience in coordination and advocacy.
• Experience of working in Balochistan at the policy level will be an advantage.

Skills and Competencies:

• Demonstrated commitment to UN Women’s mission, vision and values;
• Good knowledge of gender equality, human rights, violence against women, and other gender related issues;
• Familiarity with national and international instruments on human rights, women’s rights and gender equality and Pakistan’s commitments to these instruments;
• Strong knowledge of referring to and applying international norms and standards on gender equality (particularly CEDAW, Beijing Platform for Action, SDG 5, etc.) to provincial, national and regional contexts;
• Knowledge of the local context of the province with regard to gender equality and women’s empowerment;
• Proven ability to establish, build and sustain effective relationships with government agencies, development partners, civil society organizations along with community level women groups;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English and Urdu. Ability to communicate in local language is an asset.
• Computer skills comprising knowledge of Windows, internet communications and command of MS Office applications (Word, Excel, Power Point).

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women

Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from .

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. HEC Attested degrees are a prerequisite for employment at UN. During the recruitment process candidates may be required to present HEC attested degrees. Foreign Qualified Candidates: Foreign degree holders shall be required to (i) Present a verification/certification letter from the university verifying the degree & student enrollment, or (ii) Foreign degree Equivalence Letter from HEC.

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Accessibility:

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 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.

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