UN Women Short Term Consultant to Prepare the National Report on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA) +20

The Presidency
Ministry of Devolution and Planning
State Department of Planning

and

UN Women

Terms of Reference for a Short Term Consultant to Prepare the National Report on Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action (BPFA) +20

1.0 Background

The Agreed Conclusions of 58th session of CSW called for the post-2015 development agenda to contain a standalone goal on gender equality, women’s empowerment and the human rights of women and girls, and for gender equality to be mainstreamed throughout all other goals. Importantly, the agreed conclusions point out the critical gender equality issues that were insufficiently addressed in the MDGs, signaling priorities for the post-2015 development agenda.In addition, Kenya being a member state of the United Nations is in receipt of resolution E/RES/2013/18, of the United Nations Economic and Social Council which has called upon all member states to undertake comprehensive national-level reviews of the progress made and challenges encountered in the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly.

The resolution states that; at its fifty-ninth session, in 2015, the Commission (CSW) will undertake a review and appraisal of the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action and the outcomes of the twenty-third special session of the General Assembly, including current challenges that affect the implementation of the Platform for Action and the achievement of gender equality and the empowerment of women, as well as opportunities for strengthening gender equality and the empowerment of women in the post-2015 development agenda through the integration of a gender perspective.” {UN Women/ UNECA Guidance note for the preparation of national reviews on twentieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women and the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action 2015}
Based on the above, Kenya is expected to undertake comprehensive national reviews, prepare and send the Country report to the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) who are coordinating the regional review process. The report should be received no later than 30th June 2014. UN-Women and the five United Nations regional commissions are collaborating in the review and appraisal process.
The agreed conclusions for the 58th CSW called upon member states to disseminate agreed upon issues through a national stakeholders meeting. Notably, the 58th session provided an opportunity for gender equality and women’s empowerment progress and challenges to be reported against all the goals of the MDGs. This has been noted as critical in the review of the Beijing platform for action which will be the main focus in the 59thCSW.
3.0 Scope of Work

The Ministry of Devolution and Planning through the Gender Directorate as the national gender machinery is spearheading the Beijing + 20 review process. 

Consequently, the Ministry has convened a technical committee that includes UN Women, MDG unit within Ministry of Devolution and Planning, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, National Gender and Equality Commission, Kenya National Human Rights Commission and three civil society organizations deemed to be actively engaged in intergovernmental processes and the Kenya Women Parliamentary Association (KEWOPA). The Ministry of Devolution and Planning with the support of UN Women is therefore seeking the services of a Consultant who will work with the Committee to undertake the assessment and compile the Beijing +20 national review report.
In preparing the report, It is required that the National Review should place emphasis on implementation and contain concrete, evidence-based assessments on the impact of actions taken and of results achieved, supplemented by evaluations, research publications, reports, as well as qualitative and quantitative data. Countries are also encouraged to discuss progress and achievements as well as setbacks and challenges. The review should also highlight future plans and initiatives to achieve gender equality and the empowerment of women. The regional commissions will use the national reviews to prepare regional assessment reports that will be submitted to regional intergovernmental processes in the course of 2014 including post 2015.
Based on the above, the Consultant will working closely with the technical committee and technical staff from the Gender Directorate. More specifically, the Consultant will use the following guidelines which have been provided by UNECA to facilitate in preparing the report:
1) In section one; cover the period since the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. They should be informed by a variety including MDGs reports, ICPD reports, the global review of gender statistics programmes in countries administered by the United Nations regional commissions and presented to the UN Statistical Commission in February 2013, and other national assessments.
2) In section two; the national reviews should address progress in the twelve critical areas of concern of the Platform for Action, with an emphasis on the years since 2009.
3) In Section three; should cover issues related to data and statistics.
4) Section four; should address key emerging issues in terms of opportunities and challenges in implementing the Platform for Action and additional priorities, including recommendations to strengthen gender equality and the empowerment of women in the current discussions on Sustainable Development Goals and the post-2015 development agenda.In line with the scope of work, the Consultant will work closely with the technical team and the Gender Directorate in carrying out the assignment. i. Drafting the document as per the guidelines above as expert input in addition to the input of the national consultation processes.
ii. Presenting the final report in soft copy as per stipulated deadlines to the Gender Directorate before it is commissioned for printing.
iii. Presenting the methods of work at inception and draft report substantive content to the technical committee as per stipulated work plan.
 4.0 Output – deliverables

The Consultant shall provide:-

Inception ReportThe Kenya report on Beijing Platform for Action +20The assignment is for a period of 20 days commencing 6th June, 2014.6.0 Key Performance Indicators
The Kenya report on Beijing Platform for Action +20The ideal Consultant for this assignment should preferably have a Master’s degree in the field of Gender, human rights, law, social and must have demonstrable experience of not less than 10 years in undertaking similar work.
In addition to this the applicant should:-Have knowledge of international conventions and treaties;Be aware of United Nations undertakings;Sound knowledge of Gender issues, the MDGs and the post 2015 agenda;Demonstrate their understanding of the TOR;Submit a detailed CV with relevant certificates; Demonstrate the ability and capacity to undertake the assignment. This should include details of similar assignments and one page write up which clearly outlines how they will carry out the assignmentHave fluency in English, excellent writing skills and demonstrable capacity to work with diverse stakeholders-including Government of Kenya officials.Computer literacy is critical.Duration: The consultant will work for 20 days from 2nd June –26th June, 2014.
Timelines for the Consultant

Deliverables and timelines to be agreed uponTechnical team 1st draft report review for Beijing +20Beijing + 20 national consultation meetingTechnical team 2nd draft report review for Beijing +20Final report submitted to Gender Directorate
Interested and qualified applicants should submit their applications through the email address - consultancies.eharo@unwomen.org on or before 3rd June 2014 with the following subject line: UNW KCO/ BPFA / 14