Consultancy - DEVELOPMENT OF A STRATEGIC ACTION PLAN FOR THE GREAT LAKES REGIONAL WOMEN’S FORUM OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE FOR THE GREAT LAKES (ICGLR)

International Consultancy: Eastern and Southern Africa regional office, South Africa.
Duty Station: Remote, supported by the East and Southern Africa Regional

Office (ESARO)

Duration of the contract and timeline: 01 August 2022 to 30 October 2022 (This assignment is for 30-person days over a period of 3 months)

Deadline for applications: 24 th July 2022 05:00 PM (America/New York)

Background
The purpose of the consultancy is to support the ongoing development of the Regional Women’s Forum (RWF) of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) through the development of a regional strategic action plan, and a plan to operationalise the secretariat function of the RWF . The UNFPA, together with UNDP, UN Women, and the Office of the Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, is jointly implementing an EU-funded Programme in support of ICGLR with the overall objective to promote ongoing peacebuilding and consolidation efforts in the African Great Lakes Region.

The three overall outcomes of the project are:
 Outcome 1: The ICGLR Peace and Security Programme is strengthened.
 Outcome 2: Control of the exploitation of selected mineral resources (tungsten, tin, tantalum and gold) is enhanced.
 Outcome 3: The provisions of the Protocol on Prevention and Suppression of Sexual Violence Against Women and Children are effectively applied in the Great Lakes Region. 

UNFPA is responsible for activities under Outcome 1, i.e. “A1.5 Support for the participation of the ICGLR Fora (multifunctional regional Women Forum, Women Forum, Civil Society Forum and Private Sector Forum) in the ICGLR consultative process”. This consultancy is part of the activities planned in support of strengthening activities of the RWF. 

The Regional Women's Forum is one of the bodies established by the ICGLR Secretariat within the framework of the Regional Mechanism for Monitoring the Implementation of the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region. It is a specific mechanism for coordination and monitoring of gender issues within the framework of the Pact, which aims to strengthen women's rights in the Great Lakes Region, promote equitable participation of women and men at
all levels, in order to ensure that the principle of women's empowerment and gender equality is rooted in the ICGLR governance and development processes and ensures gender mainstreaming into the policies, programs and legislation of the countries of the conference.

Following the successful convening of the 3 rd General Assembly of the RWF, held in Bujumbura between 18-20 May 2022, and the election of a new Steering Committee and Bureau, there is a need to review the strategic direction of the RWF. It is important at this juncture to ensure that the RWF continues with the momentum generated and retains its relevance in its spheres of influence, and is harmonizing and aligning its roles, mandates and activities with the national fora in the region. In addition a key requirement identified for the effective operation of the RWF is to establish a functioning Secretariat that can ensure that the day-day activities of the RWF are carried out.

Supervision Arrangements
This consultancy assignment will be supervised jointly by UNFPA ESARO, the ICGLR Secretariat (Dir: Gender, Women and Children), and the RWF Bureau.
The day-day monitoring and guidance will be provided by the UNFPA ESARO Regional Program Specialist - Adolescent and Women, together with the UNFPA-appointed International Consultant appointed to implement Outcome A1.5 of the EUUN programme.

Monitoring and progress control:
Weekly update and review of progress against KPIs set in Inception Report.
Report of strategic planning workshop to be submitted within 1-week of the workshop including outcomes and key decisions made (if applicable).
 

Delivery dates and how work will be delivered:
The initial Inception Report to be submitted 10 days after appointment, including methodology and detailed plan of work. A draft 3-year strategic plan (2023-25) and action plan outline (2023) should be submitted by 15th September 2022. The final 3-year strategic plan and action plan outline should be submitted by 15th October 2022.

A draft plan to operationalise the Secretariat functions, with 2-year budget, should be submitted by 31 st September 2022. The final plan to operationalise the Secretariat functions should be submitted by 30 th October 2022.
 

Expected travel:
This consultancy will be home-based, with possible trip to region to facilitate strategic planning workshop.
 

General Objective
The overall objective is two-fold:

i) To develop a three-year Regional Strategic Plan that aligns and harmonizes RWF strategic direction with the objectives and activities of the ICGLR, Women, Peace and Security (WPS) in the Great Lakes, National Women Fora and other Women-led organizations in the Great Lakes region, and

ii) To develop a realistic and affordable plan of action to establish and operate the Secretariat of the RWF for a period of 2 years from establishment. The
organisational structure and functions need to be aligned with the activities of the proposed Regional Strategy and Action Plan.
 

Scope of Consultancy:
The scope is the development of a new strategic framework for RWF that will take into account the Forum’s current internal and external operating environment to enhance effectiveness and sustainability in the area of programming, policy, and advocacy in the Great Lakes Region. It is expected that the strategic framework, will build on RWF’s previous achievements and take into consideration its current operating environment. 

The regional strategic plan will clearly define:

 RWF’s Vision, Mission, strategic areas, and objectives; including priority focus areas for the
strategic period.
 RWF’s situational context, through a SWOT, PEST, and other relevant analysis.
 RWF’s sustainability plan; including proposals for effective financial and human resource
strategies.
 RWF’s stakeholder map and identify relevant strategies to engage them to advance the
organization’s stated objectives.
 RWF’s functional organizational and leadership structure.
 Monitoring and reporting framework to enable effective tracking of the strategic plan.
 Risk analysis and management approach.
 Costing of the strategic plan.
The regional strategic plan development will be a participatory process that will encompass the
following activities
 A review of internal documents and benchmark with similar institutions and organizations
 Consultations between RWF’s Executive Committee, staff, selected partners and
stakeholders to review the current operational environment and set priorities for the
strategic plan.
 Holding a strategic planning workshop with staff, Executive Committee members, and
selected stakeholders to generate proposals and inputs that will feed into the draft Strategic
plan.
 Developing a draft 3-year Regional Strategic Plan.
 Draft and outline and suggestions for a 1-year Regional Action Plan based on the Regional

Strategy
The plan to establish and operate the Secretariat of the RWF will make reference to the proposed activities and outcomes of the draft Strategic and Action Plans, and cover an initial period of 2 years.

The plan to establish and operate the Secretariat of the RWF will clearly define:
 Status of the Host Government Agreement and way forward to establishing the Secretariat.
 The key functions and areas of responsibility of the Secretariat.
 Key performance indicators (outputs) of the Secretariat (quarterly deliverables)
 Resources required to carry out its key functions and achieve proposed deliverables
 Optimum and efficient organigram of the Secretariat
 Draft Job Descriptions of the main functionaries of the Secretariat
 Budget that includes set-up costs and a 2-Year operational budget

Key Deliverables
 Inception Report
 Regional Strategic Plan (2023-25)
 Regional Action Plan (2023)
 Operational Plan for the Establishment of RWF Secretariat in Kigali, Rwanda (incl. 2-year
budget)

Qualifications and Experience needed
 

Education
A minimum of a postgraduate qualification in the field of Organizational Management, Strategic
Planning, Peacebuilding, or a related field.

Experience
Essential:

 A minimum of 5 years of experience in strategic planning and/or organisational
development;
 A working knowledge of unique challenges faced by women in the Africa Great Lakes
region, including gender-related issues, women capacities for peace, gender-based
violence, etc;
 A good understanding of the regional operational environment and key stakeholders, for
women-focussed and women-led organizations working in the fields of gender and
peacebuilding in the Great Lakes region;
 Excellent inter-personal and facilitation skills;
 Exceptional ability to communication (oral and writing) in English and French;
 Highly motivated and committed to values of Professionalism, Accountability,
Confidentiality, Integrity, and Teamwork.

Desirable:
 Experience in organizational development/strengthening
 Experience in organizational management/support, e.g. through secretariat functions
 Experience from international development context/s
 Experience of the UN-system, regional economic communities or government agencies
 Working knowledge of Portuguese (oral and writing)

How to apply:
Interested applicants should send an expression of interest (EOI) highlighting relevant experience in delivering similar work with relevant links, a detailed CV & an example of a recent similar work conducted to jobs.esaro@unfpa.org . The email subject should clearly state "ICGLR Regional Strategy Development Consultancy". The CV should include at least three (3) references. 
UNFPA will only respond to those applicants who meet the criteria and in whom we have further interest.

Disclaimer
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connection with the application or recruitment process. Fraudulent notices, letters, or offers may be
submitted to the UNFPA fraud hotline http://www.unfpa.org/help/hotline.cfm
UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, teamwork,
Embracing diversity in all its forms, integrity, and a healthy balance of work and life. We are
committed to maintaining our balanced gender distribution and therefore encourage women to
apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities for all including persons with disabilities.