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The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes. It advocates at the local, national and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation.
The Strategy and Knowledge Department (SKD) provides expert guidance on IFAD's strategic direction, thematic priorities and technical quality of IFADโs operations. It plays a critical role in providing technical expertise to operational teams to enhance development effectiveness, by generating ย and ย disseminating IFADโs development knowledge and evidence on strategic themes, and encouraging innovative application of cutting-edge global knowledge and evidence in IFAD investments to support countries tackle their most complex development challenges in fostering inclusive and sustainable rural transformation. SKD is composed of the (i) Environment, Climate, Gender and Social Inclusion Division (ECG); the (ii) Sustainable Production, Markets and Institutions Division (PMI); and the (iii) Research and Impact Assessment Division (RIA).
ECG is composed of two clusters: (i) Environment and Climate Change Cluster; (ii) and the Social Inclusion Cluster. ECG takes the lead in integrating cross-cutting themes of environment and climate, nutrition, gender, youth, and indigenous peoples into IFAD's portfolio, with the aim of strengthening the quality and impact of IFADโs operations. ECG also contributes to the generation of evidence and knowledge on these themes, and facilitates their use in IFAD-funded projects and activities. In addition, ECG provides guidance and support to ensure the inclusion of marginalized groups, particularly women, indigenous peoples and rural youth, into IFAD operations. Addressing environmental, biodiversity and climate change issues are inseparable from IFADโs mission to overcome poverty.
Job Role ย
Consultancies play a critical role in the execution of IFADโs mandate and our impact on the ground. Rosters are designed for junior and senior experts whose skills are required for specific project assignments. Given the different technical and time-duration nature of assignments, IFAD is looking for consultants of varying ability and experience.
Consultants may be contacted for specific assignment throughout the year and the remuneration will be commensurate with candidate's qualifications, experience and skills as well as the nature of the assignment in terms of:
- Responsibilities and complexities of the assignment.
- The degree of specialization required.
Consultants are not considered staff of IFAD. Consultancy assignments do not carry any expectation of employment, extension or conversion to another type of contract with the Fund. Consultants can be recruited for a maximum of 240 days in 1 calendar year and 960 days in 5 calendar years.
Key Functions and Results ย
Reporting to the Lead Technical Specialist - Gender and Social Inclusion,ย the GEWE consultant will conduct the following activities where and when applicable to the specific assignment:
- Join design, supervision, implementation support, mid-term review, or completion missions and conduct tasks related to Gender, Targeting and Social Inclusion as indicated in the mission TORs;
At design:
- Review the country context (legal, political, institutional, social, cultural and sector policies) relevant to GEWE in relation to the project thematic focus;
- Conduct a participatory gender-sensitive rural poverty and livelihoods analysis in the proposed project area(s) to identify and better understand the needs, priorities and expectations of poor rural people (including their livelihood strategies and outcomes, vulnerabilities and coping mechanisms, local poverty processes and rural institutions);
- Develop gender-sensitive TOCs, gender mainstreaming strategies, define implementation mechanisms, and other products needed to ensure that the project identifies opportunities to support GEWE and facilitates womenโs participation in project interventions;
- Provide inputs into the M&E framework, project logframe and learning systems to incorporate gender and social inclusion perspectives, including the use of participatory approaches and disaggregated data and indicators, and to measure performance of the project strategies. Or review it when support is expected at implementation;
- Identify opportunities to mainstream approaches which address the root causes of gender inequality and disempowerment, such as household methodologies where possible, or assess the status of their implementation where and when applicable. Capture gaps and areas of improvements;
- Provide technical support, as required, forย the Social Environment and Climate Assessment Procedures (SECAP) background reportย with a focus on poverty, livelihood, gender, nutrition, youth, persons with disabilities and Indigenous peoples as appropriate.
At implementation, mid-term and completion:
- Identify implementation arrangements, risks and mitigation measures, costs and financing to ensure effective implementation of the gender strategy;
- Identify and describe factors and constraints that have influenced project implementation, including technical, bureaucratic, managerial, organizational, institutional and socio-economic policy issues, in addition to other external factors unforeseen during design, and how these have affected the project in terms of implementation delays and shortfalls, and impact on the beneficiaries;
- Assess how project M&E systems incorporate gender and social inclusion perspectives, including the use of participatory approaches and disaggregated data and indicators, conduct or guide analyses to ascertain the equitable distribution of project benefits, measure or support the measurement of changes linked to gender equality and empowerment and to measure performance of the project strategies;
- Document gender transformative efforts of the project and assess the prospects of sustainability of project benefits beyond project completion;
- Identify any potential for the replication or up-scaling of best project practices;
- Identify lessons from what worked and what didnโt work on gender, targeting and social inclusion;
- Contribute to the identification of gender-related good practices and stories from the field;
Other Activities
- Contribute to start-up workshops and other capacity development activities as required,
- Contribute to technical written sections of mission reports or to the development of other technical reports as required.
Key Performance Indicators ย
Assignments require the provision of authoritative technical expertise in the field of specialization. The Consultant Technical Specialists - Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (GEWE) design and contribute to the delivery, implementation support and supervision of investment projects and country programmes. The impact on the overall IFAD country and regional programmes is significant in projecting the Fundโs role/capacity as a reliable, viable partner in development. Work is intricate in that it requires consideration of a wide range of technical factors and related data, national policies relevant for the economic policy concerns of the international organization. The Consultant Technical Specialistย - Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (GEWE) - might also monitorย and guideย the work of external consultants and might participate as expertย in field missions and in the servicing of intergovernmental and expert group meetings of a technical nature.
The work is considered moderately complex requiring in-depth technical analysis and reporting. Typically operating as a Technical Specialist at the country or regional levels, the Consultant's work may be reviewed for technical accuracy, but more typically is reviewed for supportingย the established work plan.
Working Relationships ย
The Consultant Techical Specialist - Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment (GEWE) works under the direct supervison of the Lead Technical Specialist - Gender and Social Inclusion,ย and also liaises directly with the Regional Gender and Social Inclusion specialists to provide support to IFAD programmes
The work relationships of Technical Specialists at this level are primarily for the exchange of information regarding development projects. Information-gathering and exchange in support of studies and thematic assignments may also include identifying reliable sources and establishing guidelines for obtaining information on national and sub-regional levelย conditions, and to convey methodological approaches and operational experience for implementation of activities undertaken on behalf of the Fund.
Job Profile Requirements ย
Organizational Competencies:
Level 1:
- Building relationships and partnerships - Builds and maintains effective working relationships
- Communicating and negotiating - Communicates effectively; creates understanding between self and others
- Demonstrating leadership - Personal leadership and attitude to change
- Focusing on clients - Focuses on clients
- Learning, sharing knowledge and innovating - Continuously seeks to learn, shares knowledge & innovates
- Managing performance and developing staffย
- Managing time, resources and information - Manages own time, information and resources effectively
- Problem-solving and decision-making - Demonstrates sound problem-solving and decision-making ability
- Strategic thinking and organizational development - Personal influence
- Team working - Contributes effectively to the team
Education:
- Advanced university degree from an accredited institution listed on https://www.whed.net/home.php in a job related field (*): ย ย ย
- Areas - Agriculture, Rural Development, Social Studies, Gender Studies, Development Studies, Economics, Management, International Relations.
- Join design, supervision, implementation support, mid-term review, or completion missions and conduct tasks related to Gender, Targeting and Social Inclusion as indicated in the mission TORs;