Consultant for Liaison Office

Location:  Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Organization: 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.

Through its Liaison Office to the African Union (AU) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), the organization strategically engages with AU organs, Member States, civil society, and the diplomatic community to advance Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) commitments at both continental and regional levels. This Office provides essential technical support for policy formulation and monitoring while facilitating seamless coordination across UN Women’s regional and country offices to ensure coherent advocacy and unified policy engagement.

The Liaison Office further strengthens the African Union Commission (AUC) by providing targeted expertise to the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate (WGYD) and various specialized departments, including Health, Humanitarian Affairs and Social Development (HHSD); Political Affairs, Peace and Security (PAPS); and Education, Science, Technology and Innovation (ESTI). By collaborating with the departments of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment (ARBE) and the Office of the Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security, UN Women ensures that gender is mainstreamed across all AU frameworks and programmes. This collaborative approach extends to UN agencies, development partners, INGOs, and the private sector, driving catalytic initiatives and amplifying good evidence-based practices. Ultimately, the Office leverages knowledge management and strategic advocacy to transform regional commitments into concrete action and measurable impact for women and girls across the African continent.

Reporting to the Special Representative to the AU and UNECA, the Liaison Specialist provides strategic leadership and technical coordination for the regional programme, ensuring coherent planning, effective implementation, and quality assurance across all programme components. The Liaison Specialist oversees the programme portfolio by coordinating engagement with regional partners and stakeholders, strengthening partnerships, leading advocacy and knowledge management efforts.

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work:

Technical coordination and leadership of the Regional Liaison Program:

• Provide strategic leadership in the development and implementation of the Regional liaison portfolio according to the Strategic Note/ programme document;
• Provide technical inputs on policy and programme development regional gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) issues, based on knowledge of good practices and evidence-based approaches, to a range of partners, including the AU, non-governmental and UN partners;
• Maintain and coordinate relationships with Regional/National and programme partners to support implementation and expansion of the Programme/Portfolio, raise potential problems and provide solutions;
• Review and provide feedback on ongoing projects/ programmes on related strategies and documents, workplans, case studies, and related knowledge products and publications;
• Provide strategic technical advice on the development of systems, processes and mechanisms to support programme planning, implementation, monitoring and progress reporting;
• Prepare technical background documents, briefs and other strategic papers/notes for the use in the development and presentation of policy and programmatic positions;
• Provide technical inputs and coordination support to UN’s Regional Coordination Mechanism Clusters, UN Liaison Team and joint initiatives;
• Follow up on agreed action points from technical and coordination meetings, track implementation progress, and flag risks or delays to relevant stakeholders;
• Oversee the monitoring of progress against mutually agreed results frameworks and performance indicators.

Coordinate knowledge management and policy advocacy initiatives:

• Manage knowledge on policy debates, conduct background research, and analyze policy developments and their implications for gender equality;
• Engage in regional policy processes and advocacy initiatives to promote the development and adoption of gender responsive policies, programmes, and initiatives;
• Coordinate high-level regional policy advocacy initiatives, dialogues, and events;
• Facilitate the exchange and dissemination of information, lessons learned, and knowledge products within the programme and with external stakeholders; Coordinate closely with the Partnerships Unit on donor engagement and alignment of messaging and outreach;
• Ensure programme implementation processes and knowledge products are properly documented and aligned with UN Women guidelines and standards;
• Represent UN Women in meetings and conferences on regional GEWE issues.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is an office-based consultancy.

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

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 Values and Competencies Framework:

Functional Competencies:

• Strong knowledge of gender equality, women’s rights issues;
• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Strong budget and finance skills;
• Strong knowledge of Results Based Management;
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports in order to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Excellent analytical skills with strong drive for results and capacity to work independently;
• Good knowledge of UN programme management systems.

Required Qualifications

Education and Certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent or equivalent in public administration, law, human rights, gender equality, management, social sciences or other related areas is required;
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
• A [project/programme management] certification would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in managing complex and multi-component programme interventions with national partners is required;
• Experience in programme management, coordination, monitoring and evaluation, donor reporting and capacity building is required;
• Experience working in a gender related area is desirable;
• Experience in knowledge management, policy advocacy or partnership development, preferably within the UN system or an international development organization;
• Experience leading a team in international settings is required.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Knowledge of any other UN official is an asset.

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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.

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