UN Women: Knowledge Management and Capacity Development Specialist, New York, P-3

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.

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is among the most pervasive and serious violations of human rights, with inextricable links to broader peace and security. Globally, one in three women have been subjected to violence; the global cost of violence against women has been estimated at approximately US$ 1.5 trillion.

Against this background, Spotlight Initiative was launched in 2017 as the world’s largest effort to end violence against women and girls. A pooled fund of the United Nations (UN) system, Spotlight Initiative is an SDG Accelerator, a United Nations High Impact Initiative to deliver on the 2030 Agenda and a model for localization, unifying communities, civil society, governments, donors, and experts under a common approach rooted in local needs. Spotlight Initiative is also a model for operationalizing the UN Development System reforms. 

Spotlight Initiative has over 6 years, delivered proof of concept across 25 countries and 5 regions and will now scale up to greater investment and reach, bringing on board new countries and new partnerships. The Initiative will deepen its "whole-of-society" approach, placing the goal of ending violence against women and girls at the centre of national development priorities. Spotlight Initiative promotes a multi-sectoral approach to the complex issue of violence against women and girls and its variety of root causes. The Initiative's workstreams include four main pillars: 1. Laws, policies, and institutions; 2. Prevention and social norms change; 3. Response and services for survivors and perpetrators’ accountability; and 4. Support to civil society and women’s movements. 

Under the leadership of the Executive Office of the UN Secretary-General and following the guidance received from the Spotlight Initiative’s Governance Mechanisms, the day-to-day management of the Spotlight Initiative is led by a Secretariat, housed within the Development Coordination Office (DCO) with a reporting line to the Executive Office of the Secretary-General and servicing the whole UN System. 

The Secretariat's core technical responsibilities are to support the design, implementation, and monitoring of comprehensive and effective country programmes on EVAWG, to contribute to increased global awareness, knowledge sharing, and networking on EVAWG as well as to ensure that the achievements and results of the Spotlight Initiative are expanded and sustained. Specifically, the Secretariat is responsible for the following outputs: 1) data and research on GBV and various forms of violence at the global and regional levels is enhanced and disseminated; 2) technical package in line with the Spotlight Initiative model, and evidence-based strategies, knowledge, and tools on violence against women and girls is consolidated and made available for new programmes and advocacy purposes 3) global and regional strategic partnerships are expanded to advance efforts on ending gender-based violence, including through communication, behaviour change strategies, events, and campaigns; and 4) increased expertise at country level to ensure the development and sustainability of comprehensive programmes to end violence against women and girls in line with Spotlight Initiative model. 

Under the direct supervision of the Technical Specialist, the Knowledge Management and Capacity Development Specialist is responsible for overseeing the knowledge management and capacity development functions of the Initiative. The Knowledge Management and Capacity Development Specialist will be responsible for coordinating the collection and dissemination of good practices and lessons-learned to ensure the achievements of the Initiative are codified, expanded, and sustained. He/she will also coordinate knowledge sharing and strategic exchange in service of global policy, programming, and advocacy on EVAWG, and provide capacity development support on EVAWG and knowledge management efforts for the Initiative’s programmes.

Key Functions and Accountabilities:

Provide technical support in the development and implementation of the Initiative’s EVAWG/HP programmes:

• Provide technical support to the development and implementation of Spotlight Initiative programmes and the development and implementation of program-level capacity development strategies on EVAWG.
• Work in close collaboration with the Initiative’s core implementing agencies, including to review and vet country programme proposals.
• Provide technical support in the contextualization