UN Women: Gender Mainstreaming Consultant, Home-Based, International Consultant, Retainer

Background/Context

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.

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.

Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has five key program priorities: (1) Integrated Programming and Localization, (2) Women’s movement building through core grant making; 3) Policy and Research; 4) Economic Resilience and Private Sector and 5) Coordination, Access and Humanitarian Response. UN Women Afghanistan operates through its main office in Kabul and five suboffices located in the provinces of Balkh, Bamyan, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar.

It is essential that Afghan women and girls can continue to shape the development of their country, and that their gains are protected. UN Women remains fully committed to supporting Afghan women and girls and to putting them at the center of the global response to the crisis in Afghanistan. Per the General Assembly’s 2020 resolution on the Quadrennial Comprehensive Policy Review (QCPR, A/75/233), accelerating progress on gender equality is a core function of UNCTs. Evidence generated for these standards and procedures showed that GTGs play an important role in Cooperation Framework development, in consensus building on national gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) priorities, and in driving cross-thematic collaboration.

UNCT in Afghanistan endorsed the workplan of the Gender Theme Group and UNCT Capacity Development Plan, which inter alia envisages gender equality training for all personnel, as well as implementing partners. In 2025, DSRG-Development/Resident Coordinator/Humanitarian Coordinator (DSRSG-RC/HC) Integrated Office (“Integrated Office”) developed gender mainstreaming training materials in cooperation with UN Women. These materials were tested and delivered through two gender mainstreaming sessions with UN personnel in Afghanistan, and subsequently further contextualized. To this end, UN Women is recruiting a consultant to support the work of the UNCT and GTG, in delivery of gender mainstreaming trainings to the UN personnel and their implementing partners, on the basis of previously developed tailor-made contextualized materials and delivery of system-wide training.

The consultant will be reporting to the Gender Equality Coordinator (DRSG-D/RC/HC Integrated Office) and designated staff members who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

The envisaged time frame of consultancy is estimated to be up to maximum 50 working days during the period from August 2026 to July 2027.

In response to significant needs for strengthening capacities on Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) in the implementation and delivery of Basic Human Needs (BHN) programmes, the consultant will provide expert guidance and support to variety of stakeholders (inside and outside the UN system), including training and capacity-building activities, as they may relate to:

• Deepening participants’ knowledge of core gender concepts, policies, and frameworks relevant to BHN programming.
• Enhancing participants’ abilities to integrate gender considerations into planning, programming, and M&E.
• Providing participants with hands-on experience in reviewing and analyzing gender-mainstreamed project/program designs and gender-responsive M&E frameworks (with special focus on conducting gender analyses, applying UNCT gender equality markers (GEMs), collecting sex disaggregated data).
• Identifying practical strategies, tools, and approaches to replicate and adapt the training within participants’ own
  organizations, supporting cascaded capacity-building across the UN system in Afghanistan and with implementing