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; empowerment of women; and achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women's rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States' priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.
UN Women Albania is implementing its Strategic Note (SN) 2022-2026 which aims to ensure that “All Women and girls enjoy and exercise their human rights in a gender equal society and meaningfully contribute to Albania’s sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development and EU integration”. To achieve such result, UN Women is focusing on three outcomes, which mirror verbatim the areas of focus of the United Nations Albania:
Increased and more equitable investment in people to remove barriers and create opportunities for those at risk of exclusion. Innovative and integrated policy solutions that accelerate sustainable, productive and inclusive development. Gender-responsive governance that strengthens equality and non-discrimination.As part of the implementation of its Strategic Note, UN Women will continue support the Government of Albania to align its national legal and policy framework with international human rights standards on gender equality, as well as facilitating networking and exchanges of good practices and advocate for women’s rights in all areas of life. Several ongoing initiatives support strengthening national policies and legislations, improve institutional capacities to implement international commitments, and promote the production of knowledge and information on the status of gender equality in the country. In addition, during this SN period, the country office has supported the CEDAW Committee session (2023), the UPR reporting (2024), the Beijing +30 review (2024), and will continue supporting their follow up on the coming years including possible the submission of a Voluntary national Review by the Government of Albania. UN Women will also follow up on the implementation of other key recommendations proposed by international instruments such as GREVIO (2024) and the Committee of Parties in Albania and the reporting against the priority 2023 CEDAW Concluding Observations (due in 2025).
Numerous aspects of UN Women intervention require legal expertise and support, including conducting legal reviews and assessments, producing legal analysis and key recommendations for improving existing frameworks in line with international standards and best practices as well as with EU requirements, especially in the current EU integration process which requires alignment of national laws with international and EU standards, and provide legal trainings and capacity building initiatives in the areas of EU laws and EU integration.
In this context, the country office is seeking to hire national legal experts (who will advise on and support the implementation of activities related to legal analysis and support to gender equality and human rights in Albania, across the thematic areas covered by the office, including by providing expert-level support to relevant project managers. This will include support to the normative and inter-governmental work of the Country Office and as part of the UNCT as well as implementation of the “EU for Gender Equality Phase II – Gender Equality Facility in Albania” project supported by the EU Delegation in Tirana, the “Empower Women for Rural Development in Northern Albania” project supported by the Italian Agency for Development and Cooperation, the UNJP on EVAW Phase II project the Regional UN Joint Programme “EU for Gender Equality: Women’s Economic Empowerment and Ending Violence Against Women” funded by the European Commission, and the direct Strategic Note funding project, funded by Sida and other projects or programmes implemented by the Country Office.
Under the overall supervision of the UN Women Head of Programme and relevant project managers, the legal consultant/s will be requested to provide technical assistance and legal expertise across the projects’ thematic areas. . Every assignment under the retainer contract will be guided by a specific assignment clearly stipulating the nature and scope of work, list of deliverables, timeframe and the outcome.
Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work
Possible duties and responsibilities/Key Results Expected (non-inclusive list):
Support in conducting legal research, legal review and analysis of specific legislation from a gender equality perspective. Provide recommendations on the improvement of GE related legislation in line with EU integration requirements and the legal approximation process, including in the thematic areas of violence against women, women’s economic empowerment and rural development, peace and security, governance and others, in line with international human rights law and EU law. Provision of advice and expertise in the development of policies around the thematic areas mentioned above, indicating best practices nationally and internationally to UN Women and relevant national institutions (including but not limited to Prime minister office , Office of the Chief negotiator, the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Justice amongst others). Design and conducti trainings/coaching on various aspects of legal response measures to promote gender equality, including but not limited to the following topics: International legal instruments on gender equality and EU integration across sectors; Alignment process of national laws and EU and international standards and key gender mainstreaming principles in legal documents; International legal instruments on gender equality; National legal framework and strategies/plans on gender equality; Specific legal obligations of relevant services providers stemming from national and international legal framework on gender equality.Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel
This is a home-based consultancy with in-country travel as needed
As this is a retainer contract, the consultant will be paid at the end of each assignment.
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:
Proven research, analytical and drafting skills, Demonstrated ability to interact effectively with various public and non-public stakeholders including in the areas of gender equality and violence against women; Excellent writing skills in English and Albanian; Strong interpersonal skills; Strong initiative-taker; Focuses on impact and results for the partner; Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.Education and Certification:
Master’s degree in the area of Law or Human Rights.Experience:
At least 15 years of relevant professional experience as a legal professional in the areas of gender equality, EU approximation process from a legal perspective; At least 10 years of experience in legal analysis and legal reviews on gender equality Prior experience in EU Law and International human rights law Experience in developing training modules and delivering trainings on legal obligations of service providers at the central and local levels on gender equality and human rights; Previous experience with UN system or similar international organisations would be an advantage.Languages:
Proficiency in written and spoken English and Albanian
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.