Gender Equality Specialist – Global Affairs Canada

1. INTRODUCTION
The Government of Canada’s Field Support Services Project in Kenya is contracting the services of an Gender Equality Specialist to support its programming over an initial term of three (3) years with a possibility of a further term of two (2) years. The Specialist will provide field level advice and technical support and policy on matters relating to Gender Equality to Canada’s development assistance program in Kenya.

2. CURRENT GAC PROGRAM IN KENYA
Global Affairs Canada (GAC)’s bilateral development assistance currently prioritizes the following three areas: (1) providing access to safe, quality basic education for the hardest to reach children, particularly girls, in marginalized, drought-prone regions; (2) supporting sustainable and inclusive economic development and enhanced economic opportunities for vulnerable groups, particularly women and youth; and building governance capacity and increasing respect for diversity, pluralism and human rights, including the rights of women. Gender Equality, Environment Sustainability and Governance are cross-cutting theme in all GAC’s programming. GAC also funds initiatives in a variety of sectors through other channels of programming, such as Multilateral, Regional and Partnerships between Canadian and Kenyan organisations.
Gender Equality is a cross-cutting theme for GAC’s programming and gender equality-specific programming is also carried-out by the department.
GAC’s programs are managed in the field by personnel based in the Canadian High Commission (CHC) in Nairobi. The Field Support Services Project (FSSP) in Westlands house a team of multi sectoral consultants that have the mandate to support the CHC international development team for programming in Kenya, as well as punctual support for modest programming in Somalia, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.

3. SCOPE OF SERVICES
The Gender Equality Specialist will have the primary responsibility of providing field level advice and expertise on technical and policy matters relating to gender equality, which may impact GAC’s programming. The Gender Equality Specialist will mainly hold responsibilities relating to the bilateral program but will also be responsible for providing sectoral expertise for GAC’s other programs and Branches, including regional, multilateral and Partnership and Development Innovation Branch. The Gender Equality Specialist will be involved in all stages of GAC’s program, including research, planning, design, monitoring and management, while at the request of the CHC engaging in dialogue with other stakeholders.
a. Provide Sectoral Advice and Expertise
• Engage in analysis of Gender Equality issues in Kenya and highlight implications to GAC programming;
• Provide Gender Equality analyses, summaries, briefs and reports to facilitate timely GAC interventions in the that are consistent with Government of Kenya (GoK) and other development partners policies;
• At the request of the CHC, engage in technical level dialogue with the Government of Kenya and other Development Partners on Gender Equality issues;
• At the request of the CHC, attend coordination groups and other relevant meetings and provide reporting ;
• Monitor and report on key issues in Kenya that could have impact on GAC programming;
• Keep up-to-date on emerging gender equality issues as noted in academic papers and the media including local newspaper articles;
• Maintain an appropriate body of relevant information/ resources on gender equality in Kenya;
• Prepare briefing papers for CHC and GAC HQ as requested;
b. Program and Project Planning & Design
• Contribute strategically and provide technical advice for the development or review of GAC’s program in Kenya;
• Assist GAC in identifying existing baseline data and information gaps towards the development and design of project. This includes gender equality indicators, socio-economic, poverty and political profiles, etc.;
• Provide GAC with policy and technical expertise towards the design of projects;
• Provide the required input in the Terms of Reference for consultants/researchers who will assist in the design and planning of projects;
• At CHC request, participate in field visits and in stakeholder meetings at the national, county and institutional levels, relating to ongoing and proposed projects;
• Provide the required GE inputs in the Request for Proposals, Logic Model, Performance Measurement Framework and associated documents.
• Review proposals received by GAC;
c. Program & Project Monitoring & Reporting
• Track gender equality results and report regularly on GAC’s investments;
• In coordination with the CHC officers, liaise regularly with Implementing Agency (ies) to monitor project progress on gender equality results and report to GAC;
• When requested by GAC, carry-out field visits to project to monitor and report on progress towards expected results;
d. Support to other GAC Programs at the Field and HQ Level
• Contribute to the development and/or review of GAC macro-level strategies, sector strategies, action plans, policies, evaluations, performance measurement and monitoring frameworks, etc with a view to promoting synergy across GAC’s programming areas of focus;
• Collaborate with other GAC FSS gender equality specialists in Africa in order to share experience, discuss best practices and create synergies across the GAC program in Africa;
• Provide advice from a field perspective for other programs at GAC, including Multilateral, Partnerships for Development Innovation and Regional programs. This can include revision of proposals, monitoring of projects and inputs on corporate strategies.
• Provide punctual advice for programming in Burundi, Rwanda, Somalia and Uganda;
• Participate in GAC corporate events when requested;
• Perform other related duties as may arise.
4. REPORTING
The Gender Equality Specialist will report directly to the Manager of the Field Support Services Project based in Nairobi which has responsibility for the administration of the contract. The specialist will be physically working at the Field Support Services Project offices in Nairobi.
Day to day management of deliverables and performance will be coordinated by the Head of Cooperation or her/his delegate, based at the Canadian High Commission in Nairobi, including approval of work plans, service requisitions and deliverables, authorization of travel, evaluation of the quality of services and deliverables against work plans and performance indicators, etc.
5. WORK PLAN AND DELIVERABLES
The Gender Equality Specialist will produce quarterly work plans, which will detail the deliverables expected for that period. The work plan will be based on needs identified by Global Affairs Canada and the Consultant’s recommended priorities which will require approval by Global Affairs Canada. The work plan must be submitted to Head of Cooperation or her/his delegate for approval. The work plan will be reviewed and updated monthly, taking into account changing priorities in the Global Affairs Canada Program and/or the countries’ context.
The Gender Specialist will produce quarterly reports (max 2 pages) that will:
• Highlight tasks and results achieved; problems encountered and how they were dealt with;
• Identify key issues for Global Affairs Canada’s attention, and make recommendations for follow-up;
• Provide a summary of work plan tasks completed, results achieved, and progress towards achieving results;
• Highlight relevant information of use to the Program and projects, such as: outstanding issues and constraints, innovative initiatives, best practices, and lessons learned; and

6. ESTIMATED LEVEL OF EFFORT AND DURATION
This assignment is a full-time position from 1st July 2017 for a three year term. Qualified candidates will serve a probation period of 3 months. The Gender Equality Specialist will be based at the Field Support Services Project offices in Nairobi.

7. MANDATORY QUALIFICATIONS
• Master degree in International Development/Relations, Women Studies or related field, or equivalent training/experience;
• 10 years’ field work experience implementing, managing, and/or providing assistance to transformative and gender sensitive programs in developing countries;
• Experience and knowledge in planning, design, monitoring and evaluation of gender equality projects and programs;
• Experience liaising with a network of stakeholders in the gender equality sector in Kenya;
• Experience in writing analysis of the gender equality sector in Kenya;
• Diversified experience with government or semi-autonomous government agencies; donor agencies; NGOs; and/or private sector consulting
• Fluency in English and Kiswahili with superior English communication and writing skills;
• Proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel & Power Point;
• Ability to legally work in Kenya.
8. ASSETS QUALIFICATION
• Knowledge of Canada’s Development Assistance programs in Kenya.
• Proficiency in French;
9. COMPETENCIES, SKILLS AND BEHAVOURS
• Ability to synthesize and develop high quality knowledge products from diverse programmatic materials and tools
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to develop strong working and organizational boundaries with internal and external stakeholders;
• Works well independently with little supervision, as well as within a dynamic team;
• Is collaborative – builds and maintains effective relationships with their teams, colleagues, external partners and supporters

10. APPLICATION PROCESS
Candidates interested in this position are encouraged to email a letter of application (maximum 3 pages) and a CV (maximum 4 pages) by 12th May 2017 with subject heading “Gender Equality Specialist – Kenya”, showing how the candidate’s background is linked to each item in the mandatory and additional desirable qualifications categories to:fsspkesa.recruitment@wusc.ca.** In addition;
• Candidates must provide names and contact details of three references including at least one from a previous employer. Candidates whose documentation confirms they meet the mandatory criteria will be invited for an interview to assess their technical abilities and knowledge

HOW TO APPLY:
APPLICATION PROCESS
Candidates interested in this position are encouraged to email a letter of application (maximum 3 pages) and a CV (maximum 4 pages) by 12th May 2017 with subject heading “Gender Equality Specialist – Kenya”, showing how the candidate’s background is linked to each item in the mandatory and additional desirable qualifications categories to:fsspkesa.recruitment@wusc.ca.** In addition;
• Candidates must provide names and contact details of three references including at least one from a previous employer. Candidates whose documentation confirms they meet the mandatory criteria will be invited for an interview to assess their technical abilities and knowledge

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