Editor - National Consultant at UN Women

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, peace, and security. UN Women has a universal mandate that encompasses a normative, an operational/programmatic as well as a coordination role, all of which are closely linked with its unique structure. At the core of its mandate, UN Women plays a leading role in supporting governments in delivering on their gender equality and women empowerment (GEWE) commitments in the SDGs.
• Women-owned/led businesses are a growing share of all enterprises in many African countries. Studies indicate that up to one-third (34.5%) of formal firms in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) report women ownership participation (World Bank, 2011). Public procurement represents an attractive market for women entrepreneurs since it accounts for 15 to 30 percent of GDP globally. In addition, procurement can sometimes consume as much as 50 percent of GNP in some countries. Public procurement, therefore, creates market opportunities that have long been recognized as an engine for growth for small and medium enterprises.
• Yet women-owned small and medium enterprises (WSME) are severely underrepresented as suppliers, securing only an estimated 1 percent of procurement contracts. In Nigeria, women remain under-represented as entrepreneurs accessing public procurement opportunities.
• Furthermore, most women-led businesses are in the informal sector, which excludes them from the participation threshold outlined in the Public Procurement Act. The Act requires businesses, which seek to supply public goods and services to be formally registered. Since most women-led businesses are unregistered and function within the informal economy, they are automatically excluded.
• Also, there are other requirements relating to tax and annual turnover which most women entrepreneurs do not meet either. The disparities between women’s economic participation and inclusive growth exist partly because most of the WSMEs currently engage at meso and micro levels within the informal economy and are not involved in macro-level activities such as procuring public goods and services.
• Other common barriers encountered by women in accessing public procurement include corruption, bribery, favoritism/nepotism in government structures, having in the form of sexual harassment, and gender-based violence.
• Similarly, women entrepreneurs very often, encounter difficulties due to limited information around the drafting of bids and lack of technical capacities to execute the contract.
• Women entrepreneurs also lack access to information and networks to respond to procurement calls. Long delays in payment from government procuring entities also discourage small-sized women-owned businesses from bidding.
• UN Women ’s Regional Office for West and Central Africa will implement the project: Women’s Economic Empowerment through Affirmative Procurement Reform in West and Central Africa between 2021-2024.
• The regional project seeks to support women’s economic empowerment through enhanced opportunities for women-led businesses to access public procurement and corporate supply chains in four countries of West Africa: Senegal, Nigeria, Mali, and Cote d’Ivoire. The project will also integrate affirmative procurement initiatives in the context of COVID-19 response and recovery strategies.
• The proposed project supports reform and institutional strengthening to improve women-led businesses' access to public procurement and supports the development of gender-responsive procurement initiatives as part of the COVID-19 response strategies.
• UN Women seeks to contract a consultant to provide editing and proof-reading for the draft reports:
  • Gender Responsive Public Procurement Review and Assessment of Procurement Laws, Policies, and Regulations in Federal, Lagos, and Kaduna States and Gender Audit of Institutions and Practices of  Lagos and Kaduna States.
  • Gender-Responsive Strategy Costed Action Plan to Mainstream Gender into Public Procurement Laws, Policies, And Practices.
  • Policy Brief on Affirmative Procurement Reforms In Nigeria: Status, Gaps, and Opportunities
  • A Gender Responsive Assessment, Review, and Audit of Procurement Laws, Policies, Regulations, and Institutions in Kaduna State, Nigeria.
  • Gender Responsive Assessment: Advocacy Message for Affirmative Procurement
  • Draft Baseline Survey/Data Gathering on Affirmative Procurement For Women-Owned/Led Businesses In Lagos State

Duties and Responsibilities

Functions and key results expected:

The Consultant will undertake the following tasks for the AfDB - UN Women Programme  “Women Economic Empowerment through Affirmative Procurement in West Africa” being implemented in Nigeria:

• Conduct the light writing and editing of the following draft report.
  • Gender Responsive Public Procurement Review and Assessment of Procurement Laws, Policies, and Regulations in Federal, Lagos, and Kaduna States and Gender Audit of Institutions and Practices of  Lagos and Kaduna States.
  • Gender-Responsive Strategy Costed Action Plan to Mainstream Gender into Public Procurement Laws, Policies, And Practices.
  • Policy Briefs on Affirmative Procurement Reforms In Nigeria: Status, Gaps, and Opportunities
  • A Gender Responsive Assessment, Review, and Audit of Procurement Laws, Policies, Regulations, and Institutions in Kaduna State, Nigeria.
  • Gender Responsive Assessment: Advocacy Message for Affirmative Procurement
  • Draft Baseline Survey/Data Gathering on Affirmative Procurement for Women-Owned/Led Businesses in Lagos State
• Edit the reports to ensure that proper English grammar is used and the information in the draft reports is coherent.

Deliverables

Final proofread and edited reports on

• Gender Responsive Public Procurement Review and Assessment of Procurement Laws, Policies, and Regulations in Federal, Lagos, and Kaduna States and Gender Audit of Institutions and Practices of Lagos and Kaduna States.
• Gender-Responsive Strategy Costed Action Plan to Mainstream Gender into Public Procurement Laws, Policies, And Practices.
• Policy Briefs on Affirmative Procurement Reforms in Nigeria: Status, Gaps, and Opportunities
• A Gender Responsive Assessment, Review, and Audit of Procurement Laws, Policies, Regulations, and Institutions in Kaduna State, Nigeria.
• Gender Responsive Assessment: Advocacy Message for Affirmative Procurement
• Draft Baseline Survey/Data Gathering on Affirmative Procurement for Women-Owned/Led Businesses in Lagos State

Inputs:

• UN Women will provide the Consultant with background materials and other guidance relevant to the assignment.

Performance evaluation:

• Consultant’s performance will be evaluated based on timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered.
• Upon receipt of the deliverables and prior to the payment, the deliverables and related reports and documents will be reviewed and approved by UN Women. The period of review is one week after receipt.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Degree in Communications, English, Development or any relevant field.
• Full computer literacy is required;

Experience:

• Minimum of 15 years of relevant experience in communications including in writing, editing, and layout publications and IEC materials for the UN, NGOs, and other development assistance agencies

Language Requirements:

• English Language

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent editing & writing skills.
• Good understanding of gender equality, women's economic empowerment, procurement and development issues in Nigeria.
• Displays culture, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Highest standards of integrity, discretion, and loyalty.
• Ability to create, edit and present information in clear and presentable formats.
• Ability to manage data, documents, correspondence, and reports information and workflow.
• Strong IT skills.

Evaluation

• Applications will be evaluated based on a Cumulative analysis.
• Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; (70%)
• Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; (30%)
• A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with an evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.

Technical qualification evaluation criteria:

• The total number of points allotted for the technical qualification component is 100.
• The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on the following technical qualification evaluation criteria:
  • Technical Evaluation Criteria - Obtainable Score:
    • Experience and skills - 70 %
    • Language and other skills - 30 %
    • Total Obtainable Score - 100 %

Financial/Price Proposal Evaluation:

• Only the candidates who fit the minimum requirements will be longlisted and further documentation may be requested. Candidates with a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered technically qualified candidates and will be shortlisted for potential interviews.
• Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated.
• The total number of points allotted for the price component is 100.
• The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/ evaluated and compared among those technically qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% score in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.