Background

Violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread, persistent and devastating human rights violations in our world today. The Spotlight Initiative (SI) is a global whole of United Nations effort to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls by 2030. Launched in 2017, the Initiative invests in gender equality and women’s rights as a precondition and driver for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Initiative follows a human rights-based approach and takes into consideration the specific needs of women and girls who experience multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination, upholding the principle of “leaving no one behind.”

Spotlight Initiative has deployed targeted, large-scale investments to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls in 25+ programmes that to date have spanned Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, Latin America and the Pacific. Under the stewardship of the UN Deputy Secretary-General, Spotlight Initiative recipient agencies include UN Women, UNFPA, UNDP, UNICEF, UNODC, IOM, UNHCR, WHO, UNESCO, ILO, and OHCHR.

The Initiative is supported by a Secretariat to ensure coherence, alignment, quality, and strong technical support. Six years into implementation, Spotlight Initiative 2.0 is seeking to expand the number of donors supporting Spotlight Initiative and its agency and civil society partners while leveraging additional financing in support of the wider EVAWG and Sustainable Development agenda. Data shows that gender is one of the most underfunded sectors within Official Development Assistance (ODA); ODA specific to ending violence against women and girls remains less than 1 percent of overall assistance. This role will be critical for working with stakeholders at all levels – global, national, and local – to advance the Spotlight Initiative’s comprehensive model. The Spotlight Initiative Partnerships Unit will be responsible for leading all aspects of the Spotlight Initiative’s work with partners supporting resource mobilization efforts, including Governments, UN agencies, international financial institutions, and the private sector.

Reporting to the Deputy Coordinator at the UN Spotlight Initiative, the Partnership Specialist will provide support to the Spotlight Initiative’s resource mobilization and partnerships efforts.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the Deputy Coordinator, the Partnership Specialist – Consultant will support the Spotlight Initiative’s partnership portfolios.

Specifically, the Partnership Specialist will focus their work in the following areas:

1. Lead and support outreach with UN member states, multilateral institutions, and the private sector:

• Leads virtual and in-person exchanges with bilateral donors, providing strategic guidance and recommendations to SI leadership on donor priorities;
• Contributes to the development of funding proposals;
• Tracks engagement with IFIs, both global and regional, seeking out opportunities to meet and advocate for financing for the EVAWG agenda;
• Engages the private sector, including businesses, foundations, and high net-worth individuals, among others, to discuss partnership opportunities.

2. Provide guidance to Spotlight Initiative countries on resource mobilization:

• Regularly engages UN country teams on SI 2.0, providing training and guidance on approaches;
• Builds relationships with RC offices to track and provide guidance on funding opportunities;
• Serves as a focal point for inter-agency RM enquiries.

3. Advocacy:

• Tracks key donor documents, working with SI Secretariat and country teams to ensure suitability of visibility materials;
• Works to formulate donor centered events, including replenishment conferences, report launches, and others.
• Works with and supports the SI communications unit to ensure advocacy and communications materials reflect donor interests and support.

4. Carries out other duties as assigned by the Deputy Coordinator and/or SI management team.

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

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

• Good knowledge of gender equity and women’s empowerment issues
• Good knowledge of UN system and understanding of inter-agency coordination processes
• Good knowledge of results-based programme planning and management
• Ability to promote and monitor inclusion of gender-specific objectives, indicators, targets and activities in the UN agencies programmes
• Good analytical skills
• Ability to provide advice and support.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in economics, business management, social sciences, public administration, international relations, communications, women’s studies, or a related field is required.

Experience:

• At least 7 (seven) years of progressively responsible experience in resource mobilization, communications/ advocacy, programme coordination, and/or business development;
• Experience in gender equality and women’s empowerment;
• Experience working with civil society organizations, international institutions and donors;
• Experience working in the UN system is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required
• Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, or Spanish).

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11), which can be downloaded from https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc. Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Note:

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.)