Programme Consultant - Humanitarian Action and Women’s Economic Empowerment

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 Uganda implements its mandate through the Strategic Note (SN) 2026-2030. Gender in Humanitarian Action and Women’s Economic Empowerment are core pillars of SN. The main objective of UN Women’s support to Government under Humanitarian Action is to ensure protection, as well as equitable and safe access to and benefit from the humanitarian and development assistance to the most vulnerable, and marginalized refugee and host community women and girls. The programme also promotes women’s participation and leadership in the refugee settlements and host community, and women’s active role in maintaining peace and social cohesion. The portfolio crosscuts all three Outcomes of the SN. The Women’s Economic Empowerment Portfolio is focused primarily on SN Outcome 3: By 2030, people in Uganda, particularly those at risk of being left behind benefit from gender responsive decent employment, resilient livelihoods and increased household incomes. Under this outcome, UN Women Uganda focuses on programmes that provide technical, financial and opportunities for business development targeting women emerging entrepreneurs to own, manage and benefit from small medium and large enterprises in a profitable and sustainable manner by: i) supporting the implementation of policies and strategies for women’s and young girls’ economic empowerment, ii) strengthening the capacity of financial systems to empower young women and their allies; iii) strengthening the capacity of women entrepreneurs to participate and benefit from public procurements iv) strengthening the capacity of public sector entities to make procurement systems more gender responsive and (v) strengthening the capacity of public sector and corporate employers to adapt practices and policies that promote decent work and socio protection policies for the vulnerable and marginalized populations.

The consultant will be reporting to the Deputy Country Representative (Head of Programmes), and will be supported by the Programme Specialist Women, Peace and Security (WPSHA team lead). The Programme Consultant will be responsible for managing the development, implementation, monitoring and reporting of the GiHA and WEE programmes for the UN Women Uganda Country Office, including providing technical support to the implementation of the programmes, managing the monitoring and reporting for the UN Women Uganda Country Office, overseeing and guiding people and budget management for the GiHA/WEE programme team, building partnerships and providing support in developing resource mobilization strategies, and managing knowledge building efforts.

• Provide overall programme advisory support to the Office Management;
• Guide the development of the GiHA/WEE programme, and provide technical support to the design and formulation of programme/ project initiatives;
• Review and provide feedback to project/ programme strategies and documents, workplans, case studies and related knowledge products and publications, as needed;
• Provide technical advice on the development of systems, processes and mechanisms to support programme planning, implementation, monitoring and progress reporting;
• Review and evaluate proposals and oversee the preparation of donor proposals and reports; 
• Draft policy documents, briefs and other strategic papers/ materials for the use in the development and presentation of policy and programmatic positions.

• Review programme annual work plans to ensure compliance with UN Women programme goals and results-based indicators;
• Analyze and ensure alignment of project budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans;
• Draft reports on activities, outputs and outcomes; and compile information in preparations of country office donor and UN Women reports;
• Analyze and ensure alignment of project budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans; 
• Manage programme quality control and identification of potential challenges;
• Align programme activities with operations team in close liaison with Operations Manager;
• Build and manage relationships with national partners, as necessary.

• Recommend and establish programme monitoring standards, criteria, and other indicators for measuring and assessing progress/results;
• Manage the monitoring of mutually agreed results frameworks and performance indicators;
• Coordinate the process of gathering information and preparing progress reports on programme implementation; prepare technical reports;
• Prepare programme team for audits and monitor implementation of audit recommendations; 
• Provide training on results-based management to office staff, as necessary. 

• Develop and implement partnerships and resource mobilization strategies for GiHA/WEE;
• Analyze and research information on donors, finalize substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for resource mobilization and cost sharing;
• Determine programmatic areas of cooperation, based on strategic goals of UN Women, country needs and donors’ priorities and develop the relevant partnerships.

• Manage the process of identifying and synthesizing of best practices and lessons learned that are directly linked to the implementation of the programme and contribute to their global dissemination.

This is an office-based consultancy. 

As part of this assignment, some travel may be required. The costs of travel will be borne by UN Women.

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

• 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: 

• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them; 
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Strong analytical skills;
• Strong knowledge of Results Based Management;
• Good knowledge of UN programme management systems.

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Human Rights, Gender/Women's studies, International Development, or a related field is required;
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
• A project/programme management certification (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage.

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in programme management, including programme design, programme coordination, monitoring and evaluation, donor reporting and capacity building is required;
• Technical experience in gender and humanitarian action and women’s economic empowerment is required;
• Experience in setting priorities, budgets, work plans, participating in programme development and programme writing is required;
• Experience coordinating and liaising with government agencies and/or development partners is desirable;
• Experience in leading on resource mobilization, especially in areas related to gender in humanitarian action and women’s economic empowerment is desirable;
• Experience working in the UN system is desirable.

• Fluency in English is required;
• Knowledge of another UN official language is an asset.

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.

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.