UN Women: International Consultant - Content Developer for Course materials for

Background:

UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide. 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; fosters women’s empowerment and equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action, peace and security. UN Women also coordinates and promotes the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality, and in all deliberations and agreements linked to the 2030 Agenda. The entity works to position gender equality as fundamental to the Sustainable Development Goals, and a more inclusive world.

UN Women’s goal in Timor-Leste is to promote women’s human rights and gender equality as the country works towards sustaining and furthering achievements in stability and development. In this regard, its programming in the country is connected to two corporate priority areas: enhancing women’s economic empowerment (WEE), and engaging women in all aspects of peace and security processes (WPS), supported by integrated efforts to ensure gender-sensitive plans and budgets and women’s right to live free of violence. UN Women also coordinates and promotes the UN system’s joint work in advancing gender equality.

Despite increasing educational attainment among girls in Timor-Leste, this progress has not translated into equitable economic participation. Marginalized youth, particularly rural girls, face multiple intersecting barriers including early marriage, caregiving responsibilities, digital illiteracy, and limited access to safe and empowering vocational training. Women and girls in agriculture, hospitality, and informal work remain underrepresented in leadership and entrepreneurial roles.

To address this gap, the ASEAN-UK SAGE Skills Training for Economic Participation (STEP) Project is launching an initiative focused on building entrepreneurship skills, financial literacy, digital skills and 21st Century skills among marginalized youth in the municipalities of Lautem and Oecusse.

As well as supporting national teachers to deliver this skills training to marginalized youth, STEP’s approach also incorporates community engagement to overcome cultural barriers, and partnerships with local businesses to enable sustainable income-generating activities beyond the project’s timeline. Aligned with the FCDO’s International Women and Girls Strategy (2023–2030), this pilot initiative prioritizes three key areas: ensuring girls’ access to quality education, promoting women’s economic empowerment, and addressing systemic and digital exclusion. By bridging educational and vocational gaps, the programme fosters gender equity and digital empowerment and contributes to Timor-Leste’s socio-economic development. Additionally, it supports the country’s aspirations for ASEAN membership by aligning its education system with regional priorities.

Implemented in partnership with the British Council, SEAMEO and UN Women Timor-Leste, the project leverages the existing infrastructure of Community Learning Centres (CLCs) and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) schools under the Ministry of Education (MoE).

The project will equip 100 marginalized youth (80 girls, 20 boys), the majority of whom will be aged from 16 to 22 years old, with market-relevant entrepreneurship skills, financial literacy, and digital skills training to boost economic participation. It will also build the capacity of 20 national teachers through a Teacher Training (TT) programme. Both programmes will incorporate gender-responsive pedagogies, and encourage teachers and learners to challenge traditional gender norms.

Objectives of the Assignment

The objective of the consultancy is to provide technical expertise and design a comprehensive, context-specific, and gender-responsive entrepreneurship training course and teacher training programme for the STEP project in Timor-Leste.

The consultant will adapt open-source materials to develop a bespoke 100-hour Entrepreneurship Course, and an 80-hour Teacher Training (TT) programme which is locally relevant, inclusive, and aligned with the STEP project’s objective of improving economic opportunities for girls and boys in rural areas.

To achieve this, UN Women is seeking 1 (one) international consultant to develop training materials for:

1. Development of STEP Course for Rural Youth:

Adapt existing open-source resources to create a bespoke, gender-responsive 100-hour Entrepreneurship Course tailored to the needs of marginalized girls and boys in Timor-Leste. Course materials will be developed in English and later translated into Tetum. The course will also be accompanied by a guide for teachers.

2. Development of Teacher Training (TT) Course:

Design a comprehensive 80-hour TT course to equip local teachers with the skills and knowledge necessary to deliver the STEP Course effectively, through a learer-centred approach. The TT course will be delivered in English with Tetum translation and / or translanguaging strategies.

Scope of Work and Tasks

Under the overall guidance of the Head of Office of UN Women Timor-Leste and direct supervision of the Programme Manager for Women’s Economic Empowerment, the Consultant will be working closely with the responsible project partners, including the British Council.

Under Phase 1 of the implementation of the project, the consultant will be responsible for and expected to deliver the following:

1. STEP Course for Rural Youth and Teachers’ Guide (100 hours)

• Review and adapt open-source material e.g. UNICEF’s Upshift, UNESCO’s Starting My Own Small Business guide or ILO’s Ready for Business course ILO | Training Programmes / Ready for Business (R4B) for Timor-Leste’s socio-economic context.
• Develop interactive, learner-centered course content emphasizing 21st Century skills, financial literacy, and entrepreneurial knowledge. The course, where relevant, should challenge gender stereotypes and promote gender equality.
• Collaborate with UN Women and SAGE Pillar 3 lead to incorporate examples of real-world case studies and local female role models, particularly from traditionally male-dominated sectors.
• Develop a comprehensive Teacher’s Guide with step-by-step facilitation instructions to accompany the STEP Course.

Content for Skills Training for Economic Participation (STEP) should include:

Entrepreneurship skills: Financial management: basic budgeting, cost analysis, pricing, profit calculation and record keeping. Address challenges girls face, such as limited access to financial resources or formal banking services, by introducing tools like savings groups or mobile money apps.

Customer engagement: skills to attract and retain customers, emphasizing communication strategies that empower girls to negotiate prices and build professional relationships.

Entrepreneurship: understanding of business setup, growth strategies and product diversification. Highlight case studies of women entrepreneurs who have overcome societal or economic challenges.

Digital marketing skills: knowledge of online sales platforms and social media marketing to reach a broader customer base. Address digital access challenges girls may face and ensure training includes safe online practices and ways to combat online harassment.

21st Century Skills

Communication and collaboration: effective speaking, teamwork and collaboration skills.

Problem-solving and adaptability: ability to think critically and adapt to new challenges, including gender-specific barriers, such as societal norms, limited mobility, or lack of decision-making power within households.

Confidence: building confidence helps marginalised girls pursue roles that might feel unfamiliar, or traditionally male-dominated.

2. Teacher Training (TT) Course Design (80 hours)

• Design a comprehensive 80-hour TT course to equip local teachers with the skills and knowledge necessary to deliver the STEP Course effectively, through a learer-centred approach.
• Include input on classroom management, lesson planning, formative assessment, and relevant use of digital for lesson planning and delivery.
• Include training on recognizing and addressing unconscious bias, promoting girls’ participation in male-dominated fields, and conducting basic gender equity audits.

Duration of the Assignment

The total duration of the contract assignment will be for 1 month (30 days) deadline to final deliverables end of June/ early July 2025.

Expected Deliverables and Timelines

The consultant will be responsible for a timely delivery of all agreed deliverables, subject to UN Women's and partners satisfactory acceptance.

The consultant will be responsible for a timely delivery of all agreed deliverables, subject to UN Women's and partners satisfactory acceptance.

Deliverable

Timeframe

Location

Indicative input days

1

STEP Course Development for Rural Youth and Teachers’ Guide (100 hours)

Total

30 days

All the deliverables, materials, notes and reports should be submitted in written in English.

Schedule of Payment

Payment in full upon final submission of each deliverable and satisfactory outputs/products in accordance with specified requirements.

Upon receipt of the deliverables and prior to the payment of the instalment, the deliverables will be reviewed and approved by UN Women. The period of the review is 12 days after receipt of each deliverable.

Consultant’s performance will be evaluated based on: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the deliverables.

Competencies :

In addition to aforementioned requirements and qualifications, it is important that the consultants share the core values and core competencies of the organization.

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/en/about-us/employment/application-process#_Values

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent communication skills including ability to write clearly in excellent written English according to the UN editing guidelines
• Demonstrated ability to design gender-transformative, learner-centered training content.
• Proven skills in education, inclusive pedagogy, and curriculum design.
• Excellent writing, editing, and instructional material development skills.
• Strong organizational capabilities.
• Familiarity with monitoring tools for learning outcomes and gender equity.
• Ability to work independently, under tight deadlines, and in diverse cultural settings.

Required Experience and Qualification

The Consultant should fulfill the following requirements:

1. Education

• Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) in education, gender studies, social sciences, economics, development studies or a related field.

2. Experience

• Proven experience in developing context specific, gender-responsive training programs for learners and teachers.
• Minimum 4 years’ experience developing gender-responsive curricula or training programs
• Strong background in youth entrepreneurship, pedagogy, or digital education
• Proven ability to integrate gender-transformative and inclusive methodologies
• Experience in LMICs or post-conflict settings, preferably in Southeast Asia
• Experience working in the development of knowledge products with international organizations is required.
• Experience with UN Women and other UN agencies is an asset.
• Experience in developing gender-responsive training programs for learners and teachers for other UK-ASEAN SAGE projects and/or British Council is an asset
• Experience within Timor-Leste is an asset

3. Language

• Proficiency in oral and written in English.

Submission of Package

Interested candidates are requested to submit electronic application to Job site no later than 3 June 2025.

Submission package includes

• Personal History Form (P11) which can be downloaded from UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc (live.com) - http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment
• Application letter explaining your interest in the consultancy and why you are the most suited candidate for this position.
• Financial proposal - The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount per each deliverable. The lump sum costs must be accompanied by a detailed breakdown of costs calculation

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11).

Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. So please consolidate your (all) required documents into 1 file prior to attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. Please merge all documents into one document to attach.

Evaluation

Applications will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis.

• Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [70%]
• Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [30%]

A two-stage procedure is utilised in evaluating the proposals, with 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 allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Technical Evaluation Criteria

Obtainable Score

Education

20 %

Experience and skills

70 %

Language and other skills

10 %

Total Obtainable Score

100 %

Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 70% of total points will be considered as technically-qualified candidate.

Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

• 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 allocated 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 technical 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.

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

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.