National consultant to support developing Country Gender Equality Profile (CGEP) of Serbia

Background/Context

In March 2024, the Secretary-General, launched the United Nations System-Wide Gender Equality Acceleration Plan (GEAP) , marking a decisive moment in UN collective efforts to protect and advance the rights of women and girls across the globe. In a world where gender equality remains both a universal aspiration and a persistent challenge, this plan represents not just another step, but a bold leap forward in our collective journey towards achieving transformative gender equality across the United Nations system and beyond. The GEAP is the culmination of a comprehensive review of the capacity of the United Nations system to deliver on gender equality for women and girls, initiated under the Secretary-General’s Our Common Agenda.

UN Common Agenda makes an ambitious commitment to place women and girls at the centre of renewed multilateralism - recognizing that the global goals will never be achieved without the full equality of half of the world’s population. This system -wide call to action and acceleration plan sets out The UN’s commitment to accelerate the much-needed internal transformation at the UN that when fully implemented will enable all UN entities, no matter their mandate, to support all 193 Member States and other stakeholders deliver equitably for women and girls. It calls for the UN to lead the world humbly and boldly toward gender equality-both as a human rights issue and as a central prerequisite to development, peace and security.

The GEAP is built around five key pillars of acceleration, each comprised of targeted \"accelerators\" that will drive UN towards concrete results: 

The United Nations Country Team (UNCT) in Serbia comprises 20 UN agencies, funds and programmes, with 12 operating within the country and eight providing support as non-resident agencies. The Team is led by the Resident Coordinator (RC) and guides implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2021–2025, the key UN Strategy in the country. In partnership with the government and various stakeholders, UNCT is committed to fostering green and inclusive development, reducing inequalities, enhancing well-being, promoting social equity and unlocking human potential. By building mutual trust and accountability, the aim is to create a brighter future for Serbia, in alignment with Agenda 2030 and the EU Accession process.

The UN system in Serbia works closely with a wide range of development partners. These include the Serbian government, donor governments, development agencies, international organizations, financial institutions, civil society organizations (CSOs), academic institutions, think-tanks, religious leaders, the private sector and the media.

As one of the commitments under the GEAP, UNCT Serbia will develop a Country Gender Equality Profile (CGEP), that will serve as a source of evidence-based strategic planning within the UN system and across development partners, and a key analytical reference to support government’s and CSO efforts to implement gender equality policies, particularly the National Strategy on Gender Equality 2021-2030. The Country Gender Equality Profile will build on available gender data and recent analysis, assessments conducted by the UN and partners, as well as key findings and reports from human rights mechanisms, such as CEDAW, UPR, CRC, GREVIO reports and related UNCT reports. The profile will also rely on other available data sources from CSOs, Government and other counterparts.

Purpose of a CGEP:

Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work

UN Women plans to develop CGEP 2025 in close coordination and cooperation with UN country team / Gender Theme Group and its governmental and non-governmental counterparts. 

The format will follow the structure, following four impact areas: Ending violence against women; Women’s economic empowerment; Governance and participation in public life; Women, Peace and Security, Violence against women and girls. Additionally, other issues might need to be added such as Health, Education or other topics included in the Beijing Platform for Action. Priorities will be discussed and agreed with UNCT.[1]

The structure of the report should follow the outline below: 

In order to offer a complete understanding of the status of gender equality and women’s empowerment in a country, the CGEP will include an analysis integrating both quantitative and qualitative information. Together, these methods provide a comprehensive view of the subject, strengthening the substantiation and credibility of the CGEP findings through in-depth, evidence-based analysis.

The Serbia CGEP will be developed through a comprehensive desk review, relying exclusively on existing quantitative and qualitative data. Additional qualitative data collection to better frame the findings will be collected. The focus will be on conducting a robust analysis of available information to provide an intersectional and policy-relevant understanding of GEWE in Serbia. Particular emphasis will be placed on extracting meaningful insights through careful interpretation and triangulation of existing data.

Quantitative analysis plays a central role in the CGEP. It will involve a thorough review and interpretation of sex-disaggregated and other disaggregated statistics to enable a gender analysis through an intersectionality lens. This approach will support the identification of patterns, disparities, and groups most at risk of being left behind. CGEP should be based on national data and official sources to ensure reliability and relevance.

Qualitative analysis will be incorporated throughout the findings, providing context, depth, and explanatory power. It will explore the root causes of gender inequalities and their connections to international human rights standards. The analysis will assess the legal, policy, and institutional frameworks in place, evaluate their implementation, and identify structural barriers to gender equality. Special attention will be paid to the differentiated impact of these frameworks on marginalized groups and to the broader implications of gender inequality for Serbia’s progress toward achieving the 2030 Agenda.

The consultant’s main duties and responsibilities include:

In this context, UN Women is planning to hire a National Consultant.  In close collaboration with UN Women and UNCT / GTG group, the National Consultant will develop the CGEP and will be responsible for the tasks outlined below.

Deliverables Deliverables Expected completion time (due day)  Detailed work plan, specifying methodology and annotated outline of the CGEP developed By 31 August 2025  First draft of the CGEP developed and submitted to UN Women By 30 September 2025 Final CGEP developed and submitted in line with UNCT and reference group’s feedback and the final CGEP with detailed analysis of GEWE profile of the country, key messages, conclusions and recommendations submitted to UN Women By 31 October 2025

Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

This is a home-based consultancy. 

Competencies:Core Values: 

Required Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

Experience:

Languages:

Fluency in English and Serbian is required. Knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset.

Selection matrix:

The qualification of the individual is evaluated based on the following qualification evaluation criteria: 

Selection matrix

Max points

Language

Requirements

Fluency in English and Serbian. Knowledge of any other UN official language is an asset.

REQUIRED Education Minimum MA degree in human rights, international development, public administration, sociology, or other social science field.

30

 35

At least 2 years of experience in conducting gender-related analyses.

20   Excellent analytical skills with strong drive for results and capacity to work independently.

15 Total   

100

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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 Unit-ed 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.)

[1]The topics may include sexual and reproductive health women rights, adolescent pregnancies (under women and health), online sexual exploitation and abuse of women and girls, domestic violence, obstetric violence during childbirth, gynaecological violence, mistreatment and violence against women who are seeking sexual and reproductive health services (under VAW), Child marriage and adolescent pregnancies, education of girls, girls in institutional care (under the girl child), Roma women poverty, education level and employability (under Women and poverty).