Part-time Interpreters

Terms of Reference

I. Background

UN Women

At the 59th Session of the UN General Assembly, Member States, in adopting the Triennial Comprehensive Policy Review (TCPR) of Operational Activities for Development of the UN System called on all UN organizations to: “mainstream gender and to pursue gender equality in their country programmes, planning instruments and sector-wide programmes and to articulate specific country-level goals and targets in this field in accordance with the national development strategies”.

Further, ECOSOC Resolution 2004/4 - Review of Economic and Social Council agreed conclusions 1997/2 on mainstreaming the gender perspective into all policies and programmes in the United Nations system requested: “the Secretary-General to ensure that all United Nations entities develop action plans with time lines for implementing the agreed conclusions 1997/2, which address the gap between policy and practice identified in the Secretary-General’s report, with a view to strengthening commitment and accountability at the highest levels within the United Nations system as well as to establishing mechanisms to ensure accountability, systematic monitoring and reporting on progress in implementation”.

As a direct follow-up to the TCPR, and to ensure a comprehensive response to many of its recommendations, the UN Development Group (UNDG, now UNSDG) created a Task Team on Gender Equality as a sub-group of the UNDG Programme Group. The goals of the Task Team are: to support more consistent and coherent action among UNDG member agencies to mainstream gender equality and promote women’s empowerment at the country level; and to ensure that gender equality and women’s empowerment are mainstreamed into the tools and processes that emerge from the UNDG for UN Country Teams (UNCTs).

In 2006, the UNDG Task Team on Gender Equality commissioned a background paper on accountability mechanisms in UNDG agencies. This paper reviewed accountability for programming in support of gender equality in ILO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF, and WFP and found that: “A common understanding of how to apply gender mainstreaming in UN operational activities is needed. This is because if there is no agreement on what constitutes a minimum level of actions to support gender equality, how will it be possible to hold agencies and UN Country Teams accountable for this. Reaching agreement across agencies on what constitutes a minimally acceptable performance to support gender equality, through an agreed set of indicators, would contribute to stronger guidance and accountability”. Subsequently this background paper was endorsed at the UNDG Principals’ meeting in July 2006, where agreement was reached on development of a UNCT-level “Accounting for Gender Equality” Scorecard that sets minimum requirements for UNCTs to assess their performance across the system.

The Gender Scorecard was endorsed by the UNDG in 2008 in response to the UN Chief Executive Board for Coordination 2006 Policy on gender equality and the empowerment of women (CEB/2006/2) to establish an accountability framework for assessing the effectiveness of gender mainstreaming by UN Country Teams.

The 2016 QCPR calls for the United Nations development system to expand and strengthen the use of the Gender Scorecard as a planning and reporting tool for assessing the effectiveness of gender mainstreaming in the context of the UN Development Assistance Frameworks (UNDAFs) (OP 83; now Cooperation Framework). Building on this call, an updated version of the framework, the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard, was launched in 2018, resulting from almost two years of work by the UNSDG Task Team on Gender Equality under the Results Group on Voice, Values and Norms, to align the Action Plan with the SDGs and to it with its entity level equivalent, the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan, drawing on good global practices with motivating, managing and measuring institutional change processes. Furthermore, the 2019 UNSDG United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework Guidance calls for UN entities to “put gender equality at the heart of programming, driving the active and meaningful participation of both women and men, and consistently empowering women and girls, in line with the minimum requirements agreed upon by the United Nations Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG) in the UNCT System-wide Action Plan (SWAP) Gender Equality Scorecard” (para 20).

Viet Nam context

UN Women Vietnam is an UN agency working towards for Women rights, increasing the voice of women, fighting against Violence against women and children, empowerment women through economics. By creating many short trainings, workshops for women participants; arrange conference meetings with Government agencies, local enterprises, or local units in general; printing publications as well as reports about women issues and the reality of not only women but also the human rights in Vietnam. 

In order to provide professional simultaneous and consecutive interpretation service (from English to Vietnamese and vice-versa) for events organized in Viet Nam by UN Women Viet Nam Country Office, UN Women Vietnam seeks to hire qualify national interpreters.

II. Objective of the Consultancy

Under the direct supervision of UN Women Programme Officers. She/he will work under the supervision of the UN Women Programme Officers and will be ultimately responsible to the UN Women Country Representative in Viet Nam.

III. Specific Tasks

Interpreters will provide professional simultaneous and consecutive interpretation service (from English to Vietnamese and vice-versa) for events organized in Viet Nam by UN Women Viet Nam Country Office.

IV. Institutional arrangement

The consultant will be ultimately responsible to the UN Women Country Representative in Viet Nam. The consultant will work closely with UN Women Programme Specialist, Programme Manager and Communication Officer.

V. Duration of Assignment

The contract period is from March 2021 to March 2022. For each assignment a maximum 30 days of assignment period will be allotted (UN Women does not warrant that the maximum of 30 days). The service will be purchased during the term of the Agreement). The consultant will be engaged under a retainer contract, which facilitates direct engagement of the consultant depending on need and availability within the contract period for a pre-agreed fee.

VI. Deliverables

Reports and other documents and materials that reflect high quality, result­ based standard and format established by UN Women.

VII. Application Evaluation Criteria

The applicant will be evaluated based on technical capacities (70%) and financial proposal (30%). Technical evaluation will be based on the following criteria stated as below.

Core Values and Competencies

In addition to aforementioned requirements and qualifications, it is important that the intern shares 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

FunctionalCompetencies:

• Strong commitment to and good understanding of gender equality and women’s empowerment issues;
• Strong interpersonal skills;
• Strong organizational skills and strong self-direction;
• Strong research and communication skills;
• Ability to prioritize and work under pressure with colleagues at all levels;
• Knowledge of gender mainstreaming and desired knowledge of the UNCT-SWAP Gender Equality Scorecard.
• Development and Innovation: Take charge of self-development and take initiative;
• Work in teams: Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds;
• Communicating and Information Sharing: Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication;
• Self-management and Emotional Intelligence: Stay com- posed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others;
• Conflict management: Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution;
• Continuous Learning and Knowledge sharing: Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:

http://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-employment-values-and-competencies-definitions-en.pdf [1]

The weight of technical points is 70% and financial points is 30%.

Individualconsultantswill be evaluated based on Cumulative analysis, the award of the contract will be made to the individual consultant whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

• Responsive/compliant/acceptable; and
• Havingreceivedthe highest score out of a pre-determined set of weighted technical and financial criteria specific to the solicitation.

VIII. Application procedure and deadline

Candidates are requested to send the following documents in one application email to[email protected] [2]

1. Updated CV

2. Letter of interest explaining why you are the most suitable for the work taking into account the required experience and skills

3. Two references which can verify your experience and skills for the post applied for.

4. Personal History Form (P11). The P11 Form can be downloaded from the following website: http://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/about-us/jobs [3].

5. Financial proposal specifying a daily consultancy rate and a breakdown per deliverable. UN Women will bear the costs of requested travel expenses following the UN-EU cost norm.

Deadline for Application:  7 February 2021

IX. Evaluation

The evaluation will be based on the combination of the weighted technical and financial scores (70 per cent technical and 30 per cent financial).

NOTE:Documents required before contract signing:

• UN Personal History Form
• Full medical examination and Statement of Fitness to work and travel for consultants with travel involved. (This is not a requirement for RLA contracts).
• Completed UNDSS BSAFE online training course.
  EN: https://training.dss.un.org/
• Individual subscribers over 65 years of age are required to undergo a full medical examination including x-rays at their own cost and obtaining medical clearance from the UN Medical Doctor prior to taking up their assignment. 
• Release letter in case the selected consultant is government official.