Consultancy: Administrative Data Systems on Discrimination and Inequality in Africa at UN Women

Scope of Work:

• Review and refine a pre-designed data collection tool for use in each sub-region.
• Do a desktop review of the administrative data-sources that document discrimination, inequality and the outcomes of discrimination in the targeted countries.
• Use virtual engagements and snowball techniques to identify the state and non-state institutions that collect relevant admin data on discrimination and inequalities in the targeted countries, incl. Police & justice sector institutions; national equality bodies; national human rights institutions; ombuds institutions; service provision institutions; civil society organisations; academia and other relevant parties.
• For each one of these admin data-producing institutions, assess and document the nature of the data holdings (variable content as well as quality); nature and degree of access to the data (notably by the NSO) and use of data for statistical production on discrimination; main challenges associated with the data and how these can be overcome (e.g. data protection, data-sharing and other ethical considerations in the collection and use of such data)
• Identify national examples of how admin datasets are also used to monitor inequalities in outcomes resulting from indirect/structural discrimination, in key sectors e.g. health, education, justice, policing and social services (and for each sector, identify key datasets/variables/ratios/averages used for equality analysis)
• Document the role of the NSO in the targeted countries in coordinating/quality assuring the collection of admin data on discrimination and inequalities, and the existence (or not) of mechanisms facilitating cooperation between NSOs and organizations collecting/recording the data, and with organizations that have policy responsibility for non-discrimination & equality
• Prepare a report that clearly maps the relevant administrative data holdings in the countries studied in the sub-region; identify good practices; challenges and opportunities associated with this data (vs. other types of data e.g. survey data); make recommendations on how to improve the collection of admin data on discrimination & inequalities, its use in statistical production, and its uptake in policymaking/monitoring.

Duties And Responsibilities

Key Deliverables:

• One PowerPoint presentation per sub-region which explains how the task will be approached. This will be shared and discussed in a virtual meeting involving all 5 contracted consultants, with the opportunity to engage and influence one another’s planned work strategy;
• One report per sub-region that summarizes the results of the assessment;
• One PowerPoint presentation which highlights the key findings per sub-region.

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.

Functional Competencies:

• Demonstrated ability to network amongst actors in the human rights sector;
• Competent in working with and using human rights and non-discrimination data;
• Analytical skills;
• Good report writing and editing skills.

Required Skills And Experience

Education:

• Minimum master’s degree in law, human rights, development studies or related field;
• Holding some formal qualifications in statistics or demography will be an advantage.

Experience:

• Minimum 10 years' experience in human rights and non-discrimination related work in at least one of the countries in the sub-region you are applying for;
• Minimum 5 years research and data analysis experience;
• Work experience in human rights and non-discrimination work with different organizations, in more than one country in the sub-region for which you apply, will be an advantage;

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English, French, Portuguese or Arabic is required depending on the sub-region concerned. All reports and PowerPoints must be completed and presented in either English or French.