Consultant for the Youth and Gender programmes

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) is the global organization of national parliaments. We promote democratic governance, institutions and values, working with parliaments and parliamentarians to articulate and respond to the needs and aspirations of the people. We work for peace, democracy, human rights, gender equality, youth empowerment, climate action and sustainable development through political dialogue, cooperation and parliamentary action. 

The IPU works to achieve equal participation of men and women in politics. It provides support to parliaments in advancing gender equality, increasing women’s political participation and leadership and transforming into gender-sensitive institutions that deliver on women’s rights. The IPU also works to enhance youth participation in parliament and empower young parliamentarians. To do so, the IPU assists parliaments in building capacities of their members and staff and in taking action to promote inclusive participation and empowerment of women and youth in and through parliament. The IPU provides such assistance through projects of support implemented jointly with parliaments at the national level in several countries. 

Objectives

The consultant will assist the Youth and Gender programmes in establishing and implementing projects of support to national parliaments in countries already benefiting from IPU support in advancing gender equality and women’s and youth empowerment in and through parliament. Among such parliaments are also parliaments in countries in transition in West Africa where transitional national councils have requested the IPU to support the empowerment of their women and young members and to back up their work towards enhancing the participation of women and youth in parliament. 

This entails the planning, implementation, coordination, delivery, monitoring and evaluation of projects of support. The Consultant will also carry out other tasks in support of both programmes as required.

Deliverables 

Under the supervision of the Manager of the Youth participation and Gender partnership programmes, the Consultant will contribute to:

• Establishing and implementing projects of support to parliaments 
• Project management, including: needs assessments, planning, budgeting, preparation, organization and execution of project activities. The Common Principles for Support to Parliament shall be applied in the management of projects. 
• Monitoring and evaluation, including: establishment of baselines; collection of quantitative and qualitative data; preparation and conduct of qualitative surveys and interviews; analysis of results, change and impact; adaptation of project implementation as required; reporting on advancements; and identifying lessons learned. 
• Strong coordination with parliaments and experts, including: correspondences; missions to beneficiary countries and IPU events; logistical preparations; liaising with parliamentary committee and caucus officials; and meeting with parliamentarians, experts, and other high-level officials. 
• Communications, both internal and external with parliaments and partner organizations. Support for the development of communication tools and documents, including news stories and regular updates for the IPU website, is also envisaged.
• Collection of data and information to contribute to research projects and publications, including on youth and women in parliament, as required by the Youth and Gender programmes.  
• Coordination and facilitation of the participation of beneficiary parliaments to IPU global and regional events.
• Drafting of project documents (terms of references, programmes, activity and donor/annual reports, etc.) as well as speeches and briefing notes as required.
• Responding to queries and requests for information received by the IPU. 
• Cooperation with staff in other IPU programmes on joint projects and facilitation of coordination, as necessary. 

Additional tasks required by the Youth and Gender programmes

• Promote and implement campaigns of which the IPU is part, such as the I Say Yes to Youth in Parliament! campaign, the Not Too Young to Run campaign or the iKnowPolitics project, and provide IPU support to parliaments in this regard. 
• Support the organization of online and offline youth and gender-related IPU meetings. 
• Participate in meetings, consultations, group discussions and other events with stakeholders and partners, and draft minutes.
• Support ad hoc research and analysis on youth and gender matters at country level and globally. This can be used for background notes, briefings, meeting documentation and speaking notes. 

Occasional ad hoc assignments related to the work of the Youth and Gender programmes may also be required.

Work implies frequent interaction with the following: IPU personnel, members and staff of parliaments, representatives of regional and international partners (including the United Nations, regional parliamentary associations, etc.), experts, and representatives of youth and gender organizations.

Requirements

• University degree in political science, international relations, law, or a related field. Specialization in youth or gender studies would be an advantage. 
• At least five years of experience in work related to youth participation, gender equality and/or women’s rights.
• At least five years of experience in project management, including managing multiple projects simultaneously and in different cultural and political contexts. 
• Experience in a parliamentary setting as well as familiarity with the work of international organizations.
• Experience of work on a project of support to a parliament.
• Complete fluency in English and French. Fluency in other languages an asset. 
• Excellent drafting skills in English and French.
• Personal attributes of initiative, self-motivation, and sound judgement; aptitude for human contacts and resourcefulness; team spirit; adaptability to varying working environments and conditions.
• General computer skills (MS Office applications, internet).

Time frame and conditions

The Consultant will undertake this work, on a full-time basis, over a timeline commencing on 1 May 2024 and concluding on 30 April 2025. During this period, they shall be expected to work 220 days (7.5 hours/day). In principle, the Consultant shall be based in the IPU Headquarters in Geneva, with possibility of telecommuting.

The IPU shall cover the expenses related to the missions that the Consultant will need to carry out for purposes of the above assignments.

The Consultant is an independent contractor, is not considered to be an official or employee of the IPU and is not subject to the IPU Staff Regulations and Staff Rules. The Consultant is not entitled to recover from the IPU any income tax payable in respect of the fee provided under this contract and shall be solely liable for the payment of any national income tax due in respect of the emoluments payable under this contract.