Senior Gender Specialist

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Kathmandu, Nepal.

Closing date: July 31, 2013.

Background:

The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is a regional intergovernmental learning and knowledge sharing centre serving the eight regional member countries of the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. Our aim is to influence policy and practices to meet environmental and livelihood challenges emerging in the HKH region. To do this we bring together researchers, practitioners, and policy makers from the region and around the globe to generate and share knowledge, support evidence-based decision making, and encourage regional collaboration.

ICIMOD delivers impact through its six Regional Programmes of Adaptation to Change, Transboundary Landscapes, River Basins, Cryosphere and Atmosphere, Mountain Environment Regional Information System, and Himalayan University Consortium (emerging). These regional programmes are supported by the four Thematic Areas of Livelihoods, Ecosystem Services, Water and Air, and Geospatial Solutions and underpinned by Knowledge Management and Communication. ICIMOD seeks to improve the lives and livelihoods of mountain women and men, now and for the future.

The Livelihoods Thematic Area focuses on promoting diversified and sustainable livelihood options in the HKH region. It seeks to enhance understanding of the human-environment interface, rural-urban linkages, and driving forces of change and their underlying causes. It also provides expertise on Strategic Institutional Functions such as gender, governance, poverty and inclusive development, and economic analysis to further ICIMOD’s goals. As mountain women and girls are often disproportionately affected by climate and socioeconomic changes, ICIMOD aims to strengthen its work on gender and social equity through the integration of, and increased focus on, gender analysis in its programmatic work and by making ICIMOD a more gender-sensitive workplace.

ICIMOD is looking for a gender expert who is capable of providing strategic and intellectual leadership on gender and natural resource management issues; integrating gender dimensions into ICIMOD’s Regional Programmes, initiatives and Thematic Areas; implementing the gender strategy outlined in the Mid-term Action Plan III (MTAPIII); and analysing the development policies, programmes, and strategies of ICIMOD’s regional member countries from a gender perspective with a view to informing policy and ensuring a gender-positive impact.

Responsibilities and Tasks:

Under the direct supervision of the Livelihoods Theme Leader and the overall guidance of the Director of Programme Operations, the Senior Gender Specialist will be responsible for:

• strategic leadership of  the ‘Strategic Institutional Function – Gender’, which was established to ensure gender-positive and transformative outcomes and impacts;
• promoting the four pillars of gender transformative change formulated in the development strategy contained in the MTAPIII, namely: gender integration within regional programmes and gender-focused work; capacity strengthening and women’s leadership; policy and partnership development; and gender transformative organizational change; 
• collaborating with and providing guidance and leadership to ICIMOD’s Thematic Areas and Regional Programmes and initiatives to integrate gender issues and analysis in the context of natural resource management into programmatic areas and thematic issues; 
• providing technical input and guidance on gender issues in the planning, budgeting, implementation, monitoring, and reporting of Regional Programmes and initiatives to ensure expected results;
• promoting and scaling out relevant gender concepts, approaches, and analytical frameworks to apply in the Hindu Kush Himalayan context and strengthening the capacity of ICIMOD and its partners to integrate gender dimensions in their work; 
• carrying out gender analysis to generate sound evidence and justification for the promotion of gender equality in development policies, programmes, and initiatives in ICIMOD’s regional member countries and linking research to policy;
• building and maintaining a network of gender experts and female professionals within the region and beyond and acting as an expert and spokesperson on gender issues;
• providing inputs for project and programme development and monitoring and evaluation in order to integrate gender analysis and outcomes into Regional Programmes and initiatives;
• producing and ensuring high-quality research and knowledge on emerging gender issues and publications, and sharing knowledge with networks; 
• organizing, conducting, and contributing to internal and external training events, workshops, and seminars on gender issues to strengthen the capacity of partners and to share knowledge; 
• convening the gender resource team within ICIMOD; and 
• providing inputs to senior management on gender issues, challenges, and opportunities, and working as a team player in ICIMOD to promote gender equality and support activities that further strategic institutional goals.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Advanced post-graduate academic degree such as a PhD in social sciences or related field (e.g., sociology, anthropology, international development studies, gender and women’s studies, political sciences, environmental studies);
• At least 15 years substantial work experience including solid field experience in the area of gender, of which preferably a part has been gained in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region;
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative gender research methods and with the development and implementation of gender analysis and conceptual research frameworks in relation to gender; and
• Experience carrying out gender-focused work and integrating gender issues at the regional level in intergovernmental organizations.

Competencies:

• Knowledge: Sound knowledge and understanding of gender and natural resource management and development concepts, theories, analytical tools, approaches, and frameworks and sound intellectual and social skills to integrate and transpose critical gender frameworks, analysis, and methodologies into diverse disciplines, sectors, and contexts;
• Research skills: Sound knowledge of interdisciplinary research on gender issues and methodologies; experience in managing and coordinating regional research projects; a solid track record of publications in gender and social issues; and experience in conducting in-depth gender-based research and developing and implementing gender-sensitive methodologies;
• Management and coordination: An ability to plan and coordinate at the project and programme level including budgeting, project monitoring and evaluation, and effective task delegation; 
• Social/team competency: An ability to work effectively across teams with intercultural and inter-disciplinary sensitivity and to manage minor conflicts and contribute towards establishing commitment among team members and within the institution as a whole; 
• Networking/stakeholder management: An ability to identify qualified gender partners, maintain existing relationships, build new linkages, facilitate stakeholder processes, build the capacity of partners, and solve project issues;
• Results/impact orientation: A proactive approach within and outside the organization to generate concrete results on an output and outcome level and an ability to seek opportunities to transform output to outcomes and impact to improve gender equality and transformative change;
• Flexibility /innovation: An ability to introduce innovative approaches and lead and advocate for their development towards a continuous learning culture; and
• Report and proposal writing: An ability to independently write good quality project reports for different target groups and contribute to successful proposal writing and a good track record of high-quality writing skills and publications in peer reviewed journals.

Duration:

The position will be for three years of which the first six months will be probationary, with the possibility of an extension at the end of the term, subject to ICIMOD’s future funding levels.

Starting Date: as soon as possible
 

Gender and Equity Policy:

Qualified and eligible women candidates and those from disadvantaged backgrounds are highly encouraged to apply. ICIMOD implements a gender fair policy and is supportive of working women. It operates a Day-Care Centre at the campus and is committed to gender mainstreaming at the organisational and programmatic levels.

To Apply:

Applicants are requested to apply online before 31 July 2013 through ICIMOD's Online Application System.
Only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

For more information, please visit: http://www.icimod.org/?q=10895