Consultant: Developing a Protocol on the Management and ..

Developing a Protocol on the Management and Referral of Cases of Suicide Attempts – particularly Amongst Young and Women.

Background

UN Women (UNW), grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, the UN Women leads and coordinates the United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women plays an innovative and catalytic role in the State of Palestine since its inception in 1997. UN Women Palestine Office focuses its activities on one overarching goal, namely, to support the implementation at the national level of existing international commitments to advance gender equality in line with the national priorities. In support of this goal, and thoroughly taking into consideration the specificities of the Palestinian context, UN Women concentrates its efforts and interventions toward the realisation of following strategic goals:  Mainstreaming gender in governance, peace and security; Supporting women's economic security and rights; and Promoting women’s rights and protection against violence.

UN Women- as part of its’ global goals and commitments towards empowering women and enhancing gender equality and inclusiveness, is exerting efforts towards supporting the furthest left behind groups of women and girls victims and survivors of violence, who face intersectional and compounded forms of gender-based violence (GBV), including physical, legal, psychosocial, economic, and sexual violence. In line with this, and within the framework of Shaml Programme: Enhancing the Protection and the Reintegration of the Furthest Left Behind Groups of Women and Girls Victims and Survivors of Violence, UN Women is capitalizing on the ongoing efforts exerted by the different national actors, to contribute towards the realization of the rights of the furthest left behind groups of women and girls victims and survivors of violence.

Due to the increased cases of suicide attempts amongst Palestinian people, particularly women and youth, including those who are considered furthest left behind, the Palestinian Authority established a national committee to eliminate suicide in 2021, which is comprised of members of the social, health, education, and security sectors, and is hosted by the Ministry of Social Development. The Committee is working currently on developing a strategy to combat and limit the occurrence of suicide.

In line with the above, this assignment aims to support the National Committee to develop a protocol that defines referral pathways, roles and responsibilities of relevant actors working together, to combat this phenomenon and to respond to the social, legal and health rights of persons who go through the experience of attempting to commit suicide.

Objectives of the assignment:

1.To develop a protocol that defines referral pathways, roles and responsibilities of national actors involved in the management of and referral of attempted suicide cases, including the social, education, security, and health sectors. The protocol should distinguish between cases of attempted suicide by girls, boys, women and men, adolescents, and should take into consideration gender-based violence related factors in its approach and modalities of interventions. A key reference that should be take into consideration is the Risks Assessment Template dedicated to cases of suicide attempts.

2. To enhance multi- sectoral coordinated services provided by relevant stakeholders to individuals who have experienced a suicide attempt.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Under the overall supervision of the UN Women Special Representative in the State of Palestine, the direct supervision of Shaml UN Women Programme Specialist, and working in close cooperation and coordination with UN Women technical team, the selected consultant will undertake the following tasks, duties, and responsibilities:

A. Inception phase:

• To meet with relevant stakeholders, including governmental and civil society organizational, and UN Women to prepare for the assignment and set expectations.
• To prepare an inception report that includes the workplan with timeline, the methodology reflecting the consultation with the stakeholders and UN Women, and key deliverables.

B. Implementation phase:

• To conduct a literature review on cases of suicide attempts, covering local, regional and international levels. The literature review should cover also data related to cases of suicide attempts in Palestine for the years 2020-2022, and best practices followed by Palestine and other countries, particularly those with similar context, in addressing this problem.
• To meet with UN Women and relevant partners, including the police, the prosecutors, social counsellors, psychologists and others as relevant, to collect data and get a background about the current practices in managing suicide attempts cases (women, men, girls, boys, adolescents).
• To meet with relevant UN agencies such as UNRWA, UNICEF and UNFPA to get their views and perspectives regarding the possible entry points and management procedures that should be taken by national stakeholders to address this problem.
• To hold individual and groups meetings with relevant service providers, including those working in the field, to explore the current practices and discuss proposed pathways in managing and referral of cases. Any discussion around cases should ensure full respect of privacy and confidentiality of victims and their cases.
• To facilitate 2 workshops with representatives of relevant institutions mainly: the health, social, education, security and justice sectors.
• To draft the protocol with defined pathways, and clear intervention mechanisms including roles\responsibilities of each service provider, governmental and non- governmental, to enhance a coordinated response. A visual map of the referral pathway along with the available services should be annexed to the protocol.
• To discuss the draft protocol with national stakeholders, UN Women and other UN Agencies to build consensus among stakeholders and validate the protocol.
• To submit the final protocol to UN Women for review and approval.

C. Reporting phase:

To prepare a final narrative report highlighting main achievements, challenges, opportunities and recommendations for ways forward. The minutes of meetings, the list of interviewees and consulted references should be annexed to the report. 

Deliverables:

1. An approved workplan with a methodology and a timeframe. (10 days after the signing of the contract)
2. A final approved protocol, and a final approved narrative report. (45 days after the signing of the contract).

جميع الحقوق محفوظة لموقع جوبس.

Competencies:

Core Values

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender,
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Functional Competencies:

• Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude;
• Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills;
• Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback;
• Remains calm, in control and good humored even under pressure;
• Proven networking, organizational and communication skills.

Required Skills and Experience:

Education: 

• A BA degree in gender, psychology, counselling health studies, social studies, law/criminology, or any other related field. A Master’s degree is an asset.

Experience: 

• At least 3 previous experiences with the social, or security and justice sectors. Previous experience with the health sector in particular is a great asset.
• At least 3 previous proven experiences in developing procedures, protocols, or policy papers.
• At least 7 years’ experience in the field of gender equality, and violence against women.
• Experience with the UN system or/and International Organizations is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in Arabic and professional knowledge of English.

Link: https://jobs.undp.org/cj_view_job.cfm?cur_job_id=110068

Evaluation Criteria:

This SSA modality is governed by UN Women General Terms and Conditions. UN Women will only be able to respond to applicants who meet the minimum requirements.

Candidates should clearly indicate how they meet the above-mentioned criteria in their applications.

The following documents should be submitted as part of the application. Please make sure you have provided all requested materials:

• UN Women P11 including experience in similar assignments; the P11 form can be downloaded at https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/2022-07/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form-en.doc, a signed copy should be submitted;
• A sample of a previously developed protocol or procedures, preferably for the health, and /or the social sector.

Note: Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Please upload as one attachment of the documents as mentioned above online through this website

Candidates should have the ability to quickly submit degree certificates, medical certification (of good health) expression of Interest (EoI).

Evaluation of applicants

Candidates will be evaluated using a cumulative analysis method taking into consideration the combination of the applicants’ qualifications mentioned above, and financial proposal. A contract will be awarded to the individual consultant whose offer receives the highest score out of below defined technical and financial criteria. Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 50 points in the technical evaluation will be considered for financial evaluation.

Technical Evaluation (70%) – max. 70 points:

• A BA degree in gender, psychology, counselling health studies, social studies, law/criminology, or any other related field. A Master’s degree is an asset. (max. 10 points)
• At least 3 previous experiences with the social, or security and justice sectors. Previous experience with the health sector in particular is a great asset.  (max.15 points)
• At least 3 previous proven experiences in developing procedures, protocols or policy papers. (max.15 points)
• At least 7 years’ experience in the field of gender equality, and violence against women. (max. 10 points)
• Experience with the UN system or/and International Organizations is an asset. (max.5 points)
• A sample of a previously developed protocol or procedures, preferably for the health, and /or the social sector.  (max. 10 points)
• Experience with the UN system or/and International Organizations is an asset. (max.5 points)

Financial Evaluation (30%) – max. 30 points.

The maximum number of points assigned to the financial proposal is allocated to the lowest price proposal. All other price proposals receive points in inverse proportion. A suggested formula is as follows:

p = 30 (µ/z)

Using the following values:

p = points for the financial proposal being evaluated

µ = price of the lowest priced proposal

z = price of the proposal being evaluated

Only long-listed candidates will be contacted.

Financial proposal. Shortlisted candidate will be requested to submit a financial proposal. The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount breaking down a daily professional fee, proposed number of working days and any related expenses, i.e. travel and communications expenses.