About this role
Background:
UN Women, 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.
UN Women is currently implementing a regional project on “Women’s Economic Empowerment in the South Caucasus” Phase III (WEESC III) funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). The project has started in September 2024 and will last till August 2026. The first phase of the project took place during 2018-2020, followed by the second phase during 2021-2024. The overarching goal of the project is to ensure that women, particularly the poor and socially excluded, in the South Caucasus countries, including Azerbaijan are economically empowered and participate in relevant decision-making. Despite notable advancements, Women's Economic Empowerment (WEE) remains a significant challenge in the South Caucasus. Factors such as low female participation in formal employment, gender wage disparities, unequal political engagement, and women bearing disproportionate responsibility for caregiving all contribute to limited access to financial services for women and hinder their economic empowerment. Additionally, pervasive gender stereotypes and discriminatory practices persist across all three countries, further impeding progress in WEE.
The project aims women, particularly the poor and socially excluded, are able to use skills, economic opportunities, relevant information, network and support to become farmers/entrepreneurs or to join the formal labour sector in the South Caucasus countries. The project is planning to achieve this through an increased understanding of the Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) of private sector and institutionalize measures that benefit women, specifically in rural areas among others. With this purpose the activities will be caried out in Azerbaijan, focusing on providing technical support to companies to raise awareness of and adopt the UN Women/UN Global Compact WEPs. The aim is to implement gender-responsive corporate policies and practices that enhance women’s access to decent work and promote the inclusion of more women-owned and collective enterprises in supply chains. This technical support will equip private companies with tools to develop and implement gender-responsive corporate policies and practices that increase women’s access to decent work. Target companies will include medium- and large-sized businesses operating in or with supply chain links in rural areas to integrate more women-owned enterprises in their supply chains.
In this context, the project is looking for a national consultant on Women’s Economic Empowerment in Azerbaijan.
The consultant will be reporting to the Programme Specialist of UN Women and will be supported by UN Women Team in Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work
• Promote Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) among private sector partners and business associations in Azerbaijan through multilateral and bilateral meetings. • Promote and support the signing of the UN Women/UN Global Compact Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) by new private enterprises in Azerbaijan, with a focus on implementing gender-responsive corporate policies and practices. • Create, update and maintain the coordination work around WEPs with the engagement of WEPs focal points from private sector companies. • Liaise with WEPs Secretariat vis-à-vis Azerbaijani members as relevant. • Success stories written in the news format about WEPs signatory company. • Undertake other tasks to promote WEPs as requested by UN Women in Azerbaijan.
Deliverables
Deliverables Expected completion time (due day) Payment Schedule
1. At least 5 (five) meetings held with private companies and business associations promoting WEPs (4 days) 31 October 2026 50 %
2. 17(seventeen) new private enterprises that signed the UN Women/UN Global Compact WEPs with a focus on implementing gender-responsive corporate policies/ practices (4 days) 31 October 2026
3. 1 (one) success story developed about WEPs signatory company (1 day) 31 October 2026
4. Evidence of other tasks to promote WEPs as requested by UN Women in Azerbaijan documented and reported (1 day) 31 October 2026
5. Mapping of potential WEPs signatories conducted, including within ICT, innovation sectors (3 days) 31 October 2026 50 %
6. Conduct targeted outreach through 10 bilateral and 5 multilateral meetings with private companies, chambers of commerce, business associations and private sector platforms to promote WEPs and support onboarding of new signatories (7 days) 20 November 2026
Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel
This is a home-based consultancy to be provided in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Competencies :
Core Values:
• Integrity; • Professionalism; • Respect for Diversity.
Core Competencies:
• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues; • Accountability; • Creative Problem Solving; • Effective Communication; • Inclusive Collaboration; • Stakeholder Engagement; • Leading by Example.
Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework:
Functional Competencies:
• Strong knowledge and in-depth understanding of gender equality and women’s empowerment issues, challenges and motivations in the private sector. • Ability to organise and complete multiple tasks by establishing priorities. • Experience establishing, building and sustaining effective relationships with the private sector partners • Strong networking skills.
Required Qualifications:
Education
• Master’s degree or equivalent in business, finance, gender, social sciences, economics, or related fields is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.
Experience:
• At least 2 years of relevant experience in the field of gender equality and women’s empowerment, in case of Bachelor’s degree. • At least 2 years of experience working on gender equality and women’s empowerment in the private sector would be an asset. • Experience in coordinating networks would be an asset. • Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems is required. • Excellent verbal and written communication skills
Languages:
Fluency in English and Azerbaijani is required.
Statements:
In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.
Diversity and inclusion:
At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.
If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.
UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)
Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.