Background:
ย Background
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UN Women is the UN organization dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women.ย A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide.ย 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, fosters womenโs empowerment and equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action, peace and security.ย UN Women also coordinates and promotes the UN systemโs work in advancing gender equality, and in all deliberations and agreements linked to the 2030 Agenda. The entity works to position gender equality as fundamental to the Sustainable Development Goals, and a more inclusive world.ย
The ASEAN-UK SAGE STEP Pilot is also focused on equipping youth with digital skills to prepare them for employment in a rapidly evolving economy. It integrates a comprehensive approach that includes teacher training on gender-sensitive pedagogy, community engagement to overcome cultural barriers, partnerships with local businesses, and entrepreneurship training to enable sustainable income-generating activities beyond the projectโs timeline. The initiative aligns closely with UN Womenโs Global Strategic Plan (2022โ2025), which emphasizes gender-responsive education, economic inclusion, and digital transformation as key drivers of equality. By addressing systemic barriers and promoting digital and economic empowerment, the programme also contributes to the broader Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). Furthermore, by fostering skills development and regional integration, it supports ASEANโs gender mainstreaming efforts and Timor-Lesteโs long-term commitment to inclusive and sustainable development.
The UK-ASEAN SAGE STEP Pilot objective is to provide entrepreneurship and basic skills training to marginalized girls in Oecusse and Lautem, with the aim of improving their economic opportunities.ย This initiative is designed based on community inputs and aligned with local needs. In partnership with UN Women, the pilot proposes a transformative pilot initiative in Timor-Leste that focuses on enhancing the employability and economic independence of marginalized girls. The programme will equip women and girls with practical skills in entrepreneurship for small business start-ups, financial literacy, and basic digital employment skills tailored to the local economic context.ย
To ensure the success of this pilot, the project will leverage existing delivery mechanisms such as Community Learning Centers (CLCs) and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) institutions, which are over seen by key government agencies such as the Ministry of Education (MOE) and the Secretary of State for Vocational Training and Education (SEFOPE) in Timor-Leste. This pilot will provide targeted, short-to medium-term training opportunities aimed at addressing Gender barriers to digital skills and employment.ย The STEP course will be delivered by local teachers, who will be trained and mentored by two experienced international trainers in Lautem and the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA). Under this assignment (post), the international consultant/trainer will facilitate teacher training sessions in Dili and provide field-based mentoringโoffering day-to-day support to local teachers in the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA).
Objectives of the Assignment
The purpose of the assignment is to deliver STEP Teacher Training course in Dili and provide teacher support through mentoring programme inย the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA).ย
The International Consultant will be expected to perform the following tasks:
Deliver a 12-day face to face Gender Responsive Teacher Training (TT) course in Dili for 20 selected trainers from Community Learning Centres (CLCs), TVET institutions, and the Ministry of Education. Provide structured mentoring and in-person support to local trainers as they deliver the 100-hour STEP course over 10 weeks in the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA). Support the quality and consistency of course delivery, ensuring gender-responsive pedagogy and inclusive learning environments. Collaborate with the MEL team to collect field insights and contribute to impact measurement.The teacher training should ensure that the skill of the teacher is enhanced to deliver the STEP training courses for youth, motivate learners, and assess their achievements.ย The teachers, by the end of this training, should also have capacity to integrate gender-responsive and inclusive approach to delivering the STEP training. It will build on the learner-centered learning and pedagogies of empowerment by adding a critical lens onto the gendered nature of the learning environment.ย
Scope of WorkUnder the supervision of the WEE Programme Officer, the international trainer will be responsible for implementing the following tasks:ย Teacher Training Delivery in Dili for 14 days
Deliver the 12-day Gender Responsive Teacher Training course, using the training materials already developed under the pilot, with a focus on: learner-centered facilitation techniques gender responsive pedagogy inclusive teaching and integration of digital technology developing reflective practice familiarization of STEP course content utilizing translanguaging approaches to ensure participant understanding (English-Tetum). Foster a community of practice among trainers for peer support and exchange. Field-Based Mentoring inย the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA)ย for 50 days Provide ongoing mentoring as local trainers to roll out the STEP course to youth participants in the Special Administrative Region of Oe-Cusse Ambeno (RAEOA). Conduct regular check-ins with trainers to offer pedagogical guidance and troubleshoot implementation challenges. Observe and provide constructive feedback during training sessions. Support local trainers in adapting materials to learnersโ contexts as needed. Promote equitable participation of girls, including addressing unconscious bias and fostering inclusive classroom environments. MEL Support Collaborate with the UN Womenโs MEL team to collect and interpret data related to: Teacher training effectiveness Student engagement and learning outcomes Contribute to post-training reports and share recommendations for course improvement.ย
Expected Deliverables and Timelines
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# Deliverable % of Payment Target Deadline 1 Submission of the progress report on delivery of 12-day Teacher Training course in Dili (12 days + 2 days prep) with supporting documents defined in the tasks.ย % 19 September 2025 2 Submission of the progress reportย on technical support inย mentoring to local trainers (Monitoring, Capacity Building, Knowledge Management, and Evaluation) with supporting documents defined in the tasks.ย % 21 November 2025 3 Submission of theย final mentoring report including key lessons and recommendations % 28 November 2025All deliverables should incorporate UN Women feedback before finalization andย all reports and training material shall beย presented in English or with English summary, in electronic version.ย
Duration of the assignmentย
The total duration of the contract assignment will be 4 months (1 Augustย โ 28 November 2025).ย
Schedule of Payment
Payment in full upon final submission and satisfactory outputs/products in accordance with specified requirements.ย
Upon receipt of the deliverables and prior to the payment of the instalment, the deliverables will be reviewed and approved by WEE programme Officer, at UN Women. The period of the review is two weeks after receipt, and rounds of revision and feedback should be expected
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Inputsย
UN Women Timor-Lesteโs Women Economic Empowerment Programme Team will provide logistical and coordination support to organize any consultation, dialogues or events UN Women will cover the costs of work-related travel to the other municipalities outside of Dili (in Timor-Leste) if needed, as well as daily subsistence allowance (DSA) as per standard UN rate. UN Women will also provide vehicle for field visits. The consultant is expected to work remotely using her/his own computer but may access the UN Women office for printing of relevant documents or should he/she be required to work on-site at any point during the assignment. UN Women will also cover the costs for translation of materials as required throughout the duration of the assignment.ย
Performance evaluationย
Consultantโs performance will be evaluated based on timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the deliverables.
Required experience and qualificationsย
The Consultant should fulfill the following requirements:
Education: Advance or Master's degree in Education or a related field can be beneficial, particularly for higher-level training or specialized areas. Experience and skills: Minimum 8 years' experience delivering and mentoring teacher training programmes in low-resource or multilingual settings. Proven expertise in gender-responsive education, learner-centred training methods. Familiarity with digital tools for teaching and mentoring. Experience working in Southeast Asia or similar cultural contexts; Timor-Leste experiences an advantage. Ability to work collaboratively with translators and adopt translanguaging approaches. Language and other skills: High Proficiency in oral and written English is mandatory Knowledge of Tetum, Bahasa Indonesian, and/or Portuguese is an added advantage.ย
Submission package
Interested candidates are requested to submit electronic application toย UNDP Job site no later than 23 June 2025.ย
A cover letter outlining your expression of interest and copy of the latest academic certificate CV, includingย contactย information for 3 referencesย Financial proposal.ย The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount per each deliverable and indicating separately any travel and administrative fees including daily rate. The lump sum costs must be accompanied by a detailed breakdown of costs calculation.ยย
All applications must include (as an attachment) the CV and the financial proposal in one package/ document. Kindly note that the system only allowed to upload one document.ย
Please note thatย only short-listed candidates will be invited to the interview.ย
Selected candidates will need toย submit prior to commencement of work:ย
UN Women P-11 form, available fromย http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employmentย A statement from a medical doctor ofย โgood health and fit for travelโยย
Evaluationย
Applications will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis.ย ย
Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [70%]ย ย Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [30%]ยย
A two-stage procedure is utilised in evaluating the proposals, with evaluation of the technical proposal being completed prior to any price proposal being compared. Only the price proposal of the candidates who passed the minimum technical score of 70% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.ย
ย Technical qualification evaluation criteria:ย
The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on following technical qualification evaluation criteria:ย
Technical Evaluation Criteriaย
Obtainable Scoreย
Educationย
20 %ย
Experience and skillsย
70 %ย
Language and other skillsย
10 %ย
Total Obtainable Scoreย