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Terms of Reference for IUCN Consultancy
Title: Consultancy to undertake a Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Analysis and develop Gender Action Plan for the Climate Resilient Eastern African Transboundary Water Management for Environmental Sustainability (CREATES) Programme
Objective of the Consultancy
This consultancy has the following objective(s):
Undertake a programme level Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) Analysis and prepare an evidence-based Gender Action Plan (GAP) that strengthens the integration of gender equality and social inclusion across CREATES implementation.
Review and validate existing evidence, identify barriers and opportunities affecting equitable participation and benefit sharing, and recommend practical measures to strengthen inclusive programme delivery.
The Gender Action Plan should provide clear implementation priorities, institutional responsibilities, monitoring arrangements and measurable actions that support gender-responsive and, where appropriate, gender-transformative approaches across the Programme.
Background
Project Reference: PO4608
Donor reference: DN00414
About IUCN
IUCN is a membership Union uniquely composed of both government and civil society organisations. It provides public, private and non-governmental organisations with the knowledge and tools that enable human progress, economic development and nature conservation to take place together.
Created in 1948, IUCN is now the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network, harnessing the knowledge, resources and reach of more than 1,400 Member organisations and around 15,000 experts. It is a leading provider of conservation data, assessments and analysis. Its broad membership enables IUCN to fill the role of incubator and trusted repository of best practices, tools and international standards.
IUCN provides a neutral space in which diverse stakeholders including governments, NGOs, scientists, businesses, local communities, indigenous peoples organisations and others can work together to forge and implement solutions to environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development.
Working with many partners and supporters, IUCN implements a large and diverse portfolio of conservation projects worldwide. Combining the latest science with the traditional knowledge of local communities, these projects work to reverse habitat loss, restore ecosystems and improve people’s well-being.
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About the Project
The Climate Resilient Eastern African Transboundary Water Management for Environmental Sustainability (CREATES) Programme is a five-year initiative (2026-2030) funded by DANIDA and is a Denmark’s contribution to the EU’s Team Europe Initiative (TEI) on Transboundary Water Management (TWM) in Africa. The TEI-TWM aims to enhance water security, promote regional stability and resilience, and foster peaceful development across Africa. CREATES supports this goal by focusing on improving transboundary water management in Eastern Africa to enhance water security, climate resilience, cooperation, and sustainable development.
CREATES programme is currently implemented in the Sio-Malaba-Malakisi (SMM) Basin (Uganda and Kenya) and the Mara Basin (Kenya and Tanzania). These basins face significant transboundary water management challenges, including poverty, vulnerable populations, food insecurity, and risks of instability and conflict. Both basins have existing platforms for advancing TWM, with opportunities to enhance the capacity and actions of regional and local institutions. The Programme is implemented by IUCN and UNEP-DHI, working in collaboration with relevant regional, national, basin-level and local institutions and stakeholders.
The expected outcomes for the Programme are as outlined below:
Enhanced capacity of local, national, and regional bodies for climate-resilient water resources management.
Improved implementation and sharing of climate-resilient integrated water resource management (IWRM) practices.
Improved governance arrangements for TWM.
Increased investments in and implementation of climate-resilient transboundary water infrastructure, combined with Nature-based Solutions (grey-green solutions).
Description of the Assignment
A GESI Analysis and Action Plan was previously prepared for CREATES and BRIDGE. This assignment will take account of that work alongside current programme documentation and safeguards instruments, while undertaking the analysis and field engagement required to provide a sufficiently robust and programme-specific basis for the CREATES Gender Action Plan.
Scope of Work
The consulting team/firm will undertake the GESI Analysis and develop the Gender Action Plan in line with relevant IUCN policies, standards, templates and guidance. The scope of work will include, but not necessarily be limited to, the following:
Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Analysis
Review the Programme and Project Documents, Theory of Change, Results Framework, stakeholder engagement documentation, Indigenous Peoples Plan (IPP), ESMS screening and other relevant safeguards instruments. The previous CREATES/BRIDGE GESI Analysis and Action Plan should also be reviewed as an existing source of information.
Review the relevant national and regional legal, policy and institutional frameworks for gender equality and social inclusion and assess their relevance to programme implementation.
Analyse gender roles, decision-making processes, access to and control over resources, participation in water governance and expected distribution of programme benefits at regional, basin and community levels.
Review how climate vulnerability, social exclusion and other intersecting factors influence different groups, with particular attention to Indigenous Peoples, youth, persons with disabilities and other potentially marginalised populations.
Examine the institutional, social, cultural and economic factors that may constrain meaningful participation, representation, leadership and equitable benefit sharing within programme interventions and water governance structures.
Assess the institutional capacity of relevant programme partners to integrate gender equality and social inclusion within programme planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting.
Analyse gender-related risks that could arise from programme activities, including exclusion or discrimination, elite capture, increased workloads or unpaid care burdens, and risks related to gender-based violence (GBV), sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and sexual harassment (SH), as relevant to the nature and location of programme interventions. This analysis should be undertaken in coordination with the programme GESS specialists.
Identify practical entry points for strengthening equitable participation, leadership, benefit sharing and inclusive governance throughout programme implementation.
Gender Action Plan Development
Translate the findings of the GESI Analysis into a programme-level Gender Action Plan aligned with relevant CREATES outcomes, outputs and activities.
Define priority actions, expected results, indicators, targets, implementation responsibilities, timelines and indicative resource requirements.
Recommend measures that strengthen gender equality and social inclusion across institutional strengthening, transboundary water governance, Nature-based Solutions, climate-resilient infrastructure and community-level interventions, as relevant.
Propose indicators and means of verification for monitoring progress and recommend, where necessary, adjustments to the Programme Results Framework and MEL arrangements to support effective tracking and reporting of gender equality and social inclusion results.
Establish practical arrangements for monitoring GAP implementation, reporting progress and responding to emerging issues or changes in programme context.
Ensure that actions contained within the Indigenous Peoples Plan and other safeguards instruments are appropriately reflected within the Gender Action Plan, avoiding duplication while maintaining consistency across programme instruments
Integration with ESMS and Stakeholder Engagement
Review the proposed programme interventions against the requirements of the IUCN Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS) and ensure that recommendations from the GESI Analysis complement existing safeguards instruments, particularly the Stakeholder Engagement Plan, Indigenous Peoples Plan, grievance mechanism and any Environmental and Social Management Plans developed during implementation.
Ensure that recommendations relating to GBV, SEA and SH are consistent with IUCN safeguarding requirements and reflect survivor-centred principles and appropriate referral pathways.
Recommend practical measures to strengthen inclusive stakeholder engagement, equitable participation and benefit sharing for women, Indigenous Peoples and other potentially vulnerable or marginalised groups throughout programme implementation.
Validation and Capacity Building
Present the main findings of the GESI Analysis and proposed GAP measures to IUCN, programme partners and relevant stakeholders for technical review and validation.
Incorporate feedback from IUCN and relevant stakeholders into the final Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Analysis and Gender Action Plan.
Provide orientation and practical guidance to relevant programme staff and implementing partners on the implementation and monitoring of the Gender Action Plan.
Methodology
The consulting team will propose a detailed methodology and workplan that reflects the scope of the assignment and the transboundary context of the CREATES Programme. The approach should draw on relevant programme documentation, project safeguards instruments, existing studies and available secondary data, complemented by sufficient primary data collection in the target basins to establish a credible evidence base for the GESI Analysis and Gender Action Plan.
A combination of qualitative and quantitative methods should be used as appropriate to the questions being examined. These may include key informant interviews, focus group discussions, stakeholder consultations and other participatory methods. The methodology should enable information from different sources and stakeholder groups to be validated and should capture gender and social inclusion dynamics at community, basin, national and regional levels.
An intersectional approach should inform the analysis, examining how gender interacts with age, disability, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, Indigenous Peoples status and other context-specific factors. The analysis should assess how these factors influence participation and decision-making, access to and control over resources, access to programme benefits, vulnerability and exposure to programme-related risks
Where relevant and feasible, data should be disaggregated by sex, age, disability and other appropriate social characteristics. The consultation approach should take account of barriers that may limit the participation of women, Indigenous Peoples and other potentially vulnerable or marginalised groups. Appropriate arrangements should be made to support meaningful participation, considering accessibility, cultural appropriateness, gender and conflict sensitivity.
Before field data collection begins, the consulting team will submit the proposed methodology, sampling framework and data collection tools to IUCN for technical review and approval. The methodology should demonstrate adequate coverage of the programme geographies, institutional levels and stakeholder groups relevant to CREATES.
Duration of the Assignment
From 1st October 2026 to 30th December 2026
Deliverables and Activities
The consultant will provide the following deliverables and carry out the following activities:
Deliverable/Activity
Deadline-Week 2
Inception Report and Workplan
Inception Report, including the agreed workplan and methodology, desk review findings, stakeholder mapping, sampling approach, consultation and data collection plan, and proposed data collection tools
Deadline-Week 3 & 4
Field work and Stakeholder Consultations
Field work and Stakeholder Consultations, including submission of a brief consultation summary
Deadline-Week 5.
Draft GAP
Draft GESI Analysis Report presenting key findings, implementation implications, identified risks, opportunities and recommendations.
Deadline-Week 6
Draft GAP
Draft GAP with an implementation matrix outlining actions, expected results, indicators, targets, responsibilities, timelines, monitoring arrangements and indicative resource requirements.
Deadline-Week 7
Validation
Validation of the GESI Analysis findings and proposed GAP measures with IUCN and relevant stakeholders
Deadline-Week 8
Final GESI Analysis and GAP
Final GESI Analysis and GAP incorporating agreed comments and validation findings
Deadline-Week 8
Implementation Guidance Note
Implementation Guidance Note covering integration of the GAP into programme planning, MEL, ESMS implementation, stakeholder engagement and reporting.
Deadline-Week 10
Orientation
Orientation for programme staff and implementing partners on the implementation and monitoring of the GAP
Payment Schedule
The Timetable below summarises the chronological order of deliverables and indicates milestones at which IUCN will pay the Consultant.
Deliverable and Milestone payment
Inception report, including the approved consultancy workplan and methodology.-20%
40%-Final, cleared and approved CREATES Gender and Social Inclusion Analysis Report – MS Word and pdf versions of the Report.
Data and consultations documentation in all available formats
Comprehensive and abridged versions of the GESI Analysis PowerPoint Presentations.
40% Final, cleared and approved CREATES Gender and Social Inclusion Action Plan – MS Word and pdf versions of the Action Plan, as well as Excel components and other versions as applicable.
Comprehensive and abridged versions of the GESI Action Plan PowerPoint Presentations.
Implementation Guidance Note covering integration of the GESI Action Plan into programme planning, MEL, ESMS implementation, stakeholder engagement and reporting.
Orientation for programme staff and implementing partners on the implementation and monitoring of the GESI Action Plan.
Skills and Experience
The consultant must have the following skills, education and experience as a minimum:
An advanced university degree (master’s degree or higher) in Gender Studies, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Environmental Governance, Natural Resource Management, or a related field.
At least seven (7) years of relevant professional experience in gender equality and social inclusion, preferably within programmes addressing climate change, water governance, conservation, natural resource management or international development.
A proven track record in undertaking gender equality and social inclusion analyses and preparing Gender Action Plans that can be operationalised through project or programme implementation.
Experience leading comparable assignments for regional or multi-country programmes will be an advantage.
Sound understanding of intersectional analysis and experience applying participatory approaches with diverse stakeholder groups.
Experience working on the gender and social dimensions of climate change, water resources management, biodiversity conservation, Nature-based Solutions or related sectors.
Working knowledge of environmental and social safeguards and their interface with gender equality and social inclusion. Familiarity with the IUCN Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS), or comparable safeguards frameworks used by international development institutions, will be an advantage.
Experience working in Eastern Africa, preferably within one or more of the CREATES target countries and/or transboundary basins.
Key Competencies
Strong analytical skills and ability to draw clear implementation implications from qualitative and quantitative evidence.
Ability to translate gender and social inclusion findings into realistic programme actions, indicators and monitoring arrangements.
Strong stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills across institutional and community settings.
Excellent written and oral communication skills.
Ability to lead and coordinate a multidisciplinary team and deliver high-quality outputs within agreed timelines.
Language requirements
Fluency in English, both written and spoken, is a must.
Working knowledge of Kiswahili or local languages spoken in the region is an advantage.
Supervision and coordination
The consulting team/firm will report to the CREATES Team Leader and work under the technical guidance of the CREATES Gender, Environmental and Social Safeguards Specialist, with oversight from the ESARO Regional Gender, Environmental and Social Safeguards Specialist.
The Team Leader will be the primary point of contact with IUCN and will be responsible for coordinating the assignment, maintaining the quality and consistency of outputs produced by the team, and ensuring timely delivery.
The team will work closely with relevant CREATES technical specialists, programme partners and national and basin-level stakeholders. Progress meetings will be held at agreed stages of the assignment to review emerging findings, resolve technical issues and provide direction on subsequent deliverables.
How to apply
https://procurement.iucn.org/