External collaborator to carry out research and draft a revised edition of a Handbook for Parliamentarians on CEDAW

Background

The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) is the global organization of parliaments. It was founded in 1889 as the first multilateral political organization in the world, encouraging cooperation and dialogue between all nations. Today, the IPU comprises 179 national Member Parliaments and 13 regional parliamentary bodies. It promotes democracy and helps parliaments become stronger, younger, gender-balanced and more diverse. It also defends the human rights of parliamentarians through a dedicated committee made up of MPs from around the world. Twice a year, the IPU convenes over 1,500 parliamentary delegates and partners in a world assembly, bringing a parliamentary dimension to global governance, including the work of the United Nations and the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The IPU recognizes gender equality as a key component of democracy. It works to achieve equal participation of men and women in politics and supports parliaments in advancing gender equality, including by eliminating discrimination and violence against women and girls. In this vein, the IPU works closely with the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW Committee) to ensure parliamentarians integrate  CEDAW into their law-making and oversight work.

As part of this existing collaboration, a first handbook for parliamentarians on CEDAW was published in 2003. Ever since, the work of the Committee and the work of the IPU and parliaments on gender equality have evolved substantially. The Sustainable Development Goals and many other internationally agreed frameworks rely heavily on progress towards CEDAW implementation. Also, despite the nearly universal ratification of the Convention and progress achieved on many fronts, areas of discrimination still permeate national laws in most countries. Supporting parliaments in the implementation of CEDAW remains therefore of paramount importance.

Objectives

The IPU will issue a new edition of the handbook in 2021 to support political will, increase knowledge and sharing of examples of parliamentary good practices, and provide concrete guidance for parliamentarians and parliamentary staff in advancing substantive equality between women and men, boys and girls, through the work of parliament.  The 2021 edition will be prepared in partnership with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and in close collaboration with the CEDAW Committee. It will be supported by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) and the Swedish Agency for Development Cooperation (SIDA). It will be accompanied by an interactive online version.

Request for proposals

The IPU is seeking applications from qualified and experienced candidates to carry out research and draft a revised and updated edition of the 2003 Handbook for Parliamentarians on CEDAW.

The assignment will include support to online consultations with CEDAW Committee members, IPU member parliaments and the collection of good parliamentary practices in CEDAW implementation, as well as to the development of an online version of the handbook.

Timeline

The assignment is expected to be completed in a maximum of 40 working days, between February and September 2021.

Candidates should propose a daily rate and workplan including the number of days of work foreseen.

Deliverables

It is proposed that the handbook would include the following:

• A general introduction to the CEDAW Convention and its relationship with other international legal and policy frameworks
• An overview of the mandate and work of the CEDAW Committee, and its relationship with other UN treaty bodies and the UPR
• The role of parliaments in ensuring CEDAW and its Optional Protocol ratification, lifting of reservations, and engaging in the state reporting procedure with examples of good parliamentary practices
• The role of parliaments in ensuring implementation of the CEDAW Convention with examples of good parliamentary practices on law-making, government oversight, gender-responsive budgeting, etc.
• A focus on specific areas of CEDAW, based on existing General recommendations, Concluding Observations and views on Individual Communications, in particular on equality in political participation, violence against women and girls and economic empowerment with examples of good parliamentary practices
• Conclusions and recommendations

With that in mind, the assignment will include the following:

• Carry out desk research
• Collect good parliamentary practices implemented at the national level
• Prepare a detailed outline of the handbook and proceed with consultations on that basis
• Deliver the complete handbook based on IPU’s guidance and in consultation with OHCHR and other stakeholders, for a maximum of 50-60 pages
• Support the production of an online version of the handbook and the development of other communication materials

Tentative workplan:  

• February-March 2021: Carry out desk research
• March-April 2021: Organize and carry out online consultations with CEDAW Committee members; Collect parliamentary good practices in consultation with IPU and OHCHR
• April 2021: Submit the first draft of a detailed outline of the draft handbook
• April-May 2021: Integrate comments provided by IPU and OHCHR on the detailed outline
• May 2021: Organize and carry out consultations with select MPs and staff of parliament on the detailed outline
• June 2021: Submit a first draft of the handbook for review by IPU and OHCHR, based on desk research, initial guidance received and content collected through consultations
• July 2021: Submit a second draft of the handbook integrating feedback provided by IPU and OHCHR
• August 2021: Integrate the last set of comments from IPU and OHCHR and submit the final version of the handbook
• September 2021: Prepare a script for an online version and adapt it based on IPU’s and OHCHR’s feedback; Prepare key messages to support the launch and dissemination of the handbook.

Required experience and qualifications

• At least 5 years’ relevant professional experience in the field of gender equality and women’s rights
• Good knowledge of the United Nations human rights system, the CEDAW Convention and its relationship with other international and regional frameworks
• Excellent research, analytical and drafting skills
• Published work in the area of women’s human rights
• Experience in the development of online tools highly desirable
• Good knowledge of parliaments and their role in contributing to gender equality is highly desirable
• Proven ability to write clearly and concisely in English or French for print and online publications
• Ability to read other languages is highly desirable.