National Consultant on Prevention of Sexual Harassment and Capacity Building for Local Government Officials, NOC, Sarajevo, BiH

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. The required services are sought through a Joint Programme Gender Equality Accelerator (GEA), financially supported by the European Union (EU), Sweden, and Denmark, and implemented by UN Women, UNDP, UNFPA, and UNICEF in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), within the framework of the United Nations’ cooperation with institutions in BiH, with the aim of advancing gender equality and contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Joint Programme (JP) represents a significant shift in advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment in BiH. It moves away from fragmented, short-term interventions towards a comprehensive, systems-level model designed to address structural barriers and achieve transformative change together with key governmental and non-governmental partners. Designed in consultation with governmental, civil society and international partners and stakeholders and leveraging the collective mandates, expertise, and comparative advantages of four United Nations agencies—UN Women, UNICEF, UNDP, and UNFPA—the JP targets three critical areas: 1. Eliminating Violence Against Women and Girls (EVAWG) 2. Empowering Women Economically (EWE) 3. Elevating Women in Governance and Leadership (EWG&L) Under the Joint Programme, the EVAWG and EWG&L pillars jointly support efforts to strengthen the capacity of public institutions to prevent and address sexual harassment as both a form of gender-based violence and a governance challenge. Recognizing that safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces are essential for women's equal participation and leadership, the Joint Programme promotes institutional reforms, leadership accountability and capacity development aimed at strengthening prevention, response mechanisms and organizational culture across public institutions, including local governments. As part of its support to gender-responsive local governance, UN Women partners with selected cities and municipalities through institutional partnerships formalized by Memoranda of Understanding and tailored to locally identified priorities. Within this framework, the Municipality of Tešanj identified the prevention of sexual harassment in the workplace as a priority area for capacity development. Accordingly, this assignment includes targeted support to strengthen prevention mechanisms, institutional capacities and leadership accountability within the municipality. In parallel, the assignment contributes to broader efforts to strengthen local governance by supporting a specialized training programme for mayors and senior policymakers from local governments across Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a focus on fostering leadership commitment to safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces. The objective of this assignment is to strengthen the institutional capacity of local governments to prevent and respond effectively to sexual harassment in the workplace through tailored, participatory and practice-oriented capacity-building activities. The assignment aims to enhance the knowledge and leadership capacities of local government officials, elected representatives and senior decision-makers, strengthen institutional prevention and reporting mechanisms, and support cities and municipalities in fostering organizational cultures based on integrity, accountability, equality and zero tolerance for sexual harassment. Particular emphasis will be placed on promoting leadership accountability and equipping participants with practical tools to translate knowledge into institutional action. To support the implementation of these objectives, UN Women seeks to engage a national consultant with demonstrated expertise in gender equality, prevention of sexual harassment, institutional capacity development and adult learning methodologies. The consultant will design and facilitate tailored training programmes for different target groups, develop practical learning materials and institutional guidance tools, and support local governments in strengthening institutional prevention, leadership accountability and organizational responses to sexual harassment. The consultant will report to the Governance and Leadership Programme Coordination Specialist, under the overall supervision of the Programme Management Specialist. The Programme Assistant will serve as the focal point for contractual and payment-related matters. Description of Responsibilities/ Scope of Work Deliverables Scope of Work The scope of work will include, but will not be limited to, the following tasks: Training on Prevention of Sexual Harassment for Public Servants in Tešanj Municipality (4 working days) Prepare a comprehensive training package, including detailed training agenda, facilitator’s guide, PowerPoint presentation, participant handouts, pre- and post- survey of participants and participant evaluation form. (2 working days) Deliver one-day interactive training for public servants in Tešanj Municipality with focus on: recognizing unacceptable behavior, reporting pathways, bystander intervention, respectful workplace culture, and rights and obligations. (1 working day) Prepare training report, including participant lists, participant feedback, knowledge change (pre/post) and recommendations for follow-up activities. (1 working day) Training on Prevention of Sexual Harassment for Members of Municipal Council in Tešanj Municipality (4 working days) Prepare a comprehensive training package, including detailed training agenda, facilitator’s guide, PowerPoint presentation, participant handouts, pre- and post- survey of participants and participant evaluation form. (2 working days) Deliver one-day interactive training for Members of Municipal Council in Tešanj Municipality with focus on: political leadership, employer oversight, institutional accountability, creating safe political spaces, leading by example, preventing harassment during council work and public engagement. (1 working day) Prepare training report, including participant lists, participant feedback, knowledge change (pre/post) and recommendations for follow-up activities. (1 working day) Specialized Training for Mayors and Senior Policymakers (4 working days) Prepare a comprehensive training session package, including detailed session agenda, facilitator’s guide, PowerPoint presentation, participant handouts, pre- and post- survey of participants and participant evaluation form for a half-day session at the Specialized Training for Mayors and Senior Policymakers at the local level. (1.5 working days) Deliver a half-day interactive session, Leadership for Safe and Respectful Municipal Institutions, in Teslić or another nearby location, as determined by UN Women, for at least 20 mayors and senior policymakers from selected partner local governments participating in or cooperating with the JP GEA as part of the broader Specialized Training for Mayors and Senior Policymakers. The session shall examine the role of local government leaders in preventing sexual harassment and fostering safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces. It should combine expert input with facilitated discussion and practical case analysis and cover, inter alia, leadership accountability, organizational culture, reputational, legal and governance risks, responsibilities of senior management, responding to complaints, creating psychologically safe workplaces, integrating prevention into human resource management systems, and examples of good practice from European municipalities. The session should encourage participants to reflect on practical actions they can undertake within their own cities/municipalities to strength