International Consultant to develop and design the website for “Empowering women for sustainable peace: preventing violence and promoting social cohesion in ASEAN” Programme

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 Indonesia Country Office hosts the ASEAN liaison office which extends support to ASEAN and its Member States in advancing Women Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in line with global normative frameworks. UN Women in partnership with Global Affairs Canada (GAC) is implementing the regional programme, “Empowering women for sustainable peace: preventing violence and promoting social cohesion in ASEAN” (ASEAN-WPS Programme). The programme aims to support select ASEAN Member States to advance and strengthen the WPS agenda, including through preventing violence against women and girls and promoting social cohesion in the region. The programme will ultimately contribute to achieving gender equality through inclusive and sustainable peace and development process in the region. This regional programme is currently in its inception phase and will be implemented in four ASEAN  countries: Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia and Thailand.

The critical inception phase of the project involves setting up essential communications materials such as a communications strategy, a branding book, and kickstart of the Programme website, which will mainly serve as a digital knowledge hub on the WPS agenda in the ASEAN region. The dedicated website will promote the exchange of knowledge and good practices on WPS, serving one of the four outcome areas of the programme – to strengthen a regional platform for cooperation and advocacy among the ASEAN Member States to promote good practices and evidence on WPS. This website aims to:

• Serve as a regional knowledge hub for large global, regional and national audiences who wish to learn about the WPS agenda in the Southeast Asian region as well as UN Women and its key dialogue partners
• Provide a central library of news, information, knowledge products, case studies, human-interest stories, multi-media resources, among other resources on WPS in the ASEAN region
• Increase the public awareness as well as that amongst the media of the WPS agenda and its implementation in the ASEAN region
• Give visibility to Senior Management, the donors, and the ASEAN Member States
• Establish a platform to engage stakeholders and partners to exchange knowledge and good practices on WPS

Against this backdrop, UN Women seeks to recruit an International Consultant (IC) to develop and design this website as well as a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy to achieve the objectives listed above.

Objectives of the assignment

The main objective of this consultancy is to set up a visually attractive and dynamic website that can seamlessly incorporate text, images, videos, among other multi-media elements for storytelling purposes, as well as a knowledge management system where users can easily search and find information on WPS in ASEAN. The Consultant is also expected to design an SEO strategy for the website to increase the visibility on search engines, and guide the Programme team to improve the SEO of website content during the content creation period.

Scope of work and tasks

Under the overall guidance and management of the Project Coordination Specialist ASEAN WPS and supervision from the Communication Officer, and in close collaboration with the UN Women Asia Pacific communications team, the Consultant will perform the following tasks:

Task 1: Consultation with the Programme team, website concept development, and design mockup

• Review website specifications and organize calls with UN Women staff, the Project Steering Committee, and ASEAN IT focal points, to clarify and identify needs relative to website functionalities, design, appearances, etc.
• Develop a website concept with the design of structure, which includes a proposal of an effective search function, user-friendly interactivity, appealing storytelling structure, newsletter subscription, among other features following the inception discussion with UN Women
• Design a mockup of the website, including home page and other major landing pages, integrating the project’s visual identity
• Make necessary changes to the design mockup following the feedback from the Programme team

Task 2: Development of the website

• Develop a user-friendly website following the iterative development process with the consultation of the Programme team
• Upload existing content and resources provided by the team
• Optimize website for low bandwidth users and mobile device users
• Make necessary changes following the feedback from the Project Steering Commitee
• Liaise with HQ on the security evaluation before public launch

Task 3: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy and website monitoring

• Produce a Search Engine Optimization strategy to increase the website visibility to attract the targeted audience. The SEO work will include:
  • Keyword research & analysis
  • Site analysis
  • Competitive analysis
  • Site content optimization
  • HTML code optimization
  • Online branding/reputation management
  • Outreach planning and management
• Recommend website visibility best practices for the programme and its campaigns and events
• Provide a quarterly analysis and monitoring report of the website traffic with audience analysis and provide recommendations to reach Programme target audiences
• At the end of the contract, provide a detailed analysis and presentation on website traffic, progress, trends and areas to be improved on user experience and website visibility

Task 4: Maintenance, update, and technical support

• Provide technical support, regular maintenance and updates of the website for 12 months
• Assist with design and content update when the changes are not possible to be made from CMS user interface
• Deliver one training to the UN Women Programme team to create and edit content, use website functionalities, modify the basic layout of the website, and monitoring website stats
• Draft a simple user guide for the team to be able to edit, upload content, troubleshoot simple technical issues.

Expected Deliverables 

The Consultant is expected to produce the following deliverables:

All the deliverables, including annexes, notes and reports should be submitted in writing in English.

Upon receipt of the deliverables and prior to the payment of the first installment, the deliverables and related reports and documents will be reviewed and approved by UN Women. The period of review is one week after receipt.

Inputs

• UN Women will provide the Consultant with background information and documents
• Programme branding book with design files
• Corporate branding guide of UN Women, ASEAN, and donors

Scope of bid price and schedule of payments

The contract price is a fixed deliverable-based price regardless of the extension of the contract duration. Payment will be made once deliverables detailed in section II are submitted and approved by UN Women.

The lump-sum costs should include a consultancy fee, administration costs, communication costs, and expenses related to the consultancy. All prices/rates quoted must be exclusive of all taxes. The lump-sum costs must be accompanied by a detailed breakdown of costs calculation using the template in Annex 1.

Performance evaluation:

Consultant’s performance will be evaluated based on: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered.

Core Competencies

• Integrity
• Teamwork
• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration

Required experience and qualifications

The Consultant should fulfill the following requirements:

Education

• University degree or diploma in communications, graphic design, information technology, computer science, or related disciplines

Experience and skills

• Minimum ten years of proven professional experience in designing and developing visually appealing and navigation-friendly websites.
• Proven knowledge of Content Management Systems (CMS), including WordPress, Site Core, Drupal, Google Sites, etc.
• Knowledgeable in HTML, CSS, JavaScript, web protocols work, servers, hosting etc.
• Proficiency with Graphics Software Applications (i.e., Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, etc.) and video editing software such as Adobe Premiere, After Effect.
• Skilled in search engine optimization (SEO), promotion of the websites, cross-promotion and cross-linking of relevant websites.
• Knowledge of Google Analytics, digital marketing tools, and other web statistics tools.
• Previous experience in website migration between different CMS.
• Proven experience in the strategic use and monitoring of web content.
• A combination of excellent problem solving, communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, multitasking environment.
• Previous experience with developing websites for the United Nations systems.
• Knowledge of the Women, Peace and Security agenda is an asset.

Language

Proficiency in oral and written English

Submission of application

Interested candidates are requested to submit the application no later than 15 November 2021.

Submission of package           

1. Cover letter;
2. Updated curriculum vitae including contact information of at least two referees;
3. Two samples of similar work done previously;
4. A copy of academic certificate(s);
5. UN Women P-11 form, available via  http://asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/about-us/jobs; and
6. A financial proposal. The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount per deliverable, including any administrative fees (internet cost, etc.), based on the template in Annex 1. The lump-sum costs must be accompanied by a detailed breakdown of costs calculation.

Applications without any items listed above will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further processing.

Evaluation

Applications will be evaluated based on the Cumulative analysis:

• Technical Qualification (100 points) weight; [80%]
• Financial Proposal (100 points) weight; [20%]

A two-stage procedure is utilized in evaluating the proposals, with an 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 80% of the obtainable score of 100 points in the technical qualification evaluation will be evaluated.

Technical qualification evaluation criteria

The total number of points allocated for the technical qualification component is 100. The technical qualification of the individual is evaluated based on the following technical qualification evaluation criteria:

Only the candidates who have attained a minimum of 80% of total points will be considered technically qualified candidates and may be contacted for a validation interview.

Financial/Price Proposal evaluation:

• Only the financial proposal of candidates who have attained a minimum of 80% score in the technical evaluation will be considered and evaluated.
• The total number of points allotted for the price component is 100.
• The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal that is opened/ evaluated and compared among those technically qualified candidates who have attained a minimum of 80% score in the technical evaluation. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

Disclaimer: 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.)? 

Financial Proposal