Job Description

Background
Zimbabwe is increasingly ravaged by extreme weather conditions that include tropical storms and droughts. The effects of climate change disproportionately affect vulnerable and marginalized groups such as women, children, older persons and persons with disabilities (PWDs). Access to services such as clean and safe drinking water, health, education, SRHR services and shelter are affected. Disasters also compound underlying conditions such as gender-based violence, intimate partner violence, sexual abuse and child marriages.
These impacts of natural disasters tend to fall disproportionately on women and girls and other marginalized groups, due to systemic gender and social inequalities. In disasters, gender inequality and compounding social inequalities are exacerbated, triggering more direct and indirect negative impacts on marginalized groups. Women and girls particularly often have reduced access to health care including sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and GBV, an outcome of gender inequality, rises during disasters and there is also increased risks of sexual exploitation and abuse.

The Sendai Framework is the global governing framework used to reduce disaster risks and oversee disaster management. Despite global commitment to implementing the Sendai Framework and developing disaster laws, policies and strategies to reduce risks and ensure more robust disaster management and response, significant gaps remain in ensuring that the Disaster Risk Management laws, policies, strategies and plans take gender into consideration and include actions to prevent and respond to GBV. The Sendai Framework calls for “gender-sensitive disaster risk reduction policies, plans and programmes”, the participation and leadership of women, youth and persons with disabilities, and argues that “gender, age, disability and cultural perspective should be integrated in all policies and practices”.

The Civil Protection Act (2001) is outdated and does not address emerging issues and trends such as gender equality and social inclusion, leaving no one and no place behind and do no harm principles. The Act does not have provisions for pre, during and post disaster services and rehabilitation and the resultant effect has been response mechanisms which failed to include gender responsiveness and gender inclusivity Disaster risk reduction and management are cross cutting issues but are missing in the national laws even though Zimbabwe is a party to the United Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) and Paris Agreement (2015), Other pertinent frameworks are the Climate change Gender Action Plan and Sendai Framework. Women and other marginalized groups are not involved in identifying climate and disaster mitigatory actions thus not contributing to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).

It is against this background that WLSA seeks to engage a consultant to conduct a Policy, Legal and Gender Gap Analysis of the DRM policy and legal frameworks in Zimbabwe including the National Action Plans, District Action Plans and Community Based Disaster Action Plans on Disaster Risk Management This will include an analysis of the extent of integration of and gender sensitive issues such as SRHR service provision, shelter, GBV risk mitigation, prevention and response considerations in DRM legal and policy frameworks. The DRM policy, legal and gender gap analysis will also outline the DRM legal and policy frameworks that govern Disaster Risk Management in Zimbabwe highlighting the gaps, challenges and opportunities for more Gender Responsive DRM laws and policies. The DRM Legal and Policy and Gender Gap analysis will be instrumental in bringing out the gaps in the Legal and Policy Frameworks as juxtaposed to the Regional and International Frameworks on Disaster Risk Management such as the Sendai Framework, COP 28 etc and will also bring our the gaps as regards Gender Responsiveness and Inclusivity and will proffer recommendations on how these laws, policies and Action Plan can be gender sensitive.

Duties and Responsibilities

Key Objectives of the Assignment

To conduct a Disaster Risk Management Policy, Legal and Gender Gap Analysis of the laws and policies that govern Disaster Risk Management in Zimbabwe.

Expected Outputs and Deliverables
Under the overall supervision of the organisation, the consultants will perform the following substantive duties and responsibilities:
• Prepare an inception report, covering the background, objectives, methodological approach, work plan and deliverables for the assignment.
• Develop the assignment guidelines/tools to guide the key informants, focus group discussions and consultative meetings.
• Facilitate focus group discussions and consultative dialogues with key stakeholders as identified in the inception report and endorsed by the organisation.
• Draft consultative and group discussions reports.
• Produce DRM Policy, legal and Gender Gap Analysis Report.
• Present the Draft Analysis Report to the organisation.
• Facilitate Validation meeting – of the Draft Analysis Report
• Produce a Validation Report
• Incorporate recommendations from the Validation Report.
• Produce a Final Report of the DRM Policy, legal and Gender Gap Analysis

Qualifications and Experience

Key Competencies, Qualifications and Experience
• The consultant(s) should have post graduate university degree in social sciences, gender studies, international development, public administration law, human rights or any other relevant fields.
• At least 10 years of professional experience, in areas of Gender Equality and Women Empowerment (GEWE) and transformative gender and development, with specific emphasis related to the study/assessment on Disaster Risk Management
• Demonstrate expertise in developing Standard Operating Procedures
• Knowledge of relevant Human Rights national, regional and international frameworks.
• Demonstrated expertise and Knowledge of Legal and Policy Frameworks on Disaster Risk Management
• Excellent written and oral English Language.

Duration of Assignment
30 days

How to Apply

To apply kindly submit a detailed proposal and budget (not more than three pages excluding CV), indicating: Consultant’s understanding of the work to be done, clearly outline the proposed methodology to be used, Consultant’s rate, Workplan, Consultant(s) CV to emailed to [email protected]