National Consultation to carry out assessment of care needs-TOR

National Consultation to carry out assessment of care needs-TOR

Background:

Lumanti Support Group for Shelter is a non-government organization dedicated to the alleviation of urban poverty in Nepal through the improvement of shelter conditions. At Lumanti, shelter means the whole living environment, therefore, Lumanti's activities are wide-ranging. They include shelter upgrades, micro-finance, education and children's programmes, good governance, gender equity and advocacy. Lumanti means "memory" in the Newari language.

Lumanti in partnership with UN Women Nepal is implementing “Empower Women, Prosperous Nepal” in 10 municipalities of 3 provinces. Generational gender-based inequalities, entrenched social norms regarding gender roles, and insufficient awareness of the economic impact of unpaid care work are significant barriers to gender equality. These issues prevent women from accessing paid and professional opportunities. The absence of gender-responsive policies to address women’s unpaid care work further worsens the situation.

The issue of unpaid care work not only restrict women individually, but it also has broader implications for communities and economy as a whole. Almost 40 percent of women out of the labour force cited, unpaid care work as the primary reason for not being in labour force. Thus, it impedes progress toward gender equality, inclusive socio-economic empowerment, and the equitable distribution of caregiving responsibilities between men and women.

Limited economic opportunities, inadequate access to technological advancements, and policy deficiencies confine women primarily to home-based caregiving roles. Further, the lack of supportive care infrastructure/center, and flexible breaks, fails to accommodate the diverse needs of women from an intersectional perspective.

So, this project is seeking to carry out a contextual care needs assessment, which will further guide the piloting intervention, awareness, capacity building, policy dialogues and reflective dialogue on unpaid care engaging community.

The Consultant will be responsible to provide expert analysis and lead the assessment of care needs including organizing a consultation with local government and CBOs, review of local and relevant documents, understanding the care issue and concerns of the communities in select Palikas and to identify specific entry points to inform design and implementation of the Community Cares project.

Objective: Overall the objective of the assignment for the consultant to lead the knowledge generation/evidence building on care needs in the Karnali, Sudurpashim and Madhesh building on insights from 10 intensive Palikas and potentially other surrounding Palikas. Specifically:

• To finalize a methodology together with project lead with steps of secondary and primary information collection, development of an outline for the final report and carry out sessions in consultation and group/ individual meetings.
• To gather information and evidences on care economy, particularly on unpaid work from the perspective of job creation for women in care works and beyond. The consultant will specifically focus on the demand side assessment of the care needs in provinces.
• To participate in the consultation meetings in three provinces and organize exercise with local government and CSOs to stock take of care needs from women’s economic empowerment lens
• To document case studies and best practices of community level on care work aligning with social norms change and creating paid jobs on care work.
• Finalize a high-quality report, along with 4 pager brief report and PPT.

Geographical Coverage:

The extent involves 10 intensive Local Governance Units (LGUs) in Karnali, Sudurpaschim and Madhesh. However, the consultation can invite altogether 10 Palikas providing opportunity to make the knowledge product more relevant and comprehensive for each province. The assignment includes the field visits in three provinces for 2 consultations in each. The cost of travel and DSA will be separately provided as per organization’s policy

Responsibilities

• The information and evidences will be collected based on different consultative processes to advocate, implement actions in the ground level on community care
• The best practices and community care work (direct/indirect) will be explored, discussed and documented to share in wider audiences to influence in recognition, respect of unpaid care work
• Discussion and consultative processes would support and indirectly build the capacity of identified groups on community care and care infrastructure
• Intensive report will be prepared, shared and circulated among the LGUs to explore and advocate on policy formulation and resource allocation.
• Draft a methodology including but not limited to FGD, KII, consultation, review

Targeted Groups

• Women groups, community groups in 10 LGUs, especially those in marginalized or economically disadvantage areas.
• LGUs, policymakers, and local level stakeholders responsible for planning and implementing care services.
• Development partners and organizations focusing on women’s empowerment and economic development.

Timeline and Deliverables:

Qualification and Experience

• At least 3-5 years of working experience in care work and women empowerment.
• Has good knowledge of current global issues specific to women's rights, women's empowerment, and gender equality
• Relevant certifications or qualifications in care work and women empowerment.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills, particularly in interacting with stakeholders.
• Aware and update on the existing policies regards gender equality and women's rights 

Monitoring and Evaluation:

The assessment will involve regular progress reviews to make sure the team stays on track with the timeline and the quality of the data collected. Important indicators of success will be the completion of fieldwork, the quality of engagement with stakeholders, and the thoroughness of the final report.

Applications, including a cover letter and CVs, must be submitted to lumanti.vacancy@gmail.com no later than February 8, 2025. Telephone inquiries will not be entertained. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted for further screening process.