Empanelment Of Technical Expert(S) – Gender Equality And Social Inclusion (Gesi) At Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure

Technical Expert – Definition

A technical expert is an individual who possesses advanced knowledge, skills, and

experience in a specific specialist area(s), allowing them to provide in-depth analysis,

problem-solving, and guidance within that particular field.

An expert demonstrating considerable international experience in at least 5 countries

across two UN geographic regions (from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the

Caribbean, Northern America, and Oceania) will meet the criteria for international

technical experts and the outlined rates. All other experts will come under the purview of National experts.

The Technical Expert must:

(iii) have professional qualifications and demonstrable experience aligned with the

mandate and needs of CDRI, as per the assignment.

(iv) have no conflict of interest, financial or otherwise, or duty which conflicts or may

conflict with his or her functions as a Technical Expert.

Background:

The Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) is a partnership of national governments, UN agencies and programmes, multilateral development banks and financing mechanisms, the private sector, and knowledge institutions that aims to promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks in support of sustainable development. Further details are available at: https://cdri.world

CDRI launched Infrastructure for Resilient Island States (IRIS) at the World Leaders Summit at COP26- its first and largest international programme to provide technical support on multifaceted issues posed by infrastructure systems and promote disaster and climate resilience of infrastructure assets in SIDS. Aligned with the policy direction of the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA Pathway) and its successor- the Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for SIDS (ABAS), the goal of IRIS is to achieve sustainable development through a systematic approach to resilient, sustainable, and inclusive infrastructure in SIDS.

IRIS is designed on the principle that infrastructure should be resilient and provide accessible and affordable services equitably to all, with a view to promote gender equality and disability inclusion, foster economic empowerment and social mobility and protect human rights for all, including indigenous communities. To achieve this in SIDS, the third outcome of IRIS focuses on ensuring that SIDS infrastructure provides accessible and affordable services equitably to all.

Through the third outcome of IRIS, particular attention will be paid to the needs of socially marginalized groups. The gaps in access to infrastructure affect all genders in different ways. Therefore, infrastructure development should be gender-responsive and ensure equal access to jobs and services, as well as an equal voice in setting priorities for infrastructure design and operation to everyone. Doing this will require a good understanding of the gender dimensions of demand and access to gender-disaggregated data.

The 57 states that are categorised as SIDS by the UN[1] have very distinct social and geographical characteristics. Although there has been a lot of effort globally to understand how gender-responsive infrastructure design can successfully address existing inequalities in the society and support empowerment of women[2], there is a lack of clarity on how this can be achieved in SIDS. SIDS find themselves with unique developmental challenges accompanied by high disaster and climate risks which tend to exacerbate the underlying social inequalities.

Objectives:

Against this backdrop, CDRI aims to Technical Expert(s) to support an infrastructure-focused gender equality and social inclusion analysis in SIDS that considers the regional and sub-regional SIDS context. This analysis will inform the IRIS programme’s future activities under its third outcome – Gender equality and disability inclusion promoted through resilient SIDS infrastructure. In particular, the objectives of this assessment are:

• Identify the unique barriers faced by marginalized groups in accessing infrastructure services during disasters and extreme climate events in 3 SIDS regions (Caribbean, Indian and Atlantic Ocean, Pacific).
• Identify ongoing international, regional, and national efforts that aim to work on the nexus of infrastructure, extreme events & climate change, and GESI mainstreaming in SIDS.
• Identify areas in which CDRI can contribute to eliminating the existing barriers through its future interventions.

Deliverables:

CDRI may mobilize different experts to ensure adequate thematic (gender, disability, indigenous populations, youth…) and geographic input. Depending on their profile, experts may be expected to produce the following deliverables:

• Inception report summarizing:
  • Objectives, scope, and outputs of the assignment
  • Proposed methodology
  • Schedule for the assignment
• Stakeholder analysis: The experts will produce an annotated list of inter-governmental, governmental, and non-governmental organisations with a demonstrated interest in inclusion-focused infrastructure and resilience programming across SIDS. The list should mention contact information, contributions to the field, and any background information useful to CDRI.
• Bibliography and desk review: The experts will list, analyse and summarise relevant knowledge resources (studies, reports, documentaries, conference proceedings, learning modules), highlighting their conclusions regarding vulnerable groups identification, barriers analysis, and recommendations relevant to climate and disaster resilience of infrastructure, as well as case studies/ good practices in SIDS.
• Online stakeholder consultations: The experts are expected to arrange bilateral or group consultations with relevant stakeholders across all 3 SIDS regions (Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean) to clarify and validate the desk review conclusions.
• Inclusive Infrastructure Resilience publication: The expert will participate in drafting a CDRI-branded public-facing report which will include:
  • Definition of vulnerable or under-represented groups and analysis of the barriers regarding their inclusion in infrastructure services and resilience.
  • Analysis of commonalities and regional/local differences in inclusion barriers to infrastructure resilience among SIDS worldwide.
  • Recommendations for increased inclusion outcomes in disaster resilience of infrastructure all along the infrastructure life cycle (policy, regulatory environment, planning, design, operation and maintenance, retrofitting/decommissioning) with a selection of SIDS-based best practice examples, case studies.
  • Roadmap for the IRIS program and CDRI to support the inclusion recommendations, including impact monitoring measures.

The experts will provide at least one draft and one revision for the chapters/sections assigned to them, with a provision for an additional revision as per need.

Timeline for the Assignment

The assignment is planned to take place from September to November 2024.

The expected level of effort for this assignment is 10 to 30 days.

Institutional Arrangements and reporting lines

The proposed gender analysis is envisaged to be led by the IRIS Program Management Unit. IRIS PMU will also be providing overall guidance on the design of organization and methodology for the assignment and take responsibility for the quality assurance process.

IRIS PMU will provide facilitation support to the expert in organizing consultations with IRIS stakeholders and CDRI member countries.

Duty Station

The experts can perform their duties remotely.

Experience and Qualifications

Academic Background:

Master’s degree or equivalent in Gender Studies, International Development, Social Sciences, Sociology, Environmental Science, Engineering, or any other relevant field. Academic training or a degree combining social studies and climate science, disaster risk management, and climate change-related matters is an asset.

Knowledge:

In-depth knowledge of inclusive and accessible infrastructure planning and development and of the barriers marginalized groups face in accessing infrastructure services in hazard-prone areas is required.

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years of conducting multi-dimensional GESI analysis and mainstreaming gender into climate change adaptation, infrastructure planning, and related fields.
• Proven publication experience.
• Extensive experience of working with international programmes.
• Familiarity with SIDS contexts.
• Experience of working with teams in complex circumstances and remotely managed teams.

Language:

• Ability to deliver written and oral communication in English that meets high standards.
• Knowledge of French/Spanish is an asset.

Schedule

Selected Technical Experts will sign a contract with CDRI, and actual work will be assigned through “Work Orders,” specifying the number of (8-hour) days of work and a timeline.

Taxation and Payment Terms

It is as per the policy of CDRI. The rates for both national and international TEs will be inclusive of income tax and goods and services tax (GST) as applicable in India.

Payments to TEs will be made based on per-day rates(as per CDRI policy) (half day (4 hours) /full day (8 hours) as per the levels defined below in Annexure 1.

Additionally, travel and DSA as per CDRI policy may be applicable subject to the specific requirements of the assignment.