Terms of Reference (TOR) for the conduct of Gender Audit of  Political Parties in Sierra Leone:

Overview of the Terms of Reference (ToR)

This ToR is to conduct a gender audit of political parties and other governance institutions in  Sierra Leone. The audit should be able to identify the level of women’s representation in political  parties’ structures and the barriers that inhibit women’s participation across the structures.

The TOR outlines the processes to gather information, analyze, document findings, and develop  strategies to address the gender gaps within the recognized institutions. Those strategies should  promote women’s participation in governance, politics, leadership roles and decision making  successfully. It should further define mechanisms on how the various structures and institutions,

including Political Parties and SEND, should implement strategies and recommendations to  promote gender equity and women’s empowerment.

Brief background of SEND Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone, like many African countries, is a patriarchal society. There are still many gender related challenges facing the country. The government of Sierra Leone has made tremendous  progress in creating a legal environment for addressing inequalities. These are indicated by the  passing of the three Gender Acts in 2007, and recently the approval by the cabinet of a Gender Empowerment Bill that gives 30% minimum quota in governance to women. These actions are all geared towards gender equality and the protection of women and girls.

SEND Sierra Leone is a non-governmental and non-profit making organization (NGO). With a  vision to see a Sierra Leone where people's rights and well-being are guaranteed. SEND Sierra  Leone promotes good governance, voice, accountable essential services, and equality for women  and men. We collaborate with communities, traditional authorities, government institutions and  partners to pool resources together to develop innovative methods to reduce poverty and enhance self-reliance. We are working in the following districts; Kailahun, Kenema, Kono, Western Area  Rural, Western Area Urban, Bonthe, and a most recent expansion to Pujehun, Kambia and Bo.

Project Context

SEND Sierra Leone is partnering with Irish Aid in Sierra Leone to promote and strengthen the  participation of women in governance, politics and decision making at all levels. The project is  implemented in Kenema, Kailahun, Kono, and Bonthe.

The More than a Woman project empowers women to achieve more for gender equality in Sierra  Leone. The project consolidates the gains made in the previous implementation and expands to  Bonthe District in the Southern Province in this phase. It will provide and strengthen women  groups in four districts to be more organized and capacitated to champion women's  empowerment and advocate for their participation in decision-making, governance, and politics.  In Freetown, it will scale up national-level advocacy and networking activities through media and  research engagement meetings to ensure more participation of women in governance, leadership  and politics.

The project is anchored on four outputs:

• Strengthened women’s collective voice, knowledge, capacity on gender, and accountability  in governance and politics at the district and regional level

• Women are empowered economically through resources mobilization and utilization • Increased national-level advocacy and networking on women’s participation in decision making, politics, and governance

• Enhanced capacity of SEND for effective and result-oriented programme delivery

SEND Sierra Leone stakeholders engagement meetings and interviews in Bonthe District  indicated that 14 women are serving in decision-making positions in the district (7 heads of  schools, 1 Principal, 1 paramount chief, 1 Member of Parliament and, 4 councilors). Women's  involvement as traditional leaders such as town chiefs, section chiefs, paramount chiefs, and other  key decision-making positions in all 4 districts is minimal. Fright, illiteracy, lack of finance,  insensitive political party constitutions, traditional/cultural beliefs, and political violence and  intimidations drive away the few who have potentials in leadership due to insecurity when they  aspire for leadership positions.

The SDGs, Goal 5, which seeks to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls, recognizes that while women have made significant inroads into political office worldwide, their  representation in national parliaments remains 23.7%. As a result, practical actions must be taken  to ensure women’s full and effective participation and equal opportunities for leadership at all  levels of decision-making in political, economic, and public life

The Sierra Leone National Development Plan of 2019-2023(SLNDP) has set as its core  achievement women's empowerment. It is aimed at improving women's economic, political,  educational, and health aspects.

These developments, coupled with lessons learned from previous actions, informed the  development of the project to empower Sierra Leonean women to achieve more gender equality  and increase women’s participation in politics and governance.

SEND Sierra Leone seeks the service of a consultant to carry out a gender audit of political parties  and political institutions to provide information and recommendation for advocacy and to build  the capacity of women aspirants and candidates under the More Than A Woman Project, in order  to increase participation of women across the country.

Scope of the assignment

SEND Sierra Leone will hire the services of a competent consultant to conduct a gender audit of  selected political parties (SLPP, APC, NGC, C4C, NDA, UP, etc.) to help them and other  stakeholder institutions, such as MDAs and Local Councils, to assess and understand gender sensitivities and imbalances within the target institutions in Sierra Leone. The action will identify  gender equality, inequality and equity issues within their structures, processes, procedures,  formal and informal practices. The audit will be carried out in 8 districts. These will include the

projects’ four (4) operational districts, i.e. Kenema, Kono, Kailahun and Bonthe) and sample 4  other districts; Bo, Kambia, Bombali and Western Urban.

The results produced will support especially the political parties in identifying their strengths and  areas of development to enhance gender equality within their structures. This Audit will serve as  a roadmap for promoting gender equality within the political parties. It will play a more significant  role for political parties to increase women’s political participation aligning with the Gender Empowerment Bill 2021.

From the results produced, the Consultant will develop a concise policy/or advocacy brief from  the audit report to be used by SEND Sierra Leone and women groups or advocacy led  organisations on women’s empowerment for advocacy and policy engagements with political  parties and to influence political party leadership structures at all levels. The audit will also  contribute to building national institutions’ capacity, political party leaderships, women leaders,  and gender advocates by developing various systematic approaches to be implemented by the  institutions to advance women’s political participation and gender equality

Objective of the assignment

The objective of the gender audit is to provide information on the level of representation of women  in the leadership structures of political parties in Sierra Leone. These include political parties  operating in the 4 districts where the project is implemented and other four districts as mentioned  earlier. The gender audit will proffer recommendations for actions for improvement on the  representation of women in political parties’ structures as leaders and actions for the  empowerment of women.

The action includes a thorough assessment of all political parties’ policies, leadership structures  from the ward, constituency, district, regional and national levels, their constitutions, and related  documents, representation in district councils and in the national parliament by political parties  after the 2018 Elections, and plans for 2023 elections. The audit must also include an  organizational culture assessment. Do men and women perceive themselves to be equally included in the political parties? Are there instances of bias, discrimination or ways in which men  or women may feel unsafe or discriminated against based on their gender? This assessment  includes the extent to which men and women feel that gender diversity and gender equity are  prioritized and the extent to which this is a corporate priority.? All the MDAS in the target districts  must also be assessed on the level of women’s representation in the key leadership structures. The  MDAs include the district councils themselves and all the line ministries in the district. The  assessment of the MDAs should include workplace strategies and policies including recruitment,  management structures, leave, flexibility of work, and workplace safety, including policies on  gender-based violence. Recruitment, wages, promotions, career development support, and  benefits to identify gender-related trends and identify any potential areas of bias or  discrimination.

Methodology

The gender audit will be based on a combination of the following:

Literature Review of local and external resources: A desk study of legal establishment of  political parties and local councils, constitutions, policies and manifestos, gender documents and  the degree of compliance with local and international political and local governance standards.  Review of similar practices across the sub-region inform learning and comparison.

Focus Group Discussions (FGDs): FGDs with the selected leadership and grassroots members of 8 political parties, Women Network, Traditional Leaders, CSOs and MDAs.

Key Informant Interviews (KIIs): KIIs with political party representatives, female  politicians, Traditional Leaders, Women Network Leaders, MDA reps, and SEND partners.

Formative Research

• Develop an inception report based on the consultancy ToR guidelines, including timeline  and detailed methodology. SEND-SL and Irish Aid will review and provide feedback.  • Review the project proposal, reports, and project data, other gender audits conducted by  SEND Sierra Leone.

• Draft data collection tools for primary data collection reviewed, field-tested, and  incorporated feedback into the tool.

• Conduct FGDs and KIIs in selected districts of (Kenema, Kono, Kailahun, Bonthe, Bo,  Bombali, Kambia and Western area. Participants will include political party  representatives, women groups, traditional leaders, media representatives, elected female  officials, youth leaders, security personnel, spouses and family members of female  aspirants.

• Write and share draft analyses and report to SEND Sierra Leone for review and  incorporate inputs into the report

SEND is expected to carry out the following duties/responsibilities: 1. Oversee the overall gender audit process and related materials and provide feedback on  drafts submitted to the consultant

2. Effect payments on the accomplishment of the tasks according to contract and deliverables  are met

3. Facilitate all validation activities and ensure the relevant participants can participate and  contribute

Expertise required

The candidate should possess a postgraduate university degree in a development-related  discipline, gender, politics, or other relevant social science fields. A post-doctorate degree is  desirable but not essential.

Relevant Experience

Essential Criteria:

• Five or more years’ experience in gender-transformative approaches and gender  mainstreaming

• Demonstrated experience in women's political participation programming or research. • Strong understanding of, and commitment to, gender equality and women's  empowerment and its policy implications

• Excellent writing and organisational skills

• Knowledge and substantial experience using computer office tools and statistical software,  such as Microsoft Office.

• Willingness to travel to project locations, including remote areas.

• Committed to signing SEND Safeguarding Policy.

Desirable Criteria:

• Strong understanding of adult learning and instruction delivery techniques • Familiarity with results-based programme management and human rights-based  programming will be an asset.

• Strong understanding of gender issues and the political sphere in Sierra Leone

Application Process

Interested candidates must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their  qualifications:

A technical proposal, which should include:

• A brief methodology on how you will approach and conduct the assignment concerning  the specification in ToR.

• A rationale of your suitability to the role, including experience in similar jobs and evidence  of similar work

• A financial proposal that includes a work plan and daily rate

• A curriculum vitae from the lead consultant and any other team members will assist in the  assignment.

• Submit two samples of previous work relevant for the assignment

• Name and contact information of three referees for contact regarding relevant experience. • A conflict of interest statement.

Applications should be submitted to the following email addresses with the subject title: Gender Audit of Political Parties' to ayamga@sendsierraleone.com and  jattu@sendsierraleone.com

For queries or questions in advance of submitting the proposal, contact

ayamga@sendsierraleone.com or on +23278206853

Closing date for applications:

23:59 (GMT) on 29th September 2021. Application submitted after the stated date and time will  not be accepted.