Researcher – Women’s Participation in Elections in Syria
Terms of Reference
| Location : | Remotely, preferable with the ability to travel |
| Application Deadline : | 27-June-22 |
| Category : | Political & Civic Engagement, Gender Equality |
| Type of Contract : | Consultancy |
| Languages Required : | Arabic |
| Duration of Initial Contract : | 12 months |
| Expected Duration of Assignment : | 12 months |
Dawlaty has over the past six years supported civic engagement and political participation initiatives, first of all through consultations with women-centered grassroots organizations to understand their perception of political processes and concepts, and secondly to understand how to raise conflict- and gender-sensitive awareness that ensures a positive impact
Dawlaty continues to support Syrian civil society with a particular focus on creating strong cadres of women community leaders. We believe that consolidating women’s active leadership and engagement can lead to more inclusive communities, by strengthening their technical capacities and ability to initiate bottom-up community initiatives.
Dawlaty also supports coordination with other actors supporting Syrian women’s participation in political processes, to address the limited availability of accessible knowledge and understanding of the gender dynamics in the Syrian conflict and general political culture/structures.
Dawlaty seeks to generate and disseminate research and analysis to address some of these gaps, and the aim of this research paper is to elevate the visibility and policy relevance of gender equality and women’s rights to Syria’s future.
As part of this research paper, Dawlaty is seeking to commission a gender analysis of Syria’s electoral laws and processes, with a special focus on women’s rights standards and norms, including the following components:
● Conduct a gender analysis of Syria’s national and local electoral laws and processes through a regionally-contextualized gender framework;
● Identify key constitutional provisions that are relevant to women’s rights and gender equality;
● Assess these provisions against human rights law, focusing on women’s rights and gender equality norms and standards; where possible, assess what is politically possible locally and nationally in the Syrian context looking towards regional experiences (successful as unsuccessful), and align it with demands that have been recorded by women’s rights advocates;
● Analyze gaps between electoral commitments to gender equality and women’s rights and actual laws and legislation in Syria;
● Develop a comprehensive research paper that accessibly communicates applicable opportunities for more gender-sensitive and inclusive electoral processes in Syria, on a local and national level
Additional Responsibilities:
– The researcher will invite different groups, activists, local grassroots groups, experts as well as partners to analyze the electoral processes in Syria and women’s participation in them and analyze complex and structural obstacles that have historically prevented women from participating in politics and electoral processes, and the fulfillment of their role in exercising active citizenship.
– The researcher should help in suggesting a list of invitees to the focus group discussion sessions, and s/he will also prepare the content of the sessions and the agenda, and facilitate the sessions.
– The researcher must attend all events that Dawlaty invites him to or from another party, which may help to develop the research paper in a better way.
– The researcher should coordinate with the consultant who will be responsible for developing the training materials and manual on ‘Women’s political participation in Elections & Electoral Processes’ in order to enrich the research paper further, as needed.
– The researcher must coordinate regularly with the Dawlaty team, throughout the work on the research paper, and share with Dawlaty the progress and potential changes to the work plan.
Deliverables:
– The researcher should develop a clear outline for developing the research paper one month after signing the contract, including the dates of the focus sessions in coordination with the Dawlaty team.
– Preparing a list of the names of candidates to attend the focus group sessions in coordination with the Dawlaty team one week after the approval of the activities plan.
– One of the researcher’s responsibilities is to prepare the questions of the focused sessions and the content of the session two weeks before the date of each session.
– The researcher must submit an initial draft of the research paper by mid-January 2023
– Develop and amend the research paper based on observations and recommendations by Dawlaty’s team and experts in the subsequent period
– The researcher must submit the final version of the research paper during the month of June 2023.
Qualifications:
● Individuals or a team of experts are encouraged to apply
● An academic degree in political science or law, or other relevant major related to the assignment, we encourage those who have sufficient experience and knowledge in the Syrian constitution and the electoral law.
● A minimum five years of experience in designing and developing research papers, including data extraction and analysis.
● Experience working in conflict-sensitive settings, particularly with CBOs, vulnerable groups and cross conflict border contexts.
● Knowledge of and experience working in the Syrian and regional context is required.
● Knowledge of human rights and women’s political participation, the Syrian constitution and electoral laws, experiences.
● Excellent communication and facilitation skill
● Excellent written and oral communication skills in Arabic.
Timeframe:
From 1/7/2022 until 30/06/2023
Expected working period:
12 months
Selection Process
Qualified candidates are encouraged to apply by sending
● CV, with samples of previous research and work related to the topic.
● 2-page proposal maximum- outline approach, methodology and plan
● Requested fees
To info@dawlaty.org
Applicants should include the following subject heading in their email communication “Application: Researcher on Women’s participation in Elections”. Only Short-listed candidates will be contacted.
Application deadline:
Monday, June 27, 2022
Dawlaty is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. All employment is decided based on qualifications, merit and work needs.