Practical Action
Practical Action is an international development organization putting ingenious ideas to work so that people in poverty can change their world. We help people find solutions to some of the world’s toughest problems. Challenges made worse by catastrophic climate change and persistent gender inequality. We work with communities to develop ingenious, lasting and locally owned solutions for agriculture, water and waste management, climate resilience and clean energy. And we share what works with others, so answers that start small can grow big.
We are committed to advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment through all our work. At a minimum, we ensure that all our work is gender sensitive, seeking gender transformative approaches as our overall ambition and in accordance with context.
Phase 3 of the Women in Energy Enterprises in Kenya (WEEK III) project is a 4-year project (October 2022 – 30th September 2026) which is part of the larger programme dubbed: Women Driving Energy Transition and Climate Justice. The programme’s main goal is to ensure that women have an equal opportunity to lead, participate in and benefit from energy access and a just and inclusive energy transition, as an essential right to development.
The WEEK III project will initially be implemented in 3 counties in Kenya, including Meru, Tharaka Nithi and Embu, working with national and county governments, private sector, SMEs and WEEs (Women Energy Entrepreneurs). The project will use a participatory market systems approach and engage multiple stakeholders in the project interventions aimed at increasing energy access for the selected energy value chains in Productive Use of Energy PUE), Clean lighting and clean cooking in the selected counties.
In order to leverage on the potential of the energy sector to transform women’s economies in the rural areas the project will recruit, train, mentor, and support 400 women entrepreneurs (160 in PUE) from the three target counties. These include entrepreneurs involved in production and distribution of improved cook stoves, production, and distribution of clean cooking fuels e.g., briquettes, distribution of clean lighting products and in productive use of energy.
The participatory market systems approach has been adopted to identify opportunities for women entrepreneurs in the energy sector as well as barriers that hinder their participation, and the mentorship model will be used to support peer-to-peer delivery of technical knowledge and skills.
OBJECTIVE OF THE ASSIGNMENT
Gender equality and social inclusion are critical components of achieving sustainable development. Without understanding the different needs and experiences of women entrepreneurs the WEEK 3 project will not be able to achieve its defined outcomes.
The analysis will investigate how the status of women affect their ability to lead, participate and benefit from energy access and a just and inclusive energy transition. The barriers and issues identified will be addressed directly and challenged through the project to achieve progress towards gender equality and social inclusion within the energy sector, and especially within the project areas.
The aim of the GESI assessment is to identify the key gender and inclusion issues at play in the community and at system level, particularly within the energy space. The result of the assessment will be used to develop an evidence-driven gender action plan and ensure that gender transformative approaches are mainstreamed across the programme’s design and implementation, monitoring and evaluation, as well as in the development of the project’s learning agenda.
The specific objectives of the analysis include:
- To better understand the root causes of gender inequalities i.e., the barriers and other underlying issues that are preventing gender transformation within the energy space.
- To support the mainstreaming of gender transformation across WEEK 3 project Theory of Change based on analysis findings.
- To facilitate an effective gender inclusion approach into the project’s Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) frameworks, project work plan, budget, and key program interventions, including the development of project influencing plan.
- To support the design and development of effective gender capacity building initiatives for WEEK 3 project participants, stakeholders and staff.
A detailed Terms of Reference can be accessed from the website download section. https://practicalaction.org/careers/vacancies/gender-equality-social-inclusion-analysis-consultant-week-3/
How to apply
Interested consulting entities that have capacity to deliver this TOR are invited to submit a complete proposal to [email protected] with subject line “Gender Equality & Social Inclusion Analysis Consultant” to reach Practical Action on or before 21st December 2023.
GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION OF EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
A consulting entity and individuals that meets the above requirements and is available within the time limit indicated above should submit the following:
- Technical proposal that includes the consultants’ understanding of the assignment and context, approach to the assignment, methodology and work plan for performing the assignment.
- Recent CV including experience in similar assignments.
- Financial proposal in Kenya Shillings clearly indicating the budgeted cost for the work to be conducted by the consultant under the scope of work.
Practical Action is an equal opportunities employer, and we encourage applications from under-represented groups. We stay committed to cultivating an inclusive and diverse working environment and believe that people from different backgrounds or cultures give us different perspectives, and the more perspectives we have, the more successful we will be. By building a culture where everyone feels heard, respected, and valued we give everyone working with us the opportunity to achieve their full potential.
We are committed to safeguarding and protecting children and vulnerable adults and as such candidates will be subject to pre-contracting checks.
The successful applicant must have the pre-existing right to both live and work in Kenya.