Consultant for Photography of Network Members and Stakeholders under the African Women Leaders Network (AWLN) for the Generation Equality: Beijing +25 Commemorative Handbook - Harare

Background

UN Women Zimbabwe, the African Union and the Embassy of Ireland in South Africa have been supporting the establishment of the AWLN Zimbabwe Chapter which was launched in February 2020. The African Women’s Leaders Network (AWLN) is a continental platform with the intent to create a for a for existing and emerging women leaders across the continent to share their experiences and to create partnerships across the continent in order to work towards established African and international goals, namely: the Africa Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In Zimbabwe, the National Chapter initiates actions towards fostering women's leadership, in line with key women’s rights and gender equality frameworks to support the effective engagement of women in the development of the nation. As the AWLN Zimbabwe Chapter maps out, engages and feeds into national, regional and international processes aimed at promoting women’s rights as well as gender equality, the network wishes to highlight key efforts by women in Zimbabwe, youth and AWLN Members to realize as well as promote the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA). The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action is a visionary agenda for the empowerment of women. It is also one of the reference frameworks to analyse the situation of women around the world and to assess the efforts of States in support of women’s empowerment with 12 Key Priority Areas developed around women’s rights. [1]

The AWLN Zimbabwe Chapter and National Youth Caucus have carried out activities under the Network, in line with the BPfA, as a monumental framework on women’s rights and the promotion of gender Equality. In September 2020, the AWLN Zimbabwe Youth Caucus hosted an Intergenerational Regional Round table in commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for action. This facilitated a discussion around progress, gaps and successes in the implementation of the Beijing +25. The AWLN Zimbabwe Chapter went on to host a High-level Localized virtual session Generation Equality Forum in March 2021.Launched in the framework of the Beijing +25 review process from March 2019 to September 2020, the GEF is a major global inflexion point bringing together governments, civil society organisations, corporations, influencers and change makers from around the world to share experiences, provide recommendations as well as define or announce policies towards irreversible progress in achieving gender parity [2] .

These activities served as key in capturing the voices of AWLN Members, youth, civil society around actions to realize the BPfA, women’s rights and gender equality. The new operational environment created by the COVID-19 pandemic was of key importance in these discussions which proffered, recommendations and captured narratives around implementation of the BPfA in Zimbabwe. Of importance to the meetings were the experiences of AWLN Members including the young members, CSOs in grass-roots communities and at national, regional as well as international level to promote the BPfA.

As a signatory to the BPfA, Zimbabwe has engaged in national reporting to take note of progress, made in Zimbabwe by various stakeholders towards the realization of the visionary agenda set out by the BPfA framework to advance women’s rights, promote gender equality and address civil, political, social, economic and cultural inequalities [3] . As part of AWLN’s mandate to promote key frameworks around women’s rights the national chapter would also like to commemorate and highlight efforts undertaken by various stakeholders associated with the Network to promote the BPfA. It is to this end that the AWLN Zimbabwe Chapter will engage a consultant to capture images for the Generation Equality: Beijing +25 Commemorative Book which will work to highlight key efforts by women and youth in Zimbabwe, and AWLN Members to realize as well as promote the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPfA).

[1] Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action Available at https://www.un.org/en/events/pastevents/pdfs/Beijing_Declaration_and_Platform_for_Action.pdf

[2] Information on the Generation Equality Forum obtained from: https://forum.generationequality.org/about

[3] Zimbabwe Government Review Report on the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action. Available at https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/13229Zimbabwe_review_Beijing20.pdf

Duties And Responsibilities

Working under the guidance of UN Women AWLN Technical team the photographer will be expected to capture images for the Generation Equality: Beijing +25 Commemorative Book which will work to highlight key efforts by women in Zimbabwe, and AWLN Members to realize as well as promote the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action (BPFA).

The Photographer Will Undertake The Following

Travel to locations and conduct photo sessions of 25 identified women for purposes of the publication

Travel to locations and conduct photo sessions of Zimbabwean women featuring in the SADC RPTC book

Travel to workshop locations and capture participants during the workshops

Ensure high quality photograpy: minimum resolution of 2000 x 3000 pixels; 6 mega pixels with zero compression in JPEG and/or PNG formats), according to UN Women photography guidelines including captions and timestamps in both landscape and portrait format.

In consultation with the AWLN team, provide high quality photographs for selection for the Generation Equality: Beijing +25 Commemorative Book

Transfer of photographs in raw and edited formats r with optimized resolution in high quality suitable for printing, processing or publishing.

Ensure all ethics related to capturing individual and group images are adhered to such as consent forms.

Competencies

Core Values

Respect for Diversity

Integrity

Professionalism

Core Competencies

Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues

Accountability

Creative Problem Solving.

Data Analysis

Effective Communication

Inclusive Collaboration

Stakeholder Engagement

Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/-/media/headquarters/attachments/sections/about%20us/employment/un-women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf?la=en&vs=637

Functional/Technical Competencies

Strong and sound knowledge and experience in photography, photo-editing and publishing.

Advanced knowledge and skills of MS Office, Adobe Suites and other photo editing tools is a must;

Previous experience working with UN agencies and government in photography documentation of beneficiaries or stakeholders for reports or publications.

Excellent communication (spoken, written and presentation) skills/fluency in English, including the ability to articulate ideas in a clear, concise manner.

Results oriented, exhibiting high levels of enthusiasm, tact, diplomacy and integrity; and able to work with minimal supervision.

Education

Required Skills and Experience

A diploma in Photography or equivalent

Experience

Proven ability in photography and ability to assimilate and communicate complex visual messages in an engaging and user-friendly manner;

At least four (4) years of professional photography documentation, processing and editing photos.

Experience working with the UN or government in photo-documentation for the development of knowledge products, stakeholder reports or any other publication.

A portfolio of previous work, both soft copies and / or hard copies

The photographer to provide specs of the equipment being used for this assignment and export specifications of the soft copy