UN Women: National Consultant to conduct Final Evaluation for the Joint Programme: Empowering Women for Sustainable Peace in BARMM and in the Philippines, Home-Based, Cotabato City, National Consultant

Background:

1. Background and Context:

United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) marked a turning point by formally recognizing the link between gender equality and international peace and security. Emerging from sustained advocacy by global women’s organizations, it became the foundation of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, which has since expanded through nine subsequent resolutions.[1] Today, WPS is a core thematic pillar of the UN Security Council’s work and a key international framework addressing the gendered impacts of armed conflict, political crises, displacement, violent extremism, disasters, and mass atrocities on women and girls. The agenda promotes inclusive and democratic decision-making, gender justice, and conflict prevention, supported by evidence showing that women’s participation significantly improves peace processes and post-conflict recovery.[2] Despite progress, implementation gaps persist globally, including women’s under-representation in peace processes, limited gender-sensitive conflict analysis, and inadequate financing.

In the Philippines, these global commitments intersect with a major peace milestone in Mindanao. The 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) between the Government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) led to the establishment of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) in 2019. The BOL institutionalized the mainstreaming of women’s empowerment and the WPS agenda across governance and peacebuilding and created the Bangsamoro Women Commission (BWC) as the lead body for advancing these goals. BARMM’s political and fiscal autonomy offered a historic opportunity to address decades of marginalization and conflict in Southern Philippines.

However, the transition has revealed deep and persistent challenges. BARMM continues to face layered and interlinked conflicts, including clan feuds (rido), ethnic tensions affecting both Moro and non-Moro groups, political rivalries, displacement, trauma, and the threat of violent extremism. These issues extend beyond the original scope of the peace agreement and are compounded by weak inclusivity in peacebuilding processes. Gender dimensions of conflict particularly the roles, experiences, and exclusion of women—remain insufficiently addressed, despite women’s long-standing involvement in both formal and informal peace efforts.

Historically, conflict in Mindanao has reshaped gender roles in complex ways. Women have been victims, caregivers, economic providers, peace advocates, and at times combatants or supporters within armed structures, while men have experienced shifting notions of masculinity linked to loss of livelihoods and exposure to violence. Although women have often filled critical social and economic gaps during displacement and insecurity, they remain largely excluded from formal peace and security decision-making. Political representation of women in BARMM institutions remains below 10 per cent, significantly lower than the national average. These persistent inequalities continue to shape women’s experiences of conflict and peacebuilding today and underscore the importance of institutionalizing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda throughout BARMM’s ongoing political transition.

The successful conduct and completion of the first Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections (BPE) in September 2026 marked a significant milestone in the political transition of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). The inauguration of the first regular BARMM Government on 30 October 2026 signals the beginning of a new phase of democratic governance and institution-building in the region. While this transition presents important opportunities to deepen inclusive and accountable governance, it also underscores the urgency of sustaining and institutionalizing gains in women's participation, leadership, and protection within emerging governance structures. Notably, the Bangsamoro Gender and Development (GAD) Code has yet to be enacted, leaving critical gaps in the legal and policy framework needed to advance gender equality and women's empowerment across BARMM institutions. In this context, the integration of Women, Peace and Security (WPS) principles into government policies, programmes, and budgets remains more critical than ever. The BARMM Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (RAP-WPS) 2023–2028, coordinated by the Bangsamoro Women Commission (BWC), continues to provide the principal framework for translating policy commitments into concrete and adequately funded actions. At the same time, peacebuilding and development efforts continue to face challenges arising from displacement, localized conflicts and rido, resource competition, shrinking civic space, environmental degradation, climate-induced disasters, and regional geopolitical developments that disproportionately affect women and girls.

Against this backdrop, the Joint Programme (JP) has been implemented since April 2022 during a critical transition period marked by political, social, and environmental complexities. Following the completion of the first Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections and the establishment of the regular BARMM Government, the region continues to face persistent peace and security challenges, including localized conflicts, clan feuds (rido), violent extremism risks, and political competition. These challenges are compounded by recurring climate- and disaster-related shocks, including severe flooding and sea-level rise, which exacerbate displacement, livelihood losses, and gender-based violence. Women and girls continue to face intersecting vulnerabilities arising from conflict, disasters, climate change, and persistent economic exclusion, while Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples, particularly women, remain among the most marginalized groups, often excluded from formal peace and governance processes and disproportionately affected by localized conflicts and land disputes.

Despite these challenges, important policy and political openings continue to provide opportunities to advance the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda in BARMM. The successful completion of the first Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections in September 2026 and the inauguration of the first regular BARMM Government on 30 October 2026 mark a historic transition towards democratic self-governance. However, the transition period concluded without the enactment of the Bangsamoro Gender and Development (GAD) Code, representing a significant gap in the institutionalization of gender equality and women's empowerment within the Bangsamoro legal framework. This underscores the importance of strengthening the implementation of existing gender-responsive policies and accelerating efforts to establish a comprehensive legislative foundation for women's rights and participation. At the same time, existing gender provisions in the Bangsamoro Electoral Code and Bangsamoro Local Governance Code, growing national momentum for the localization of the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (NAP-WPS), and renewed global commitments under the Pasay Declaration on WPS, which highlights the interlinkages between security, climate change, and gender equality, provide critical entry points for advancing the WPS agenda. The 2024–2028 United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) further reinforces these priorities by committing the UN system to inclusive peacebuilding and ensuring that no one is left behind, particularly marginalized women, Indigenous women, former combatants, youth, and those living in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.

Building on these enabling policy and institutional frameworks, the JP has played a catalytic role in advancing the localization of the WPS agenda. Most notably, the JP supported the development and launch of the BARMM Regional Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (RAP-WPS) 2023–2028 in October 2023 and subsequently assisted in its early implementation and localization. The BARMM RAP-WPS has emerged as a landmark example of localized WPS planning in the Philippines and is recognized in the NAP-WPS 2023–2033 as a “unique document” that offers valuable lessons for adapting national WPS commitments to local conflict and peacebuilding realities.

While these policy gains have created a strong foundation for advancing women’s participation and leadership in peacebuilding, sustaining momentum requires continued investment and support. In response, an 18‑month extension supported through a top-up contribution from the Government of Canada has enabled the JP to consolidate gains and respond to emerging risks by:

• Deepening the localization of WPS through coordinated work with Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU), Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), national agencies, local government units, and civil society;
• Supporting women’s political leadership and participation at different levels of governance;
• Advancing women’s economic empowerment at the intersection of peacebuilding and climate resilience;
• Strengthening the capacity and accompaniment of women peacebuilders and mediators, including those from Moro, Non-Moro Indigenous Peoples, settler, and youth communities;
• Expanding programming to the Special Geographic Areas in North Cotabato and BARMM-contiguous areas; and
• Extending WPS localization efforts to other priority regions, including the Cordillera Administrative Region and the Caraga Region.

By building institutional capacity, empowering women leaders, and grounding the WPS agenda in local realities, the JP positions women not as passive victims of conflict, but as central agents of peace. The implementation of the JP has been critical to ensuring that the gains of the peace process translate into inclusive, resilient, and sustainable peace in BARMM and beyond.

1. Alignment with Development Priorities of GAC:

With funding support from the Global Affairs Canada (GAC), this programme aligns with GAC Feminist International Assistance Policy, more specifically ‘Action area 1 (core): Gender equality and empowerment of women and girls’ and ‘Action area 6: Peace and security’. This programme is grounded on global evidence which says that societies that are more gender equal are more peaceful. Recognizing that when women are involved in peace and security efforts, solutions are more effective and longer lasting, this programme seeks to integrate women and women’s needs into BARMM’s regional peace and security processes. It seeks to leverage more effective and productive partnerships, bringing together BARMM ministries and agencies with civil society, international organizations, and academia. The programme draws inspiration from GAC’s global efforts to strengthen the WPS agenda, including through the Group of Friends on WPS and Canada’s National Action Plan (NAP) WPS. This programme also directly aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Framework (UNSDCF) Outcome 1[3], Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 5 and 16, as well as Canada’s NAP WPS in the following objective areas:

• Increasing the meaningful participation of women, women’s organizations and networks in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, and post-conflict state building.
• Preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based violence perpetrated in conflict and sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers
• Promoting and protecting women’s and girls’ human rights, gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls in fragile, conflict and post-conflict settings.
• Strengthening the capacity of peace operations to advance the WPS agenda

1. Programme Description:

The Empowering Women for Sustainable Peace in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and the Philippines is a joint initiative of UN Women and UNDP designed to prevent insecurity and violence in BARMM by addressing structural gender inequalities and discriminatory social norms that undermine sustainable peace. The Joint Programme (JP) was initially implemented in BARMM and was later expanded to the national level through a costed top-up, particularly in the Caraga Region and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).

The JP commenced in April 2022 and was originally scheduled to end in September 2025. However, through the costed top-up, the programme was extended until March 2027. The JP is supported by the Government of Canada with a total budget of CAD 4.5 million, which includes the CAD 1.5 million costed extension.

There have been no major changes to the Performance Monitoring Framework (PMF) at either the immediate or intermediate outcome levels. However, additional indicators and targets were introduced to measure results in the top-up areas. For the complete PMF of the JP, please refer to the annexes and other relevant project documents.

The JP has focused on two mutually reinforcing priorities:

1. Strengthening women’s leadership and participation in peacebuilding, mediation, conflict prevention, and resolution at community and institutional levels; and
2. Enhancing the capacity, ownership, and accountability of BARMM ministries, offices, and agencies to mainstream gender equality and the WPS agenda in policies, plans, and programmes.

The JP ultimate outcome is by 2028, all people, especially those at risk of being left behind, have increased resilience to economic, climatic, disaster, and public health risk through improved, equitable, and gender-responsive access to and utilization of quality social services, social protection, healthy habitat, and enhanced good governance and peace which is the outcome 1 of the new 2024-2028 UNSDCF Philippines framework.

The JP has two intermediate outcomes:

Intermediate Outcomes 1100: Strengthened inclusive, gender-responsive policy and programming on conflict prevention and resolution by government institutions in the BARMM and the Philippines. (GAC: 1100)

(Equivalent to the UN outcome: Government institutions in the BARMM strengthen inclusive, gender-responsive policy and programming on conflict prevention and resolution)

Intermediate Outcomes 1200: Improved meaningful participation and leadership in conflict prevention and resolution and peace-humanitarian nexus of women peace mediators and women’s organizations in the BARMM and the Philippines ((GAC: 1200) (Equivalent to the UN outcome: Women peace mediators and women’s organizations have meaningful participation and leadership in conflict prevention for sustaining peace and address a peace-humanitarian nexus in BARMM)

1. Expected Results and beneficiaries:

The JP has continued the implementation of the WPS agenda into other regions and national level interventions. From the original JP results framework, the top-up will contribute to the original intermediate outcomes which still focus on BARMM but also extends support towards national WPS priorities, including NAP-WPS localization to other regions.

The primary beneficiaries of the joint programme include women and girls in BARMM, particularly those who are vulnerable to violence, conflict and crisis in the region. The immediate beneficiaries include the Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA), BWC, BARMM ministries and National Agencies (duty bearers) and gender advocates, civil society women’s organizations and associations at regional and national levels (rights holders).

The Joint Programme is guided by the following theory of change:

If Government institutions in the BARMM and the Philippines strengthen inclusive, gender-responsive policy and programming on conflict prevention and resolution; and

Women peace mediators and women’s organizations have meaningful participation and leadership in conflict prevention for sustaining peace and address a peace-humanitarian nexus in BARMM and in the Philippines;

Then the contribution of women and girls to peacebuilding and consolidation of peace will be valued and bring broader benefits to communities in BARMM and in the Philippines; because inclusive governance and peacebuilding processes promote just and lasting peace in conflict-affected areas of Mindanao and the country.

Under the Intermediate Outcome 1100,

Immediate Outcome 1110. Increased capacity of Bangsamoro Transition Authority (BTA) and National Government Agencies to develop and implement WPS and GAD policy and legislation in BARMM and the Philippines

Output 1111: Technical assistance provided to integrate WPS agenda into the regional and provincial action plans. [UNDP]

Immediate Outcome 1120: Increased capacity of the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) and the Bangsamoro Women Commission (BWC) to implement policy and programmes and coordinate with other national and regional government stakeholders to enhance women’s participation and leadership in conflict prevention and resolution.

Output 1112: Technical assistance provided to BARMM and other Philippine government agencies to produce WPS policies, financial management and monitoring of GAD legislation. [UN Women]

Output 1121: Technical assistance provided to BWC to strengthen capacities to implement policies and programmes that promote women’s participation in conflict prevention and resolution. [UN Women]

Output 1122. Technical assistance provided to BWC to draft strategies and coordination mechanisms on WPS with other regional government stakeholders. [UN Women]

Immediate Outcome 1130: Increased capacity of BARMM LGUs to support women’s participation and leadership in conflict prevention and resolution.

Output 1131. Technical assistance provided to integrate WPS agenda into Municipal and barangay development plans through the support from the women LGU officials in conflict-affected areas. [UNDP]

Under the Intermediate Outcome 1200;

Immediate Outcome 1210: Addressed local conflicts and peace humanitarian nexus through women peace

mediators and facilitators in all six provinces in BARMM.

Outputs 1211. Technical assistance provided to establish a network of women mediators/facilitators to support multistakeholder policy dialogue. [UN Women]

Output 1212. Technical assistance provided to communities with Women Mediators to develop and implement work plans to address specific situations of violence, displacement, and fragility across all five BARMM provinces. [UNDP]

Immediate Outcome 1220: Increase capacities of communities to promote awareness and understanding of gender, social cohesion and conflict prevention in BARMM.

Output 1221: Technical assistance provided to increase livelihood to women cooperatives with involvement of youth supporting the WPS agenda. [UN Women]

Immediate Outcome 1230: Generated evidence on gender-conflict analysis especially in BIFF controlled area and communities affected by violent extremism in order to inform conflict prevention and resolutions.

Output 1231: Technical assistance provided by UN Women to BARMM stakeholders to develop research and knowledge products on women and emerging conflicts. [UN Women]

1. Stakeholders Mapping:

The table below provides an initial overview of key stakeholder groups relevant to this evaluation. During

the inception phase, the evaluation team will undertake a more comprehensive mapping to ensure the inclusion of all relevant stakeholders and inform the sampling approach.

Overview of UN Women and UNDP key partners and stakeholders:

1. Project governance and management arrangements:

The JP is governed through a multi-tiered management structure designed to ensure strategic oversight, coordination, accountability, and effective implementation among participating UN organizations and national stakeholders.

1. Joint Project Steering Committee (JPSC)

• The Joint Project Steering Committee (JPSC) functions as the principal governance body of the Joint Programme. It provides strategic direction and oversight, reviews programme performance, and ensures alignment with national priorities, donor requirements, and organizational commitments of participating UN agencies.
• The JPSC's key functions include:
• Providing strategic guidance on programme implementation and results achievement;
• Reviewing progress against the programme's results framework and work plans;
• Approving annual work plans, major programme revisions, and strategic adjustments;
• Reviewing monitoring, evaluation, and reporting products, including the Mid-Term Review and Final Evaluation;
• Facilitating coordination among UN agencies, government counterparts, and development partners; and
• Supporting sustainability, ownership, and resource mobilization efforts.
• The Committee serves as the primary forum for addressing strategic issues, risks, and opportunities that may affect programme performance and achievement of results.
• UN Women acts as the lead coordinating agency for programme management, monitoring, and reporting, working in close collaboration with UNDP. The Programme Management Team (PMT) is responsible for the day-to-day management and coordination of programme implementation.
• Its responsibilities typically include:

2. Programme Management Arrangements

• Coordinating programme implementation across partners;
• Monitoring progress against agreed indicators and targets;
• Managing reporting and knowledge management processes;
• Coordinating field monitoring missions;
• Supporting implementation of JPSC decisions; and
• Managing communication among participating organizations and stakeholders.

3. Implementing and Government Partners

• Government institutions at national, BARMM, provincial, municipal, and barangay levels, together with civil society organizations, women's groups, and peacebuilding actors, contribute to programme delivery and provide technical and policy inputs. These partners play a critical role in ensuring national ownership, localization of interventions, and sustainability of results.

Given the costed top-up, the JPSC members were expanded, which now include representatives from the following organizations:

• Office of the Resident Coordinator in the Philippines
• Bangsamoro Transition Authority
• Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity
• Bangsamoro Planning and Development Authority
• Bangsamoro Women Commission
• Philippine Commission on Women
• Government of Canada
• Ministry of Interior and Local Government
• UN Women
• UNDP
• 2 representatives from UN agencies (International Organization for Migration and United Nations Population Fund)
• CSOs representative (United Youth for Peace and Development [UNYPAD] and Teduray-Lambangian Women Organization Inc. [TLWOI]) and Women Engaged in Action (WEACT) 1325

1. Objectives and use of the final evaluation:

The overall purpose of the evaluation is to assess the relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence, sustainability, and emerging impact of the Joint Programme, while generating strategic evidence to inform future decision-making, strengthen accountability, and promote organizational learning among stakeholders.

The key objectives of the evaluation are to:

1. Assess the JP’s performance against the ag