The Gender Help Desk (GHD) is in charge of guaranteeing a cross-cutting gender transformative approach, generating a mechanism to reinforce the process in the Project and its actions. Its main objective is to support the project in the construction of a gender mainstreaming/transformative strategy, so that from the beginning, the tools include the gender perspective throughout the action cycle (identification, approval, tracking, and evaluation) and the annual plans of the project. 

During the inception phase of the project, and in close collaboration with the Coordination unit expert, the GHD coordinator will define clearly the GHD missions and mandate to ensure the CAD 2 marker of the project. Also, based on all the guidelines and tools developed during EUROsociAL+, the GHD coordinator will develop all relevant procedures and ensure their dissemination and use at project level by all relevant stakeholders. 

During the implementation phase of the project, and in close collaboration with the Head of the Coordination Unit (HCU), the GHDC will coordinate, supervise and guide the TEI Inclusive Society Project team, advising and supporting its members (Heads of component, SPOs, Key Experts) on gender related cross-cutting issues.

He/she will report directly to the HCU, will be part of the Management Team, and will hence participate to the governance team of the project.

The GHDC will be in charge of coordinating the gender experts financed by the implementation agencies. The GHDC will be responsible for the following non-exhaustive responsibilities and tasks:

Inception phase 
-    The GHD coordinator will ensure, in collaboration with the expert in charge of structuring the Coordination Unit, that the internal processes, including assessment criteria, tools and guidelines to ensure the smooth functioning of the GHD are developed and implemented. 
-    The GHD coordinator will contribute to the integration of the gender dimension in the framework of the Project results and to the construction of a system for ex-ante and ex-post evaluation of the quality of the integration of the gender dimension in the actions in collaboration with the MEAL expert. 
-    The GHD coordinator will be supporting policy dialogue based on country strategies (especially in close conjunction with gender inequality and women empowerment dedicated staff). 
-    The GHD coordinator will recruit the Gender Help Desk support (team member part of the GHD) 

Implementation phase 

Steering of the gender transformative and gender mainstreaming strategy of the Project:
•    Guides and supports Heads of component, SPOs and Key Experts on the gender mainstreaming process 
•    Supports the integration of the gender perspective into all the request/actions of all components and action lines of the project though expertise mobilisation when relevant; 
•    Participate in the relevant stakeholders’ meetings at the beginning of the project life cycle and when necessary; 
•    Through the coordination of the Gender Experts financed by the agencies, ensures daily technical coordination of actions related to gender related crosscutting issues, monitoring of field experts, organisation of meetings and national/regional relevant events;
•    Ensure good circulation of information and maintain good collaborative relationships with the European and Latin-American regional gender related institutions (UN Women, GREVIO, WAVE, CEPAL, CIM-OEA);
•    In close collaboration with the SERA expert, ensures and evaluates gender related indicator, to share with the team, counterparts, and donors or to present them as needed in the field, such as events or round Tables;
•    Participate in promotion and prospecting gender transformative and sensitive, as well as mainstreaming, activities among the stakeholders;
•    Building of relationships and prospection of possible think tanks, applied research groups, NGOs to support the execution of actions;
•    Focal point with the EU on gender issues.

Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Capitalisation 

•    Design a methodology for evaluating the degree of integration of the gender perspective in actions that enables an account to be made of the progress of the project;
•    Create a system to monitor the progress of the project in terms of gender cross-cutting;
•    Supports the development of indicators on the state of progress of integration from a gender perspective into the project, linked to the DAC gender markers in all EU project actions and legal frameworks;
•    Participate in the valorisation of experience returns and in the dissemination of good practices (writing files and manuals, daily jobs, sharing experience as a trainer or referent, etc.);
•    Participate in work aimed at functional and technical improvement of the agency's offering (R&D, innovation, marketing) and organisation of the structure (organisation and quality);
•    Ensures representation, visibility and contribute to communication activities on the project;
•    Prepare and present reports on progress to the destination of the European Commission and the consortium;
•    Assist the consortium partners in the recruitment of experts and the preparation of TDRs and gives inputs for gender mainstreaming on the development of actions;
•    Identify good European practices in the field of gender mainstreaming.