International Trade Centre (ITC) SheTrades GRPP Policy Consultant 2026

The International Trade Centre (ITC) is seeking a qualified National Consultant – Policy Consultant to support its SheTrades initiative and the development of a practical guide on gender-responsive public procurement (GRPP) for agricultural products. This home-based consultancy will contribute to an important initiative designed to help farmer organizations, women farmers, women-led agribusinesses and cooperatives better understand and access public procurement opportunities. The assignment will run from September to December 2026, with the consultant expected to conduct research, develop a practical approximately 30-page guide, engage with farmer organizations and stakeholders, incorporate technical feedback, and deliver the final approved publication.

The consultancy is particularly relevant for professionals with experience in public policy, governance, public procurement, agriculture, gender development, agricultural value chains, cooperatives, MSMEs, research, technical writing and knowledge-product development.

Opportunity Overview

The International Trade Centre is implementing this work through its Women and Trade Programme and SheTrades Initiative, with the objective of strengthening women’s economic participation through trade and investment. The assignment forms part of ITC’s broader work on gender-responsive public procurement, building on the successful implementation of the SheTrades: Promoting Gender-Responsive Public Procurement for Agricultural Products project in Ecuador. The initiative is now being scaled to Africa and Asia through the GIZ Global Programme Farmers Organisations for the Transformation of Agricultural and Food Systems (FO Hub). The selected consultant will help ITC produce a practical resource that can be used by farmer organizations and their members to better understand public procurement systems, prepare for tenders and improve their ability to participate in government procurement markets.

Key details

• Organization: International Trade Centre (ITC)
• Programme: SheTrades Initiative / Women and Trade Programme
• Assignment: SheTrades GRPP – Policy Consultant
• Division/Section: Division of Sustainable and Inclusive Trade / Women, Youth, and Vulnerable Communities Section
• Type of assignment: National Consultant
• Contract type: Output
• Duty station: Home-based
• Duration: September to December 2026
• Expected duration: Approximately four months
• Travel: No travel
• Main deliverable: Approximately 30-page practical guide
• Final deliverable deadline: December 4, 2026

Application deadline: The reference provided for this opportunity does not state a separate application deadline. Applicants should therefore verify the official ITC vacancy/consultancy notice for the current submission deadline before applying.

About the International Trade Centre

The International Trade Centre (ITC) is a joint agency of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization, headquartered in Geneva.

ITC works to enable small businesses to succeed in international trade, particularly in developing and transition-economy countries. Its work involves providing sustainable and inclusive development solutions to:

• Private-sector businesses
• Trade support institutions
• Policymakers
• Entrepreneurs and business organizations
• Other stakeholders involved in international trade and economic development

The organization focuses on helping businesses and institutions overcome barriers to international trade while supporting inclusive economic development.

About the SheTrades Initiative

The SheTrades Initiative was established by ITC to create an ecosystem of integrated solutions that support women’s economic empowerment through greater participation in trade and investment.

The initiative recognizes that increasing women’s participation in trade requires more than simply providing individual businesses with opportunities. Women also need access to appropriate capacities, supportive markets, effective institutions and policies that do not create unnecessary barriers.

SheTrades therefore works to help ensure that:

• Women have the capacities required to participate in trade.
• Women can access relevant markets and business opportunities.
• Support organizations can effectively assist women entrepreneurs.
• Market partners contribute to women’s economic empowerment.
• Policies and trade systems become more inclusive.
• Inequalities within the trade policy environment that restrict women’s participation are addressed.

The Policy Consultant will contribute to this broader objective by helping develop practical guidance around gender-responsive public procurement, particularly in agricultural markets.

Background to the Consultancy

ITC is building on the successful implementation of its gender-responsive public procurement work in Ecuador, funded by GIZ.

The organization is now expanding this work to Africa and Asia through the GIZ Global Programme Farmers Organisations for the Transformation of Agricultural and Food Systems (FO Hub).

As part of this expansion, ITC is supporting three regional farmer organization networks:

1. Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF)
2. Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA)
3. West African Network of Peasants and Agricultural Producers (ROPPA)

These organizations represent farmer communities and agricultural stakeholders across important regions.

ITC’s objective is to strengthen the ability of farmer organizations and their members to participate in public procurement markets, with particular attention to:

• Women farmers
• Women-led agribusinesses
• Agricultural cooperatives
• Farmer organizations
• Other agricultural suppliers

The consultant will play a central role in converting technical information about public procurement into practical, accessible guidance that can be understood and used by the intended beneficiaries.

What Is Gender-Responsive Public Procurement?

Gender-responsive public procurement refers broadly to approaches that consider gender equality and women’s economic participation within public purchasing processes.

Governments purchase large quantities of goods and services through public procurement systems. For agricultural producers and businesses, these government markets can represent significant commercial opportunities.

However, farmers, cooperatives, MSMEs and women-led businesses can face barriers when attempting to participate in procurement processes.

These barriers can include:

• Limited knowledge of procurement procedures
• Difficulty understanding tender requirements
• Lack of information about available opportunities
• Complex administrative processes
• Limited capacity to prepare bids
• Insufficient understanding of government purchasing systems
• Limited access to business support services
• Challenges associated with agricultural supply chains
• Structural inequalities affecting women-owned and women-led businesses

The practical guide developed through this consultancy is intended to help address some of these knowledge and capacity gaps.

Main Objective of the Consultancy

The primary objective of the assignment is to develop a practical, accessible and context-specific guide on public procurement opportunities for farmer organizations and their members.

The guide is expected to strengthen knowledge of public procurement systems and help the target audience become more prepared to participate in tenders and government markets.

The consultant will work closely with ITC and the three regional farmer organization networks throughout the process.

The final resource should not simply reproduce technical information. It must translate complex procurement concepts into clear and practical guidance that can be used by farmer organizations, women farmers, women-led agribusinesses and cooperatives.

Regional Focus of the Assignment

The consultancy has a broad geographical and regional focus.

Research and content development will consider public procurement, inclusive procurement and agricultural procurement within:

• Western Africa
• Eastern Africa
• Asia

The work will specifically take into account the contexts represented by:

• EAFF
• AFA
• ROPPA

This means that the consultant will need to understand how public procurement systems, agricultural markets and relevant institutional environments may differ across regions.

The guide should therefore provide practical and context-sensitive information rather than relying solely on a single-country procurement model.

Key Responsibilities of the Policy Consultant

The selected consultant will work under the ITC Women and Trade Programme and SheTrades Initiative. The consultant will report directly to the SheTrades Associate Economic Affairs Officer and work under the overall guidance of the Data and Policy Lead of the SheTrades Initiative. The responsibilities are divided into three major areas: research and content development, practical guide development, and coordination with stakeholders.

1. Research and Content Development

The consultant will first undertake extensive background research to establish the technical foundation of the guide.

Conduct a desk review

The consultant will review relevant:

• Literature
• Tools
• Policies
• Existing guidance documents
• Public procurement resources
• Inclusive procurement materials
• Agricultural procurement resources

Particular attention will be given to the regions represented by the participating farmer organizations.

The research will cover relevant contexts in Western Africa, Eastern Africa and Asia.

The purpose of this research is to ensure that the guide is based on reliable existing knowledge and is relevant to the realities faced by farmer organizations and agricultural suppliers.

Identify priority procurement topics

The consultant will identify and prioritize the most important:

• Public procurement topics
• Procurement challenges
• Procurement opportunities
• Barriers to participation
• Practical considerations for agricultural suppliers

The analysis will pay particular attention to the experiences and needs of women suppliers.

Identify practical examples and case studies

The consultant will also identify useful:

• Examples
• Good practices
• Case studies
• Practical approaches
• Existing tools and resources

These materials will be incorporated into the guide where appropriate.

The goal is to make the guide more useful to its intended audience by showing how procurement concepts can work in practical situations.

2. Development of the Practical Guide

One of the most important responsibilities of the consultant will be to write and develop the practical guide.

The final guide is expected to be approximately 30 pages.

The consultant will work from an outline developed by ITC in consultation with the participating farmer organizations.

The guide must be practical and user-friendly

The consultant will be expected to develop content that is:

• Clear
• Practical
• Accessible
• User-friendly
• Context-specific
• Relevant to agricultural stakeholders

The intended audience includes:

• Farmer organizations
• Women farmers
• Women-led agribusinesses
• Cooperatives
• Agricultural suppliers
• Related private-sector stakeholders

The consultant must be capable of taking complex technical information about public procurement and transforming it into guidance that non-technical audiences can understand and apply.

Compliance with ITC standards

The guide must also comply with ITC’s:

• Editorial standards
• Branding requirements
• Style requirements
• Formatting requirements

The consultant will therefore need strong drafting and editing abilities in addition to technical knowledge.

Incorporating feedback

The guide will go through multiple rounds of review.

The consultant will need to:

1. Submit drafts to ITC.
2. Receive technical and editorial feedback.
3. Incorporate comments.
4. Participate in consultations.
5. Revise the guide.
6. Address additional stakeholder feedback.
7. Finalize the document.
8. Obtain ITC approval.

The consultant must therefore be comfortable managing iterative drafting and review processes.

3. Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder engagement is another significant part of the assignment.

The consultant will participate in coordination meetings with ITC and relevant stakeholders to discuss:

• Structure of the guide
• Content
• Research findings
• Progress
• Draft versions
• Stakeholder feedback
• Required revisions

The consultant will also coordinate closely with ITC staff to ensure that the guide is aligned with existing:

• SheTrades methodologies
• ITC publications
• ITC knowledge products
• Relevant programme approaches

Consultation With Farmer Organizations

An important part of the assignment involves direct engagement with representatives of EAFF, AFA and ROPPA.

The consultant will present draft versions of the guide during online consultation or validation sessions.

These sessions will be used to:

• Present draft content
• Gather feedback
• Discuss the structure of the guide
• Assess its practical applicability
• Identify gaps
• Document stakeholder recommendations
• Incorporate agreed changes into later drafts

This makes stakeholder communication a critical part of the role.

The successful candidate must therefore be able to listen to different stakeholders, facilitate discussions, document feedback accurately and translate recommendations into improvements to the final publication.

Expected Outputs and Important Deadlines

The consultancy contains three major output stages.

Output 1 — September 30, 2026

By September 30, 2026, the consultant is expected to have:

• Conducted background research.
• Reviewed relevant literature.
• Reviewed existing resources.
• Developed the first draft of the practical guide.
• Based the draft on the outline developed by ITC in consultation with farmer organizations.
• Incorporated ITC’s initial comments.
• Ensured that the draft follows ITC editorial and style requirements.

This stage establishes the research and initial content foundation for the guide.

Output 2 — October 30, 2026

By October 30, 2026, the consultant must:

• Submit the second draft of the practical guide.
• Follow the approved structure established by ITC.
• Incorporate practical examples.
• Include relevant regional context.
• Ensure compliance with ITC editorial, formatting and branding requirements.
• Present the second draft during an online consultation or pilot validation session.

The consultation will involve representatives from:

• EAFF
• AFA
• ROPPA

The purpose of this session is to gather feedback concerning:

• Content
• Structure
• Practical applicability
• Relevance to the intended audience

Output 3 — December 4, 2026

The final output deadline is December 4, 2026.

By this date, the consultant must:

• Submit the final approximately 30-page practical guide.
• Incorporate ITC comments.
• Incorporate feedback gathered during consultations.
• Submit all editable source files.
• Submit supporting materials used in developing the guide.
• Address all final ITC comments.
• Obtain approval of the final deliverable from ITC.

The final deliverable therefore represents the culmination of the research, drafting, consultation and revision process.

Travel Requirements

The assignment is explicitly listed as home-based, and no travel is required.

This means the consultant will be expected to conduct the work remotely, including coordination and consultation activities.

Online meetings and virtual consultation or validation sessions will form part of the stakeholder engagement process.

Education Requirements

Applicants are expected to have a postgraduate degree, with relevant fields including:

• Business administration
• Economics
• Public policy
• Development studies
• Law
• A related field

The reference also states that extensive relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of a master’s degree.

Therefore, candidates who do not have the specified master’s-level qualification may still potentially qualify if they can demonstrate substantial and directly relevant professional experience.

Professional Experience Requirements

The consultancy requires substantial professional experience.

Applicants should have at least five years of experience in:

• Public policy
• Governance
• Related fields

The experience should also include relevant exposure to areas such as:

• Gender
• Public procurement
• Agriculture

This is an important requirement because the assignment combines policy analysis with practical procurement and agricultural-market considerations.

Experience Developing Guides, Toolkits and Knowledge Products

Applicants should have demonstrated experience developing practical knowledge resources such as:

• Guidance documents
• Manuals
• Toolkits
• Knowledge products
• Policy resources
• Practical guides

The experience should ideally involve developing materials for audiences such as:

• Policymakers
• Business support organizations
• Private-sector stakeholders

This requirement is particularly important because the core output of the consultancy is a practical guide rather than a purely academic research paper.

Candidates should therefore be able to demonstrate that they can turn research and technical information into useful, accessible resources.

Desirable Experience

Experience with the following areas is highly desirable:

Farmer organizations

Experience working directly with farmer organizations can help a candidate understand the operational realities and needs of agricultural producer groups.

Agricultural value chains

Knowledge of agricultural value chains is relevant because the guide will focus on agricultural procurement and the ability of producers and organizations to access government markets.

Cooperatives

Experience working with cooperatives is valuable because cooperatives are among the intended beneficiaries of the guide.

MSMEs

Experience with micro, small and medium-sized enterprises is also desirable, particularly where procurement opportunities and market access are concerned.

Gender development

Experience in gender development is identified as an asset and is particularly relevant because the broader objective of the SheTrades Initiative is to promote women’s economic participation.

To apply, please send your CV/resumé to Ms. Gem Arbo darbo@intracen.org and Ms. Inês Aguiar Machado  iaguiar@intracen.org by 28 August 2026.

Required Skills

The successful consultant is expected to demonstrate a combination of analytical, research, writing, communication and stakeholder-management skills.

Excellent analytical skills

The consultant must be capable of examining complex information and identifying the most relevant issues for the intended audience.

Strong research skills

The assignment involves extensive desk research covering policies, tools, literature, guidance and procurement practices across different regional contexts.

Excellent drafting skills

The consultant must be able to produce high-quality professional content suitable for an international organization.

Ability to simplify complex information

One of the most important skills for this assignment is the ability to transform technical information into practical and user-friendly guidance for non-technical audiences.

This means the consultant must be able to explain procurement concepts clearly without unnecessarily complicated terminology.

Knowledge of public procurement systems

Strong knowledge of public procurement systems is required.

Candidates should understand how public procurement processes operate and how suppliers can prepare to participate.

Knowledge of agricultural markets

The consultant should also have strong knowledge of agricultural markets and understand the circumstances affecting agricultural producers and organizations.

Stakeholder consultation and communication

The consultant must have excellent communication skills and be able to work effectively with:

• ITC staff
• Farmer organizations
• Technical stakeholders
• Programme representatives
• Other relevant partners

Ability to work independently

Because the assignment is home-based, the consultant must be capable of managing tasks independently while still responding effectively to feedback from multiple stakeholders.

Ability to work under pressure

The assignment involves multiple deadlines and several rounds of drafting and consultation.

Applicants should therefore be able to maintain accuracy and quality while working under tight timelines.

Attention to detail

Attention to detail will be essential because the final guide must meet ITC’s editorial, formatting, branding and technical requirements.

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Language Requirements

The consultancy has a specific language requirement.

English

Excellent proficiency in English, both spoken and written, is required.

The consultant will need to conduct research, draft the guide, participate in meetings and communicate with stakeholders in English.

French

Excellent proficiency in French, both spoken and written, is also required.

This makes bilingual English-French capability a key requirement for the assignment.

Applicants should therefore be prepared to demonstrate professional working proficiency in both languages.

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