ECOM — Eurasian Coalition on Health, Rights, Gender and Sexual Diversity, is a regional association with a mission to support the development of national LGBT communities and their activism, to promote human rights, health, and social well-being for people of gender and sexual diversity in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Jointly with other regional community networks (EHRA, EWNA, and SWAN) ECOM implements a project “RESILIENT Communities & Securing Civic Space for HIV Response in EECA” which aims at building resilience and strengthen advocacy of community-led groups/organizations in EECA to prevent and mitigate regulatory challenges that threaten the rights of people living with HIV and key populations – people using drugs, LGBT, sex workers. The initiative supports key community groups and civil society organizations operating in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.
ECOM seeks a consultant or team of consultants to design and deliver an interactive online training on strengthening CSO resilience through scenario planning and crisis response, including communications, anti-crisis strategies, strategic management and planning under uncertainty.
The training will support national and local organizations in strengthening their preparedness for crises, improving strategic adaptability, and identifying priority needs for further technical support or small-scale financial assistance.
Terms of Reference:
- Conduct a brief contextual analysis of key risks and challenges affecting civil society organizations operating in shrinking civic space covering the projects countries;
- Develop a detailed training concept and agenda covering:
- scenario planning under uncertainty;
- crisis response, anti-crisis decision-making and operational continuity;
- crisis communications and risk management;
- organizational safety.
- Prepare all necessary training materials, including presentation, case scenarios, and practical tools for participants.
- Deliver one interactive online training, ensuring active engagement of participants through discussions, exercises, and case-based learning.
- Assist during the training to identify and document priority needs of participating organizations and define thematic areas for follow-up support through technical assistance and/or mini-grants.
- Prepare a concise post-training report summarizing key discussion points; identified priority needs and thematic areas.
Expected results and evaluation of work:
The consultant or team of consultants is expected to:
- finalized training agenda, methodology approved by ECOM and training itself;
- structured list of thematic areas for which participating organizations may apply for technical support or mini-grants;
- a final brief report.
For the consultant or team of consultants, Jipariza Jumagazieva, Advocacy Coordinator is the primary ECOM contact person. She will also monitor and do the final evaluation of the work.
The time frame of work:
March – April 2026
Consultant(s) Qualifications and Experience:
Essential:
- proven experience working with civil society organizations focusing on key groups;
- demonstrated expertise in scenario planning, crisis management, or strategic planning under uncertainty;
- experience delivering online trainings;
- Fluent Russian and English;
- understanding of shrinking civic space and crisis contexts for CSO in the EECA region.
Desirable:
- experience working in international or regional projects focusing on key groups;
- experience in organizational development or resilience programming;
- familiarity with technical assistance and grant-based support mechanisms.
Skills and Competencies:
- Expertise in strategic thinking, scenario planning, and adaptive management;
- Ability to advice organizations in decision-making under uncertainty and pressure;
- Strong facilitation and process-design skills;
- Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
Criteria for selecting a consultant or team of consultants:
- relevance of professional experience;
- quality of methodological proposal;
- understanding of the assignment objectives;
- cost-effectiveness of the financial proposal
Fees and Compensation:
A service contract will be signed between the consultant or team of consultants and ECOM. The consultant or team of consultants is fully responsible for the payment of all required taxes and contributions according to tax residency.
The application must include:
- CV;
- brief proposal (2 pages max) outlining methodology and agenda of the training;
- a financial proposal that includes:
| Description of activity/type of work | Number of days to complete the work | Daily rate, where 1 day = 8 hours, USD | Total cost, USD |
Application Process
Applications must be submitted by email to tenders@ecom.ngo with the subject line “Training on strengthening CSO resilience in shrinking civic space” an automated response will notify you when the application is received.
All accepted applicants will be notified of the results of the competition.
Deadline for submission: 9 March 2026, 11:59 PM Tallinn time, Estonia
Applications sent after the deadline are not considered.
We especially invite applications from members of the LGBT community!
For more information, prospective consultants may contact Jipariza Jumagazieva, Advocacy Coordinator, jipariza@ecom.ngo