Mapping and Analysis of Family Language in Latin American and Caribbean Regional and Subregional Agreed Language and Human Rights Mechanisms

1. Background

Fòs Feminista is an International Alliance of more than 200 partners across 40 countries working on the sexual and reproductive health, rights, and justice (SRHRJ) of women, girls, and gender-diverse people. In 2026, Fòs Feminista completed a three-decade mapping United Nations agreed language on gender equality and family — reviewing UN documents from 1994 to 2025.

This mapping has not yet been extended to the regional level. Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has its own dense and distinctive body of agreed language, human rights instruments, and political dynamics relevant to family, gender equality, and SRHR. This includes the outcomes of the intergovernmental conferences convened by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development (2013) and the Regional Gender Agenda, which are among the most advanced intergovernmental commitments globally on SRHRJ, care, and the recognition of diverse forms of family; and the inter-American human rights system, where the Inter-American Court of Human Rights has interpreted the protection of the family under the American Convention on Human Rights.

As such, Fòs Feminista is seeking a consultant to conduct a systematic mapping and analysis of family-related language across LAC, regional and subregional agreed language and human rights mechanisms, to produce a rigorous, regionally grounded evidence base for use in regional advocacy.

1. Purpose and Objectives

The purpose of this consultancy is to produce a systematic, evidence-based mapping of how family is defined, referenced, and used across Latin American and Caribbean regional and subregional agreed language, to:

• Identify where existing regional and subregional agreed language already reflects rights-based, gender-equal, and its understandings of family.
• Produce a citable evidence base to inform feminist advocacy in regional negotiations in
• Analyze whether language has changed over time, in relation to gender equality and SRHRJ, and identifying the instruments, sessions, or political context associated with such shifts, including State reservations, interpretive statements, footnotes, and national-legislation or sovereignty
• Generate concrete recommendations and draft rights-based language proposals for use in regional conferences.

1. Scope of Work

The consultant will review relevant language across the following regional and subregional instruments and mechanisms, including but not limiting itself to:

• Inter-American human rights instruments: the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man (1948), the American Convention on Human Rights (1969), the Additional Protocol in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (Protocol of San Salvador, 1988), and the Inter-American Convention on Protecting the Human Rights of Older Persons (2015).
• The Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women (Belém do Pará Convention, 1994), and the declarations, recommendations, and hemispheric reports of its Follow-up Mechanism (MESECVI).
• Declarations and programmes of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM), including the Inter-American Program on the Promotion of Women’s Human Rights and Gender Equity and Equality (2000).
• Outcomes of the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), from the Regional Plan of Action adopted in Havana (1977) through the Regional Gender Agenda, including the Quito (2007), Brasilia (2010) and Santo Domingo (2013) Consensuses, the Montevideo Strategy (2016), and the Santiago (2020), Buenos Aires (2022) and Tlatelolco (2025)
• Outcomes of the Regional Conference on Population and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), including the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development (2013), its Operational Guide, and the resolutions adopted at each session, as well as relevant predecessor regional population agreements.
• Outcomes of other ECLAC intergovernmental conferences, including the Regional Intergovernmental Conference on Ageing and the Rights of Older Persons (from the 2003 Regional Strategy to the 2022 Santiago Declaration) and the Regional Conference on Social Development (including the Regional Agenda for Inclusive Social Development, 2020).
• Resolutions, policies, strategies, and plans of action of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Directing Council and Pan American Sanitary Conference, including those on gender equality, women’s, children’s and adolescents’ health, and healthy ageing.
• Subregional instruments and outcomes of the Central American Integration System (SICA), including the Treaty on Central American Social Integration (1995), the Regional Policy on Gender Equality and Equity of the Council of Ministers for Women’s Affairs (COMMCA), the Comprehensive Regional Social Policy 2020–2040, and outcomes of the Council of Ministers of Health (COMISCA).
• Instruments and outcomes of MERCOSUR, including the MERCOSUR Gender Equality Policy (2014) and the recommendations of the Meeting of Ministers and High Authorities on Women (RMAAM), as well as relevant social and human rights bodies.
• Instruments and outcomes of Andean bodies, including the Andean Charter for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights (2002) and resolutions and plans of the Andean Health Organization – Hipólito Unanue Agreement (ORAS-CONHU), including the Andean Plan for the Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy.
• Instruments and outcomes of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), including the Charter of Civil Society (1997), outcomes of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD), the Caribbean Cooperation in Health framework, and CARICOM model legislation relevant.
• Other relevant regional and subregional instruments that could be

_The consultant, in consultation with Fòs Feminista and building on Fòs Feminista’s preliminary regional mapping, will propose a final document list and inclusion timeframe during the inception phase (see Section 5). _

1. Specific Tasks

• Review Fòs Feminista’s existing mapping and its preliminary review of Latin American and Caribbean regional agreed language and adapt the methodology to the regional and subregional context, in consultation with Fòs Feminista.
• Define inclusion criteria, search terms, and a document timeframe appropriate to LAC instruments, accounting for the different founding dates and negotiating cycles of regional and subregional bodies (e.g. the OAS in 1948, the Regional Conference on Women since 1977, SICA since 1991) and ensuring that milestone documents are included regardless of their date of
• Systematically identify and retrieve relevant documents across the proposed
• Code excerpts thematically, drawing on categories established in the mapping and Fòs Feminista’s preliminary regional review, while remaining open to additional categories specific to the Latin American and Caribbean context.
• Assess the political and normative implications of each excerpt from a feminist, rights-based perspective, consistent with the coding logic used in the mapping.
• Analyze how language has evolved over the mapping period, identifying patterns of advancement, regression, or stagnation in relation to gender equality and SRHRJ, and the specific instruments, sessions, or political context associated with such shifts.
• Systematically document State reservations, interpretive statements, footnotes, and national-legislation or sovereignty qualifiers by country, instrument, and year, and compare language across regional and subregional platforms.
• Draft a mapping report presenting findings, methodology, illustrative excerpts with full citations, and the trend analysis described above.
• Generate recommendations suited to Latin American and Caribbean regional and subregional negotiating contexts, grounded in specific cited instances of existing agreed language.
• Provide updates and present final findings to Fòs Feminista and relevant

1. Deliverables

• Inception report, including proposed methodology, document list, inclusion criteria, and timeframe (due at the end of the inception phase).
• A structured spreadsheet database of coded excerpts, consistent in format with Fòs Feminista’s existing mapping database (mechanism, document title, citation/symbol, date, page reference, excerpt text, and thematic codes), with additional fields for singular/plural usage, language of the original text, and any associated State reservations or footnotes.
• A draft mapping and analysis report, for Fòs Feminista review and feedback. This should already include a set of concrete recommendations and draft rights-based language proposals for regional and subregional negotiating contexts in Latin America and the Caribbean, cross-referenced to specific cited excerpts.
• A final mapping and analysis report incorporating feedback, including an executive summary in English and Spanish suitable for external advocacy use.
• A presentation of findings (virtual or in-person, to be agreed) to Fòs Feminista and partner

1. Indicative Timeline

The following is an indicative timeline of approximately 10 weeks; the final schedule will be confirmed with the selected consultant during the contracting phase.

• Weeks 1–2: Inception phase — methodology, document list, and workplan
• Weeks 3–4: Document identification, retrieval, and excerpt
• Weeks 4–6: Thematic coding and
• Weeks 6–8: Draft mapping report submitted to and reviewed by Fòs
• Weeks 8–10: Revisions, finalization, and presentation of

1. Required Qualifications and Experience

• Advanced degree (Master’s or higher) in law, human rights, gender studies, Latin American

studies, political science, international relations, or a related field.

• Demonstrated knowledge of the inter-American human rights system, and UN system regional intergovernmental conferences.
• Prior experience conducting legal, policy, or content analysis of agreed language, treaty text, or comparable normative documents.
• Experience applying feminist or rights-based analytical frameworks to legal and policy
• Strong written communication skills in English and Spanish; working proficiency in Portuguese and/or French is highly desirable given the languages of the region.
• Prior experience on gender equality, SRHRJ, or family law in Latin America and the Caribbean is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with qualitative data analysis tools (e.g., Dedoose, NVivo, or comparable software) is an asset.

1. Reporting and Supervision

The consultant will report to the Senior Global Advocacy Officer for Latin America and the Caribbean and will maintain regular check-ins (proposed bi-weekly, to be confirmed) throughout the assignment to review progress against the agreed workplan.

1. Application Process

Interested candidates should submit the following by November 20, 2026:

• A current CV or
• A cover letter outlining relevant experience and interest in the
• A brief proposed methodology and workplan (no more than 3 pages), including any suggested adaptations to the approach described above.
• A financial proposal, inclusive of a proposed daily or total consultancy
• A relevant writing sample (e.g., a legal or policy analysis, research report, or comparable output).

1. Budget

The total consultancy fee for this assignment is USD 4,500, inclusive of all costs. Candidates should submit a proposed budget within this range as part of their application; Fòs Feminista will confirm the final consultancy fee during the contracting process.

Payment will be done in two installments, upon submission and approval by Fòs Feminista of the following deliverables:

• Inception report (methodology, document list, inclusion criteria, and workplan) and initial database of extracted excerpts (weeks 1-4): 40% of the total fee
• Coded database, draft and final mapping and analysis report, and presentation of findings (weeks 4-10): 60% of the total fee