National consultant - expert on strengthening alternative care, social service system at local levels, 8 months, Poltava, Ukraine (Remote/ Work from home)

The Consultant will support the Child Protection Team in the following main areas of work and tasks in line with streamlining the system of integrated social services: - One of the crucial target of the Poltava Oblast programme is to ensure the availability of a minimum package of Integrated Social Services and Benefits within municipalities and strengthen the alternative care system. The Consultant will work closely with Poltava Oblast Taskforce group, pilot hromadas, and the UNICEF team to develop and gradually update municipalities’ Action Plans, which will aim to create/improve human and institutional capabilities locally. - Provide UNICEF with the latest child protection and social service sector updates to strengthen the municipality-based system of integrated social services. - The Consultant will communicate regularly with partners in the field and update the UNICEF team, and direct supervisor on the overall progress of programme implementation, achievements, and constraints. - The Better Care Oblast programme aims to support municipalities in equipping the workforce mandated to work with children. The Consultant will identify knowledge and skills gaps and suggest training themes for future consideration, multi-sectoral cooperation, and deepening the knowledge and skills of professionals across sectors. - The Consultant will provide regular updates on programme progress in Poltava Oblasts and will be responsible for collecting data and regular reporting, including draft briefs, reports, and inputs to programme materials. The Consultant will work closely with and under the supervision of the UNICEF Team.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential. 

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. 

And we never give up. 

For every child, hope

UNICEF Ukraine

How can you make a difference? 

Background:

I The Better Care programme for Poltava Oblast will support safe and nurturing families for Ukrainian children. The programme aims to ensure that every child at risk of or experiencing loss of care undergoes thorough assessment and planning process that help them to access support and services that fit their needs. This programme will support the local government in advancing the following objectives: 1) Strengthen families and keep them together by investing in social services. 2) Support family-based alternative care (e.g., foster care, guardianship, and adoption) for children without parental care. 3) Ensure sustainable development and access to a minimum package of social and resilience services.

Purpose of assignment:

The Consultant will work closely with UNICEFs’ implementing partners, provide technical support to the Child Protection section, and work under the direct management of the Poltava Field Office to deliver the following products.

The Consultant’s scope of the work will include:

More specifically, the Consultant will support the Child Protection Team in the following main areas of work and tasks in line with streamlining the system of integrated social services:

• One of the crucial target of the Poltava Oblast programme is to ensure the availability of a minimum package of Integrated Social Services and Benefits within municipalities and strengthen the alternative care system. The Consultant will work closely with Poltava Oblast Taskforce group, pilot hromadas, and the UNICEF team to develop and gradually update municipalities’ Action Plans, which will aim to create/improve human and institutional capabilities locally.
• Provide UNICEF with the latest child protection and social service sector updates to strengthen the municipality-based system of integrated social services.
• The Consultant will communicate regularly with partners in the field and update the UNICEF team, and direct supervisor on the overall progress of programme implementation, achievements, and constraints.
• The Better Care Oblast programme aims to support municipalities in equipping the workforce mandated to work with children. The Consultant will identify knowledge and skills gaps and suggest training themes for future consideration, multi-sectoral cooperation, and deepening the knowledge and skills of professionals across sectors.

The Consultant will provide regular updates on programme progress in Poltava Oblasts and will be responsible for collecting data and regular reporting, including draft briefs, reports, and inputs to programme materials. The Consultant will work closely with and under the supervision of the UNICEF Team.

Work assignment overview:

Deliverable

Deadline

# of w/days

Deliverable 1.

Reporting on identified gaps in professionals' knowledge and skills and suggested training themes, format, and timing, with an additional focus on cross-sectoral training and thematic meetings to share experiences across hromadas.

By 07, June, 2024

16

Deliverable 2.

Conducting periodic needs assessment reports (at least 2), data collection, and monitoring activities capturing pre-agreed themes and targets, including existing gatekeeping practices/mechanisms in pilot municipalities, and updating their profiles.

By 30, July, 2024

30

Deliverable 3.

Reporting on capacity strengthening of implementing partners, local authorities and NGOs, professionals from hromadas and oblast-level in strengthening alternative care, integrated social service system and other child protection and Better Care subjects (min. five webinars, five offline events).

By 30, September, 2024

40

Deliverable 4.

Participation in the taskforce meetings at the oblast and local levels. Quarterly reports with minutes of taskforce meetings, insights, and working plans.

By 30, November, 2024

20

Deliverable 5.

A Final Report highlighting (a) work implemented and (b) status of Better Care in Poltava Oblast, as well as (с) opportunities to scale up the Better Care programme in Poltava Oblast.

By 29 November, 2024

14

Sub-total:

120

Travel plan: Upon request.

Number of travel days: 30 days. 

Please provide an all-inclusive financial proposal including travels to carry out the deliverables listed above.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

Education: Master's degree or higher in one of the following fields is required: social sciences, international law, international development, human rights, psychology, sociology, or other related disciplines.

Professional experience:

• At least five years of professional experience in social protection/child protection at national and/or subnational levels.
• Knowledge of the Ukrainian child protection system, social protection, and alternative care for children (residential and family-based).
• Experience in strengthening social workforce and system of social services, including experience in conducting trainings on child protection, alternative care for children, etc.
• Experience in the development of national strategies and plans of action in the area of child protection.
• Experience in building a dialog with local governments and CSOs.
• Experience providing consultancy services to UNICEF and other UN agencies.

Languages: 

• Ukrainian: Advanced [C1];
• English: is an advantage].

Skills and competencies:

• Good analytical skills;

• Good communication skills.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

 To view our competency framework, please visit  here. 

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment. 

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check. 

Remarks:  

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. 

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.