Consultancy for development of a technical note on for Vitamin A Supplementation Programme Req.#569309

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Vacancy Announcement: Consultant

Consultancy Title: Consultant – Consultancy for development of a technical note on for Vitamin A Supplementation Programme Review Method

Station: Nutrition Section – Programme Group – NYHQ

Duration: 1 March 2024 – 30 August 2024

Home/ office Based: REMOTE

About UNICEF

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world’s leading children’s rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children’s survival, protection and development. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries.

BACKGROUND

Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS) is a critical intervention for child survival, proving effective in reducing all-cause mortality in populations with vitamin A deficiency. Since 2000, global efforts to scale up VAS programmes have resulted in significant improvements in coverage, contributing to a notable decline in child mortality globally. Global VAS coverage reached its peak at 78% in 2009, with more than 290 million children fully protected from the consequences of vitamin A deficiency. However, between 2016 and 2022, global two-dose VAS coverage has fluctuated around 60% with a dip to 41% seen in 2020 due to service disruptions caused by the global pandemic.

While two-thirds of eligible children globally receive VAS, the remaining one-third, missing out on the life-saving benefits, likely represents those children grappling with various health and nutrition challenges. These are the children who arguably need VAS the most.

Many national VAS programmes conduct reviews of the programme after each round of supplementation. The findings from the review are to provide evidence for the programme strategies in the next round of supplementation. However, VAS programmes typically rely solely on coverage when assessing and evaluating performance at national and subnational levels. While coverage, a widely available indicator is useful as an overall summary of the programme, it does not give adequate insights into other aspects of the programme that may be contributing to suboptimal performance. Furthermore, the scope and scale of reviews vary from country to country. Even within countries, there may be variability by district. This makes tracking performance across years and different geographies challenging.

There is a need to provide further guidance to countries on methods and approaches to conducting a systematic review of their VAS programmes relying on indicators that extend beyond coverage. This consultancy aims to develop a comprehensive and standardized method to guide countries in reviewing their VAS programmes at national, sub-national, and service-delivery levels. The review process is intended to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the programme to inform future programmatic strategies.

Scope of Work:

Specific Objectives

The objectives of this consultancy are organized in two key outputs:

Output 1: Develop a comprehensive and standardized method to guide countries in reviewing their VAS programmes. This should include information on the process of conducting the review and a framework to guide the review.

Activities under this output will include:

1. Desk review of available guidelines for programme review from related nutrition and health programmes, including immunization.
2. Draft technical note on method for review of VAS programmes
3. Consultation of key stakeholders on method for VAS programme review among select for feedback. The feedback will be used to refine the technical note.
4. Finalize technical note on review of VAS programmes

Output 2: Implement the proposed method for VAS programme review in a select country.

Activities under this output will include:

1. Conduct a VAS programme review in accordance with the proposed methodology in a select country
2. Disseminate findings at the country level and in two UNICEF regions (West and Central Africa and Eastern and Southern Africa).

Terms of Reference / Key Deliverables:

Deliverable 1: Summary of findings from the desk review of available guidelines for reviewing health and nutrition programmes 

By 15 March 2024

Deliverable 2: Draft version of the technical note on the method for VAS programme review

By 30 March 2024

Deliverable 3: Dissemination of technical note conducted   

By 15 April 2024

Deliverable 4: Revised version technical note on method for VAS programme review           

By 30 April 2024

Deliverable 5: Country VAS programme review report       

By 30 June 2024

Deliverable 6: Dissemination meeting of VAS programme review findings and recommendations conducted

By 30 July 2024

Deliverable 7: Finalized technical note on method for VAS programme review     

By 15 August 2024

Qualifications

Education:

• MSc in Epidemiology and Nutrition with specific knowledge and expertise in epidemiological and biostatistical methods as applied to nutrition data analysis.

Work experience:

• Minimum 8 years of professional experience in nutrition research and programming.

Competencies/Knowledge:

• Familiarity with UNICEF programming operations at the country level, with knowledge of the global nutrition architecture and strategic stakeholders/partners.
• Experience writing programmatic and technical guidance related to nutrition for program staff delivering public health interventions in resource-limited settings. 
• Knowledge of nutrition humanitarian and development programming and indicators preferable
• Experience in working with UNICEF preferable

Requirements: 

Completed profile in UNICEF’s e-Recruitment system and

• Upload copy of academic credentials
• Financial proposal that will include/ reflect:
  • the costs per each deliverable and the total lump-sum for the whole assignment (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference.
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability
• Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

U.S. Visa information:

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4

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

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UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results. View our competency framework at Here

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:  Individuals engaged under a consultancy 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. Consultants 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.