Child Protection System Strengthening Consultancy, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea 12 months (In country)

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, Child Protection

With over 850 indigenous languages and one of the most ethnically diverse populations, widespread poverty, and gender inequality make it hard for many children to realize their rights. In Papua New Guinea, UNICEF’s works effectively both ‘upstream’ (with governments) and ‘downstream’ (at the grassroots level) to carry out its mission through a programme of cooperation jointly developed with the government guides our work in the country.

How can you make a difference? 

Background

Child Protection in Papua New Guinea (PNG) remains a critical concern, presenting an urgent and complex challenge with alarmingly high rates of child abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Despite existing legal frameworks and services aimed at safeguarding children’s rights, many children in PNG continue to face significant barriers when seeking protection and support.

PNG has the highest rates of intimate partner violence in the region. An estimated 26% of ever-partnered women and girls aged 15 years and older have been subjected to physical, sexual, or psychological

violence by a current or former intimate partner in the previous 12 months. Systematic data on violence against children is not widely available in PNG. However, recent estimates suggest that 75% of children experience some form of violence during their childhood, often perpetrated within the home environment, and 43% of women aged 15 to 19 years have experienced physical and/or sexual violence.[1]

In response, UNICEF designed the 2024-2028 country programme, which includes the Child Protection Outcome specifying: Children and adolescents, including the most vulnerable social groups and those affected by humanitarian situations and climate change, are protected from violence, abuse, neglect, exploitation, and harmful social norms, and benefit from a functioning child protection system that includes prevention and response services which are equity-focused and gender-responsive at the national and subnational level, by end of 2028.

Therefore, UNICEF supports government and implementing partners in strengthening the child protection system and access to justice for children. This includes strengthening child protection social service workers, modeling child protection services, integrating justice and welfare, and consolidating a child-friendly justice system.

To this end, the UNICEF PNG Country Office seeks to engage an international consultant to provide technical assistance to government counterparts and implementing partners in developing and implementing key interventions related to strengthening the social service workforce, developing a service model, and supporting Access to Justice for Children

Purpose of the assignment:

To provide technical assistance to government counterparts and implementing partners in developing and implementing key interventions related to strengthening the social service workforce, developing a service model, and supporting Access to Justice for Children

Specific support will be under the framework of implementation of the UNICEF and Government of PNG Child Protection Rolling Workplan (2024-2025), in coordination and collaboration with the following counterparts:

• Government of PNG in Department of Justice and Attorney General (DJAG).
• Village Courts and Land Mediation (VCLMS)
• Magisterial Services.
• Royal PNG Constabulary (RPNGC).
• Family Sexual Violence Unit (FSVU)
• National Office of Child and Family Services (NOCFS).
• National Capital District Commission (NCDC)
• and selected civil society organizations (CSOs)

Scope of Work:

1. Child Protection Social Services Workforce Strengthening and service modeling

• Develop needs assessment of minimum services and develop a minimum package of services for child protection and children in contact with the law, with an emphasis on prevention and early intervention programmes
• Support the development and implementation of integrated service delivery models that allow SSWs to provide comprehensive support to children and families, including initiatives that link services across sectors such as health, education, and social protection to create a more holistic support system
• Collaborate with universities, national social services training institutes/academies, and professional associations to develop/revise training curriculum, training and learning materials for SSW for pre-service and in-service capacity development of the SSW

2. Access to Justice for children – Services

• Modeling the coordination and referral pathway for children access to justice in the National Capital District with clear roles and coordination among partners, case management processes for children in contact with the law, and referral mechanisms and finalize the conceptual framework for justice for children services model.
• Support victim/survivor assistance through referral pathways by the police to social welfare services, health, psychosocial support, legal aid, and justice, in collaboration with the child protection network

3. Modeling Child-Friendly Police Services

• Provide technical assistance to develop minimum standards and checklists for the establishment and operation of child-friendly police stations
• Support the training of a critical mass of police officers in two districts across two focus provinces in justice for children
• Assist in modeling child-friendly police units in two (2) districts in NCD and Morobe aligned to the implementation of the JRRP (2021-2031)
• Support the institutionalization of child protection training for police into pre-service and in-service mandatory trainings, focusing on the newly adopted Protocol on Child Victims and Witnesses of Crimes

4. Access to Birth Registration

• Conduct/facilitate training for implementing partners (government and CSOs) on Access to Justice and CRVS (Civil Registration and Vital Statistics) and birth registration in the context of child rights
• Support data management for PNGCIR in collecting route birth registration, including the linkages between health and civil registry systems in the context of CRVS and VCLMS, through implementation of the data strengthening pilot in three locations

As a champion for every child, qualifications are… 

• Advanced university Degree in Social, Science, particularly international development, human rights, psychology, sociology, international law, social work, or another relevant field.
• Minimum 5 years of relevant professional experience, i.e.
• Child protection, Justice for Children and/or social science
• is required.
• Demonstrated technical expertise in justice for children and
• child protection systems strengthening approach.
• Experience developing and adapting training materials,
• conducting training, and developing procedures and
• protocols, especially in case management.
• Knowledge of PNG national laws, policies, and protocols
• about child protection is required.
• Experience in working with government counterparts.
• Interpersonal skills: cultural sensitivity, communication,
• facilitation,
• Professional experience in developing and emergency
• countries and working with government counterparts on
• national and subnational strategies and capacity building
• Proficiency in English

For every Child, you demonstrate… our core values of Commitment, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability.

This position is a short-term assignment and doesn’t give rise to a long-term permanent post with the organization.

Applicants are required to include in their applications a financial proposal which includes a lumpsum amount for consultancy fees, local transportation and other miscellaneous costs. Breakdown or details of the fee will be much appreciated.

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.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply.

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.

UNICEF does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process (application, interview meeting, processing, or orientation). 

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 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. 

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