Consultancy: Digital Accessibility Consultant, ICTD Digital Core (12 months, remote)

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, a connected world   

UNICEF is committed to accessibility for all employees, children, and communities. Efforts include inclusive hiring, accessible IT systems and documents, facility access, programme-related construction, and procurement of inclusive products and services. Despite progress, some gaps remain.   

Several measures have been implemented to enhance physical accessibility, including the Greening and Accessibility Fund (GRAF) and EFAAT, a reporting tool for greening and accessibility initiatives. The 2017 Executive Directive on Accessibility in Programme-Related Construction Activities (CF/EXD/2017-004) further supports these efforts. Additionally, UNICEF has invested in digital accessibility through assessments of key ICT systems, such as E-recruitment, Agora, Drupal, SharePoint, Vision, and Achieve and by building employee capacity via resources like the Agora Training on Web Accessibility and an upcoming guide on creating accessible content in Office 360.   

How can you make a difference? 

UNICEF is seeking an Accessibility Consultant to support and sustain the Digital Accessibility Helpdesk into a fully institutionalized function. The role will strengthen UNICEF’s digital accessibility efforts and advance commitments under the 2030 Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy (DIPAS). 

Co-supervised by the Global Programme Division (GPD) Disability Section and the Digital Impact Division (DID), the consultant will contribute to scaling up disability-inclusive programming across development and humanitarian contexts, strengthening UNICEF as a disability-inclusive organization, and continuously improving the accessibility of all UNICEF digital tools. 

Key responsibilities include providing technical support, building internal capacity, conducting accessibility audits, delivering training, raising awareness, and developing accessibility guidelines, standards, and best practices in close collaboration with internal teams and external experts. 

Key Tasks:  

The exact tasks for the Digital Accessibility Expert will be jointly determined in an agile way and are outlined in a summary below: 

1. Institutionalization of Digital Accessibility Procedures and Processes  

• Support the development, documentation, and implementation of standardized procedures and workflows to ensure digital accessibility is consistently integrated into organizational operations.  

• Contribute to the mainstreaming of accessibility considerations across digital project lifecycles.  

2. Advocacy and Integration into Key Systems  

• Provide expert guidance in promoting the integration of digital accessibility into key institutional processes, including procurement (Supply), ICTD digital solutions, and the T4D Digital Technology Playbook.  

• Develop and implement an Accessibility Classification system to help assess, monitor, and prioritize accessibility across all digital initiatives.  

3. Accessibility Auditing and Remediation  

• Provide technical support for the auditing of digital platforms, including websites, mobile apps, and digital content.  

• Provide day-to-day support to Accessibility Helpdesk in resolving tickets / cases.  

• Recommend and support the implementation of remediation actions to address identified accessibility issues.  

4. Strengthening Partnerships and Knowledge Sharing  

• Foster and maintain strategic partnerships with other UN agencies and external stakeholders to exchange best practices, tools, and resources.  

• Contribute to collaborative efforts and initiatives aimed at improving accessibility across the UN system and beyond.  

• Develop content for internal knowledge sites and training on digital accessibility. 

Reporting structure: The consultant will be co-supervised by the Digital Impact Division (DID) and the Global Programme Division (GPD) and will work closely with internal staff and external experts to advance digital accessibility.  

Duration of contract: 12 months with the possibility of an extension. 

Deliverables: 

• Accessibility Helpdesk Support. 

• Generate audit reports for accessibility issues across multiple digital platforms, discuss with business owners and support tracking the progress and conduct of remediations. 

• Provide support in knowledge development/transfer and training on digital accessibility. 

• Support the strategic expansion and implementation plan for scaling the Accessibility Helpdesk across UN agencies. 

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

• An advanced user of screen reading software and a proficient user of at least two most widely used computer screen readers. 

• Must be proficient user of at least one major smartphone or table screen reader. 

• Must be able to communicate effectively, including on technical concepts, to both technical and non-technical people. 

• Must be proficient in widely used office applications such as Adobe Acrobat, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, Mozilla Firefox, and must be familiar with their accessibility features. 

• Experience with managing project, including tracking progress and liaising with multiple teams.  

• Experience with AI particularly GenAI and accessibility. 

• Must be fluent in English. Fluency in other UN languages is considered a plus. 

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships, (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness, (3) Drive to achieve results for impact, (4) Innovates and embraces change, (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity, (6) Thinks and acts strategically, (7) Works collaboratively with others. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility jobs-near-me.org UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). 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 based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:  

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates with any disability are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

In this role, you will collaborate with colleagues across multiple locations. For effective collaboration, we encourage flexible working hours that accommodate different time zones while prioritizing staff wellbeing.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advanced to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.