Consultant for the Curriculum System Strengthening (CSS) Integrated Implementation Plan & Communications Strategy, Pretoria, South Africa (3 months, hybrid)

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, Education

UNICEF South Africa

The South African education sector is not adequately equipping students with cognitive, social, and emotional competencies to meet the demands of our fast-changing world (NEDLAC, 2019; DHET, 2022). Too many learners, particularly those from low-income backgrounds, cannot read for meaning by the age of 10 (PIRLS, 2016; 2023). They are struggling to successfully complete secondary and tertiary education and leaving school ill-prepared to find or create employment. Whilst many complex social and economic reasons contribute to this failure to prepare learners for success during and after school, there is increasing acknowledgement that there is a need to better equip learners with the competencies they need to find or create work and thrive in the 21st Century and beyond (DBE Lekgotla, 2018 and 2022). The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a trimming of the South African ‘Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement’ (CAPS) curriculum, thereby opening the opportunity to rethink and rebuild the curriculum in the aftermath of the pandemic in a way that improves educational relevance.

To respond to the key challenge addressed above, the Department of Education (DBE) developed the Basic Education Competency Framework in 2023 – a framework to be used from early childhood throughout all levels of basic education. The Framework is encouraged to be used by any formal, informal, and non-formal skills development interventions, including those initiated by other departments and the private sector.

At the national Basic Education Lekgotla in January 2022, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) agreed on a multi-pronged approach to address these complex set of issues. This approach includes:

1.         A short-term learning recovery plan in response to COVID-19, to address learning loss (2021 to 2024).

2.         A medium to long-term curriculum strengthening plan (2025 onward), aimed at addressing the issue of curriculum relevance and preparing learners for the fast-changing world.

The work outlined in this document will focus exclusively on the Curriculum Strengthening Initiative.

For the purposes of clarity, whilst globally the term ‘21st Century Skills’ and/or ‘Social Emotional Learning’ is commonly used in this space, South Africa has taken to referring to ‘skills and competencies for a changing world’.

Acknowledging the crucial nature of DBE’s efforts, UNICEF has confirmed its technical and financial support to DBE in implementing such a framework. One of the key aspects needed for implementation is strategic and effective communication by the DBE. In this regard, UNICEF will assist the DBE in developing the Curriculum System Strengthening (CSS) Integrated Implementation Plan and Communications Strategy. UNICEF SA is now seeking to find the needed strategic planning assistance from a highly experienced professional to provide quality support to the DBE.

How can you make a difference? 

As the national curriculum strengthening process unfolds, there is a need for the DBE to engage a broad range of stakeholders, both within the education sector and beyond at various levels to enable the implementation of the curriculum strengthening plan. The Curriculum System Strengthening (CSS) Integrated Implementation Plan and Communications Strategy will be developed to proceed with adequate information sharing and consensus building, with adequate monitoring and learning from the implementation. Reference may be made to the brief and draft Communications Strategy developed in 2023/2024.

The work targets across programmes and initiatives in the basic education system – including the Three Stream Model (TSM), in line with the overall strategic imperatives of Curriculum Strengthening.

Key responsibilities and outputs of the technical assistant include:

1. Finalise the Draft Integrated Implementation Plan
2. Development of a comprehensive Communication Strategy that aligns with the CSS Integrated Plan and Theory of Change
3. Creation of six initial communication products in collaboration with the DBE Communications Branch
4. Development of the MERL (Monitoring, Evaluation, Research, and Learning) system for the CSS Integrated Implementation Plan
5. Design of MERL instruments for the first year of implementation
6. Collaboration with the Curriculum Strengthening Working Group (CSWG) to plan and implement 2025 activities as outlined in the CSS Integrated Plan and Theory of Change

WORK ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW
Deliverable/output8	Timeline/deadline9
Finalised Integrated Implementation plan and Theory of Change	31 February 2025
Six initial communication products	Confirmation of the list of products by 15 March 2025
MERL system for the CSS Integrated Plan	20 March 2025
MERL instruments for the first year of implementation	30 April 2025
Technical Note (no more than 2 pages) that showcases the collaboration with the Curriculum Strengthening Working Group (CSWG)	End of each month

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

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher)
• A minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience in education communication and advocacy and in-depth knowledge of the education sector
• Experience in sector reform advocacy
• Experience in managing large-scale sector programmes/projects
• Experience in institutional and organisational capacity development, and esp. on MERL
• Experience in working with governments
• Previous experience leading a similar education reform process in the Africa/Latin America region is an asset
• Previous experience working with the UNICEF/UN is an asset

Please indicate your ability and availability; and attach a technical proposal and financial proposal in ZAR to undertake the terms of reference above (including admin cost if applicable). Proposals submitted without a detailed financial proposal aligned to the assignment will not be considered.

UNICEF does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

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

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 committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic background, and persons with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. To create a more inclusive workplace, UNICEF offers paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. Click here to learn more about flexible work arrangements, well-being, and benefits.

According to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. In its Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy 2022-2030, UNICEF has committed to increase the number of employees with disabilities by 2030. At UNICEF, we provide reasonable accommodation for work-related support requirements of candidates and employees with disabilities. Also, UNICEF has launched a Global Accessibility Helpdesk to strengthen physical and digital accessibility. If you are an applicant with a disability who needs digital accessibility support in completing the online application, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility jobs-near-me.org UNICEF.

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.

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.