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Consultant to conduct Landscape analysis of overweight and obesity prevention in Angola

  • Contract
  • Luanda
  • Posted 3 months ago

UNICEF - United Nations Children’s Fund

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UNICEF is looking for a committed consultant to conduct a landscape of overweight and obesity prevention in Angola and inform the necessary steps to effectively improve the situation in the 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, Nutrition!

How can you make a difference? 

Scope of Work:
 
The overall purpose of this study is to provide a comprehensive overview of the current overweight and obesity situation, trends and main risk factors, focusing on children, adolescents and adults and accounting for differences across genders and geographies. It also incorporates an in-depth analysis of the enabling environment for overweight prevention in the country, including policies, legislations and programmes currently in place, the level of political commitment and awareness, and evidence gaps.
 
The objectives of the study are to:
 
• Analyze available data sources to assess the prevalence of childhood and adult overweight and obesity by age group, gender, geography and socio-economic status, along with the trends over time, and compare benchmarking countries to see what/how Angola’s situation is similar or different.
• Assess the impacts of overweight and obesity in children and different sub-populations from multiple perspectives (i.e., short and long-term impacts; impacts on children’s health and other eco-social outcomes).
• Assesses the risk factors and environmental conditions contributing to childhood and adult overweight and obesity levels, including early influences (breastfeeding, complementary feeding, stunting) and childhood dietary patterns and physical activity.
• Review and evaluate existing policies, legislation, and programmes with relevance to overweight and obesity prevention, including measures addressing unhealthy food environments, physical inactivity; identifying gaps and opportunities for enhancement.
• Design a UReport youth survey to gather and analyze data on dietary and physical activity habits, influences on these choices, exposure to unhealthy food marketing, school food environments, and available nutrition services, along with recommendations for improvement.
• Identify key stakeholders across various sectors relevant to overweight prevention efforts, mapping out their roles and influence to facilitate collaboration and collective action.
• Facilitate a validation workshop with key stakeholders to identify and prioritize policy objectives.
 
Provide Recommendations for Evidence-Based Strategies: Develop targeted, actionable recommendations for stakeholders, such as policymakers, healthcare providers, and community organizations, to address obesity effectively. Propose tailored interventions that consider specific population groups and local contexts to enhance their impact.
Expected results: The outcomes of the assignment will guide the development of policy and programme priorities aimed at preventing overweight and obesity among children and adolescents (0-19 years of age) and their caregivers in families in Angola. It is intended that this process will inform the country programme and detailed workplan with government. The outcomes of this assignment will also guide the development of policy and programme priorities to integrate obesity prevention into the broader efforts to address malnutrition issues.
 
The consultancy will follow the below process:
 
Familiarization and preparation of the database
• The consultant will familiarize themselves with the UNICEF Global Programming Guidance on the Prevention of Overweight and Obesity in Children and Adolescents9, and the UNICEF protocol and guide on how to conduct the landscape analysis10.
• The consultant will use and adapt the UNICEF protocol and guide to set up a database to collect the relevant information for Angola.
 
Completion of data for landscape analysis
The consultant will gather and analyse the relevant information to complete the landscape analysis from documents and data from internet searches and directly from government and other sources, interviews with key stakeholders, publications by government and/or UN agencies, and previous regional situation analyses in the SADC region, etc. The consultant will need to collaborate with the UNICEF Country Office and Regional Office to identify and utilize existing evidence to inform the landscape analysis.
 
Elements of the landscape analysis are likely to include:
 
• Activity 1.1. Review overweight/obesity prevalence and trend among children and adolescent 0-19 and women.
a. Review of available data from Demographic Health surveys, school-based surveys and/or nutrition surveys.
b. Dis-aggregation of data across age and socioeconomic groups, geographical area and over time.
c. Analysis of connections between obesity/overweight and other forms of malnutrition.
d. Analysis of inequities by income, geography, ethnicity, or gender.
e. Identification of gaps in data/knowledge.
f. Analysis: how serious the situation is (over time, and compared to benchmarking countries), and how it links to the broader malnutrition issues in the country.
• Activity 1.2. Review of available evidence on risk factors, including:
a. Data on early life influences: maternal nutrition, low birth weight, infant and young child feeding, stunting.
b. Data on dietary intake: including potentially unhealthy food and drink e.g. savory snack foods; confectionery; sugar-sweetened beverages; low fruit and vegetable intake. Dis-aggregation (by foods/food groups and time trends) where possible.
c. Food environments: review of available studies of food availability and affordability, promotion, marketing and sale data of food including potentially unhealthy food and drink targeted at younger and school aged children e.g. studies conducted by academia, development partners and/or government. Inclusion of available data from market research reports related to sales and marketing of specific product categories.
d. Data on systems influences: review available studies from education, health, food, social protection and water, sanitation and hygiene systems as they relate to and are linked with unhealthy food environments.
e. Analysis of inequities by income, geography, ethnicity, or gender and disabilities.
f. Physical activity data.
g. Identification of gaps in data/knowledge. Findings to be used for designing a primary data collection tool (UReport) under Activity 2 on dietary and physical activity habits, influences on these choices, exposure to unhealthy food marketing, school food environments.
• Activity 1.3 Review of policies, legislations, strategies, standards and programmes that are in place to address overweight/obesity and risk factors among children and adolescents aged 0-19 years and women.
a. Review of national, sub-national, local, and school level policies strategies, programmes, and action plans already in place that relate to the prevention of overweight/obesity and promote the intake of health foods and reduce the intake the unhealthy foods and high-sugar beverages, among children and adolescents aged 0-19 years and women.
b. Analysis of approaches being adopted e.g., children’s rights approach.
c. Review of specific policies mentioned in the UNICEF programming guidance. Specific attention should be given to reviewing legislation such as the Breastmilk Substitutes Code, rules governing the marketing of commercial foods for infants/young children, restrictions on marketing food to children, and school food standards. Additionally, focus should be placed on policies regarding the sale and promotion of unhealthy foods in and around schools, front-of-pack labeling, sugar-sweetened beverage taxation, and dimensions related to food promotion, labeling, composition, retail, price, as well as governance, such as policy coordination, monitoring, and evaluation.
d. Review of existing services and key interventions relevant to preventing overweight and obesity via health, education, social welfare, and water, sanitation and hygiene systems, as well as social and behaviour change communication strategies.
e. Identification of gaps. Findings to be used for designing a primary data collection tool (U-report) under Activity 2 on youth perception of available services and the idea of implementing new policies to improve food environments.
f. Identification of opportunities, potential enablers.
• Activity 1.4 Design, administer and analyse findings of a UReport youth survey on overweight and obesity prevention
a. Familiarization with UReport style surveys and question development.
b. Administering the survey, with support from UNICEF Angola, and analyzing survey results.
• Activity 1.5 Stakeholder mapping
a. Identification of key stakeholders, their role and influence in the policy and programme discourse on overweight and obesity prevention among children including key ministries and agencies in government, political actors (e.g., parliamentary committees), school stakeholders, civil society organizations including youth led community- and school-level stakeholders, Scouts Association, the private sector, academia, scientific/professional groups, consumer groups, food industry funded groups.
• Activity 1.6 Drafting recommendations
Prepare recommendations and potential solutions, pathways, strategies, policies, actions, based analysis findings, as well as good examples (case studies or lessons learned) from benchmarking countries, from a comparative perspective.
• Activity 1.7 Validation and identification of priority policies and actions through stakeholder workshop
a. Engage stakeholders through a validation workshop and facilitate consensus building on context specific priority policies and actions for child overweight and obesity prevention and treatment by:
– Presenting the results of the landscape analysis and highlighting policy options and actions necessary.
– Facilitate stakeholder discussion on policy options.
– Facilitate prioritization and ensure commitment by stakeholders.
 
Deliverables
 
The consultant is expected to produce the following deliverables:
• Inception Report: Design the approach for data collection and analysis including relevant tools, implementation plan and key stakeholders to be involved. Relevant and available global protocols and guidance meant for this age group should be used and adapted to the Angola context. Data collection tools should be included in the inception report. The inception report should be written and prepared in Portuguese.
• Stakeholder Meetings: With the support of UNICEF Angola CO, organize bilateral meetings (in person preferred) with various stakeholder including the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Family and the Promotion of Women, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Youth. Seek stakeholders’ feedback on the inception report and engage with them in validating findings, refining study purpose, including scope of primary data collection. Finalize the inception report by incorporating feedback.
• Draft Landscape Analysis Report: Conduct the landscape analysis and compile a draft report (including all aspects detailed in the TOR). Present the draft report to the technical team for inputs and formulation of key recommendations. Recommendations should also encompass suggestions for modifying data collection tools to address any gaps in the existing data. The draft report should be prepared in Portuguese.
• Draft UReport on youth survey on overweight and obesity prevention: Design and execute the UReport with UNICEF Angola support, and prepare interactive report based on survey findings. The draft report should be prepared in Portuguese.
• A full final report: Finalize the landscape analysis report and survey report while incorporating comments/changes suggested by the technical team. This report should be prepared in both English and Portuguese.
• A policy brief: no more than four pages, describing the main findings from the landscape analysis, including current trends in overweight and obesity, risk factors and obesogenic environments and current policy initiatives, and key recommendations for action. This should be prepared in Portuguese.
• A PowerPoint presentation: Describe what is in the executive summary in a few words, using pictures and graphics to describe the situation, what can be done, and who might do it. This should be prepared in English and Portuguese.
• Facilitate dissemination workshop: to Angola Country Office and government stakeholders.

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

  • At least seven years of experience in working in the field of overweight and obesity, preferably in a research capacity in Africa. Candidates with a PhD and at least five years of experience may be considered in lieu of seven years of experience.
  • Masters Degree level
  •  
    • Excellent research, writing and analysis skills.
    • Ability to plan, organize, prioritize, and accomplish deliverables under pressure.
    • Proficiency in English and Portuguese, written and verbal, is required.
    Advantageous:
    • Knowledge of overweight, obesity, non-communicable diseases issues East and Southern Africa is an asset.
    • Previous experience in the development of landscape analyses.
    • Understanding the life course, growth and nutritional status of children
    • Understanding statistical reports on child anthropometrics (including trends over time)
    • Familiarity with existing WHO recommendations and WHO and UNICEF guidance on overweight and obesity
    • Familiarity with using on-line databases e.g. hosted by UNICEF, WHO and FAO
    • Ability to summarise evidence succinctly and provide clear recommendations
    • Experience working in UNICEF/UN or NGO organizations
    • Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively in diverse settings, tailoring language, tone, style, and format to match audience needs.

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. 

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