Home-based Consultancy: Disability Inclusion in Humanitarian Action – Phase 2 (68 working days; with travel as needed) – Europe and Central Asia Regional Office (ECARO)

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, care.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment

The UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia seeks to recruit a consultant to provide technical guidance and direct country support to enhance the inclusion of children and people with disabilities in humanitarian action and improve the quality and outreach of disability inclusive interventions from the stage of emergency preparedness through to recovery.

This consultancy serves as Phase 2 of a two-part consultancy, building upon the achievements and lessons learned from Phase 1, which was carried out in mid-2024, and served to provide technical guidance to UNICEF offices on planning, monitoring and reporting on disability inclusion in humanitarian action. In Phase 2, dedicated guidance and capacity building on strengthening of disability data to support preparedness planning and emergency response in Türkiye and Ukraine Country Offices (COs) is envisaged. More specifically, Phase 2 of the consultancy will focus on establishing and/or expanding upon and utilizing national-level data points on disability, recommending strategies to integrate these data into preparedness and response plans, and promoting systematic approaches to disability inclusion with available data.

Objectives

• Primary Objective: To provide technical support and guidance to Türkiye and Ukraine COs to enhance their data availability of children and people with disabilities and to support the collection, analysis, and utilization of disability data in humanitarian response planning.
• Specific Objectives:
• Assess existing data sources and identify gaps related to disability data in Türkiye and Ukraine.
• Develop methodologies for collecting and analyzing disability data.
• Create frameworks and guidelines for integrating disability data into humanitarian preparedness and response plans.

Scope of Work

The consultancy aims to improve the availability and use of data on children and people with disabilities to help inform humanitarian planning, preparedness, response and recovery and systematically integrate disability considerations in humanitarian action.

1. Consultations with Country Offices (COs):

• Conduct consultations with the Ukraine and Türkiye Country Offices (COs) to identify priority areas based on existing gaps and needs in disability data availability and quality and capacity to collect and use them.
• Use the outcomes of these consultations to guide the identification of relevant data activities, capacity needs, and systemic gaps.

2. Data Assessment:

• Building on findings from CO consultations, conduct research and review existing disability-related data tools, including learning assessment and diagnosis, and sources, including national statistics, NGO reports, and academic studies to extend / replicate the learning to other COs in the region.
• Identify gaps and limitations in current data systems and propose strategies to address them.

3. Stakeholder Engagement:

• Collaborate with local NGOs, government agencies, and organizations of persons with disabilities (OPDs) to validate data needs and priorities.
• Facilitate workshops or consultations to ensure stakeholder alignment and input into proposed methodologies.

4. System Development:

• Design and propose disability data collection tools and systems tailored to the Ukraine and Türkiye local contexts.
• Develop guidance on the integration of disability data into UNICEF’s preparedness and response plans.

5. Capacity Building:

• Create training materials and resources to enhance the capacity of UNICEF staff and partners in data collection, analysis, and utilization for disability inclusion.
• Conduct training sessions to strengthen local and regional capabilities in addressing disability inclusion in humanitarian contexts.

6. Knowledge Dissemination:

• Provide recommendations on leveraging platforms such as TransMonEE to enhance the dissemination and use of disability-related data.
• Develop a framework for ongoing monitoring and reporting on disability inclusion in humanitarian action.

Work Assignment Overview

The Consultant will work closely with the UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia and relevant country offices to ensure the successful completion of the tasks outlined below.

Tasks / Milestone Deliverables / Outputs Timeline / Deadline Assessment report 1.Comprehensive assessment report with detailed mapping of disability data sources, data points and gaps within national data systems.

10 working days;

By 31 March 2025

Data collection, implementation tools & integration framework

1.User-friendly tools such as surveys and questionnaires, tailored to the specific local contexts.

2.Implementation tools such as case studies, best practices, and capacity-building frameworks.

3.Guidelines for incorporating disability data into UNICEF’s response planning and monitoring processes, highlighting best practices.

25 working days;

By 30 April 2025

Training materials 1.Training resources for UNICEF staff and local partners on data collection and disability inclusion practices.

25 working days;

By 30 May 2025

Final report and presentation

1. Report summarizing the findings of the assignment, structured guidance to develop and institutionalise disability data integration in national data systems for preparedness, and recommendations for engagement and coordination of key stakeholders to strengthen disability data collection, analysis and utilisation.

2.PowerPoint presentation, as well as recommendations on disability data systems.

8 working days;

By 27 June 2025

Estimated Duration of the Contract

68 working days between March and June 2025.

Consultant’s Work Place and Official Travel

The Consultant will be remote/home-based.

As part of this assignment, some international travels are foreseen. The consultant will arrange her/his travel as and when they take place, and related costs will be reimbursed per UNICEF travel policy.

Travel Clause

• All UNICEF rules and regulations related to travel of Consultants apply.
• All travels shall be undertaken only upon the prior written approval by UNICEF.
• The consultant must be fit to travel, be in a possession of the valid UN BSAFE certificate, obligatory inoculation(s) and have a valid own travel/medical insurance and an immunization/vaccination card.

Estimated Cost of the Consultancy & Payment Schedule

Payment will be made on submission of an invoice and satisfactory completion of the above-mentioned deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if work/outputs are incomplete, not delivered or for failure to meet deadlines. All materials developed will remain the copyright of UNICEF and UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify them in the future.

Please submit a professional fee (in USD) based on 68 working days to undertake this assignment, without travel fees as these will be reimbursed as and when they take place.

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

• Master’s degree in Social Sciences, Economics, Political Science, International Development, Statistics and related areas.
• Minimum 8 years relevant work experience.
• Experience in data analysis and data mapping.
• Experience in developing and implementing capacity building activities on disability data related issues.
• Knowledge of disability statistics.
• Previous experience in supporting disability programming in humanitarian response is a strong asset.
• Fluency in English.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS), and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most marginalized children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family 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 to become a part of the organization.

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:

Please submit a full CV and a Cover Letter in your application. Additionally, indicate your availability and professional fee (in USD) to undertake the terms of reference above. Applications submitted without a professional fee will not be considered. 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.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants 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.

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