The consultant will provide technical support to MOYA on the implementation of programmes under the Department of Youth Empowerment, working closely with the technical teams of UNICEF, Ministry of Labour and Public Service (MIFOTRA), and other partners. Specifically, the consultant will: (1) Support planning, implementation, and reporting on programmes for youth, aimed at enhancing school-to-work transition and social impact in their communities. (2) Provide technical support to MOYA and UNICEF to ensure the design and implementation of programmes are aligned with relevant national policies, strategies, and priorities.

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.  To learn more about UNICEF career and the work in Rwanda, please visit our website https://unicef.sharepoint.com/sites/RWA/ and UNICEF Careers | UNICEF Careers. 

How can you make a difference? 

Background

Rwanda aspires to be a high-income, knowledge-based economy with highly skilled human capital by 2050. This vision is planned to be achieved through a series of National Strategies for Transformation (NST). The second national strategy for transformation (NST2) recognizes Rwanda’s youthful population (people aged 16-30 years) and the country's increased adoption of technology and innovation as opportunities and enablers to achieve its vision.

Several policies have been put in place by the Government, which have led to sustained economic growth and youth empowerment. For example, the youth unemployment rate declined from 26.5% in 2021 to 18.5% in 2024, placing Rwanda on the right trajectory. However, recent data from the National Institute of Statistics Rwanda (NISR) show that over a million youth are neither in employment, education, nor training (NEET), nearly two-thirds of them female. This challenge is partly attributed to misalignment between the skills young people have and labor market demands. The NST2 has therefore, among others, prioritized creating sustainable and decent jobs, especially for youth and women, and improving the quality and market relevance of education.

The Ministry of Youth and Arts (MOYA) plays a key role in creating an enabling environment for youth empowerment, especially by enhancing access to information on employment and entrepreneurship opportunities. UNICEF Rwanda is one of the leading partners supporting MOYA to achieve its mandate. UNICEF specifically supports programmes that focus on upskilling to increase work readiness and enhance the transition of young people from school to work. Other programmes focus on empowering young people to take action to reduce the impact of climate change on their communities. In that context, UNICEF requires a national consultant to support MOYA in advancing the implementation of ongoing youth programmes.

Purpose of Assignment

The consultant will provide technical support to MOYA on the implementation of programmes under the Department of Youth Empowerment, working closely with the technical teams of UNICEF, Ministry of Labour and Public Service (MIFOTRA), and other partners. Specifically, the consultant will:

1. Support planning, implementation, and reporting on programmes for youth, aimed at enhancing school-to-work transition and social impact in their communities.

Provide technical support to MOYA and UNICEF to ensure the design and implementation of programmes are aligned with relevant national policies, strategies, and priorities.

Work Assignment Overview

Tasks/Milestone:

1. Support situation analysis, planning, implementation and reporting on youth empowerment and skills development led by MoYA, the NYC and other partners.
2. Technical support to MOYA on coordination with identified stakeholders to enhance public/private/youth partnerships to expand skills development and employment opportunities for youth.
3. Provide technical support to facilitate planning, implementation and monitoring of Ingazi, the Resilience in Secondary Education (RISE), and Green Rising programme interventions coordinated by MOYA.
4. Develop technical concept notes for GenU Steering Committee meetings and other major events like the Youth Connekt to promote GenU Rwanda Chapter
5. Liaise with local Youth led organizations to coordinate and confirm their full involvement in the implementation of different activities of the GenU Rwanda.
6. Prepare consultancy report highlighting key achievements and recommended priorities for further collaboration of UNICEF and MoYA.

Deliverables/Outputs:

Payment 1: 16,6%

• Progress report for the Green Rising Initiative in Informal Settlements
• Contribution to the GenU global reporting requirement
• National career fairs report

Payment 2: 16,6%

• Updated GenU programme document
• Partners mapping and partnership strategy developed
• GenU partners engagement events organized, and notes shared
• GenU Quarterly progress report

Payment 3: 16,6%

• RISE programme monitoring & documentation lessons learned and good practices.
• Ingazi Ambassadors programme pilot phase final report
• NYC teams engaged to support RISE
• Green Rising monitoring and
• analytical report
• GenU annual report for the budget year 2025/2026 produced

Payment 4: 16,6%

• Technical concept notes for Steering Committee Meetings, Career Fairs and Youth Connekt
• Steering committee meeting minutes prepared, and action points followed up

Payment 5: 16,6%

• Report on engagement and capacity-building sessions with youth-led organizations organized
• Technical support provided to MoYA and UNICEF in organizing national and international youth events (Youth Connekt Summit and International Youth Day)
• GenU Quarterly progress report

Payment 6: 16,6%

• Final report highlighting key achievements, good practices, lessons learned and recommendations
• Joint 2027-2028 Workplan with MOYA

Duration and Location

The consultancy will be for 12 months between 10 January and 31 December 2026 and in country.

Selection Criteria

Applications shall be assessed based on their technical and financial proposals. Maximum scores for technical and financial applications will be 75% and 25%, respectively.

Successful candidates in technical evaluation will have their most competitive, all-inclusive financial proposals evaluated too.

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: An advanced university degree in education, economics, development studies, or another relevant technical field.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of five years of professional experience in programme planning, management, and/or research in development is required.
• Demonstrated experience working on youth empowerment programmes, like upskilling, employment, entrepreneurship and/or career development is required assets.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of Kinyarwanda is an asset.

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 

[add the 8^th competency (Nurtures, leads and manages people) for a supervisory role]. 

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 | 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 [Insert candidates from targeted underrepresented groups] 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.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance 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.