The consultant will provide strategic guidance on the implementation of EOF’s Education Outcomes Fund in Lagos State, Nigeria, to ensure the timely achievement of key programme milestones, support stakeholder engagement (Lagos State Universal Education Board (LASUBEB), Local Government Area (LGA) departments, Federal Ministry of Education (FME), evaluators, donors), support implementation of outcomes-based financing to enable sustainability and evidence uptake into public systems.

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Consultancy: Senior Consultant - Nigeria

Duty Station: UNICEF Hosted Funds, Education Outcomes Fund

Duration: 01 April 2026 – 30 September 2026

Home/ Office Based: Remote

BACKGROUND

Purpose of Activity/ Assignment:

The consultant will provide strategic guidance on the implementation of EOF’s Education Outcomes Fund in Lagos State, Nigeria, to ensure the timely achievement of key programme milestones, support stakeholder engagement (Lagos State Universal Education Board (LASUBEB), Local Government Area (LGA) departments, Federal Ministry of Education (FME), evaluators, donors), support implementation of outcomes-based financing to enable sustainability and evidence uptake into public systems

Scope:

The consultant will support EOF’s team in relation to its Education outcomes fund in Lagos State Nigeria, for which the Request for Proposal (RFP) publication and launch event are expected to take place in February 2026. The programme activities are set to begin in Summer of 2026 and continue implementing until 2030. 

Terms of Reference / Key Deliverables:

Work Assignment Overview/Deliverables and Outputs/Delivery deadline

1.  Develop and maintain implementation oversight tools, including milestone tracking reports (procurement, contracting, delivery, evaluation), risk registers (Excel), and performance summaries highlighting delays, mitigation actions, and delivery gaps

Deliverable 1:
- 1 milestone tracking report of 2 pages
- 3 updates to the risk register
- 1 summary report (8-10 pages each)

30 Sept 2026

2.  Prepare for and facilitate 2 formal governance meetings between with government, evaluator, and grantees. For each, prepare a 15-slide technical guidance pack to frame decisions and facilitate joint problem-solving implementation issues

Deliverable 2:
- 2 governance meetings facilitated
- 2 technical pre-reading slide decks (15 slides each)

One meeting by 30 Jun 2026; The second meeting by 30 Sept 2026

3.  Provide strategic guidance to the team to support stakeholder engagement with LASUBEB and provinces through bi-monthly meetings. Produce and submit contact and engagement reports summarizing key decisions and follow-ups. Ensure ongoing alignment between implementation and government priorities

Deliverable 3:

- bi-monthly meetings facilitated
- 15 contact and engagement reports (1–2 pages each)

30 Sept 2026

4.  Facilitate technical and planning workshops for government and implementing partners on topics including governance, evaluation design, and sustainability. Each session to be accompanied by workshop materials and feedback summaries

Deliverable 4:
- 2 capacity-building workshops with LASUBEB, LGA Officials, and service providers of estimated 2 days per workshop
- Workshop slide decks and short summaries

30 Sept 2026

5.  Conduct site visits to programme provinces to validate progress, observe implementation, and engage local  stakeholders. Produce 5-page reports summarizing visit outcomes, risks, and recommended actions

Deliverable 5:
- 2 site visits conducted (each of estimated 5 days)

- 1 visit report per each (5 pages each)

30 Sept 2026

6.  Draft a 30-page Strategic Intelligence Report analyzing Education and education access policy shifts, local government dynamics, opportunities for scaling outcomes-based finance, and EOF’s strategic visibility

Deliverable 6:
- Strategic Intelligence and Local Positioning Report (30 pages)

30 Sept 2026

7.  Co-develop a long-term sustainability proposal for Nigeria Education Outcomes Fund Phase 2, informed by two multi-stakeholder workshops. Proposal will include scale-up scenarios to other states in Nigeria, integration into LASUBEB and other SUBEB systems, and costing frameworks

Deliverable 7:
- 20-slide sustainability proposal
- 1 stakeholder consultation workshop

Draft by 30 Sept 2026

Workshop by 30 Sept 2026

8.  Produce visibility briefs, end-of-year summary, events and visibility report, and online content for EOF/LASUBEB platforms to promote programme visibility and learning

Deliverable 8:
- 1 visibility brief (2 pages)
- 5-page end-year summary
- An 8–10-page event and visibility report
- 4 social media/digital content pieces (estimated 1 page each)

30 Sept 2026

9.  Strategic and operational guidance to EOF’s program team to resolve challenges related to the implementation of the outcomes fund

Deliverable 9:

Join estimated 10 workshops with EOF’s program team over the duration of the assignment, each estimated 0.5 days, to provide strategic and operational guidance on implementation challenges

5 workshops by 30 Sept 2026

The remainder by 30 Sept 2026

10.  Produce reports at the end of year’s implementation to analyze the program successes and challenges to date, including visibility within government, evaluation implementation, progress towards  outcome targets, implementation challenges

Deliverable 10:

1 report at the end of the program’s mobilization, summarizing the program delivery that year. Estimated 15-20 pages per report

30 Sept 2026

Travel: International and domestic travel to programme provinces (as required):

• 2 site visits within Lagos State Nigeria
• Approximately 2 visits to Abuja for Federal Level Engagement 

Qualifications

Education:   

• A degree in Education, International Development, Social Sciences, Project Management, or a related field, is required. 
• A Master's degree is preferred but not required.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required *:

• At least 10 years’ experience in leading and managing strategic development programmes ideally in Lagos, Nigeria, and ideally in the education sector. 
• Direct experience of working with the Lagos State Government or other state government in Nigeria, ideally in the education sector. 
• Experience engaging senior government stakeholders.
• Fluency in English is required.

Desirable requirements

• Prior experience working with international organisations in Lagos or Nigeria is desirable.
• Experience with innovative finance, particularly outcomes funds, is desirable.
• Fluency in Yoruba and Nigerian Pidgin is highly desirable. Proficiency in Hausa and/or Igbo is desirable.

Requirements:

Completed profile in UNICEF's e-Recruitment system and

- Upload copy of academic credentials

- Financial proposal that will include/ reflect :

• • the costs per each deliverable and the total lump-sum for the whole assignment (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference.
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR.
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability

- Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.

- At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.

- Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

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

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results. View our competency framework at: Here

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:  

Individuals engaged under a consultancy 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. Consultants 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.