Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) is an institutional priority for the UN, and for UNICEF. The UNICEF Strategic Plan 2026-2029 identifies MHPSS as a priority area, building upon existing programming through child protection, education, and health.

Working arrangement: Remote / Home-based with some travel in the MENA region

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.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS) is an institutional priority for the UN, and for UNICEF. The UNICEF Strategic Plan 2026-2029 identifies MHPSS as a priority area, building upon existing programming through child protection, education, and health. 

Global priorities show increased need for attention to MHPSS, particularly for girls, boys, women and men in communities affected by emergencies and other adversities (e.g., torture, war, intimate partner violence, poverty, malnutrition, amongst others).  While most people are resilient to adversity, global estimates suggest that on, average, 22% of adults report symptoms consistent with mental health conditions if they have experienced conflict in previous 10 years. Observed rates of mental health problems after extremely adverse events (e.g. torture, rape) tend be over 40%. Some individuals will develop mental health conditions in the long term (e.g., depression) and others will be impacted in less visible ways. Estimates are unclear for children and adolescents, but likely to be similar. Poor mental health can impair individuals’ functioning, influence children’s behavior, and create barriers to accessing education, interfere with engagement in work or work productivity, and hinder one’s ability to engage in social or community functions. Nonetheless, most people with mental health conditions around the world do not receive effective care. Among people living with depression, only 1 in 5 persons in high-income countries and 1 in 27 in lower-middle income countries receive minimally adequate treatment, in part due to an insufficient number of workers trained in mental health care. Integrating MHPSS services across sectors is essential, but a question remains regarding the quality of the training and the competency of the workforce. Making certain that the MHPSS workforce across sectors such as education, protection and health are able to attend to these challenges can ensure that individuals with mental health problems will have access to effective evidence based MHPSS interventions. Access to a competent and skillful workforce will aid the community as well. One way to address access to care is to expand MHPSS services delivered by diverse cadres in different settings. With appropriate training and supervision, professionals and non-professionals can provide support and effective help.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy's scope of work and expected deliverables, please review the complete Terms of Reference here:Download File ToR MHPSS in Emergencies Consultancy MENA.pdf

Minimum requirements: (QUALIFICATIONS / SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE / EXPERIENCE)

  • Education: Master's degree in Psychology, Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, Clinical Social Work, Neurosciences and other relevant fields of work.
  • Work Experience:
    • A minimum of 8 years’ experience in Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in development and humanitarian contexts
    • Expertise in content development and capacity building in MHPSS interventions especially in emergency settings
    • Strong familiarity with Play and Heal, Tamenni Annak, and other UNICEF MENA regional programmes
    • Experience supporting the integration of MHPSS in other sectors
    • Proven experience coordinating multiple sectors within UNICEF and external partners in the MENA region
    • Capable of conducting field research to test interventions
    • Shows flexibility and adaptiveness in supporting emergency contexts
    • Fluency in written and spoken Arabic and English required

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

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 reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. 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.

Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System):

Remarks:  If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not visible on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers.

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.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

At Impactpool we do our best to provide you the most accurate info, but closing dates may be wrong on our site. Please check on the recruiting organization's page for the exact info. Candidates are responsible for complying with deadlines and are encouraged to submit applications well ahead.
Before applying, please make sure that you have read the requirements for the position and that you qualify. Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.