Mental Health and Psychosocial Support National Specialist

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfil their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Non-Family Duty Station

Under the direct supervision of Child Protection officer, Child Protection Section, the national UN Volunteer will carry out the following tasks:

MHPSS (Mental Health and Psychosocial Support) programming under Child Protection

Strengthening capacity of UNICEF partners on MHPSS, specifically to promote metal health wellbeing of children, adolescents and caregivers who are impacted by the prolonged armed conflict.

• Based on the findings from the impact assessment, contribute to the design and refinement of MHPSS program interventions for UNICEF partners. Ensure interventions are contextually appropriate and aligned with UNICEF and IASC MHPSS guidelines.

• Establish and support the implementation of clear quality standards and minimum service requirements for MHPSS programming. Conduct regular monitoring and oversight mechanisms to ensure adherence to quality standards. Systematically capture, analyze on service quality to inform program improvement.

• Provide technical inputs to the development of age and audience- appropriate MHPSS key messages for children, adolescents, youth, parents and caregivers.

• Support the finalization of parenting manual, ensuring alignment with positive parenting principles and MHPSS best practices. Develop and adapt practical coping strategies and tools for parents and caregivers to manage stress, strengthen caregiving capacity and support child wellbeing. Work closely with Education sector to ensure existing resources on parenting are coordinated in the manual.

• Design and facilitate self-care and wellbeing sessions for UNICEF colleagues and partners as needed, to promote resilience and prevent burnout.

• Develop practical monitoring tools, checklist to monitor performance with strong emphasis on service quality. Ensure mechanisms are placed to collect and use feedback from children, parents and caregivers to improve MHPSS services and accountability.

• Develop, maintain and regularly update MHPSS service mapping to strengthen referrals and effective use of existing services and receive feedback from the partners on the services received.

• Work closely with Child Protection team and engage with other program sectors and UN agencies to ensure MHPSS services for children and caregivers are well-coordinated and complementary. Promote integration of MHPSS across sectors such as education, WASH, health and nutrition and social protection

• Support in organizing regular UNICEF MHPSS focal point meetings and promote knowledge sharing.

Expected Results

• Contributed to the design and refinement of MHPSS program interventions based on the findings from impact assessment.

• MHPSS interventions are systematically integrated across project design, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation processes.

• Strengthened capacity of UNICEF staff and partners to deliver high-quality MHPSS services reflecting the needs of children and families.

• Improved coordination of MHPSS services across UNICEF program sectors to ensure a holistic and integrated approach.

• Parenting manual finalized and training provided for UNICEF partners.

• Organized and actively participated in MHPSS focal point meetings to support information sharing and program alignment.

• MHPSS resource mapping is available for staff and partners.

• Contributed in developing quality MHPSS key massages in consultation with child protection colleagues and partners.