Job description

The Position:

Under the direct supervision of the UNFPA Kenya Country Office (KCO) Gender/GBV Advisor and under the overall guidance of the Deputy Representative and the UNFPA MASS KCO and HQ, Technical Division, teams, the Software Developer consultant will develop and integrate a technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) Prevention Digital Prototype for youth populations aged 18 - 29 years for deployment in all three MASS focus counties.



 

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead United Nations agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is intended, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled. The UNFPA Strategic Plan for 2026-2029 articulates the organization’s response to a complex global environment, providing a roadmap for resilience and renewal. It is designed to accelerate the implementation of the Programme of Action of the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. This mandate is pursued through a focus on four interconnected outcomes: ending the unmet need for family planning; ending preventable maternal deaths; ending gender-based violence and harmful practices; and adapting to demographic change through evidence and rights-based policies.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff who embody these international norms and standards and will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates who transform, inspire, and deliver high-impact sustained results, ensuring effective external relations, communications, partnership-building and resource mobilization in a rapidly changing development and funding landscape. We need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them, and who commit to delivering excellence in programme results

Background and Purpose of the Consultancy:

The Software Developer consultant will develop and integrate a technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) Prevention Digital Prototype for youth populations aged 18 - 29 years for deployment in all three MASS focus counties.

Funded by Global Affairs Canada, the Making All Spaces Safe (MASS) global programme is being implemented globally and piloted in Benin and Kenya between March 2024 and March 2027. The aim of the programme is to increase the benefits of technology, free from gender-based violence and discrimination, for women and girls in all their diversity. To achieve this goal, the programme works across three main pillars: response, prevention, and law and policy, as well as through cross-cutting research and convening efforts. MASS is one of the first global programmes to address the emerging issue of TFGBV. The MASS Pilot Programme in Kenya is jointly implemented by UNFPA Kenya and the Coalition on Violence against Women (COVAW) in Kisumu, Mombasa, and Nairobi. 

UNFPA Kenya, through the MASS Programme, is advancing survivor-centred, gender-transformative, and youth-responsive approaches to TFGBV prevention. The growing digitalisation of GBV and young people's increasing reliance on technology are not parallel trends; they are directly linked. As youth engage more deeply with digital platforms for communication, learning, and social interaction, their exposure to, and perpetration of, harmful content, including TFGBV, grows correspondingly.

Under the MASS Programme’s Prevention Pillar, the programme seeks to increase knowledge and digital safety and literacy skills amongst young people, with a focus on gender-equitable and respectful technology interactions (Immediate Outcome 1220). To address this gap and build on a multi-stakeholder co-design process initiated in October 2025, UNFPA Kenya seeks to engage a qualified software developer consultant to design, prototype, validate and support the integration of an integrated TFGBV Prevention Digital Prototype for youth populations (18-29 years) in Kisumu, Mombasa and Nairobi (target counties). The prototype will combine gender-transformative and gamified digital safety and literacy learning, streamlined access to GBV referral services, and integration into two (2) existing youth-focused SRHR/GBV prevention programmes with reach across the three target counties. 

The consultancy objectives include:

  • Design, develop, validate and support the integration of a context-specific, gender-transformative, and gamified digital prototype, incorporating learning modules, and a one-tap referral layer, to strengthen digital safety and literacy among youth populations in the target counties.
  • Provide technical support and coordination to facilitate the integration of the digital prototype into two (2) existing youth-focused SHRH/GBV prevention programmes in the three target counties (Output 1222).

You would be responsible for:

  • The overall work will be conducted under the direct management of the UNFPA KCO Gender/GBV Advisor, under the overall guidance of the Deputy Representative and the UNFPA MASS KCO and HQ, Technical Division teams. 

  • The Software Developer Consultant will be responsible for designing, prototyping, and validating a functional, gender-transformative, TFGBV prevention digital prototype for youth populations, and integrating this into two (2) existing youth-focused SHRH/GBV prevention programmes in the three target counties. 

  • All methodologies and deliverables must follow UNFPA guidance and international standards for safe and ethical GBV data collection and use, , inter alia, strict data minimisation, purpose limitation and informed and ongoing consent, in accordance with UNFPA's Guidance on the Safe and Ethical Use of Technology to Address GBV and Harmful Practices (2023).
  • Prototype development must comply with safety- security and -privacy by-design principles, as well as integrate accessibility and usability considerations for diverse youth populations, including low-bandwidth and feature phone users, and consider cost, maintenance, and scalability implications in design choices.
  • Review existing MASS Global and Kenya-specific TFGBV prevention resources, including the Kenya TFGBV Training Package, the Safe and Ethical Use of Tech Training Package, UNFPA's Guidance on the Safe and Ethical Use of Technology to Address GBV and Harmful Practices (2023), the co-design meeting report and the Mixed-methods Research Study: Mombasa County (2026), to ensure continuity and relevance.
  • Regularly consult with UNFPA KCO GBV/Gender unit staff and the HQ Technical Division.

The Integrated TFGBV Prevention Digital Prototype will be structured around three interconnected layers: 

Layer Description Requirements
Learning Layer Four (4) short, interactive and gamified digital safety and literacy modules tailored to youth populations (18 - 29 years), informed by UNFPA’s Guidance on the Safe and Ethical Use of Technology in GBV Interventions Informed by consultations, these can cover (1) Recognition of prevalent forms of TFGBV; (2) Digital rights and responsibilities; (3) Consent and rights-promoting online interactions; (4) Gender-equitable technology use; (5) Digital hygiene, and device/online safety and security best practices; and (6) Safe help-seeking and reporting mechanisms
Referral Layer One-tap links/references in the learning content, sign-posting users to existing GBV services across multiple sectors 

Examples: toll-free helplines; county and national reporting platforms; relevant laws, policies and guidance materials

Sectors: health, psychosocial, legal, and protection services
Integration Layer Technical support to integrate the prototype into existing programmes to ensure institutional uptake and sustainability 2 existing, youth-focused, SRHR/GBV prevention programmes in target counties

Coordination of Integrated TFGBV Prevention Digital Prototype 

Inception and Consultations Phase: 

  • Attend one (1) onboarding/inception meeting with UNFPA KCO and the HQ Technical Division teams to clarify questions, scope, timelines, roles, and key milestones.
  • Undertake desk review of relevant programme, policy, legal, and technical documents.
  • Submit a detailed inception report outlining the consultant’s understanding of the assignment; proposed methodology and workplan; stakeholder engagement and user-centred/co-design/safety-by-design approaches; prototype concept and technical specifications; ethical and data protection considerations; risk mitigation measures; M&E framework alignment; and recommendations for supporting the integration of the prototype into existing youth-focused GBV prevention programmes for review and approval by UNFPA teams.
  • Organise and execute 1 (one) virtual round of user-centred and safety/security consultations with UNFPA, young people, GBV/SRHR programme custodians, and key stakeholders across the three target counties to inform the design process, including digital safety/security assessment.

Design and Validation Phase:

  • Design and produce the prototype’s architecture, technical specifications, wireframes, and user journeys. 
  • Develop and refine a mid-fidelity prototype, including gamified learning modules and referral functionalities. 
    • Organise and execute 2nd round of virtual user testing, consultation and further safety/security assessment with UNFPA, young people, GBV/SRHR programme custodians, and key stakeholders, and refine the prototype based on user feedback and testing outcomes.
  • Produce high-fidelity, functional prototype/mock-up.
    • Organise and execute final virtual user testing, consultation and safety/security assessment with UNFPA, young people, GBV/SRHR programme custodians, and key stakeholders, and refine the prototype based on user feedback and testing outcomes. 

  • Organise and execute 1 (one) virtual validation workshop with UNFPA, GBV/SRHR programme holders, young people, and key stakeholders. 

    Integration and Handover Phase

  • Develop a practical integration plan, detailing the mainstreaming of the modules and tools, rollout timelines, technical support mechanisms, and monitoring indicators aligned to Immediate Outcome 1220 and Output 1222.
  • Deliver training materials and technical support to implementing partners.
  • Support the integration of the prototype into two (2) existing youth-focused GBV/SRHR prevention programmes.
  • Prepare and submit a brief consultancy report (format optional) documenting and summarising the prototyping process, including key, consolidated stakeholder consultation feedback and contact details, challenges and opportunities.
  • Submit all source files, technical documentation, and final deliverables to UNFPA Kenya.
  • Attend one (1) handover and close-out meeting with UNFPA Kenya.

     

The following deliverables are expected:

  • Inception report;
  • Prototype technical specifications, wireframes, and user journeys
  • Functional prototype incorporating learning, referral, and integration layers (demo-ready);
  • Consultation, validation and user-testing summary reports, including consolidated stakeholder feedback matrix and recommendations;
  • Final integrated prototype, facilitator guidance materials, technical documentation, and sustainability recommendations; and 
  • Final consultancy report and meeting and handover deliverables package submitted to UNFPA KCO Gender/GBV Advisor.
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.