Consultancy: Guidelines for Programming with and for Young People in Humanitarian Settings ADP - PD, Requisition # 505971

The drafting and field-testing of the Guidelines for Programming with/for Young People in Humanitarian Context requires dedicated human resources to ensure that views of young people and inputs from various COMPACT member organizations at global and country level are properly reflected and promoted.

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.

For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

Background & Rationale

During the 2016 World Humanitarian Summit (WHS), UN Member States, UN entities, civil society organizations, private sector, media and youth-led organizations gathered on the topic of Transforming Humanitarian Action with and for Young People, and called to align strategies, approaches and programmatic responses to reach all young and adolescent people and empower young women and men, and adolescent girls and boys to be agents of positive transformation.  

A ‘Compact for Young People in Humanitarian Action’ was hence established and endorsed by at least 50 organizations that work in humanitarian settings to ensure that the priorities, needs and rights of young women and men, and adolescent girls and boys affected by disaster, conflict, forced displacement and other humanitarian crises, are addressed, and that they are informed, consulted, and meaningfully engaged throughout all stages of humanitarian action.    

Within the Compact, 5 long-term commitments were identified and defined under 5 Actions with the first one being “Promote and increase age- and gender-responsive and inclusive programmes that contribute to the protection, health and development of young women, young men, girls and boys within humanitarian settings”.     

UNICEF co-chairs with the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) a group of practitioners and organizations to oversee the implementation of Action 1, and as such is leading the development, drafting and field-testing of Guidelines for Programming with/for Young People in Humanitarian Settings together with partner organizations which have endorsed the Compact. 

This consultancy comes under the umbrella of the Compact group that is co-facilitated by UNFPA and IFRC and supported by at least 50 organizations and member states. 

Purpose

The drafting and field-testing of the Guidelines for Programming with/for Young People in Humanitarian Context requires dedicated human resources to ensure that views of young people and inputs from various COMPACT member organizations at global and country level are properly reflected and promoted. 

Expected results and workplan: 

The consultant will work under the supervision of UNICEF Adolescent Specialist, and in close coordination with Compact Core Action 1 Task Team including the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), Mercy Corps, Plan International, the Refugee Education Trust (RET) UNFPA, UNHCR, the UN Youth Envoy Office, the International Federation of the Red Cross/Crescent (IFRC) as well as with other COMPACT member organizations and humanitarian practitioners from different clusters and sectors. The consultant is expected to produce a set of Guidelines including practical and operational recommendations based on consultations with young people, practitioners working in humanitarian settings and case studies and good practice documentations, reflecting different humanitarian and geographical settings and promoting the views of young people themselves. 

The final guidelines document should focus on the following: 

- Provides the “why” for addressing young people’s priorities, working and engaging with them in humanitarian contexts;

- Describes how emergencies and other humanitarian contexts such as protracted forced displacement affect young people’s lives (with age and gender lens within and between age groups) including briefly explaining how forced displacement influences the realization of their rights – including by looking across the various sectors;

- Proposes the principles that should underpin programming with/for young people in humanitarian contexts and that should be respected when assessing, designing, implementing, and evaluating interventions for/with young people;

- Provides recommendations/actions, informed by age and sex considerations, that organizations need to consider when working with young people (with age and gender lens within and between age groups) in all phases of humanitarian crisis and across different sectors including health, education, protection, water and sanitation and nutrition. This includes strengthening the nexus between development and humanitarian programmes with a wider focus on risk reduction including mitigation and prevention. 

- Provides guidance, informed by age and sex considerations, on “how to” engage with young people (with age and gender lens within and between age groups) as partners including youth groups/organizations in all phases of humanitarian situations; 

- Provides practical guidance, informed by age and sex considerations, on how to integrate and strengthen the “young people lens” (with age and gender lens within and between age groups) within the interagency/multi-partner processes, i.e. CERF, HRPs, Flash appeals, multi-sectoral assessments and others.

- Provides guidance, informed by age and sex considerations, for the monitoring and evaluation of programmes addressing young people (with age and gender lens within and between age groups) including a focus on participatory and adolescent and youth led approaches. 

In order to perform his/her various tasks, the consultant will be expected to:

• interact remotely through bi-lateral calls/interviews with practitioners from different organizations across the world;
• co-facilitate feedback sessions on draft and/or thematic areas during workshops including with young people or through dedicated inter-agency webinar/webex;
• travel to 2-3 countries to collect first-hand testimonies/recommendations from frontline workers and young people living in humanitarian settings, and test/validate consolidated draft content and design. 

Duty Station

Remote-based 

Timeframe and deliverables 

Start date:   1^st September 2017                         End date:             30 April 2018

Key competences, technical background, and experience required

• Education: University Master’s Degree in emergency management, humanitarian action or development, social or political sciences, or related field - a focus on adolescent and or youth engagement would be desirable.
• Minimum of eight years professional experience in humanitarian programming with a focus on youth/adolescent programming. Field experience in humanitarian settings is required
• Experience in developing resources and materials from the perspective of programme design and implementation
• Experience in facilitating workshops/consultations with adolescents and youth;
• Experience in convening and coordinating inputs from various organizations at global and field level.
• Proven track record of conducting literature reviews and in-depth interviews and consolidating quantitative and qualitative data from a variety of sources.
• Strong command of English required, proficiency in Arabic, French or Spanish is considered an asset.
• Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing
• Ability to work in an international environment and under tight deadlines
• Highly proficient in use of English with the ability to write in a clear and practical manner

To view our competency framework, please click here. 

Please indicate your ability, availability and daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference above (including travel and daily subsistence allowance, if applicable).  Applications submitted without a daily/monthly rate will not be considered.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organisation.