Consultancy for a review and analysis of Early Childhood Development Policies and their impact on budget allocation and programmes for young children and their families in West and Central Africa (Consultancy) UNICEF-Regional Office

Given the above context, in line with WCARO’s Regional Priority 3 (“Improve Learning Outcomes for All Children”) and Regional Priority 2 (“Child Nutrition and Development”), there is a need to provide UNICEF country offices and partners with a solid review and analysis of ECD policies to inform future support to country teams and gouvernments. As the new SDG results framework include a specific target on children developmentally on track , the second generation of ECD policies will need to innovate but at the same time build on lessons learnt in terms of process as well as monitoring of results. Finally, as UNICEF enters the new Strategic Plan for 2018-2022 and as the availability of ECD policies remains an important indicator to assess the engagement on ECD, it will be important to take stock of progresses made in WCAR through the realization and implementation of these policies and inform future support for policy dialogue and multisector coordination around ECD. It will be also critical to provide an overview of key success factors and risks connected to the development of those policies and how they relate and complement with traditional sector policies and plans.

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.

Purpose of the Assignment

General objective: Better understand the impact  and value-added of ECD policies in terms of budget allocation and programme implementation for young children and their families.

Specific objectives :

Given the specificiy of West and Central Africa countries, critical results of this study will be to :

• get a comprehensive review and analysis of  the  WCAR ECD policies undertaken in West and Central Africa coutries, including their scope in terms of multisectoriality, plan of action, monitoring system and budget allocation ;
• document the variety of processes undertaken to develop such policies at national levelunderstand the challenges and opportunities related to the ECD policy development , partners involved, existence of plans of actions,  monitoring framework and evidence based strategies.

Assignment Tasks

Throughout the research, regular communications will take place between UNICEF and the consultant by means of e-mails and conference calls, UNICEF WCARO shall provide guidance and technical inputs. 

A first work will focus on the development of an analytical and methodological framework (a virtual meeting will be held to ensure same level of understanding) along with questionnaire to key informants and different beneficiaries, then data and literature search and analysis will be carried out remotely. A restitution of preliminary findings and recommendations will be presented through a virtual meeting prior to the finalization of the research and the final report.

Expected Deliverables

• Framework note (including analysis and detailed methodology, questionnaires, timeline of the research;
• Desk review with detailed bibliography;
• Powerpoint presentation of the main outcomes and recommendations of the review to be presented during a virtual multi country meeting
• Final report including executive summary.

  Deliverables	Time	Payment
  Validated framework note	Day 7	20%
  Virtual meeting with Powerpoint presentation on preliminary finds and recommendation held	Day 35	30%
  Final report with executive summary	Day 45	50%

Qualifications of Successful Candidate

Education

• Master Degree in Education, Public Administration, International Development and Cooperation or similar

Years of relevant experience

• Knowledge of early childhood development issues globally , and particularly in the WCA sub-region;
• Knowledge of   ECD policy frameworks and partners intervention in ECD at global and regional level ;
• Proven experience in using literature search and semi-structured interviews methods, and skills needed to produce relevant synthetic analysis and representations;
• Fluency in French and English, both written and oral.

Competencies of Successful Candidate

 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.