International & National Consultant (2 consultants): Child Protection Baseline Research in Tuvalu

UNICEF Pacific is looking for 2 consultants (1 international & 1 national consultant) who will be working as a team to collect baseline quantitative and qualitative information on child protection issues in Tuvalu.

 TOR CP Baseline Consultant Tuvalu - Adv..doc

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Title: Consultancy, Child Protection Baseline Research in Tuvalu
(1 international consultant & 1 national consultant)
Duration: 10 weeks over a period of 6 months (for international) & 15 weeks over a period of 6 months (for National) from January to June 2018.

Background:

A 2017 Child Protection Work Plan was signed with the Government of Tuvalu on 1 February 2017. The Work Plan includes the conduct of a Child Protection Baseline Research, the Drafting of a Child Protection Bill and of a Child Protection in Schools Policy, as well as the elaboration of costed implementation plans for both. It also includes communication activities related to these Bill and Policy, such as awareness-raising and advocacy.

The National Advisory Committee on Children’s Rights (NACCRC) and its Technical Working Group (TWG), chaired by the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) and co-chaired by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) was established in November 2016. These two entities will be guiding, overseeing, coordinating and monitoring the implementation of the various child protection interventions planned for 2017 and beyond, and ensure coherence, complementarity and inter-action between these various interventions. They will be assisted in these tasks by a UNICEF-supported Child Protection Project Manager.

The first step in the establishment or strengthening of a child protection system is to collect information on the prevalence and causes of child protection issues and, to assess existing responses from the various relevant sectors. Over the last few years, UNICEF has supported the production of Child Protection Baseline Reports in 8 Pacific countries and a lighter Child Protection System Review in Nauru. Given the similarities between these two countries in terms of number of population, geography and status of the child protection system, it is envisaged to conduct a similar review in Tuvalu.

The research team will include one international consultant and one national consultant, and will be supported by the Child Protection Manager.

This activity is in line with the 2018-2022 UNICEF Pacific Multi-Country Child Protection Programme Document and its Strategy Note, in particular with its Theory of Change, implementation strategies and systematic sequencing of the child protection system building approach.

Purpose of the Assignment

The results of the baseline survey will be used to plan interventions aiming at reducing the prevalence of child protection issues and at strengthening child protection systems, and to measure progress over time. In particular it will be used to finalise and monitor the implementation of the five-year national multi-sector multi-actor costed national child protection plan of action recently elaborated.

The information will be mainly used by the Government of Tuvalu, UNICEF and development partners, as well as potentially by child protection regional and global actors.

The baseline research will be conducted during the first semester of the new 2018-2022 programme cycle, so that results will inform the 2018 mid-year and end-year joint Government-UNICEF work plan revision, as well as subsequent work plans.

The conduct of the baseline research will also serve as an awareness-raising and capacity-building exercise, and will promote networking and multi-sector multi-actor collaboration between government entities in charge of social welfare, justice, police, health and education, as well as national statistics, planning and finance, which is expected to result in a broad ownership of the information collected and recommendations formulated, as well as implementation of future interventions.

Assignment Tasks

Overall objective
To collect baseline quantitative and qualitative information on child protection issues and responses in Tuvalu.
 
Specific objectives
1) To collect, compile and analyse information on the prevalence of child protection issues and on perceptions of child protection issues and responses, and provide a causal analysis
2) To summarise the review of the national legal, policy and regulatory framework related to child protection in terms of alignment to international standards produced by another consultant
3) To assess the quality, access and coverage of existing formal and non formal prevention and response services and programmes across social sectors relevant to child protection
4) To formulate recommendations to establish/strengthen child protection systems and reduce the prevalence of child protection issues.

Scope of Work/ Work Assignments  
Main research questions
1) What are child protection issues and what is their prevalence ?
2) What are the perceptions about child protection issues and responses ?
3) What are the causes of these issues ?
4) To what extent is the existing legal, policy and regulatory framework addressing child protection issues aligned with international standards ?
5) What is the quality, coverage and access of existing prevention and response formal and non formal services addressing child protection ?

Scope of work
The research and final report will include:
1) Prevalence of child protection issues, as well as key indicators on child birth registration and child health and education
2) Perceptions of children, adolescents, adult caregivers and communities about child protection issues and responses (including formal, non formal and endogenous responses), including knowledge, attitudes, practices and behaviours
3) Analysis of causes and contributing factors to child protection issues: immediate, underlying and structural.
4) Review of existing national laws, policies and regulations relevant to child protection, assessing alignment with the Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international instruments, highlighting strengths and weaknesses. Areas to be assessed: mandates, roles and responsibilities with regard to child protection; alternative care; children victims; children in conflict with the law; birth registration; minimum age in relevant areas.
5) An assessment of the quality, access and coverage of existing child protection formal and non formal services and programmes across social sectors: social welfare, justice, police, health, education, social protection and any other relevant sector. Areas to be assessed include: financial resources; material resources; human resources: number, qualifications and training; standards for services; standard operating procedures; range of services and programmes (prevention, early intervention and response/primary, secondary and tertiary); information management systems for case records and for activity monitoring; supervision system; planning, reviewing and reporting mechanisms; inter-agency strategic and operational coordination mechanisms, at national and sub-national level, in particular for referrals.
6) Recommendations for child protection system strengthening and reduction of prevalence of child protection issues
Gender, age and disability specificities and considerations must be taken into account throughout the research and analysis of findings.

Work Assignments

International Consultant
Overall responsibility
To lead the research, including the design of the methodology and research tools and the drafting of the final report.
Specific tasks
1. Conduct a desk review of relevant documents.
2. Facilitate an orientation workshop with the NACCR/TWG on the research objectives and proposed methodology and collect inputs on scope and methodology of the research.
3. Design research methodology and tools.
4. Facilitate a workshop with the NACCR/TWG to validate research methodology and tools.
5. Train local field researchers in use of tools.
6. Oversee the conduct of field work based on selected methodology and tools: interviews with key informants, community focus group discussions, etc.
7. Compile, process and analyse information collected during field work.
8. Write draft final report.
9. Facilitate workshops to present draft report and collect inputs (stakeholders; 9 communities living on Funafuti, each from the 9 islands).
10. Draft final report incorporating inputs.

National Consultant
Overall responsibility
To ensure the research takes into account local culture and country specificities, and that translation into and from local language is adequate, and facilitate relations with communities.
Specific tasks
1. Assist the international consultant in the collect of all documents needed for the desk review; contribute to the desk review by compilation data, reviewing documents, in particular those in the local language, as requested by the international consultant.
2. Assist in the organization, facilitation and note-taking for the orientation workshop.
3. Provide inputs and feedback to the research methodology and tools.
4. Assist in the organization, facilitation and note-taking for the methods and tools validation workshop.
5. Assist in the organization and facilitation of the training of local field researchers.
6. Conduct field work with local researchers, and supervise them to ensure quality of data collection.
7. Assist with compilation, processing and analysis of information collected during field work.
8. Provide inputs and feedback to final report.
9. Assist in the organization, facilitation and note-taking of the final report validation workshops.
10. Provide inputs and feedback to final report.

Methodology
The consultants are expected to develop a suitable methodology, making use of multiple methods and techniques to respond to the objectives of the assignment, and to develop tools for each type of method.  At a minimum, the consultants are expected to include the following:

Literature review
-Existing quantitative and qualitative studies and surveys related to child protection in Tuvalu
-Review of national laws, policies and regulations relevant to child protection carried out by an International Consultant contracted from May to September 2017 to that effect.
-National plans of action and budgets related to child protection
-Routine administrative data on child protection cases recorded by social services, justice, police, health, education and others, as well as birth registration

Interviews with key stakeholders
-Government sectors relevant to child protection: decision-makers, technical personnel in management and supervision positions, professionals in direct contact with children (social workers, magistrates, police, teachers, health workers, etc.)
-Civil society: traditional organisations and leaders, faith-based organisations and leaders, other non governmental organisations
-External Development Partners

Focus group discussions
-With children and adolescents (by age group), adult caregivers and communities
-On child protection issues and responses, including prevalence, knowledge, attitudes, practices and behaviours

Geographical coverage
-National
-Sub-national: fieldwork should cover Funafuti plus 4 to 8 outer atolls/islands. If all 8 outer locations cannot be visited, population from the remaining ones will be included through field work conducted with their inhabitants who live on Funafuti.

Ethical considerations
The survey will be carried out in an ethical way that is sensitive to different cultures, local customs, religious beliefs and practices, personal interaction and gender roles, disability, age and ethnicity. In addition, requirements for participant informed consent and confidentiality will be maintained, including for children participating in the survey. The final report should include a section on ethical considerations. The consultants are expected to identify all the potential ethical issues arising from the proposed methodology. Ethical clearance should be obtained from relevant bodies before implementing the survey (UNICEF will provide support as needed).

Expected Deliverables

1. Final research & methodology and tools
2. Draft Final Report
3. Final Report

Qualifications of Successful Candidate

Education

• Master’s Degree or equivalent work experience in the social sciences (sociology, social work, law or related field)

Experience/Expertise

• International Consultant: Minimum of 8 years of professional work experience in relevant field, i.e. social research and/or child protection, preferably both
• National Consultant: Minimum of 5 years of relevant experience
• Knowledge/experience of child protection system approach, including multi-sector
• Excellent research skills, including in design of methodology and research tools, data collection, compilation and analysis, and report writing
• Experience providing technical assistance to governments
• Experience in the Pacific, knowledge of local culture an asset

Languages

• Both consultants: full English proficiency
• National consultant: full proficiency in Tuvaluan language

Competencies

• Communication skills: advocacy, negotiation, tact, workshop facilitation, training, writing skills, verbal presentations, ability to present information in a well-structured manner
• Analytical skills, ability to formulate concepts and strategies
• Planning, management and organization skills, action-oriented, drive for results
• Ability to lead and work with a team, relating with people
• Inter-cultural sensitivity, respect for diversity

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.