Consultancy: Development of training package for VAC multi-sectoral Programming, Child Protection Section, PD, NYHQ, Requisition #510906

As committed in UNICEF’s new Strategic Plan 2018-2021, in 2018 UNICEF NYHQ will focus on rolling-out to the field the VAC programme guidance package with a focus on strengthening select country office capacity to develop or strengthen existing national multi-sectoral strategies to address VAC and result frameworks to measure progress and results. Special attention will be given to strengthening the social services workforce and positive parenting programmes for violence prevention and response. UNICEF will also continue to invest in strengthening global data collection systems for VAC-related SDGs and in monitoring the effectiveness of programmes addressing VAC.

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Background and rationale

All children have the right to be protected from violence yet in every country, children experience violence at home, at school and in their communities, often at the hands of people they trust and interact with daily. In addition to causing physical pain, violence undermines children’s sense of self-worth, affronts their dignity and hinders their development. Violence also perpetuates cycles of exclusion and poverty and has long-term social and economic costs for society as a whole. Three quarters of children aged 2 to 4 regularly experience violent discipline by their caregivers while only 60 countries have adopted legislation fully prohibiting corporal punishment at home. Fifteen million adolescent girls aged 15 to 19 have experienced sexual violence. More than 1 in 3 students between 13 and 15 years old experience bullying regularly. Close to 732 million children, half the population of school-age children, live in countries where corporal punishment at school is not fully prohibited. Every 7 minutes, somewhere in the world, an adolescent is killed by an act of violence.

In 2015, UNICEF concluded the first-ever comprehensive evaluation of UNICEF’s work to protect children from violence. In response to its findings, as a critical first step to strengthen its work on preventing and responding to VAC, UNICEF has developed multi-sectoral programme guidance based on an overarching theory of change (VAC TOC). The guidance presents a strategic vision, describes pathways of change, proposes a package of evidence-based strategies, and articulates a chain of results, both for preventing violence and for improving the lives of victims. It incorporates a focus on the forms of violence highlighted in the Sustainable Development Goals, including violent discipline and sexual violence. The programme guidance addresses all forms of violence against girls and boys – physical, sexual and emotional – including in settings affected by armed conflict and other emergencies. The guidance is designed to help UNICEF country offices and partners develop more coherent and effective actions to address violence against children through UNICEF country programmes and by monitoring progress and tracking results at the national level.

The priority actions to address VAC, presented in the VAC programme guidance package, have informed priorities for UNICEF Strategic Plan (SP) 2018–2021, in particular for Goal 3: Every Child is Protected from Violence and Exploitation. Baselines, milestones and targets have been set for the SP indicators. Building on the broader issues and priority strategies addressed in the TOC, the core interventions that will be tracked at the SP outcome level include:

• Positive parenting programmes for mothers, fathers and other caregivers across the child life cycle, reinforced by C4D strategies (Indicator: number of mothers, fathers and caregivers reached through parenting programmes); and
• Investment in the social welfare and child protection workforce strengthening (Indicator: number of girls and boys who have experienced violence reached by health, social work or justice/law enforcement services)

Finally, UNICEF is a key partner in development and implementation of the INSPIRE package: INSPIRE: Seven strategies for ending violence against children and has ensured consistency between UNICEF evidence-based priority actions to address VAC those advanced by the INSPIRE partners at large. Since 2016, UNICEF has worked closely with INSPIRE partners to develop a practitioner-oriented implementation manual for the 7 strategies and a global indicator framework to allow governments and partners to set baselines and track progress over time.

Aim and objectives of the proposed work

As committed in UNICEF’s new Strategic Plan 2018-2021, in 2018 UNICEF NYHQ will focus on rolling-out to the field the VAC programme guidance package with a focus on strengthening select country office capacity to develop or strengthen existing national multi-sectoral strategies to address VAC and result frameworks to measure progress and results. Special attention will be given to strengthening the social services workforce and positive parenting programmes for violence prevention and response. UNICEF will also continue to invest in strengthening global data collection systems for VAC-related SDGs and in monitoring the effectiveness of programmes addressing VAC.

To enable the latter, UNICEF is seeking to hire a consultant to develop two training packages:

(1) for a one-day training on the main elements of the VAC programme guidance, and

(2) an in-depth workshop based on the full content of the programme guidance, in particular the VAC TOC, building on the content of the Child Protection Resource Pack and the Results-Based Management Training.

The consultancy should result in a set of concrete tools and resources that can be used by qualified UNICEF Child Protection, and Planning and M&E Staff Members with sound knowledge on addressing VAC and on results based management respectively. The tools will be used in face-to-face meetings, workshops and related events across all regions. They should be designed with enough flexibility to be implemented in different contexts, with different demands and by different staff members.

Scope of work

The consultant team will be supervised by and receive guidance from UNICEF Child Protection and Planning and M&E Specialists, in the Progamme Division, NYHQ. The scope of the assignment requires building on the content of the VAC programme guidance package with reference to the UNICEF Strategic Plan 2018-2021, Child Protection Resource Pack, UNICEF Results Based Management training package, and the INSPIRE Implementation Manual and Indicator Guidance (both currently in draft form).

The scope of the work includes:

• A one-day training package, including concrete tools and training materials, with the aim to increase COs’ and partners’ knowledge and awareness on VAC multi-sectoral programming and monitoring. The one-day training and material will be used on a needs/opportunity basis as an ‘add-on’ to existing/planned country, regional and thematic meetings as relevant. 

The audience/participants for this package includes: RO and CO Programme, Planning and M&E, and Management Staff, as well as key partners as relevant to the context.

• Produce an in-depth three-day training package, including concrete tools and training materials, to not only help increase COs’ and partners’ knowledge and awareness on VAC multi-sectoral programming, but to go one step further and support the COs in the development of multi-sectoral strategies and programming with accompanying results framework to measure progress and results. The 3-day training and material will be planned in advance, in collaboration with selected ROs/COs over the course of the next four years (lifespan of the new Strategic Plan), across UNICEF regions. This training package should have a special focus on strengthening the social welfare workforce system and on designing and implementing parenting programmes for the prevention and response to VAC (priorities areas outlined in the programme guidance).

The audience/participants for this package includes: RO and CO Programme, Planning and M&E, and Management Staff, as relevant to the context.

• Produce a one-hour overview presentation on the VAC programme guidance and results framework to be used in the form of webinar or face to face presentation. This presentation will be used on a planned basis (for example, NYHQ webinars for COs/ROs and partners) and on a needs/opportunity basis (online or face- -to-face VAC/CP-related meetings at the global, regional and country level)

The audience/participants for this package includes: HQ, RO and CO Programme, Planning and M&E, and Management Staff, and partners at all levels, as relevant to the context.

The training tools should be designed in a way that it allows enough flexibility to address the various learning needs of technical and managerial staff in UNICEF and partners, contexts and time availability. This includes the understanding that COs will be at various stages of VAC programming and will have different entry points in the UNICEF programme planning cycle to strengthen their CP/VAC strategies.

The training packages should include:

• A gender, equity and human rights lens to programming for VAC.
• Key considerations for planning/implementation in humanitarian contexts.
• A step-by-step approach to understanding results-based management and to developing multi-sectoral strategies and results framework. 
• Facilitators’ note or brief guidance for the 1-day and 3-day training.
• Training pre- and post-evaluation tools for the one and three-day training

The materials will need to follow UNICEF Brand guidelines. 

Expected Outputs

• One-day training package: presentations, facilitator’s notes/guide and supplementary training materials
• In-depth 3-day training package: presentations, facilitator’s notes/guide and supplementary training materials.
• Produce a one-hour overview using power point or similar tool with speaker notes
• Testing and refinement of the materials and training of trainers in NYHQ (with the possibility of RO and CO participation).

Timetable and work effort
The consultancy will be for a total of 40 working days with the start date of March 5^th, and the end date of April 27^th . 

Duty Station:

Home based, with travel to New York (TBD) if required. Regular teleconferences will be set up with the consultant and HQ team.

Project Management

Day to day supervision, project management and support to the consultant will be provided by the Child Protection Specialist – Violence against Children, Child Protection Section, Programmes, UNICEF New York. 

Requirements

• Advanced University degree (Master’s) degree in international development, public policy, social work, communication, or other related field of study.
• A minimum of 10 years of academic/research, and/or practical work experience in the fields of violence prevention and child protection system strengthening in the international development context, preferably in more than one region.
• Familiarity with UNICEF programmes and results based management (Child protection, Education, Health, Social Policy, Early Childhood Development, and Adolescent Participation). Experience of the challenges of implementing such programmes in fragile and conflict affected countries will be a strong asset.
• Knowledge and experience in and conceptual understanding of capacity development (curriculum and training material development and training delivery.
• Fluency in English (both written and oral communication) is mandatory.

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.

Remarks

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4.   
At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization