Consultancy - Scaling the Administrative Data Maturity model, Data & Analytics (D&A), DAPM, NYHQ (home based)

Consultancy Title: Scaling the Administrative Data Maturity model

Section/Division/Duty Station: Data & Analytics (D&A)/DAPM/New York HQ (home based)

Duration: 140 days over period of 9 months

About UNICEF

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. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries.

BACKGROUND

Administrative data is routinely derived, structured information from systems such as Health Information Systems (HIS), Education Information Management Systems, Social welfare registries, Civil registration and national identification systems, court record systems etc. These routinely collected administrative data are an essential source of data for governments and development partners to monitor progress against the SDGs and ensure that decision makers have the data they need to plan and deliver the programmes required to achieve the SDG targets. It is no longer sufficient for these systems to be siloed within sectors as many of the conditions required for strong national administrative data systems are cross-cutting. Furthermore, administrative data systems are seeing rapidly evolving changes in technology, digitization, and associated governance structures. As a result, data are increasingly able to be linked in new ways allowing us to do more with these routinely collected data than ever before.

The value of administrative data sources has particularly been highlighted during the current Covid-19 pandemic. Well-functioning systems that are able to deliver continuous, reliable, information on the provision, use and users of national services are invaluable to governments and partners in order to understand the impacts of such events and adjust service provision accordingly. The ability to monitor changes over time is critical in such events.

During 2019, with input from several key partners, UNCIEF developed an Administrative Data Maturity Model (ADaMM). The model is built on three main elements:

1. It is child focused: putting the best interests of children and their families at the centre of system design and operation.
2. It is built from the community up: recognizing the importance of local engagement in supporting development outcomes and the collection of high-quality data.
3. It recognizes the need for strong cross-sectoral foundations at the national level to support the effective and sustainable functioning of administrative data systems.

Under each element, the outcomes that a mature administrative data landscape should deliver are prioritized and defined, along with the system and landscape characteristics required to achieve these. This provides both a benchmark for what “good practice” looks like, helps identify critical investments that are required to improve administrative data capacity at the national level across sectors, and will – over time – become a resource index to support governments and offices access the guidance, standards, and examples for areas where they may need to improve. The model is not intended to replace existing sector specific assessments and can be used in conjunction with these existing tools. 

The model was field tested in Southern Africa and South America in 2019 and we are now looking to recruit a strategic consultant to help accelerate this new and exciting area of work for UNICEF.

Terms of Reference / Deliverables

The scope of work is anticipated to address the following elements:

• Identify, assess the suitability and collate existing guidance materials on key characteristics required to support system maturity.
• Create ADaMM support materials - a series of resource guides for field practitioners - informed by field testing of ADaMM, and focussing on critical gaps in implementation support. These may include areas such as administrative data quality, data linkage and sharing, data use and interpretation etc. to be determined through the initial review of available material and gaps.
• Capture examples of good practice or lessons learnt connecting administrative data – for coherence – into support pieces for ADaMM.
• Document how ADaMM supports implementation of the UN Data strategy at global and local levels.
• Provide dedicated support to catalytic country Administrative data projects.

Specific work products are anticipated to include:

• A brief inception report detailing how the ADaMM support materials will be produced, ways of working, initial approach etc.
• Updated resource listing (including assessment) against key aspects of the maturity model. In collaboration with the Data Use Unit, this should include the design of a suitable web resource for dissemination.
• Two to four (to be determined in the inception report) resource guides, technical reviews or working papers in support of ADaMM. This is anticipated to include a desk review, search of available sources, and interviews with relevant contacts at UN partners, regional statistics bodies, and/or national government as appropriate.

 - It is anticipated that one of these technical reviews will address aspects of data sharing between administrative data systems to improve the available data on children – examining critical opportunities, approaches, risks, and governance considerations; along with  country level case studies capturing examples of connecting administrative data.

• In collaboration with the Data Use Unit, adapt material as appropriate for use in training materials, webinars, blog posts, slide decks etc.
• Collaboration with and support to DAPM colleagues to capture lessons learnt re the use of open source software across sectors.
• A series of short concise case studies capturing country level examples of how different systems or countries have addressed key elements of the model 
• In collaboration with the Administrative Data Specialist, a technical report detailing how ADaMM supports the UN Data Strategy.

The consultant will report to the Statistics Specialist (Administrative Data), in the Data Use Unit and will be expected to engage closely with UNICEF staff in the design and completion of this work.

Qualifications

1) Education

• Master’s degree in Official Statistics, or equivalent; OR
• Bachelor’s degree in Official statistics (or equivalent) may be considered sufficient with 10+ years relevant experience in a national or regional statistics office/ official (government) data role

2) Work experience

• At least six years of experience in official statistics (ten if applying with a Bachelors degree)
• Strong experience working with administrative data systems (in health, education, civil registration, social welfare etc.), including functional identity and data linkage. This should include system design, evaluation and data use.
• Proven research skills (including qualitative analysis and study design) and demonstrated record of peer-reviewed publications and/or technical publication.
• Experience formulating guidance documents and tools
• Strong experience in training or advocacy on data related issues.
• A solid understanding of UNICEF's core areas of work and familiarity with the UN statistical community
• Excellent written and spoken language skills; and strong inter-personal communication skills.
• A second language (particularly Spanish, or French) would also be valuable (but not necessary)

3) Competencies

• Drive to achieve results for impact
• Works collaboratively
• Thinks and acts strategically
• Manages ambiguity and complexity

Requirements:

• Completed profile in UNICEF's e-Recruitment system and provide Personal History Form (P11) Upload copy of academic credentials
• Financial proposal that will include:
• your daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference (can be downloaded here: https://www.unicef.org/about/employ/index_consultancy_assignments.html 
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR.
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability
• It is anticipated that this work will be home -based. Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.
  
  

U.S. Visa information:

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.  

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

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results. View our competency framework at: Here

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.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.