Consultancy: Real Time Review of the Emergency Nutritional Support Intervention

Under the supervision of the Social Policy Manager, the consultant will lead the implementation of a comprehensive, light-footed assessment of the emergency nutritional support that has been implemented together with the Living Waters Community (LWC) in Trinidad and Tobago.

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Consultancy: Real Time Review of the Emergency Nutritional Support Intervention

Location:     Remote--presence in the country is not required

Duration:    25 working days

Start Date:  6/13/2022

End Date:    7/29/2022

Supervisor: Social Policy Manager

BACKGROUND:

Trinidad and Tobago is a small, high-middle income country with 1.4 million inhabitants. Since 2018, the twin island state has been receiving a sustained influx of Venezuelan migrants and refugees fleeing Venezuela's ongoing political, economic, and human rights crisis. As a consequence, in June 2019 the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (GoRTT) conducted a registration exercise for Venezuelan refugees and migrants to ascertain the numbers of persons present in the country. At the end of this initial registration process, 16,523 Venezuelans were registered—2,421 of them were children. In March 2021, the GoRTT conducted a re-registration process which ended in October 2021. The aim of this re-registration process was to review the migrant list from 2019 to determine whether those registered remained. The second process therefore excluded the possibility of registering additional adults or children. Notably, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) which has an ongoing process for the registration of migrants and refugees in Trinidad and Tobago has record of over 20,000 Venezuelan migrants and refugees currently in Trinidad and Tobago.

In this regard, in 2019, response mechanisms were activated by a broad spectrum of humanitarian actors, which include UNHCR, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to address the growing needs of globally displaced Venezuelan nationals. The support provided by these actors encompasses the provision of essential goods and services to ensure that the safety, dignity and human rights of the Population of Concern (PoC) are upheld and respected. To this end, in Trinidad and Tobago, UNHCR, IOM and UNICEF explored a range of options that could be provided to the Venezuelan migrant and refugee population with unmet basic needs

Whilst registered Venezuelans have the right to temporary working permits under the Immigration Act Chapter 18:01, unregistered migrants and refugees cannot work. Furthermore, though able to work, registered migrants and refugees do not have access to key programmes offered through the national social protection system, including the policy measures that have been implemented by the Government to mitigate the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Considering the local context and the bottlenecks faced by the migrant population in Trinidad and Tobago, UNICEF has been pursuing the use of multi-sectoral and integrated approaches to its implementation of emergency programming in Trinidad and Tobago. With cognizance of the challenges faced by the population of concern, UNICEF’s sectoral commitments include child protection, social protection, nutrition and education. UNICEF has been focusing on ensuring that the needs of migrant and refugee children, their caregivers and families are addressed through emergency response programming led by its mandate--the Core Commitments for Children (CCCs). As articulated in the CCCs, humanitarian action, for UNICEF, encompasses interventions aimed at saving lives, alleviating suffering, maintaining human dignity and protecting rights of affected populations wherever there are needs.

UNICEF defined as one of its first interventions to the outflow of persons from Venezuela, not only child protection, but also early childhood development. To this end, UNICEF partnered with Living Water Community (LWC) to build the capacity to deliver counselling to migrant families with children 0-5 years of age. As Food security concerns mounted among the PoC with the emergence and spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, nutritional counselling and support was added to the intervention. Within a month of the first COVID-19 case in Trinidad and Tobago, LWC and UNICEF integrated emergency nutritional support for families with young children as part of a programme document extension to be delivered as a complement to the early childhood intervention that were already being provided.  Added to these interventions, LWC and UNICEF initiated a cash-based intervention which involved the use of QR Codes to provide further support to this population to support them in meeting their basic food needs.

Noting that the local social protection system continues to exclude the PoC from accessing key social support services, UNICEF has been considering strategies that can further improve the interventions currently implemented on the ground. Towards the improvement of this programme and the benefits of multipurpose cash to support migrants and refugees without access to the national social protection system, a review of UNICEF’s intervention is critical. As such, the goal of this Real Time Review (RTR) is to provide a comprehensive but light-footed assessment of the   emergency nutritional support intervention delivered through QR Codes that has been implemented together with the LWC in Trinidad and Tobago.

PURPOSE/SCOPE OF ASSIGNMENT:

1.  Goal and Objective: 

Under the supervision of the Social Policy Manager, the contractor will lead the implementation of a comprehensive, light-footed assessment of the emergency nutritional support that has been implemented together with the LWC in Trinidad and Tobago. The RTR will therefore have a dual function—an accountability function and a learning function. The objectives of this RTR include:

• Determination of the efficacy, to date, of the initiative in meeting its objectives - as well as other standard criteria for assessment of humanitarian interventions - and intended outcomes.
• Identification of the strengths and weaknesses of the initiative.
• Engagement with beneficiaries to retrieve key insights. The feedback provided is expected to offer a deeper understanding of the community dynamics, barriers and grievances of beneficiaries as it relates to the initiative.
• Generation of evidence, key lessons and conclusions to produce recommendations concerning the on-going and future cash-based transfer interventions as part of the humanitarian migrant response. It is hoped these will improve the redesign of the intervention and its scalability to respond to the increasing needs of the PoC.

Guided by the goals and objectives of the RTR, the efficacy of the initiative will be assessed using humanitarian principles as the gauge. Further, it will be guided by the following commonly used criteria: relevance/appropriateness, effectiveness, efficiency, coordination, as well as Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP).

2. Link to the Annual Work Plan:

This project relates to Activity 3.3.1 of the AWP which is- Support access of host community and M&R children and their families to nutrition, early learning, early assessment (in case of disability), stimulation and nurturing care programmes and services that bridge humanitarian and development nexus.

3. Activities and Tasks:

The consultant will work closely with the Social Inclusion focal point and advisory team to conduct a qualitative analysis through the following methods (all of which will be conducted in Spanish):

1. Desk/literature review: A rapid review of secondary and programme data. 
2. Key informant interviews (KII): Interviews with key stakeholders such as United Nations (UN) and Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) staff and members of the affected population (male and female parents and caregivers). These interviews will be done remotely to ensure conformance with the health protocols that have been implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
3. Virtual Focus Group Discussions (FGD): Focus group discussions (FGDs) with homogenous groups of beneficiary and non-beneficiary persons will be facilitated. 

4.  Work Relationships: 

The consultant will report directly to the Social Policy Manager. In addition, an Advisory Group will be formed which will be comprised of representatives from UNICEF and LWC. This group will provide support to the consultant which will include, but will not be limited to, the following:

• Advice on the context and necessary supporting data required for the RTR;
• Assistance with the development of internal/external communication, logistics, etc. and strategies required to support the data collection; and
• Feedback on reports developed by the consultant.

5.  Outputs/Deliverables:  

The main outputs of the RTR include:

• Inception report: A clear, brief understanding of the context, intervention, the purpose and methodology and tools to be used in conducting the review as well as a workplan will be provided in this report.
• Literature Review: This document will provide details related to the programme documents and other related data analyzed by the consultant.
• Final Report: The final report of the RTR will provide a succinct and comprehensive overview of the findings of the assessment. It will also include recommendations for the improvement of the intervention.
• Presentation: This output will present the consultant with an opportunity to share the findings and recommendations of the Review with the country office and other key stakeholders.

WORK ASSIGNMENT OVERVIEW

PAYMENT SCHEDULE

Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed deliverables which receive satisfactory quality review.  In general, individual contracts shall not allow for fee advances. However, a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value may be authorized by the Approving Authority in cases where advance purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary.

MINIMUM EXPERIENCE /QUALIFICATIONS:

• A Master’s degree in Social Science, Development Statistics, Monitoring & Evaluation or any related technical field.
• 5 years of relevant experience in monitoring and evaluation, development statistics, cash programming in humanitarian contexts or any related field.
• Experience in emergency response
• Knowledge and/or experience working in the Caribbean context
• Basic understanding of early childhood interventions
• Knowledge of nutrition programming
• Excellent knowledge of the fundamentals of humanitarian cash transfers
• Experience in monitoring, evaluating and reviewing humanitarian operations
• Experience using qualitative research tools and methodologies
• Good interviewing and facilitation skills
• Excellent analytical and report writing skills
• Language Requirement: English and Spanish: written and oral fluency

For every Child, you demonstrate UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA).

ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS:

This assignment is a remote assignment (based in consultant’s home location). The Consultant is expected to work with his/her laptop and mobile phone.

The Consultant will report to the Social Policy Specialist and he/she will work closely with the Advisory team which will include UNICEF staff and members of the implementing partner's team.

The Consultant will be expected to report regularly on progress being made on the contract to the Advisory team. Periodic discussions will also be carried out during the consultancy period to monitor progress and constraints, support required and proposed solutions.

CONDITIONS OF SERVICE:

Before commencing work, a consultant or individual contractor shall submit a statement of good health and take full responsibility for the accuracy of that statement, including confirmation that he or she has been informed of the inoculations required for the country or countries to which travel is authorized. Consultants and individual contractors shall assume all costs that may occur in relation to the statement of good health.  Consultants and individual contractors are required to certify that they are covered by medical/health insurance.

RECOURSE:

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. Performance indicators against which the satisfactory conclusion of this contract will be assessed include: timeliness/quality of submission and responsiveness to UNICEF and counterpart feedback.

TITLE RIGHTS:

All materials created by the Contractor which bears a direct relation to, or is made in order to perform, this contract and any intellectual property rights thereof, including but not limited to patents, copyright and trademarks, shall be jointly owned by UNICEF and the Contractor. At the request of UNICEF, the Contractor shall assist in securing such property rights and transferring them to UNICEF in compliance with the requirements of the law governing such rights. Any third-party usage shall require written permission from both parties.

TRAININGS:

Consultants and Individual contractors, even those working from home, must complete the following online courses prior to signature of contract.  All certificates should be presented as part of the contract:

• Ethics and Integrity at UNICEF
• Prevention of Sexual Harassment & Abuse of Authority
• Sexual Exploitation Abuse (PSEA) 

Consultants and Individual Contractors must complete the following course before commencement of any travel on behalf of UNICEF. 

• BSAFE Security Training 

Any consultant or individual contractor who is issued a UNICEF email address must complete the following courses no later than 30 days after signature of contract. 

• Fraud Awareness
• General Information Security Awareness Course

HOW TO APPLY:

Prospective consultants should apply through UNICEF jobs website using the following link: https://jobs.unicef.org/en-us/job/551120/consultancy-real-time-review-of-the-emergency-nutritional-support-intervention no later than 30 May 2022. The application package should include the following:

1. A cover letter
2. Detailed Curriculum Vitae
3. A proposal stipulating all-inclusive fees, including lump sum travel and subsistence costs, as applicable.

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 be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

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

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. The candidate may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid).