Child Protection Consultant for Research on Child Victim in Rio de Janeiro

Contract

This is a Consultancy contract. More about Consultancy contracts.

In August 2022, the State Court of Rio de Janeiro opened the 1st Specialized Court for Crimes against Children and Adolescents (VECA), whose competence is to prosecute and judge crimes exclusively against children and adolescents and, exceptionally, other related crimes, provided that the penalty for the related crime is less serious, in addition to urgent protective measures. As part of the implementation of the protected listening law in Rio de Janeiro, UNICEF would like to support the justice system in monitoring and evaluating data from the procedural files of the new Court to better understand the profile of child victims reached by the jurisdiction. Part of the information required is the type of crime, the age of the victim, the relationship with the perpetrator, the locality, and the social area of the crime, the duration between the event and the distribution of the process all of which can be accessed in the protective measures, criminal actions, and anticipations of hearings processed by the Court. The research aims to influence the design of public policies through the broader understanding of the profile of the children victim of violence that reaches the State Court.

SCOPE OF WORK:

Under the supervision of the UNICEF’s Child Protection Officer in Rio de Janeiro, the consultant will fulfil, the following roles and duties, (i) design a research project, (ii) conduct the research with onsite activities; (iii) deliver a report with the findings of the research based on 2024 data.

DELIVERABLES

1. Work Assignment overview 1: Design a research project according to the instructions from UNICEF Child Protection officer in close collaboration with the head of the Court.

1.1. Deliverables/Outputs

1.1.1. Two alignment meetings to develop the research project based on the instructions from the UNICEF Child Protection Officer;

1.1.2. A research project with at least 5 pages, containing the problem, objectives, methodology, timeline, ethical considerations, and references, delivered and presented to the head of the Court and the UNICEF Child Protection Officer.

1.2. Deadline July 15th

1.3. Estimate Budget 20%

2. Work Assignment overview 2: Conduct the research according to the project agreed upon with the UNICEF Child Protection officer in close collaboration with head of the Court.

2.1. Deliverables/Outputs

2.1.1. From July 2024 to January 2025, with prior accordance from the head of the Court and supervision of the UNICEF Child Protection officer, collect data in person once a week at the courthouse, totalling at least 25 activities of this nature conducted in person;

2.1.1.1. Participate in monthly remote or onsite meetings with UNICEF Child Protection officer and the head of the Court, totaling 7 meetings;

2.1.1.2. Deliver a final table with the raw quantitative summary of the collected data according to guidance from UNICEF Child Protection Officer;

2.2. Deadline January 31st

2.3. Estimate Budget 40%

3. Work Assignment overview 3: Deliver a report with the findings of the research with the UNICEF Child Protection officer and the UNICEF Communication Specialist in close collaboration with the head of the Court.

3.1. Deliverables/Outputs

3.1.1. Two review meetings to deliberate on the report;

3.1.2. Deliver a report of at least 15 pages with the findings of the research with guidance of the the UNICEF Child Protection officer;

3.1.3. Submit for approval by the UNICEF Communication Specialist;

3.1.4. Present the findings internally to UNICEF and the State Court of Rio de Janeiro staff.

3.2. Deadline February 15th

3.3. Estimate Budget 40%

Results

Deadline

Cost

R1

August 1st

20%

R2

January 31st

40%

R3

February 15th

40%

DURATION OF CONTRACT:

9 months

TRAVEL PLAN

Yes.

Should the selected candidate reside in a different state, temporary relocation or transit to Rio de Janeiro should be necessary to fulfil project deliverables. The associated relocation or transit costs must be included in the financial proposal.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS REQUIREMENT

• Postgraduate degree, preferably in the fields of Law, Social Sciences, Social Work, Public Policy, or Public Security, with a minimum of 3 years and at least 5 years of undergraduate education in one of these areas or a related field. Verification will be done by presenting the diploma from an institution accredited by the Ministry of Education;
• Experience with development of research including data analysis expertise in the field of law;
• Professional and/or academic experience in the field of childhood and youth.

LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY

Portuguese: fluent

UNICEF’S CORE VALUES

Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS)

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone*, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.*

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

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.

GENERAL CONDITIONS: PROCEDURES AND LOGISTICS

• Consultant will work from home using own equipment and stationery. UNICEF will provide office space for consultative meetings when needed.
• Consultant’s, travel costs should be included in the consultant’s fee.
• No contract may commence unless the contract is signed by both UNICEF and the consultant and mandatory courses are completed.
• Consultants will not have any representative, certifying, or approving authority, or supervisory responsibilities or authority on UNICEF budget.
• The consultant will work remotely on a delivery basis.

FINANCIAL PROPOSAL

• Costs indicated are estimated. Final rate shall follow “best value for money” principle, i.e., achieving the desired outcome at the lowest possible fee.
• A financial proposal including the fee for the assignment based on the deliverables and number of days must be submitted. Consultants are asked to stipulate all-inclusive fees, including lump sum, administrative cost, travel cost and subsistence costs, as applicable.
• The payment will be based on submission of agreed 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.

INSURANCE AND HEALTH COVERAGE

• The contractor is fully responsible for arranging, at his or her own expenses, such life, health, and other forms of insurance covering the term of the contract as he or she considers appropriate.

• The contractor is not eligible to participate in the life or health insurance schemes available to UNICEF and United Nations staff members.

  RESTRICTIONS

• Consultants may not receive training at the expense of UNICEF. Notwithstanding, consultants must complete the applicable mandatory trainings before the signature of the contract.

• In case of government officials, the contract cannot be issued without prior written clearance by the Government​, or unless on leave without pay.

Remarks:

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

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.

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. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.