Consultancy: Data Analyst – Immunization Supply Chains (iSC) – Consultant - Req

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UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, hope.

Vacancy Announcement: Consultant

Consultancy Title: Data Analyst – Immunization Supply Chains (iSC) – Consultant

Section/Division/Duty Station: Health – Immunization Section/iSC, New York HQ

Duration: 1 August 2024 to 15 July 2025

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. 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

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

Strong and resilient health supply chains save lives. They are the cornerstone of efficient healthcare systems and a driving force for improving equity, quality and access to essential services and products. Effective stock management is a critical link in this chain, ensuring access to life-saving products when required. However, in many low-and middle-income countries (LMICs), service disruptions due to stockouts have increased in the past ten years (eJRF). Insufficient human resources, technical know-how, in-country distribution/transportation, inadequate monitoring and supportive supervision and inability to utilize the latest available data and evidence for planning and decision-making have been found to be some of the major reasons. The knock-on effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and related vaccination drives exacerbated existing strains on immunisation supply chains, reversed hard-earned gains and further highlighted the need for effective stock management practices, capacities, and systems across all supply chain levels.

In addition, countries use a large number of logistics and health management information systems, stand-alone tool and knock-on solutions often unable to exchange data automatically, thus creating major hurdles for supply chain managers to have the most recent, complete and reliable information for planning and decision-making.

In response, UNICEF invested significant human and financial resources initially in 40 high impact countries to strengthen stock management tools and practices, improve planning, supportive supervision and monitoring, track stock expiry and wastage, contribute to equitable and timely vaccine distribution, and strengthen data-driven planning and decision-making. The investment led to significant expansion in subnational stock visibility reaching over 7,000 districts and lowest distribution points and collect a vast quantity of relevant forecasting, consumption, wastage, coverage and assessments data.

The Data Analyst – Immunization supply chain (iSC) will be responsible to thoroughly review this data, identify strengths and weakness, review and validate data models, data warehouse and the relevant dashboards, reports and data snapshots. S/he will conduct predictive and exploratory analytics, map stock performance patterns, integrate stock management with complementary data sources and produce at least five country cases studies among other activities. Key details of the consultancy are outlined below.

Scope of Work (Activity/Assignment)

Scope of Work:

Under the direct supervision of the Immunization Specialist – Data Analytics, The Data analyst will be responsible for:

• Conduct a thorough review and validation of vaccine stock reports from over 60 countries. Highlight quality lapses, outliers, variance trends and anomalies. Working with country colleagues, the consultant will develop recommendations and summarize action plans to resolve challenges.

• Conduct in-depth analysis of what causes stock risky events and how they impact vaccine availability across supply chain tiers.

• Document mitigation efforts, escalation channels and their impact on the resolution of operational challenges.

• Conduct exploratory and predictive analytics to outline associations between effective vaccine stock management and coverage rates, zero-dose population and EVM E6 assessment outcomes among others.

• Support the production of at least 10 monthly vaccine and devices performance reports.

• Conduct extensive data modeling and develop Stock performance dashboards using the PowerBI platform.

• Conduct a thorough exercise to triangulate stock performance data with forecasted demand, allocation tables and pipeline data.

• Produce five country case studies focused on subnational stock visibility, distribution processes, escalation mechanisms, service delivery, zero-dose population and coverage rates.

• Map stock performance across regions, countries, supply chain levels, programme delivery strategies, antigen and key performance indicators by using and enhancing existing datasets.

Consultant requires UNICEF email address while engaging with UNICEF RO/CO, Governments, WHO and other organization in view of above activities and personal email should not be used, when engaging especially with Government on sensitive and/or confidential Government data.

Terms of Reference / Deliverables

1. Conduct a thorough review and validation of vaccine stock reports from over 60 countries. Highlight quality lapses, outliers, variance trends and anomalies. Draw recommendations and action plans to resolve challenges.

• Two assessments conducted (baseline and impact) to review the current data collection processes, validation checks, quality assurance measures and integration methods. Weaknesses identified and resolved.

31 Aug 2024 & 30 May 2025

2. Conduct exploratory and predictive analytics to outline associations between effective vaccine stock management and coverage rates, zero-dose population and EVM E6 assessment outcomes among others. Develop predictive analytics dashboards on existing stock performance monitoring dashboards (Thrive360).

• A database is developed and submitted to iSC team that integrate Stock, Coverage, Zero-dose and EVM datasets and its dashboard highlights correlations between the datasets, simulate cause and effect of stock management on EVM, Zero-dose and coverage.

31 Oct 2024

3. Support the production of at least 10 monthly vaccine and devices performance reports.

• 10 Monthly vaccine and devices performance reports produced.

30 Jun 2025

4. Conduct extensive review of existing data models, suggest and implement improvements, optimize queries and refine Stock performance dashboards using the PowerBI platform.

• A comprehensive data modeling conducted and PowerBI dashboard developed, and the entire process is thoroughly documented for 53 countries.

30 Nov 2024

5. Produce five country case studies focused on subnational stock visibility, distribution processes, escalation mechanisms, service delivery, zero-dose population and coverage rates.

• Five country case studies developed outlining subnational stock visibility, responsive actions and this impacted in-country distribution, zero-dose and coverage rates.

30 Jun 2025

6. Map stock performance across regions, countries, supply chain levels, programme delivery strategies, antigen and key performance indicators by using and enhancing existing datasets.

• Conduct extensive mapping of stock performance data across 23 countries at global, regional, country and subnational levels and develop an interactive dashboard that enable iSC managers to navigate across supply chain levels and zoom on clusters with sub-optimal stock performance. 30 Jun 2025

Qualifications

(1) Education

• Master’s degree in one of the following fields: Computer sciences, statistics, data science, epidemiology or another related field.
• Additional qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• Language Proficiency:

Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of French or Arabic considered a strong asset.

(2) Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required:

- Minimum of five years of progressively responsible work experience in data analytics, statistics, monitoring, or other relevant disciplines.

- Experience in public health data science a strong asset.

- At least four years of experience working with PowerBI, Tableau, Apache Superset, Metabase, Redash, Google Data Studio or QlikView.

- At least four years of work experience with MySQL, Microsoft SQL server or PostgreSQL

- Working knowledge of Python data analytics. Experience in Pandas, Numpy, Matplotlib, Seaborn, Scikit-learn and other relevant libraries a strong asset.

- Five years of progressively responsible work experience in data validation and triangulation and quality assurance.

- Ability to work in the multi-cultural, inclusive and diverse environment.

Requirements****:

• Completed profile in UNICEF's e-Recruitment system and Upload copy of academic credentials
• Financial proposal that will include:
  • cost per Cost per deliverable (daily rate is not accepted) or lump sum for the deliverables as indicated in the Terms of Reference
  • 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
• Any emergent/unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have current health insurance coverage in place.
• Payment of professional fees will be based on the 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.