Consultancy: Senior Advisor-Social Policy and Inclusion, Baghdad, Iraq (National Consultant)

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Application deadline 1 year ago: Sunday 22 Jan 2023 at 20:55 UTC

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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, inclusion

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

The senior social policy advisor consultancy will (1) support UNICEF’s upstream advocacy to advance child responsive planning and budgeting. And (2) feed into UNICEF’s technical assistance to the Government of Iraq (GoI) in the reform of social protection and advancing child responsive planning and budgeting at federal and local level

Scope of Work:

Children in Iraq are disproportionately affected by poverty. As a result of several socio-economic impacts, 2 out of 5 children live in monetary poverty and 1 in 2 suffer more than one deprivation in their basic rights to health, education, nutrition and water and sanitation. Against this situation, UNICEF is expanding its support to the Government of Iraq to mainstream evidence on and enhance response to children’s multidimensional poverty.

UNICEF’s engagement covers the support to the Government of Iraq in reforming social protection including a new national strategy and strengthening the child focus of the social safety net with special focus on disability inclusive social protection. Additionally, UNICEF is increasingly engaging in the government planning and budgeting and public financial management processes to ensure that national commitments for children, as captured in policies and laws, are translated into actual government plans, programs, and spending for children.

In that direction, the senior social policy advisor will support UNICEF’s upstream advocacy and feed into its technical assistance to the Government of Iraq. The work will cover a continuum of supporting the generation of evidence and roll out of strategies and interventions on child multidimensional poverty, social protection reform and system strengthening, while ensuring a child responsive planning and approach.

Tasks/Milestone/ Deliverables/Outputs/ Timeline

1.Social Protection: Provide technical guidance to the development of the social protection strategy and facilitate all stakeholder’s engagement

- All critical stakeholders relevant to the development of the social protection strategy consulted and technical committees created.

- Workshops on the development of the social protection strategy facilitated with critical stakeholders engaged.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language.

- Disability inclusive specific workplan approved with MOLSA (Disabilities commission)

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

2.Public Financing for Children: Provide technical support to the development of evidence on government spending on social sectors for children and support the roll-out of UNICEF’s advocacy and technical assistance to the Government.

- Support the launching of the budget briefs for Education, Social Protection, and WASH

- Support the roll-out of capacity building activities, including PF4C Leadership program workshop, and trainings at governorate level (Basra, Dohuk), and facilitate selection of national PF4C experts for trainings.

- Support development of child focused public expenditure dashboard jointly with MoF and MoP

- Update Report on the deliverables achieved.

3. Social Protection: Support the design of the cash plus programme (Child Grant) for children within the National Social Safety Net programme.

- Child Grant design proposal finalized with inputs of all critical stakeholders.

- Baseline assessment done to inform rollout of the child grant programme and end line approach proposed with inputs of critical stakeholders towards a national scale up and sustainability of the grant.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

4. Social Protection: Support the review and strengthening of the National forum of persons with Disabilities (National Board of Directors for the commission of Persons with Disabilities and special need)

- National forum for persons with Disabilities in place and functional.

- Iraq national disability law revised with critical inputs on children with disabilities captured.

5. Child Poverty: Provide technical support and guidance to Iraqi government at both federal and Kurdistan Region in the development and utilization of the child multidimensional poverty index and analysis in the development of polies and plans.

- National report on household and child MPI using MICS 2018 data finalized and launched.

- Findings of the multidimensional poverty index and analysis utilized in the development of critical documents including the poverty reduction strategy, social protection strategy and the National development plan.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language.

6. Social Protection: Continue to support the development of the SP strategy and support the development of three policy option papers on (1) child sensitive social protection, unified national registry, (2) poverty targeting, and (3) public financing for social protection. Further support to the development of the social protection strategy.

- Three Policy option papers developed on three policy option papers on (1) child sensitive social protection, unified national registry, (2) poverty targeting, and (3) public financing for social protection.

- Critical stakeholders further engaged in the development of the social protection strategy.

- Support to scoping and data collection for Public Expenditure review of social protection sector and costing of SP strategy.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language

7. Social Protection: Support the review and facilitate engagements with key stakeholders during the situation assessment of Children with Disabilities in Iraq to Inform Disability Inclusive Social Protection System.

- All critical stakeholders relevant to the situation analysis of children with disabilities consulted.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

- Update Report on the deliverables achieved

8. Social Protection: Support the roll out of the child Grant pilot at federal and KRI

- Meetings and engagement facilitated with all critical stakeholders.

- Support provided to ensure development of social service workforce training manuals and training conducted towards integration of ECD into the grant.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language

9. Social Protection: Contribute to the development of the National strategy for persons with Disabilities and facilitate key meetings and workshops in collaboration with the consulting firm to ensure smooth development process.

- Strategic consultations facilitated leading to the development of National Strategy for Persons with Disabilities.

10. Public Financing for Children: Provide technical support to the development of evidence on government spending on social sectors for children and support the roll-out of UNICEF’s advocacy and technical assistance to the Government.

- All engagement with government facilitated to ensure collection and analysis of data for all reviews and tracking purposes for budget briefs for Health and child protection.

- All produced PFM products reviewed

- Support UNICEF to design and roll-out a model to advance child responsive planning and budgeting.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

- Support engagement with PF4C leadership group/taskforce

11. Decentralization: Provide technical assistance to local governorate counterparts to advance child responsive planning and budgeting

- Support the development of Multidimensional Poverty Governorate Profiles and engagement with selected governorates.

12. Social Protection: Continue to support the rollout of the social protection strategy and implementation of the roadmap.

- Social Protection strategy approved and launched by the government.

- Critical stakeholders further engaged in the finalization and rollout of the social protection strategy.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

- Update Report on the deliverables achieved

13. Child Poverty: Continue to provide technical support and guidance to Iraqi government at both federal and Kurdistan Region in the utilization of the child multidimensional poverty index and analysis in the development of polies and plans.

- Support provided linking National Report on household and child MPI using forthcoming IHSES (2022).

- Critical stakeholders further engaged in the finalization and rollout of the social protection strategy

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

14. P4FC/Social Protection: Provide support and policy guidance to the to the costing of social protection response.

- Costing of the child grant model and financing strategy for national scale done in full consultation with critical stakeholders.

- Critical stakeholders further engaged in the finalization and rollout of the social protection strategy

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

15. Social Protection: Continue to support the roll out of the child Grant pilot in at federal and KRI level

- Discussions and agreements reached on rollout of the child grant programme in selected governorates as a phased approach to scaling it up at national level.

- Critical stakeholders further engaged in the finalization and rollout of the social protection strategy.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

- Update Report on the deliverables achieved

16. Social Protection: Provide support and inputs in the development of disability curriculum including facilitating the uptake of the curriculum by key institutions (High institutions and key social protection programmes)

- Disability Sensitive Curriculum, training manuals & guidelines developed in a consultative approach

- All Critical stakeholders further engaged in the development of the curriculum.

- All relevant documents reviewed to meet standard and ensure alignment with government official language.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

- Update Report on the deliverables achieved

17. Support the MoP and MoLSA and Academia to increase research capacity on poverty and child-sensitive social protection and to institutionalize training on poverty and inequality, integrated child sensitive social protection, social workforce, and human development including system delivery and public financial management.

- Facilitate the support provided to increase research capacity of MOP and MOLSA’s in collaboration with the academia on child poverty and child-sensitive social protection

- Facilitate the support provided to academia to institutionalize trainings on poverty and inequality, integrated child sensitive social protection, social workforce, and human development including system delivery and public financial management.

- Advocacy events facilitated and organized with relevant high level government stakeholders (Parliament, Prime Minister Advisory Committee, and Reform Management Cell)

18. Provide an end of consultancy report on the support provided to the disability reform agenda over the past 11 months with challenges experienced and clear recommendations forward

- Final Consultancy Report

The consultancy is for 143 working days spread over a time span of 11 months

Recruitment qualifications:

  • At least Masters degree in public administration, international development, social and political sciences or related field. Solid hands-on experience and proven professional record could be accepted in lieu of academic background
  • Over 15 years of work experience with national and local governments in project support/ technical assistance projects in the area of social services and social protection, child/ human rights, social work and disability inclusion.
  • Solid knowledge of social development and social protection agenda especially in disability programming in Iraq and Kurdistan region; understanding of international standards.
  • Previous high level working experience with government, NGOs, UN agencies or other international agencies would be an asset.
  • Good analytical, drafting and synthesis skills; ability to communicate with different audiences, excellent presentation skills. Good organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to contribute to teamwork.
  • Fluency in English, and Arabic (written and spoken).

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

Payment of professional fees 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

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.

Added 1 year ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unicef.org