Consultancy: WASH- EVD Response Documentation & Capitalization consultancy - WASH Section, PG, NYHQ/Remote - Req

Consultant Programme & Policy Medical & Health

Overview

Conduct review and assessment of UNICEF’s WASH response in Guinea and DRC.

You have:

• Advanced university degree in International relations, Public Health, Civil engineering, or a field relevant to humanitarian WASH.
• More than 8 years’ experience in WASH and/or public health – including humanitarian emergencies.
• Field experience in Ebola coordination or response is essential.
• Demonstrable experience in supervising and guiding evaluations/reviews of humanitarian programs responding to health-related disasters.
• Knowledge of strategic and operational management of humanitarian operations and ability to provide strategic recommendations.
• Experience in data collection and analysis techniques, especially in emergency operations.
• Knowledge and experience working with the UN/UNICEF/WHO preferred.
• Prior experience of working in the West and Central Africa region is a requirement.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to synthesize and present findings clearly in reports.
• Excellent written and verbal communication in French and working knowledge of English required.

Contract

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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.

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For every child, hope.

Consultancy Title: WASH- EVD Response Documentation & Capitalization consultancy

Section/Division/Duty Station: WASH+CEED/PG/NYHQ (Home-based, with travel to Democratic Republic of Congo)

Duration: 72 days over 5 months (5 Jan 2022 - 15 May 2022)

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

The Democratic Republic of Congo recorded its 10th Ebola virus disease epidemic, from August 2018 to 25 June 2020. The toll of this 10th epidemic is 3,470 cases, including 2,287 deaths and 1,171 survivors in the province of North Kivu, along with Ituri and South Kivu.

From 1 June to 28 September 2020, the DRC experienced its 11th Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in Equateur province. This latest outbreak generated a total of 130 cases, of which 119 were confirmed and 11 probable, and 55 deaths, giving an overall case-fatality rate of 42.3% and 75 survivors.

From February 7 to May 3, 2021, the DRC once again experienced an epidemic of Ebola virus disease (the 12th) which had the particularity of spreading in health zones with a volatile security context. A total of 12 cases have been recorded, with six deaths and hundreds of people vaccinated to prevent the spread of this twelfth epidemic. A thirteenth EVD outbreak was declared on October 9th, 2021.

In 2021, Guinea also registered its 2nd outbreak of the Ebola virus disease with 23 cases, 12 deaths (CFR: 52%). But even though the country has experienced two epidemic outbreaks, it still lacks harmonization and capitalization tools to improve WASH preparedness and response. More globally and considering the risk of Ebola outbreak in Western Africa, it is recommended to build on UNICEF experiences to design and promote regionally a WASH Ebola sensitive response framework.

Many Ebola response interventions have been implemented in DR Congo since 2017 and documenting the lessons learnt from DRC – in addition to the ones from Guinea - would be instrumental in developing an adequate framework of interventions for the Western Africa region.

Job organizational context :

The consultancy will be remote-based with field visits to DRC and document review in remote for Guinea. The consultant will be managed by the both West and Central Africa Regional Office (WCARO) WASH Specialist (Emergencies) and NYHQ WASH specialist (Public health Emergencies).

Purpose:

Under the supervision of the Senior Advisor WASH in New York and working in close collaboration with WASH specialists from WCARO and NYHQ, the consultant will conduct an ad hoc review and assessment of UNICEF’s water, sanitation and hygiene sector response in the two countries (Guinea and DRC), as well as provide recommendations on how experiences gained can be used to improve efficacy and impact for similar public health emergencies in the future, including on how to organize the WASH sector as part of the overall Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) response. Produce a WASH-Ebola technical guideline illustrated by best practices from the recent DRC and Guinea responses.

Overall objective:

To achieve the objectives above, without being exhaustive the individual contractor will perform the following activities:

• Collect and Review available documentation on WASH responses to Ebola epidemics from key actors in target countries, analyze it, discuss it with implementing actors to identify strengths and weaknesses of different approaches.
• Carry out a review of the technical and operational tools of the key actors, to analyze them and to make a synthesis adaptable to the environmental context (rural and urban), also in health centers, schools and in the communities.
• Visit a sample of communities affected by Ebola epidemics, discuss with them on their perceptions of the disease and the humanitarian response, their capacities for prevention and control, and their proposals/suggestions for effective action against Ebola, like home-based care. Analyze and digest all documentation produced by the CASS unit regarding community engagement and AAP
• Exchange with Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and case management actors on WASH-Health cross-sectoral interactions (reflect on possibility of UNICEF to provide WASH support to case management actors (e.g. evaluation set-up of Ebola Treatment Centres, evaluation of IPC measures taken, management of waste management and sludge in the treatment zone, etc.), identify good practices and gaps that limit the impact of WASH interventions in infection prevention and control.
• Exchange with surveillance actors on inter-sectoral interactions with the IPC and WASH sector in monitoring communities of origin of cases or at high risk (ring approach), identify good practices and gaps that limit the impact of WASH interventions in infection prevention and control.(e.g. quality of disinfection practices of houses).
• Discuss with RCCE actors, cross-sectoral interactions with the IPC and WASH sector in terms of acceptability of hygiene kits and other infrastructure by affected and high-risk communities, identify good practices in RCCE-WASH collaboration and gaps that limit the impact of WASH interventions in infection prevention and control;
• Analyze country office preparedness and response systems for epidemics (supply, logistics and partnerships etc.)
• Produce a pragmatic and user-friendly draft and final UNICEF technical package, aiming to guide UNICEF WASH section during the next Ebola outbreak

Deliverables:

1. An inception report which will outline the proposed methodologies, data collection tools such as interview guides, a timeframe with dates for interviews and travel arrangements to the field. This inception report will be based on preliminary desk-study and remote meetings with the UNICEF WASH specialists from WCARO and HQ. (10 days; Deadline: 15 Jan 2022)
2. A draft lessons learnt report covering the background of the interventions evaluated in DRC and Guinea, a description of the evaluation methods applied, a list of limitations, key findings, conclusions, recommendations and learning from the responses. This draft report will be based on full desk-study, interviews, and field visits. This report will remain short and will only capture the key lessons learnt.

A draft operational WASH package for EVD WASH response that will be the core product of this consultancy. This package will include a short guidance note on the implementation of WASH interventions for EVD response and key documents / tools relevant for a WASH specialist involved in a response to EVD. (35 days; Deadline: 19 March, 2022)

3. A final lessons learnt report and the final operational WASH package for EVD WASH response incorporating the feedback and providing a response to each comment from reviewers. (20 days; Deadline: 30 April 2022)
4. A PowerPoint presentation that will be used for the recording of 3 webinars for the consultant to share the key findings of the review and to present the operational WASH EVD package with UNICEF offices and relevant partners.

A folder on SharePoint with all documentation collected and properly organized. (7 days; Deadline: 15 May, 2022)

Qualifications

(1) Education

• Advanced university degree in one of the following disciplines: International relations, Public Health, Civil engineering, or a field relevant to humanitarian WASH

(2) Work experience

• More than 8 years’ experience in WASH and/or public health – including humanitarian emergencies.
• Field experience in Ebola coordination or response is essential
• Demonstrable experience in supervising and guiding evaluations and/or reviews of humanitarian programs responding to health-related disasters.
• Further experience in any of the following areas would all be an additional advantage: outbreak response, epidemiology or infection prevention and control.
• Knowledge of strategic and operational management of humanitarian operations and proven ability to provide strategic recommendations to key stakeholders.
• Experience data collection and analysis techniques, especially in emergency operations;
• Knowledge and experience working with the UN/UNICEF/WHO preferred;
• Prior experience of working in West and Central Africa region is a requirement

(3) Competencies

• Strong analytical skills and ability to clearly synthesize and present findings, draw practical conclusions, make recommendations and prepare well-written reports;
• Excellent written and verbal communication in French. Working knowledge of English also required..

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.
  • 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 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, race, sexual orientation, nationality, culture, appearance, socio-economic status, ability, age, religious, and ethnic backgrounds, 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.

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Potential interview questions

Added 4 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unicef.org