Consultant, Social Protection in Emergencies, home based, Brazil

Contract

This is a Consultancy contract. More about Consultancy contracts.

Background & Rationale

The virus SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, most of the time does not have the most serious consequences for children. As the pandemic spread through 2020 and into 2021, state and municipal governments all over Brazil overwhelmingly adopted risk mitigation measures, including school closures, restrictions to public gatherings and to non-essential services. As those measures took effect, children became the hidden victims of the secondary impacts of the pandemic.

In Brazil, those impacts have created successive stress tests to the systems responsible for guaranteeing the rights of children. With schools mostly closed, not only a considerable number of students have no means to access distance/digital learning, but a crucial space of protection of children against domestic violence became unavailable. Similarly, at the same time an economic crisis with little precedent threw millions of families in poverty and food insecurity, the social protection institutions were met with the challenge to respond to that emergency while having to adopt measures to prevent transmission and with their own budgets under extreme pressure.

As both the sanitary and economic crisis spread, municipalities’ social policy procedures and processes had to adapt to social distancing and increased demand, particularly as the emergency cash transfer programme to poor individuals was phased out in the last few months of 2020. As the pandemic hit its worst period in Brazil, in March-April of 2021, it coincided with a widespread economic crisis felt most seriously for the poorest in the country.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s second largest municipality, has seen all those effects. As of the final week of April 2021, it had registered over 23,000 deaths of Covid-19. Its Municipal Secretary of Social Assistance, responsible for running the social protection programmes, had to adapt its work and respond to the complicated scenario through 13 months of crisis.

The city had to increase its urgent-needs response and did so though several initiatives already in place before the pandemic, that were used to ramp up emergency responses for those most vulnerable in this crisis.

One tool the city still did not have in its social protection system is the so-called “occasional benefit” (benefício eventual), regulated by federal law (art. 22 da lei no 8.742/93; decreto 6.307/2007), that is defined as temporary supplies or provisions “provided to citizens and families due to birth, death, situations of temporary vulnerability and public calamity”. In 2021, the city is attempting to approve a law regulating the concession of the benefit for the future.

Purpose

UNICEF seeks to hire a consultant to provide technical support to the Municipal Secretary of Social Assistance of Rio de Janeiro in assessing its current mechanisms and policies to respond to emergencies, and in designing best mechanisms to implement an “occasional benefit” (benefício eventual) in the city. The consultancy will answer UNICEF’s need to measure the humanitarian indicator of number of households (affected by COVID-19) receiving humanitarian multi-sector cash grant for basic needs.

Expected results: (measurable results)

The consultant will be responsible to deliver the following results:

1. Systematize and analyze the current emergency response policies and procedures in Rio de Janeiro’s social protection system, including:
   • Analysis of how those policies and procedures functioned in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
   • Analysis of cost (amount of expenditures) and reach (number and characteristics of the beneficiaries) of the current system.
2. Produce summary of best practices of emergency response policies and procedures in Brazil, with attention to how successful “occasional benefit” (benefício eventual) policies are implemented and managed.
3. Conduct process of participative consultation over emergency response practices in Rio de Janeiro and produce report summarizing and analyzing the results of the process.
   • Consultant will be responsible for conducting focal groups and discussions, and expert interviews with beneficiaries of social protection emergency responses and representatives of civil society organizations in Rio de Janeiro, to better understand perceptions on how those policies currently work and how they could improve;
   • Consultant will be responsible for recording and systematizing these consultations;
   • Consultant will also be responsible for producing a report with a summary of the process and an analysis of the relationship between communities and Rio de Janeiro’s emergency response measures.
4. Produce a structured guide with suggestions for the improvement of the emergency response policies of social protection in Rio de Janeiro, as well as suggestions to integrate the current system with a process of concession of “occasional benefit” (benefício eventual)

• The guide should consider the operational design of the benefit, with the objective of facilitating access while avoiding the creation of new or lengthy bureaucracies that could burden and delay the concession of benefits in moments of crisis.

5. Provide ad hoc technical advice and support to the team on specific topics related with the consultancy, as needed.

Duty Station

Home based

Deliverables:

Product

Estimated deadline (expected)

Amount

Systematization and analysis of current emergency response policies and procedures in Rio de Janeiro (Result 1)

August 16th, 2021

25% of contract fee

Summary of best practices of emergency response for social protection (Result 2)

September 31st, 2021

20% of contract fee

Report summarizing and analyzing the consultation process (Result 3)

November 17th, 2021

25% of contract fee

Structured guide of suggestions for current system and new eventual benefit (Result 4)

November 30th, 2021

30% of contract fee

PERFORMANCE INDICATORS

• Drive for results
• Quality of analysis and reports
• Timely delivery of results
• Ability to communicate
• Accuracy of deliverables

In accordance with UNICEF priorities, the supervisor and consultant will discuss and consolidate the Work Plan, detailing the deliverables and competencies, which will be evaluated during and at the end of the consulting process. The deliverables shall be subject to review and approval by UNICEF after delivery by the consultant. If needed, revisions and alterations may be requested by UNICEF related to quality and technical parameters. Only after final clearance by UNICEF Brazil will the respective payments be processed.

UNICEF reserves the right to terminate the contract and/or withhold all or a portion of payment if the rules and the regulations regarding confidentiality, ethics and procedures of UNICEF and the partners are not followed, the performance is unsatisfactory, or work/deliverables are incomplete, not delivered or fail to meet the deadlines.

Key competences, technical background, and experience required

• University Degree in Social Sciences, Political Science, Public Administration, or a related field is required.
• At least 5 years of professional experience working with social protection and social assistance programmes and public services are required.
• Previous experience working with municipal government and civil society organizations is desirable.
• Experience liaising with and building partnerships with multiple stakeholders is desirable.

• Fluency in Portuguese is required. Knowledge of English is an asset.

• Ability to work independently is required.

• Teamwork skills and capacity to work with tight deadlines is required.

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.
• Expenses related to travels (if any) will be covered by UNICEF and paid to the contractor as per UNICEF travel rules and regulations.
• No contract may commence unless the contract is signed by both UNICEF and the consultant or individual Contractor
• Consultants / ICs will not have supervisory responsibilities or authority on UNICEF budget.

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 and individual contractors are asked to stipulate all-inclusive fees, including lump sum travel 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 and individual contractors may not receive training at the expense of UNICEF. Notwithstanding, consultants and individual contracts must complete the applicable mandatory trainings.

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

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

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.

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.