Education National Individual Contractor (Crosscutting), Damascus, Syria, 11.5 months

Contract

This is a Consultancy contract. More about Consultancy contracts.

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, Education

BACKGROUND (RATIONALE AND CONTEXT):

Over a decade of war in Syria has had severe negative consequences on children’s education and the capacity of the education system to cater for the most vulnerable children. Over 2 million children remain out of school, around 40% of the country’s schools are out of service and an estimated 150,000 teachers and education personnel have left the system due to migration, death, or injury. Against this backdrop, UNICEF has been supporting the continuation of the provision of education services in formal and non-formal education settings as well as initiatives to build back better. Moving from immediate emergency response to early recovery interventions mandate that education actors invest more in programs and initiatives that support the resilience of the local communities as well as the local institutions and anchor programs in existing capacities for sustainability. Three main areas that support this approach are helping vulnerable families access and benefit from ECE/D interventions in preparation for school readiness; reaching out the vulnerable out of school children and children at risk of dropping out and providing them with education support to return or be retained in education; and enhancing the resilience of children affected by the conflict through integration psychosocial support (PSS) into curriculum activities.

Working under the supervision of the Education Specialist and the overall guidance of the Chief of Education in Damascus, Syria, the contractor is expected to provide technical support to government and non-governmental counterparts in the areas of:

1. Early Childhood Development and Education (ECD/E): currently, UNICEF is working with the Syrian Commission for Family Affairs and Population (SCFAP) on updating the national strategy on ECD. A national survey has been conducted and a draft report is ready. National consultations have also followed, resulting in a further enhancement of the understanding on issues around ECD and a validation of the survey findings. These outcomes will need to be reflected into the updated ECD strategy. The contractor will liaise closely with SCFAP on making sure the updated ECD strategy reflects the findings of the study and is aligned with global guidance on ensuring the best interests of the child. Besides, UNICEF is working with the Ministry of Education (MoE) to expand access to Early Childhood Education (ECE) in formal education. The contractor will work with MoE to advance this agenda. In Non Formal Education (NFE), UNICEF is working with multiple organizations to provide ECE to the most vulnerable children. The contractor will provide technical support in harmonizing the ECE approaches among all partners and ensuring children are reached with a quality package of ECE activities.

2. Integrated Learning Centers (ILC): UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Culture in providing education and youth empowerment for the most vulnerable children and youth, including Out-of-School Children OOSC and children at risk of dropping out. UNICEF is seeking to strengthen these services through enhancing the integration of education, adolescent development and child protection services to maximize the impact of the program. The incumbent will provide liaison and programmatic support for the education component of the program towards further integration. This will include coordination with the Ministry of Culture (under the supervision of the Education Specialist), monitoring the ILCs and providing administrative support to the planning and delivery of classes in the centers.

3. Psychosocial Support (PSS) and Socio-Emotional Learning (SEL): UNICEF is finalizing the development of a partnership agreement with an International NGO to pilot a Psychosocial Support (PSS) in schools program in coordination with the MoE. The pilot will be used to illicit lessons in the refinement of the MoE’s Socio-Emotional Learning (SEL) curriculum to incorporate best practices from the implementation of the PSS program. The outcome could also be the development of a contextualized PSS program that is aligned with the existing SEL. The contractor will provide support during the launch of the program and will continue to liaise between MoE and NRC to ensure the pilot is implemented as planned and the results are monitored, well documented and utilized to inform the work of the MoE on SEL.

How can you make a difference?

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT (PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT):

The main purpose of this assignment is to ensure the continued capacity of the office to provide technical support to government and non-government partners in the areas of ECE, integrated learning services and the launch of PSS activities in alignment with the national curriculum.

LOCATION (GEOGRAPHIC AREA/ DUTY STATION): Damascus, Syria

On-site working days: 11.5 months, on full-time basis

Off-site working days: none

Field Missions/Travel: estimated 30 days / and as required throughout the contract

DURATION:

The selected individual contractor will work for the period of (11.5) months, on full-time basis (most probably from December 2022 – November 2023). All the work will be in the country. The exact schedule of the activities will be agreed with the individual contractor based on the assignment implementation progress. The deadline for submission of final deliverables to UNICEF is at the end of the assignment.

SUPERVISOR:

The individual contractor will be supervised and report to the UNICEF Education Specialist with regular de-briefing with the UNICEF Chief of Education about the progress of the assignment. The individual contractor will work on daily basis with UNICEF Education Section.

DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNMENT (TASKS, SMART DELIVERABLES, DEADLINES):

PROPOSED PAYMENT SCHEDULE

Monthly

Lump sum payment will be made monthly, inclusive of all professional fees, daily allowances, living allowances, and other administrative costs, against an accepted Monthly Progress Report with 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 contractor

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

I) Academic Qualifications:

At least Bachelors’ degree in Education, Psychology or a relevant Social Sciences Field.

II) Years of Experience:

Minimum of two years of relevant experience in education program management or coordination, preferably in the domains of ECE/D, Psychosocial Support, remedial and catch up education programs. Experience working with the UN will be an asset. Experience in ECD and Psychosocial Support will be an advantage.

III) Compentencies:

Strong interpersonal skills, coordination and collaboration, communications abilities, teamwork

IV) Language Requirements:

Fluent Arabic and English is required.

EVALUATION PROCESS (OF APPLICATIONS):

Qualified candidates are requested to submit:

1. Cover letter/application.
2. Financial quote as lump sum for professional fees
3. CV.
4. At least 3 Referees from direct supervisors
5. Applications should be submitted through UNICEF’s Talent Management System (TMS)Cover letter/application.

Shortlisted applicants may be invited for further technical assessment. Final recommendation will be made based on “best value for money”, i.e., the hiring section/office shall normally select the individual who quoted the lowest fee from among the candidates who are assessed as suitable for achieving all tasks on time, as per the criteria stipulated in this ToR, and based on the outcome of the evaluation/assessment conducted.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

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

Competencies

• Builds and maintains partnerships (1)
• Demonstrate self-awareness and ethical awareness (1)
• Drive to achieve results for impact (1)
• Innovates and embraces change (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)
• Thinks and acts strategically (1)
• Works collaboratively with others (1)

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

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/individual contractors 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.

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.