Proposal should be send to email address [email protected] with reference to IC-2022-113 in the subject line no later than 15:00 (Astana time) on October 20, 2022.

Important Note: Technical and Financial Proposals must be submitted in separate PDF files (Annexes 4 and 5)

Please make sure you have provided all requested materials. Incomplete applications will be excluded from further consideration.

Due to large number of applications we receive, we are able to inform only the successful candidates about the outcome or status of the selection process. Late Proposals will not be considered.

For any questions please contact Procurement Associate Aliya Kangozhina by e-mail aliya.kangozhina@undp.org

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Background: The development and delivery of effective and appropriate interventions in countries experiencing drug abuse problems are very much dependent on an understanding of patterns of drug use and their relationships to health and social problems. To this end it is necessary to have access to reliable and up- to-date research information on the drug abuse situation and existing responses to the situation. In Kazakhstan as elsewhere in Central Asia, recently, patterns of substance use are changing from traditional opioid use and heroin injecting towards more poly-drug use patterns with increasing use of psychoactive medicines (opioid analgesics, sedatives, anti-epileptics, and hypnotics), cannabis or new psychoactive substances.1 The latest study of the prevalence of drug use among the general population in Kazakhstan on a nationwide scale was conducted in 2001 by the Republican Scientific and Practical Centre of Medical and Social Problems of Drug Abuse. In 2006 the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) carried out a national school survey on alcohol and drugs in six regions. In 2019 UNODC conducted National Youth Survey on Drug Use and Health based on the methods developed by the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Drugs (ESPAD) to evaluate the use of alcohol, tobacco and drugs among 13 to 18 years old youth. The present study aims to provide updated information on the extent, type, patterns, and trends of high-risk drug use with its related social and health problems at selected localities (major cities, provinces) and at national level to inform policies and programmes in cooperation with the relevant national and international stakeholders to further address demand reduction efforts in the country. The study will put an additional focus on women and youth as a group with specific vulnerabilities with regard to drug use and drug use disorders.

Purpose of the assignment: UNODC Programme Office in Kazakhstan seeks a qualified national consultant to guide the implementation of the high-risk drug use survey – conduct the training of field workers, support the field work implementation, data entry tabulation and analysis, write the final report based on triangulation of information from a high-risk drug use survey in major cities. The study is aimed at obtaining a multi-faceted set of data concerning the high-risk drug using populations in the country by conducting field research in selected territories/regions applying a combination of quantitative and qualitative research methods. The study will include estimating the size of high-risk drug-using populations (using indirect methods of estimation), their socio-demographic characteristics, the patterns of drug use, emerging trends and the social contexts of drug use. Analysis of the data obtained from the study will allow for better understanding of the current drug-use scene including its socio-cultural contexts and emerging trends. All obtained data will be segregated by gender and age whenever possible. It is planned that the study will be conducted by a national research team that will be led by a national consultant and technically supported by UNODC staff. A national report on the extent of high-risk drug use in Kazakhstan will be developed on the basis of the following survey and data sources: • Key informant interviews in selected locations; • Survey among problem drug users in the community using the respondent driven sampling in selected locations across the country; • Benchmark data for size estimation of problem/high-risk drug users, including data from law enforcement, prison and health facilities for the said analysis.

Duties and Responsibilities

Scope of work: • Lead the training of the national research team on the use of the assessment protocol and tools; • Provide technical guidance to the national research team during the field work; • Provide technical guidance to national experts during data management of the collected data; • Prepare the tabulation plan, an outline of the report and finalize the report that would include key findings on prevalence and emerging trends of high-risk drug use in Kazakhstan, generalized conclusions and policy implications of the current “drug scene”.

Competencies

• Master’s degree or equivalent (5-year university education) in public health, epidemiology, sociology, social science, or any other relevant field. A Bachelor’s degree in the same area combined with 10 years of relevant experience is considered as equivalent;

Required Skills and Experience

• At least 10 years of continuous professional experience in public health, epidemiology, drug use research; • At least 5 years of specific experience in drug use epidemiology, in particular, experience in conducting integrated bio-behavioral studies (IBBS); • Professional experience in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asian region on similar assignments shall be an advantage; • Proficiency in English language; knowledge of Russian shall be a strong advantage; • No restrictions for travelling to the region.

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Added 1 year ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: jobs.undp.org