Individual Consultancy (International) - Development of National WASH standards for Health Facilities in West Bank and Gaza, for the State of Palestine

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 fulfil 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, access.

UNICEF in the State of Palestine works to uphold the rights of children to access services and protection, from early childhood through to adolescence. Our objective is to ensure that every child in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, irrespective of background or circumstance, has an equal chance to fulfil their potential. We are working for every child and young person in the State of Palestine.

In recent years the focus on Sustainable Development Goals has led WASH actors to review their activities in institutions, and several documents have been produced on WASH in health facilities. UNICEF in the State of Palestine aims to improve the understanding of the minimum standards for WASH services and the required Operation and Maintenance(O&M) in health facilities to provide a safe and healthy environment for the health care services. Furthermore, an integrated effort must be made by health and WASH professionals to ensure the functionality and cleanliness of the facilities to effectively change the behavior of those working in and using the facilities.

How can you make a difference?

Identify Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) standards and the required Operation and Maintenance monitoring guidelines in Health facilities (WiHCF) and develop the National WASH Standards for Health Facilities (NWSHF) with gender, disability and environmental sensitivity suitable, and applicable in the West Bank and Gaza.

Scope of Work and Methodology

The overall objective of this consultancy is to develop a comprehensive document on standards and O&M guidelines for WASH in Health in facilities for Gaza and West bank in collaboration with the line Ministries, Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) as well as other stakeholders. It is expected that the following specific objectives will be achieved:

1. A comprehensive literature review of existing WASH in health facilities guidelines, manuals and standards from other countries as well as UNICEF/WHO materials and publications on WASH in health facilities;
2. Consult with line Ministries concerned, Municipalities, NGOs and other agencies involved in the WASH and Health facilities interventions in Gaza and West Bank for additional information and views on WASH in Health facilities requirements that are cultural, gender and disability appropriate;
3. Conduct field visits (through Local NGOs) to selected health facilities in both locations to assess the status of WASH infrastructures, behavioral conduct of health workers and users of the facilities in the facilities in urban and rural areas including assessment of existing operations and maintenance and prepare a case study;
4. Prepare a first draft of WASH in health facilities standards and guidelines including lay out.
5. Present first draft of WASH in health facilities standards and guidelines at a workshop (virtual) for stakeholder consultations with key stakeholders involved in WASH in Health facilities interventions for inputs and comments on the first draft;
6. Prepare summary Power Point presentation of the Final draft standard and guidelines and abridged Summary version at a validation workshop for all stakeholders
7. Prepare Final standards and guidelines document incorporating comments from the workshop along with illustrations, drawings, figures, maps, tables, and charts for approval by line Ministries and UNICEF.

The consultant is required to work closely with a local CSO with national experts in the respective fields, who will support the consultant in data collection and assessment of the WASH infrastructure in the health facilities both in Gaza and West Bank , in addition to assessing the institutional capacity for O&M.

It is essential that the consultant develop a work schedule with the CSO with clearly defined timelines for deliverables. UNICEF will assist in identifying the CSO and will cover the payment to the CSO.

Deliverables and Reporting

The Consultant shall report directly to UNICEF WASH section. All deliverables prepared by the Consultant shall therefore be submitted to UNICEF for their review and or approval. All reports shall be produced and written in English. The Consultant shall provide an electronic version of the reports and all data and required deliverables in MSWord, MS Excel, PDF formats or in formats acceptable to UNICEF. All data are owned by UNICEF.

The following key reports to be submitted include but are not limited to:

1. Inception Report on the literature review, methodology and workplan
2. A testing protocol with triggering feature in a selected number of health facilities
3. Field testing completed and data set available
4. A capacity building and discussion protocol on NWSHF ready for review by UNICEF and its partners, based on the experiences in the field
5. A financial analysis as part of the applicability of the set of standards
6. The training modules
7. A Final report and Presentation of the National WASH Standards for Health Facilities (NWSHF) applicable in West bank and Gaza.

Tool and Equipment:

The Consultant shall provide all necessary tools, instruments, transport and equipment to execute the services as per the scope of works. These must be available during all service operations.

Confidentiality Statement:

All data and information received from the Health Facilities, UNICEF, PWA and CMWU for the purpose of this assignment shall be treated confidentially and shall only to be used in connection with the execution of these Terms of Reference. All intellectual property rights arising from the execution of these Terms of Reference are assigned to UNICEF. The contents of written materials obtained and used in this assignment may not be disclosed to any third parties without the expressed advance written authorization of the UNICEF.

Estimated duration of contract and Tentative Dates

60 working days over the period March to May 2021

Payment Schedule:

The payment schedule will be on works performed and the deliverables provided. The payment schedule will be linked to each key milestone/deliverable as below.

#

Deliverable

Payment %

1

Approved Inception Report on the literature review, methodology and workplan

30%

2

A testing protocol with triggering feature in a selected number of health facilities with triggering feature, ready for field testing

3

Field testing completed and data set available

4

Learning and Discussion protocol for NWSHF presented for review by UNICEF and its partners, based on outcome field tests

40%

6

Financial analysis as part of the applicability of the set of NWSHF

7

Training Modules on NWSHF

9

Final report and Presentation of the National WASH Standards for Health Facilities (NWSHF) in West Bank and Gaza, for the State of Palestine

30%

Estimated Cost of Consultancy

Applicants shall present a detailed financial proposal in USD that elaborates on their fees, administrative costs, etc. including a total sum demanded.

Official Travel Involved: No. Due to travel restrictions, consultant will work remotely (home-based)

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

To qualify as an Advocate for every child you will have:

• An Advanced University Degree (Master’s and above) in one or more of the disciplines relevant to the following areas: Public Health and Environmental Engineering and related technical fields.
• A minimum of 8 years of professional experience, at the national and international level, is required specifically working in the development of WASH and health policies , standards , tools and guidelines
• Extensive knowledge in research, data collection and analysis
• Knowledge and experience on operation and maintenance WASH
• Analytical, negotiation, communication and advocacy skills.
• Leadership and teamwork abilities specifically in managing remote teams .
• The Consultant will need to demonstrate relevant experience with water, sanitation and hygiene projects;

Language

Fluency in English is required. Understanding of Arabic Language an asset.

The terms of reference is attached for more information.

TOR Consultancy For WASH in Health Facilities Standards and Guidelines.pdf

For every Child, you demonstrate:

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability.

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.

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

Remarks:

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.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.