Individual Consultant on Child-Responsive Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Landscape Study, Viet Nam

Consultant Programme & Policy

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Child-responsive ESG[1] landscape study

Background

Responsible investors and big companies are increasingly applying environmental, social and governance (ESG) assessments to inform investment decision-making (in case of investors), and to assess business practices and performance (in case of other businesses). ESG benchmarking initiatives and rating agencies are gradually starting to include indicators on child labour and other child rights topics, as a part of a wider movement towards monitoring outcomes for rights holders.

According to PwC Vietnam’s 2022 ESG Readiness Report (2022), Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) has obtained increasing attention in Vietnam’s business sector over the past years. The companies are driven by the Vietnamese government’s strong lead to promote ESG-related practices and following up with investors’ rising demand for sustainable investment. The survey shows that 80% of companies responded have “made ESG commitments or plan to do it in the next 2-4 years”[2].

In 2021, UNICEF published the Tools for Investors on Integrating Children’s Rights Into ESG Assessment which provides a series of actions that investors should consider in their investment decision making processes to integrate children's rights and well-being and mitigate negative impacts on children. It is aimed for institutional investors and asset managers and public sector including civil society and governments to use it to promote investments to respect children's well-being and rights.

Last 30 May 2023, UNICEF Viet Nam and the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) organized a Business Forum on Responsible Business Conduct for Vietnam’s Thriving Next Generation. During the Forum, UNICEF emphasized that the concept of “responsible business practices” must include the assessment of the impact of business on children and respect for child rights. The forum discussed the need for children to be a key consideration in ESG assessments – where impacts and risks are assessed objectively, and recommendations to improve business practices that can minimize those risks and create a positive impact for children.

However, it could be challenging to integrate child centered ESG lens into actual business strategies in the early stage. It requires a detailed understanding of both Vietnamese and international context, diverse needs of different industries as well as the development of concrete tools to guide to track progress. This is where conducting more in-depth analysis on child responsive ESG landscape in Vietnam plays a crucial role as an entry point.

This analysis aims to answer key questions related to apply child centered ESG approach in Viet Nam’s business community including a comprehensive understanding on key players and their interests and influence on ESG pathways, requirements of international markets regarding ESG integration, recommendations for contextualizing UNICEF’s global ESG toolkit to align with local requirements and priorities in Viet Nam.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

The objective is to conduct an analysis of the ESG landscape in Viet Nam, focusing on identifying strategic opportunities for integrating child rights into policies and practices. The consultant will also assess key industries, value chains, and potential partners that can contribute to the establishment and realization of child-responsive ESG frameworks. Furthermore, the consultant will provide recommendations on how to adapt and contextualize the toolkit to ensure its relevance and effectiveness within the local Vietnamese context.

Scope of Work:

The study will provide answers with evidence and analysis of the following questions:

1. What are the main drivers/motivations for integrating child-centered ESG framework?

2. What are the specific industries within the local economy that offer opportunities for integrating child- responsive ESG metrics?

3. Who are the key players (including government, brands, corporates, chambers and associations, platforms, etc) and what is their main interest and influence on ESG pathways in the business community (and the prioritized industries)?

4. What are the perspectives and insights of stakeholders, including experts and practitioners, on child-centered ESG integration?

5. What are the specific policy, programme and practice entry points for integrating child-responsive ESG principles and indicators?

6. What are requirements of the main international markets of Viet Nam regarding ESG practices?

7. What are the key recommendations for contextualizing UNICEF's ESG toolkit to align with local requirements and priorities in Vietnam?

8. What will be the concrete steps that UNICEF should take to contextualize UNICEF ESG toolkit into a specific industry focused?

The consultant is expected to undertake the following tasks:

- Analyze relevant policies, regulations, facts, trends, standards, initiatives, and good practices at the international, national and local levels.

- Identify key industries and value chains in Vietnam that have plans to start, has initiated or fully adopted ESG assessment frameworks.

- Identify potential partners in Vietnam, including private sector entities, CSOs, academic institutions, and other stakeholders, who have expertise and resources in ESG-related areas and can collaborate with UNICEF in promoting child-responsive ESG principles.

- Analyze entry points and propose strategies for engaging key industries and potential partners in collaborative ESG initiatives, with a focus on integrating and implementing UNICEF's ESG toolkit.

- Provide recommendations on effective stakeholder engagement and capacity building in Vietnam on child-responsive ESG.

- Develop a case study on the ESG toolkit for the textile industry describing workflows, procedures to contextualize the ESG tool into a specific industry (including the steps, defining entry points, required components of the toolkit, adequate level of details of indicators, reporting and monitoring, etc).

Work Assignment and Deliverables:

- Consultation with UNICEF (2 days), 3-5 page inception report to present the proposed methodology of the study and outlines of the report, 30 September 2023.

- Data collection (5 working days), 7-10 page report on initial findings, 20 Oct 2023.

- Development and presentation of a draft Full Report (7 working days),

+ Presentation delivered, and comments and inputs documented;

+ First draft of Full Report (including case study) with a maximum of 50-pages, excluding Annexes

10 Nov 2023.

- Submission of the Full Report (5 working days), full Report incorporating UNICEF’s and other stakeholders’ comments, 10 December 2023.

Total: 19 working days.

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[1] This assignment uses to the terms ‘child-responsive ESG’ or ‘child-centered ESG’ alternatively to refer to the ESG exercise which sufficiently integrate child rights into its processes and results.

[2] PWC Vietnam. (2022). From Ambition to Impact Vietnam ESG Readiness Report 2022.

"https://www.pwc.com/vn/en/publications/vietnam-publications/esg-readiness-2022.html".

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

Education:

• Advanced university degree in trade, economics, social policy, social sciences or related areas of majors.

• At least 10 years of professional experience in business research and consultancy, ESG/business sustainability practices.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills Required:

• Extensive experience in conducting business research and consultancy on responsible business, sustainable business, CSR, ESG, due diligence, etc.

• Extensive understanding of international and Viet Nam’s business context and trends.

• Access to a wide network of business sector stakeholders in Viet Nam.

• Proficiency in speaking and writing in English and Vietnamese language.

• Demonstrated experience in writing high-quality reports.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

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

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Assessment criteria:

For evaluation and selection method, the Cumulative Analysis Method (weight combined score method) shall be used for this recruitment:

Technical Evaluation (e.g. maximum 75 Points)

- Educational background (15 points)

- Relevant work experience (50 points)

+ Extensive experience in conducting business research and consultancy on responsible business, sustainable business, CSR, ESG, due diligence, etc.

+ Extensive understanding of international and Viet Nam’s business context and trends.

+ Access to a wide network of business sector stakeholders in Viet Nam.

- Submission of at least 1 sample of written work using the English language (10 points).

B) Financial Proposal (e.g. maximum of 25 Points)

The maximum number of points shall be allotted to the lowest Financial Proposal that is opened /evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum 50 points score in the technical evaluation. Other Financial Proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

The Contract shall be awarded to candidate obtaining the highest combined technical and financial scores, subject to the satisfactory result of the verification interview if needed.

Submission of applications:

Interested candidates are kindly requested to apply and upload the following documents to the assigned requisition in UNICEF Vacancies: http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/:

a. Letter of interest/confirmation of availability and CV;

b. Technical proposal which clearly explains the outline on how to deliver the tasks and deliverables (preferably less than 2 pages);

c. At least 1 sample of written work using the English language;

d. Performance evaluation reports or references of similar consultancy assignments (if available).

d. Financial proposal: All-inclusive lump-sum cost including consultancy fee and any other relevant costs for this assignment.

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.

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Added 9 months ago - Updated 9 months ago - Source: unicef.org