Individual International consultant – Education researcher, Chad, Ndjamena, 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

UNICEF Chad is developing a plan focused on improving the quality of education, including through improvement of pedagogical management. UNICEF Chad and UNICEF Office of Research (OoR) Innocenti will work in partnership with the Ministry of National Education and Civic Promotion, local academics, and key partners in two research areas to support improving foundational literacy and numeracy for children across the country. Whereas the first area links to the Data Must Speak (DMS) Positive Deviance Research, the second one focuses on Women in Learning Leadership (WiLL).

The International Individual Consultant will support the ongoing Data Must Speak Technical Assistance activities.

How can you make a difference?

For Data Must Speak

The Individual Contractor will (i) support the UNICEF Chad Country Office (CO) and the Chad Ministry of Education to co-create the DMS positive deviance research to increase government’s ownership of the research findings and maximize their uptake (incl. related to community engagement), (ii) coordinate all stages of the DMS research in Chad through direct field support and capacity building activities with in-country partners, and (iii) monitor the implementation of DMS research activities in Chad to facilitate cross-pollination, South-to-South cooperation and alignment with UNICEF’s global and regional strategic priorities.

For Women in Learning Leadership

The Individual Contractor will (i) support the UNICEF Chad Country Office (CO) and the Chad Ministry of Education to co-create and co-implement the WiLL research programme in Chad to increase the uptake of research findings and inform gender responsive policies and programming, (ii) coordinate all stages of the research through direct field support and capacity building activities with in-country partners, (iii) monitor the implementation of research programme activities in Chad.

For Data Must Speak Technical Assistance

The incumbent will work under the direct supervision of the Chad Country Office Education Chief with dotted lines to UNICEF Office of Research Project Coordinators for Women in Learning Leadership and Data Must Speak. He/she will be based in Ndjamena and will provide coordination and research support to both research programmes. In addition, the incumbent may be required to contribute to Data Must Speak Technical Assistance activities. Besides working in the UNICEF Chad Country Office, he/she will also work in close collaboration with the UNICEF OoR Research on Education and Development (READ) unit as well as other colleagues from UNICEF West and Central Africa Regional Office (WCARO). She/he will have close collaboration with the Communication for Development (C4D) units in UNICEF Chad and WCARO, staff of other UN Agencies, and Government officials, multi-lateral and bi-lateral donors ensuring successful implementation of the DMS and WiLL research programmes in Chad.

Specifically, the consultant will:

1. Support the UNICEF Chad Country Office (CO) and the Ministry of Education in Chad to co-create and co-implement the DMS and WiLL research to increase government’s ownership of the research findings and maximize their uptake.

2. Coordinate all stages of the DMS and WiLL research through direct field support and capacity building activities with in-country partners

3. Serve as the in-country coordinator for DMS and WiLL in Chad and monitor the research.

For more details, please refer to the Terms of Reference attached TDR_Consultants DMS research.pdf

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

• A Master’s degree in social science with a focus on statistics, economics, education or equivalent.
• At least five years of work experience at national or international levels in fields relevant to education economics and/or education research, including on community engagement;
• Demonstrated knowledge of the education sector in Chad;
• Knowledge of learning assessment methodologies;
• Demonstrated knowledge of statistical analysis software packages (e.g. Stata, SPSS, R…) and database management (e.g. SQL, Access)
• Experience in working on gender issues in education preferable

Other skills and competencies required: - Excellent written and oral communication skills, including for relationship-building purposes; - Demonstrated ability to work well as part of a team and to forge and manage partnerships with internal and external stakeholders; - Commitment to UNICEF’s core values of care, respect, integrity, transparency trust, and accountability; - Ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment. Experience working in the UN or other international development organizations is an asset;

Language Proficiency: - Fluency in French required; Working knowledge of English required. Fluency in another UN language is an asset.

Working conditions:

- The necessary computer equipment for the consultation will be provided by the office. - The consultant will benefit from R&R according to the rules and procedures of the Organization if/when eligible

Supervision:

The consultant will work under the direct supervision of the Chief Education in UNICEF Chad Country Office, with dotted line supervision from WiLL Project Coordinator, and DMS Project Coordinator, from UNICEF Office of Research

The consultant will also work in close collaboration with the relevant departments in of the Ministry of National Education and Civic Promotion (MENPC), namely the department of primary education, and the department of analysis and planning.

Technical and financial proposals:

Applicants are invited to submit with their online application: o A concept note that outlines their understanding of the task and proposed methodology o A recently updated and signed CV o A financial proposal which must be an all-inclusive remuneration offer (consultancy fees, mission expenses, travels, etc.). Applicants are invited to submit their financial proposals in USD

Payments: Consultancy fees will be paid at the end of each month further receipt of monthly report on agreed deliverables

Recourse: 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. The deliverables will remain the copyright of UNICEF. The consultant must respect the confidentiality of the information handled during the assignment. Documents and information provided must be used only for the tasks related to these terms of reference.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

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

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. 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.