International Consultant to Conduct Country-led Evaluation of the Nutrition Programme

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, Health

Find out how UNICEF programmes drives change for children in Timor-Leste by visiting https://www.unicef.org/timorleste.

How can you make a difference?

Under supervision of the Nutrition Specialist, conduct Country-led Evaluation of the Nutrition Programme. The purpose of this formative evaluation is to generate evidence on the performance and learning from the implementation of the PINTL programme from 2018-2023. The evaluation will primarily focus on the Complementary Action (CA-PINTL) component of the EU-supported Partnership for Improving Nutrition in Timor-Leste (PINTL) programme.

The overall objectives of the evaluation are to:

1. Evaluate the relevance, coherence, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability of the PINTL programme, with particular focus on the Complementary Action (CA-PINTL) component.
2. Assess the extent to which the Budget Support ‘Sector Reform Contract’ (BS/SRC) component of the PINTL programme has contributed (or not) to strengthening of systems and operations at the subnational level (municipality level).
3. Provide an assessment and lessons learned from existing evidence in the use of the budget support modality vis-à-vis other aid modalities and approaches (basket/common funds, project-based mechanisms) in strengthening government systems and capacity to improve the quality and coverage of nutrition interventions.
4. Identify lessons learned, good practices and a set of forward-looking and actionable recommendations to inform the current and future budget support programming priorities in the nutrition sector for both the government and partners.

Please refer to the attached TOR for the details.

WORK ASSIGNMENT:

1. Inception phase:

1.1. Conduct a kick-off meeting to introduce the evaluation to partners and present evaluation organizational details and expectations of the evaluation process and products and resolve issues around the execution of the evaluation.

1.2. Conduct desk review and discussions with key UNICEF focal points and draft an inception report

1.3. Review of/QA of inception report by Evaluation Reference Group (ERG)

1.4. Develop methodology, final evaluation matrix, and evaluation instruments/tools, including dissemination plan

1.5. Obtain an ethical clearance that can be issued either by an external board or an internal board, depending on the case and as required by UNICEF rules and regulations

1.6. Prepare a final inception report

2. Data collection, analysis, report drafting, and validation phase:

2.1. Conduct key informant interviews and focus group discussions

2.2. Conduct a validation workshop (presentation of preliminary findings and recommendations to ERG)

2.3. Review of/QA of draft final report by ERG (round 1) and incorporated of feedback from Evaluation Reference Group and validation workshop comments and submit the draft final report for final review

3. Incorporate final on feedback (round 2) from ERG and draft final evaluation report and briefing note by ERG and produce a four to five pages evaluation briefing

DELIVERABLES:

1. Inception Report (early November 2023)

2.1. Zero Draft Final Evaluation Report (end December 2023)

2.2. Validation Workshop (mid January 2024)

2.3. Draft Evaluation report and evaluation brief (mid February 2024)

3. Final Evaluation report, evaluation brief and PPT slides (mid March 2024)

TOR

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

• A master’s degree in Public Health, Public Policy, International Development, Development Economics/Planning, Economic, Public Administration, and Management and in any other

  related university degree.

• Minimum 10 years of expertise and experience in development program evaluation (including country programme and/or outcome level evaluations and evaluative activities jointly conducted with national government partners) preferably with a multidisciplinary background, strong strategic and analytical skills, familiar with the socio-economic context of South-East Asian countries, and with good knowledge of UNEG evaluation norms and standards and experience in leading a team for UN evaluations.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

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.