MICS National Consultant, Yerevan, Armenia - Open to the nationals of Armenia only

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 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, a champion

The Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) is an international household survey programme developed and supported by UNICEF. MICS is designed to collect estimates of key indicators that are used to assess the socio-demographic situation with focus on children and women. Over the past three decades, MICS has evolved to respond to changing data needs, expanding from 28 indicators in the first round to more than 250 indicators in the current seventh round, and has become a key source of data on child protection, early childhood education, and a major source of data on child health and nutrition. In addition to being a data collection tool to generate data for monitoring the progress towards national goals and global commitments for promoting the welfare of children, MICS provided valuable data for Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and currently providing data for Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) monitoring and reporting.

Since the inception of MICS in the 1990s, over 350 surveys have been carried out in more than 118 countries. As part of the global effort to further develop national capacities to generate and analyse high-quality and disaggregated data, UNICEF launched the seventh round of MICS in 2023, with results of first surveys being available by the end of 2023. This new round is in accordance with the list of SDG indicators endorsed by the UN Statistical Commission in 2016, following the global adoption of the 17 SDGs and 169 targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The final SDG indicator framework currently includes 231 global indicators, of which around one third are household survey based. Today, MICS, covering almost half of the SDG indicators that are household survey-based, is well positioned to play a central role in this new Agenda alongside other key demographic, health and socio-economic surveys and to complement data from administrative sources and censuses. The MICS questionnaires have undergone rigorous methodological and validation work to broaden the scope of the tools and include new topics that reflect SDG indicators and emerging issues in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development context.

As governments develop national frameworks to monitor progress towards the SDGs, strategic planning and investments will be required to collect robust, more frequent, and timely data. Current round of MICS presents a unique opportunity to support this process.

This will be the first MICS survey in Armenia, becoming not only an important data collection initiative for the country to establish data on key socio-demographic indicators, but also will contribute to the final reporting and evaluation of the 2021-2025 UNICEF Armenia Country Programme cycle. UNICEF Armenia country office will support a MICS as part of the 7th round of the survey programme in 2024. To ensure that the implementation of the MICS survey runs smoothly, specific deadlines are met and that the Statistical Committee of the Republic of Armenia (ArmStat) receives the technical assistance necessary to produce statistically sound and reliable data, the UNICEF Armenia country office will hire a full-time consultant to oversee the MICS process from preparatory work to release of results.

The 2024 Armenia MICS7 will be implemented using CAPI (Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing) in which the interviewer uses a tablet to record data. CAPI data collection can reduce the time needed to collect and process survey data, facilitate real time monitoring, improve the quality of the data and reduce survey costs.

How can you make a difference?

Scope of Work:

Under the overall supervision of the Child Rights Monitoring and Evaluation (CRM/E) Specialist, the National MICS Consultant (NMC) will support and provide guidance to UNICEF Armenia and the ArmStat for the preparation, implementation and completion of the MICS survey in Armenia. The NMC will provide professional guidance and support to the ArmStat, especially the Survey Coordinator and sampling and data processing experts, during survey planning, questionnaire design, sampling, training, fieldwork, data processing, data analysis, dissemination and archiving, ensuring that MICS protocols and recommendations are being followed at all times. The NMC will communicate effectively between the UNICEF CO and ArmStat, responding promptly to MICS related needs and issues as they arise.

The NMC will be responsible for coordinating and supporting the work of other resource persons hired by UNICEF to provide technical assistance to the MICS process. The consultant will work in close collaboration with the survey team, the stakeholders, and Steering and Technical Committees and will represent UNICEF in meetings and workshops in relation to the survey as needed. The NMC will also work in close collaboration with the Regional MICS Coordinator at the UNICEF Regional Office (RO) and the MICS Team at UNICEF Headquarters (HQ), as well as expert consultants assigned to support the Armenia MICS (collectively labelled “The UNICEF MICS Team”).

These activities directly relate to the 2021-2025 Country Programme Output 1.3 on enhancing national capacities and data systems for equity-focused data on children.

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

• University degree in Statistics, Demography, Social Sciences, Epidemiology or any other related technical field is required.
• Proven minimum of 5 year experience in the coordination and/or management of quantitative household surveys, studies, project/program assessments and evaluations;
• Minimum 7 year experience in designing and managing research, studies, evaluations and household surveys, quantitative survey instrument design, database management and data analysis;
• Experience in design, coordination and management of large-scale household surveys, i.e. Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) or similar is an asset;
• Strong computer skills and strong expertise in statistical analyses (familiarity with data processing and data analysis software, particularly SPSS, STATA and others);
• Experience with CAPI data collection;
• Training experience and ability to organise and facilitate trainings and presentations;

• Experience in data analysis and survey report writing.

• Other competencies:

  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills;
  • Excellent verbal and written communications in Armenian and English is required;
  • Familiarity and previous experience of working in Armenia and/or in the region is highly desirable;
  • Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and to establish harmonious and effective relationships both within and outside the organisation, more specifically with the Statistical Committee of Armenia and other Government partners;
  • Demonstrated leadership, managerial and supervisory ability;
  • Ability and willingness to travel extensively in-country and to attend regional workshops.

For more details please refer to the attached ToR here ToR_MICS_National Consultancy_for adv.pdf

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.