National Consultant Disability Service Units - Inclusive Education, Indonesia, 20 months (50 working days, home based) - for Indonesian 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.

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BACKGROUND:

Children with disabilities in Indonesia are less likely to attend and complete school, across all education levels than children without disabilities. UNICEF’s Landscape Analysis on Children with Disabilities in Indonesia highlighted that only 64 per cent of children with disabilities aged 7-18 years old are attending school, compared to 92 per cent of children without disabilities. While the vast majority of children without disabilities complete their primary school education (96 per cent), children with disabilities were 41 per cent less likely to complete primary school. Although laws and regulations are in place to protect the rights of children with disabilities, policies are not well implemented. The Landscape Analysis recommended a high priority in establishing a programme that can support school-based developmental screening/assessment for identification of disabilities and child-centered referral pathways and support for families.

The recent launch of Ministerial Education Regulation No. 48, 2023, on the Reasonable Accommodation for Students with Disabilities in the formal early childhood education, primary, secondary and higher education serves as a guide for improving the promotion of inclusive education for children with disabilities. This policy regulation outlines the role of provisioning a Disability Service Unit (Unit Layanan Disabilitas - ULD) by local governments through their Education Offices to accelerate inclusive education at early, primary and secondary education levels. The ULD also functions as the centre for conducting assessments, facilitating access and referral to basic services, such as health and protection, and as a knowledge hub for schools in respective coverage areas, providing inclusive education access for children, including children with disabilities. Although still relatively new, the ULD has been established in some parts of Indonesia, notably in Solo, Gresik, Malang, and Yogyakarta, taking the initial step to rebrand what was previously known as the "Autism centre" into a more integrated Inclusive Education ULD centre for all types of disabilities.

However, the new regulation has not been socialised widely yet and therefore many local governments in other parts of Indonesia are unaware of the new regulation for the establishment of ULDs. Given that it is a new mandate from the ministry, many local governments are unprepared to launch, facilitate and integrate inclusive education services into a single unit, i.e., the Disability Service Unit. A lack of best practices, step-by-step strategies, and guiding recommendations in establishing ULDs also contributes to the low establishment of these units in different parts of Indonesia. Additionally, there is confusion regarding resources, budget allocation, and priorities from local governments to focus on building the inclusive education ULDs in their areas.

In the context of contributing to improvements in the quality of learning in Indonesia, including the inclusiveness of education services, as Indonesia strives for education transformation; and in consideration of UNICEF’s current work in promoting quality and inclusive early grade learning (EGL) in the Papua provinces, in partnership with the Government of Indonesia and DFAT, it is therefore important to conduct a study on the operationalization and functioning of existing ULDs to collect information on this newly integrated system for providing inclusive education for children with disabilities.

This study aims to not only understand the structure and operations of existing ULDs but will also provide insights from best practices and lessons learned of existing ULDs. These recommendations will offer strategic guidance tailored to specific local contexts, budgetary resources, and the unique barriers and challenges associated with inclusive education in those areas. Furthermore, this study will support the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (MoERCT) to accelerate efforts for the establishment of ULDs as per their national targets for 2024 (50% of provinces have ULDs established).

A ULD Inclusive Education Reference Group, comprising representatives from MoECRT, MoRA, National Commission for Disabilities (Komisi Nasional Disabilitas - KND), Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), teachers' groups, relevant Development Partners and UNICEF, will provide technical advice and guidance at key junctures of the drafting processes.

Description of the assignment:

The purpose of this national consultancy is to conduct an assessment to identify several models that can be replicated or scaled in various settings or scenarios for three ULDs (Underserved and Least Developed) across Indonesia. The specific locations will be determined in collaboration with government counterparts and the ULD Inclusive Education Reference Group.

This assessment aims to gain deeper insights into best practices and lessons learned from already established ULDs,to promote and accelerate the establishment of ULDs across the country for more inclusive education opportunities for children with disabilities.

Scope of Work:

The national consultant will work in liaison with a wide range of national and sub-national stakeholders, to prepare three different ULD models that will inform the development of ULDs in different contexts (e.g. functioning in high resource/high capacity and low resource/limited capacity environments). A ULD inclusive education reference group, comprising representatives from MoECRT, MoRA, National Commission for Disabilities (Komisi Nasional Disabilitas - KND), Organizations of Persons with Disabilities (OPDs), teachers' groups, relevant Development Partners and UNICEF, will provide technical advice and guidance at key junctures of the drafting processes.

As part of this work, the national consultant is expected to closely coordinate and work with UNICEF’s Disability Inclusion Team and Education Team, who would provide general coordination support (i) to collect data and conduct on site consultation and documentation in three different locations in Indonesia; (ii) to review the related laws and regulations on the establishment of ULDs; (iii) to develop a protocol for the assessment to develop three different ULD models and to analyse collected data and identify key insights and best practices; and (iv) to prepare a strategic brief for ULD establishment, and presentation materials for the policy/advocacy dialogue.

The national consultant will also prepare, as needed, other briefing notes, documents and reports associated with the main task, and provide technical support for other coordination activities (for example lead an in-depth analysis session/s with the ULD Inclusive Education Reference Group based on data collected), as necessary.

The assignment consists of two interconnected parts:

PART 1: Development of three ULD models

1. Define criteria for selecting the three Inclusive Education ULDs to be assessed in the modelling exercise.

2. Desk review of ULD available literature (incl. best practices from other countries)

3. Identify key stakeholders and relevant actors to be interviewed for data collection process (e.g. school principals, ULD staff, Education Dinas, Primary Health Services, District Social Service, etc).

4. Develop a comprehensive questionnaire tailored for the Inclusive Education ULD assessment, which will comprise of both quantitative and qualitative data.

5. Conduct on-site visits to the chosen ULDs, systematically collecting and compiling data and evidence with identified stakeholders.

6. Analyze key insights and findings from the data collection as a starting point to formulate ULD costed strategic brief.

7. Provide technical support for ULD Inclusive Education Reference group coordination (i.e. preparing presentation materials, facilitate discussions), comprising of key partners, to provide input and feedback on key deliverables (e.g. ULD selection criteria, initial insights and findings from data collection).

PART 2: Support high level policy dialogue at national/sub-national level to effectively promote and disseminate the key findings of the assessment.

1. Conduct workshop with ULDs, Organisations of Persons with Disabilities and key actors to validate the findings and formulate recommendations for the strategic brief.

2. Develop a costed strategic brief encompassing crucial findings, three ULD models, and step by step guidance for the ULD establishment according to different scenarios. This brief will integrate insights from the ULD Inclusive Education Reference Group and will aim to provide pathways and foundational elements for successful ULD implementation, rather than promoting one 'ideal' ULD model. This documentation will serve as a catalyst to expedite the establishment of Inclusive Education ULDs across various provinces in Indonesia.

3. Prepare presentation materials and support the discussions during policy dialogue at national level and in selected districts to be organized by UNICEF to promote and disseminate key findings of the assessment and the strategic ULD models and brief.

Please refer to the Term of Reference attached for more details.

TOR_National Consultant Disability Service Units - Inclusive Education - TMS.docx

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

- Advanced university degree in the fields of education, social science, and any related fields.

- At least 8 years of relevant experience in inclusive education programme, disability inclusion and policy formulation.

- Strong understanding of disability inclusion landscape in Indonesia.

- Experience in undertaking education sector related research in Indonesia, including comprehensive data collection and analysis.

- Experience in facilitating consultation of key education stakeholders and disability inclusion networks (e.g., OPDs) at both national and subnational levels with proficient use of both Bahasa Indonesia and English.

- Familiarity of inclusive education under Merdeka Belajar Education Reform Agenda is an advantage.

Technical Knowledge:

- Strong knowledge of education, with specific focus on inclusive education programming and policy development.

Competencies:

- Strong analytical and conceptual thinking.

- Excellent writing, communication and presentation skills with stakeholders.

- Good analytic and report writing skills.

- Good reputation in capacity development of government counterparts, including facilitation of structured group work and activities.

- Ability to work under pressure and commitment to work to tight timeframe.

Language:

Fluency in both written and spoken Bahasa Indonesia and English

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.

Disclaimer: The screening of your application will be conducted based on the information in your profile. Before applying, we strongly suggest that you review your profile to ensure accuracy and completeness. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. This vacancy is open for Indonesians only.