National Consultant for Rapid Analysis of the Education Sector Strategic Plan (ESSP) 2021-2025 (Open to Zimbabwean Nationals Only)

Consultant Teaching & Training Programme & Policy

Overview

Provide technical expertise to review and amend the ESSP 2021-2025 implementation.

You have:

• Master’s in education, Public Policy, Social Sciences, or Development Work
• A minimum of 8 years of experience in Education Leadership, Planning and Management work
• Solid Knowledge of education sector
• Sound knowledge of the planning and policy making processes in the public sector or government
• Ability to engage and work with a variety of stakeholders (government, development partners, civil society)
• Good oral and written communication skills in English, with good report writing skills
• Analyical, with good computer and data analysis skills
• Proven experience of similar work done
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to support multi-disciplinary teams in a multi-cultural environment
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of main local languages (Shona and Ndebele) is an asset.

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, an Opportunity

UNICEF has been operating in Zimbabwe since 1982. We are a team of passionate professionals committed to the protection and fulfillment of children’s rights.

Supporting the Government’s vision of a prosperous and empowered upper-middle-income society, the country programme is aimed at contributing to sustainable socioeconomic development that provides all children, including adolescents, with opportunities to fulfil their potential, lead a healthy life, access quality learning and protection and meaningfully participate in society.

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How can you make a difference?

UNICEF Zimbabwe is seeking to hire an energetic and self-motivated individual consultant to provide the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education with technical expertise to review the first years of the implementation of the ESSP 2021-2025 and adjust or amend any programme foci and methodologies to pursue toward the goals set out in the NSD1 and ESSP.

BACKGROUND:

The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (MoPSE) is finalizing the Education Sector Strategic Plan (ESSP) 2021-2025 as a successor the ESSP 2016-2020. This is the third education sector plan with the first one having been the Education Medium Term Plan (EMTP) 2011-2015. After the first ESP, Zimbabwe received a grant from the Global Partnership of Education-GPE. The concluded ESSP 2016-2020 neither had amid term review or end of term review. The only available mechanism has been the annual monitoring through the Joint Sector review-JSR which in any case does not change programme focus or the methodologies. The current ESSP 2021-2025 leans heavily on the strategies of the National Development Strategy (NDS1) whose thrust is moving towards a middle-income economy by 2030.

Early review of the implementation of the ESSP 2021-2025 during the inception year(s) will ensure its continuous success to adjust and amend any programme foci and methodologies to pursue toward the goals set out in the NSD1 and ESSP. A mid-term review will be one of such tools to assess and track progress made so far and take stock of good practices and lessons learnt. This proposed rapid study analysis of the first years implementation of the new ESSP will provide MoPSE and its partners in education with the data, information and knowledge that can be quickly generated to stay on course or maximize efforts to stay on track of the ESSP implementation. This evidence-based knowledge generating activity will contribute to the mid-term review process to better achieve various targets set out in the key performance indicators of the new ESSP.

Objectives

1. To ascertain whether the strategies, planned activities and methodologies of the ESSP 2021-2025 have available annual results
2. To assess whether the ESSP 2021-2025 strategies, planned activities and methodologies are responsive to the evolving situation of the education sector in Zimbabwe.
3. To adjust and amend accordingly any programme foci and methodologies to pursue toward the goals set out in the NSD1 and ESSP 2021-2025

PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

To provide the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education with technical expertise to review the first years of the implementation of the ESSP 2021-2025 and adjust or amend any programme foci and methodologies to pursue toward the goals set out in the NSD1 and ESSP.

ASSIGNMENTS:

1. Desk Review: The Consultant will be expected to review the ESSP 2021-2025, the National Operational Plan (NOP) or the Whole of government document and selected POPs and DOPs and establish the linkages that are available among these documents. The consultant is also expected to also study the priorities of the NDS1 and how the education planning documents ensure the attainment of these sector priorities.
2. Analysis of existing data: The data for the implementation status will be largely found in the EMIS 2021/ 2022/2023, the Teacher Development Information System (TDIS) and ZELA 2021/2022. These can provide data for use in a range of quantitative analyses and can be a significant part of establishing programme implementation trajectory.
3. Interviews: Evaluators should consider using structured and semi-structured interviews to get detailed inputs and perspectives from key informants and other stakeholders. These will help to answer questions regarding process and deepen understanding of how and why things happen (or didn’t).
4. Focus Group Discussions: These should be used to gain a deep understanding of the experiences and options of stakeholders and beneficiaries and help with triangulation.
5. Observations: These should be considered in order to ensure the consultant understands the issues they are studying as well as confirm or challenge other data and interpretation of data.

Major tasks and deliverables:

Tasks/Milestone:

Deliverables/Outputs:

Timeline

Produce an Inception Report (inclusive of detailed methodology, work plan and draft data collection tools).

Inception Report

10 days (20%)

Produce a Draft Report reflecting feedback from verification meetings and responding to all the review questions and a PowerPoint presentation at Education Coordination Group-ECG meeting

Draft Report on the implementation of the ESSP 2021-2025

40 days (40%)

Produce a Final Comprehensive Survey Evaluation Report incorporating feedback to the draft report.

Final Report on the Implementation of the ESSP 2021-2025

10 days (40%)

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

Education: Master’s in education, Public Policy, Social Sciences, or Development Work

Experience: A minimum of 8 years of experience in Education Leadership, Planning and Management work

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required

• Solid Knowledge of education sector
• Sound knowledge of the planning and policy making processes in the public sector or government
• Ability to engage and work with a variety of stakeholders (government, development partners, civil society)
• Good oral and written communication skills in English, with good report writing skills
• Analytical, with good computer and data analysis skills
• Proven experience of similar work done
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to support multi-disciplinary teams in a multi- cultural environment

Languages: Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of main local languages (Shona and Ndebele) is an asset.

The detailed consultancy terms of reference is downloadable via this link ToR Individual Consultant Rapid Analysis of the ESSP 2021-2025-Rev 1.pdf

If interested and available to undertake the individual consultancy, please submit your application online and attach the required documents including the technical proposal and an all-inclusive financial proposal incorporating an approximate number of travel days for field (local) travel.

Technical proposal: The Technical Proposal should articulate an understanding of the TOR and include the proposed Tasks/Milestones, Deliverables/Outputs, Timeline and level of effort by deliverable. The similar table provided in the TOR is indicative. Applicants may use the indicative table as a guide or deviate as per the proposed approach. The proposal should also cost-effectively propose the local travel proposed by the applicant to undertake the assignment.

Financial proposal: The Financial Proposal should include the costs (providing a daily rate as justification) for each task, including consultant fee, proposed travel costs and perdiem, communications costs and any other proposed cost.

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.

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Potential interview questions

Added 2 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unicef.org