National Consultant for the Development of Faecal Sludge Management Strategy and Operative Guidelines for Bauchi State and a Phased Strategy towards SMS, ODF-S Framework & Plans and Protocol

Contract

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In Nigeria, UNICEF works in a complex humanitarian and development setting to fulfill and protect children's rights in partnership with government, civil society, children, and families. UNICEF Nigeria is one of the largest UNICEF Country Offices globally - click the link to learn more about UNICEF in Nigeria: https://www.unicef.org/nigeria/.

Organizational Context and Purpose for the job

The government of Nigeria (GoN) has been implementing the Clean Nigeria: Use the Toilet campaign (CNC) since its launch in November 2019, with a vision to make Nigeria open defecation free in alignment with the National Open Defecation Free (ODF) Roadmap and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 6.2. The CNC and the ODF Roadmap have a strong focus on collective behaviour change towards LGA-wide ODF with the aim of achieving state-wide ODF across the 36 states and FCT.

Bauchi State

In Bauchi state, Local Government Areas (LGAs) including Dass and Warji were among the first LGAs to become ODF in Nigeria. Despite this success, since 2017, the need for adequate emptying, transport and treatment of sludge has grown. With a substantial number of household sanitation infrastructure, especially for low income densely populated settlement towns, being pit latrines, these needs are thus commonly met by manual pit latrine emptiers and other unregulated actors in the sanitation service provision sector.

However, the practice of manual pit latrine emptying is surrounded by many challenges including poor regulation; little clarity on institutional roles and responsibilities; high costs borne by poor household; unplanned desludging operations; indiscriminate disposal of the faecal sludge in an unauthorized place such as water bodies and drainage systems and solid waste collection centres; and lack of options and opportunities for productive use of faecal sludge. Lack of professionalism coupled with unskilled manpower in faecal sludge management has led to the re-occurring challenges in the sector.

The situation is likely to deteriorate as the state continues to urbanize and more LGAs become ODF as a result of the National drive for ODF under the CNC. The challenges in faecal sludge management as well as the entire sanitation sector necessitate the immediate needs for all the relevant stakeholders in the sector to develop a workable and sustainable Strategy and Operative Guidelines that will help guide the government on critical actions to develop and regulate the FSM value chain sector beyond household containment. With up to 99,500 litres of faecal sludge generated each day by Bauchi state residents and

99% being unsafely managed, there is a need for effective management and treatment of faecal sludge to protect public health and the environment.

Jigawa State:

Jigawa is the first state in Nigeria to have all its LGAs become ODF as of October 2022, thereby achieving state-wide ODF and becoming the role model for other states in the country to learn from, replicate, and adopt. However, reaching the ODF status is the beginning of the journey. The state is working towards sustaining open defecation-free status with relevant programming in areas of ODF sustainability and sustainable total sanitation which requires more investments supported by the adequate enabling environment, proper government structures and financial investment in both hardware and software to sustain gains made in ODF, reach new households (including those left behind); address slippage; ensure the use and maintenance of sanitation and handwashing facilities at household, institutions, and public places; ensure sanitation coverage in institutions and public places; and ultimately ensure households progressively move up the sanitation ladder from unimproved to basic sanitation service , and faecal sludge is safely and effectively managed. Going forward, the following becomes important.

• Plugging the gaps in access to sanitation that remain

• Sustaining the gains of ODF

• Moving up the sanitation ladder towards safely managed sanitation services

• Addressing the entire sanitation service chain

• Shifting the sanitation program towards climate-resilient services

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

UNICEF is seeking to recruit a National Consultant who will support two International Consultants in:

• Developing a Climate-Resilient, Faecal Sludge Management Strategy and Operative Guideline for Bauchi state. This will frame the set of procedures to address the issue of faecal sludge management, guide stakeholders on how to effectively implement FSM and ensure effective compliance with national guidelines and standards at the national and state level for FSM. The document will also include protocols for FSM, as well as articulation of institutional and regulatory frameworks, technical/operational guidelines, standard operating procedures, and estimated investments needed for FSM and applicable to all stakeholders engaged in FSM in Bauchi. This activity will serve as a model for states like Jigawa currently moving beyond ODF towards safely managed sanitation services, as well as the National level to replicate. In addition, learning from the Bauchi state FSM Strategy and evidence generated through state-level data assessments for SMS will be used to feed into the National Sanitation Policy currently under review. In line with the UNICEF shift towards climate-resilient WASH services, the FSM strategy is expected to consider climate change mitigation and adaptation throughout all components of the strategy.

• Developing:

a. A climate-resilient Phased Strategy for Jigawa state to move towards safely managed sanitation (SMS) services with accompanying implementation, financing and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plans to guide state-level implementation. As a first step in enabling communities, LGAs and states sustain the gains made in eliminating open defecation (Phase 1) and move from unimproved to improved and eventually safely managed sanitation, the phased approach will include priority strategies and incremental actions needed to achieve climate-resilient basic sanitation (Phase 2) and then safely managed sanitation (Phase 3), in line with the SDG 6.2. This will require framing of key requisite interventions to be prioritized by the state to support the population to progressively achieve SMS.

b. An ODF Sustainability (ODF-S) Framework which will provide the overall guidance on how the state-wide ODF shall be sustained with key components on how to address slippage, reaching households left behind, ensuring functionality, and covering gaps, social and behaviour change communication, and other innovative approaches to sustaining change and moving households towards safely managed sanitation services.

c. Accompanying protocols to be integrated into existing national protocols for sanitation and hygiene. To help monitor, certify, and validate communities on their actions towards sustaining ODF and moving up the sanitation ladder incrementally, the consultancy will develop protocols for the strategy which will be integrated into the National ODF Protocol (adopted September 2022) or other relevant protocols at the national level.

The Strategy and Framework would clearly identify the critical components (both software and hardware) and enabling factors for ODF sustainability and movement up the sanitation ladder towards safely managed sanitation services in both a state-wide and LGA-wide context. These will include key components such as ODF sustainability actions; expansion of access to sanitation in public institutions and places, accelerating and increasing the number of households constructing improved toilets; access to hand hygiene for all; and key components of faecal sludge management are addressed including open dumping of untreated faecal sludge. The implementation plan will also identify immediate, mid-term and long-term activities, the level at which the activity will be implemented as well as the stakeholders responsible for these activities and their roles.

Given the UNICEF shift towards climate-resilient WASH services, the strategy and framework must integrate mitigation and adaptation to climate change in all aspects of the strategy and framework.

Key responsibilities:

The National Consultant will support the International Consultant with specific local knowledge of sanitation issues and legislation/strategies/policies and institutional frameworks/dynamics in Nigeria. The National Consultant is expected to closely collaborate with the International Consultants, Federal and State Ministries of Water Resources, Ministries of Environment, WASH institutional mechanisms, line ministries, departments and agencies, and other relevant stakeholders involved in sanitation and report to the UNICEF WASH Manager.

With guidance from the WASH Manager, in close collaboration with sector stakeholders, and in close coordination with and under the guidance of the International Consultants, the following are the key assignments of the consultancy:

1. Inception report detailing the approach to the assignment and associated timelines for completion, in consultation with the supervisor and other WASH section staff.

2. Conduct multi-level stakeholder consultations, desk reviews, secondary research and analysis of policies, strategies, capacity building tools, legislative and regulatory framework, and informant interviews and discussions to establish quality, local and contextualized and common understanding of safely managed sanitation, faecal sludge management and ODF sustainability issues, and the policy, institutional, legal, regulatory environments.

3. Prepare and provide quality, contextualized inputs to support the development of (1) climate-resilient Faecal Sludge Management Strategy and Operative Guideline for Bauchi state, (2) A climate-resilient Phased Strategy for Jigawa state to move towards safely managed sanitation (SMS) services with accompanying ODF Sustainability (ODF-S) Framework for sustaining ODF, (3) Protocols, implementation, financing and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plans for the ODF-S Framework and Phased Strategy. This will include providing inputs to the methodology, approach, and tools for developing the strategy documents and all supporting documents and learning products to support adaptation and replication of the process by other states.

4. Carry out capacity assessment of Jigawa and Bauchi state government staff, private sector and community structures and recommend areas that require capacity strengthening to implement the Climate-resilient FSM Strategy and operative Guidelines with Institutional and Regulatory Framework and estimated Investment needs and the Phased Strategy towards SMS, ODF-S Framework & Plans and Protocols.

5. Develop the orientation modules for the Climate-resilient FSM Strategy and operative Guidelines with Institutional and Regulatory Framework and estimated Investment needs and the Phased Strategy towards SMS, ODF-S Framework & Plans and Protocols for different levels of relevant government staff.

6. Produce Technical guidelines to support the adaptation and replication of both processes by other states.

7. Produce a consultancy report, which will also be used for sharing information on project activities, results, pictures, and lessons learned with a wide variety of audiences, from beneficiaries to high-level decision-makers.

Throughout the assignment, the National Consultant is expected to:

• Keep continuous contact, engage with, and provide language support to the International Consultant

• Maintain communication and good working relations with stakeholders, serving as a liaison and facilitating consultations between the International Consultants and stakeholders.

• Organize briefings with the UNICEF WASH manager to provide status updates and reports.

• Consultant will be required to have and utilize their own IT and Communications equipment.

• While the consultant will be managed by and report to the Abuja office, they are expected to be based in Bauchi or Jigawa state for the duration of the assignment

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

Education:

A university degree in public health, social sciences, social and behaviour change communication, sanitation and water supply engineering, or other specialist field related to WASH is required. An advanced degree or other post-graduate qualification will be an added advantage.

Experience:

The Consultant will work with an international external specialist to carry out the deliverables. The Consultant shall have a minimum of 5 years’ experience in national and sub-national work in the sanitation sub-sector with skills in rural and urban sanitation promotion work, including faecal sludge management strategies and technologies. The following are also key qualifications required:

• Experience developing sanitation strategies and guidelines.

• Experience with facilitation, research, and consultations.

• Proven knowledge and understanding of the national and state level policy, institutional, regulatory, and legal frameworks for sanitation.

• Evidence of solid knowledge of stakeholders in the country, in particular national institutions, ministries, departments, and agencies in the WASH sector.

• Experience working on climate-resilient sanitation services.

• Understanding of the Clean Nigeria Campaign and ODF roadmap.

• S/he should also have solid writing skills in English language.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English (verbal and written) is required. Fluency in Hausa language is an asset and an added advantage.

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 for ensuring 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.

Please submit your all-inclusive financial and technical proposal along with the application. Application without these will not be entertained.