National Individual Contractor focusing on Strengthening Community Based Child Protection System, Kigali, 11.5 months (For Rwandan Only)

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, Protection

How can you make a difference?

Background

The Government of Rwanda is strongly committed to ensuring that all children can achieve their full potential in a safe and protective environment. However, the level of violence, abuse, exploitation and neglect among children and adolescents in Rwanda remains a concern. Despite violence being often under-reported, figures from the National Violence Against Children and Youth Study (2015/16) show that 42% of boys and 26% of girls aged 13-17 have been victims of physical violence, while 12% of girls and 5% of boys aged 13-17 reported exposure to sexual violence. The Early Childhood Development and Family (ECD&F) Baseline Evaluation (MIGEPROF/NISR, 2015) also indicates that 49.3% of children, sometimes very young, were exposed to violent discipline in the month preceding the study.

Recognizing much more needed investment on prevention mechanisms at the community level to effectively reduce violence against children, since 2014, the Government of Rwanda, with support from UNICEF and other partners have been establishing and strengthening a child protection system, available at all levels, to prevent, identify and respond to child protection violations. The community-based component of the child protection system includes actors responsible for child protection such as the cadre of community-based child and family protection volunteers known as Friends of the Family or Inshuti Z’Umuryango (IZU). IZU are para-professional volunteers selected by their own communities and are responsible for assisting in the protection of all children, they play a major safeguarding and service support role through conducting home visits, providing direct support to children and families, mobilizing communities for positive behavior change and referring cases of abuse to the appropriate social services. The IZU also support the inclusion of all children into the child protection system, including refugee children and children with disabilities. Fully owned by the Government of Rwanda through the National Commission for Children (NCC), the IZU structure forms an integral part of the national child protection system. To date, there are 29,674 IZU, one male and one female per village, in every village of 30 districts elected by their own communities. The IZU are embedded within the community-based child protection system, accountable to local structures, Child Protection and Welfare officers at the district level and NCC at the national level. UNICEF currently supports a number of different programmes focusing on operationalizing IZU as part of the community-based child protection system.

Justification

Considering the scale of the Programme, and the need to strengthen the community-based child protection system, there is a need to have a dedicated person to manage and coordinate all community-based child protection initiatives within UNICEF Rwanda. This person will be responding directly to Output 2 on child protection service delivery.

Objectives

The overall objective of the consultancy is to manage and coordinate UNICEF’s partnerships and support to community-based child protection programmes. Specific objectives are as following: a) Support the strengthening of the community-based child protection system nationally and support linkages with statutory services b) Support the inclusion of refugee children and children with disabilities into community child protection programmes. c) Support improved community child protection monitoring.

Work Assignment

The following are expected tasks during the assignment:

1. Support to programme development and planning together with child protection specialist and other members of the child protection team. 2. Provide project management of specific partnerships and contracts implementing community-based child protection programmes. 3. Provide ongoing programme management and monitoring of community-based child protection programmes. 4. Provide technical and operational support to programme implementation and monitoring of community-based child protection programmes. 5. Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with government counterparts and implementing partners through active sharing of knowledge and information. 6. Support knowledge management and capacity building of community-based child protection programmes and systems.

Deliverables

1. A detailed annual and quarterly work plan with activities clearly linked to each agreed task and result; submitted to UNICEF at the beginning of the consultancy; 2. Monthly workplans detailing concrete planned activities and outputs to be achieved submitted; 3. A monthly progress reports submitted based on previous months’ planned activities, detailing concrete activities and outputs of support provided to the community-based child protection programme, including challenges, lessons learned and recommendations . 4. A final report submitted , no later than 20 days before the end of the consultancy, summarizing the activities, outputs and results, challenges and lessons learned, as well as recommendations for the further implementation of the community-based child protection programme.

Evaluation Criteria

The best candidate will be evaluated and selected based on the best fit on most of the qualifications outlines above. The most suitable candidates may be invited for an oral or written interview or both.

The Technical proposal is weighted at 70% and 30% for the Financial proposal.

Please note that the final remuneration will be negotiated by HR.

Payment Schedule

Payment will be made monthly upon receipt of a monthly progress report highlighting the achievements of the agreed deliverables. The payment will be the agreed monthly rate at a middle level consultancy.

General Conditions: Procedures & Logistics

• Under the consultancy agreements, a month is defined as 22 working days. • The contractors are not entitled to payment of overtime. All remuneration must be within the contract agreement. • No work may commence unless the contract is signed by both UNICEF and the consultant or Contractor. • The contractor shall not make use of any unpublished or confidential information, made known in the course of performing duties under the terms of this agreement, without written authorization from UNICEF. The products of this assignment are not the property of the contractor and cannot be shared without the permission of UNICEF

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

Academic qualifications: • University degree in Social Sciences (Sociology, Psychology and Social Work), Development Studies, Community Development or Project Management. An advanced degree in the above fields is an added advantage.

Employment experience: • At least 3 years of relevant professional work experience in child protection, preferably at community support level. Experience in coordination and management of social work interventions, as well as in capacity-building is an asset. • Experience in a multi-sectoral management, project and partnership management as well as practical experience of community development. • Sound understanding and past working experience of participatory community principles and practices. • Experience in working with Local Government, (I)NGOs or Development Partners is required.

Language skills: • Fluency in English and Kinyarwanda. Knowledge of French would be an asset.

Skills and abilities: • In depth knowledge of social service workforces and welfare and protection systems in Rwanda. • Excellent writing skills, strong planning, organizational and analytical skills, computer skills and interpersonal communication skills; • Ability to work with Government Officials at national and decentralized levels as well as with international and national development partners

How to Apply

UNICEF is committed to gender equality in its mandate and its staff. Well qualified candidates, particularly females are strongly encouraged to apply.

Interested candidates should send their complete Personal History (P11) form, which can be downloaded form (http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/P11.doc).) or a CV/resume, as well as a cover letter explaining what makes them suitable for this consultancy. The application package should be submitted to UNICEF’s online recruitment system.

Qualified and experienced candidates are requested to submit a letter of interest including a Technical Proposal outlining a road map for review and implementation timeline. In their letter of interest, candidates should highlight their previous work experience relevant to the assignment, the attributes that make them suitable, their proposed approach to the assignment.

Only successful candidates from the technical evaluation exercise will be contacted and requested to submit their most competitive Financial Proposal.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The functional competencies required for this post are...

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

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.