National Intern for Health and Nutrition Section, 6 months, Dushanbe, Tajikistan (for Tajik nationals only) - deadline extended

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, Health

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Tajikistan is grappling with the triple burden of malnutrition. 18% of children 0-5 years are stunted, 6% are wasted, and another 3% overweight. More than one in two are identified with iron deficiency with 42% of them anemic. Over one in three of them are vitamin A deficient. Adolescent girls and women aged 15-49 years face high rates of anemia (42%) and vitamin A deficiency (47%), while 7% and 37% of them are underweight and overweight/obese, respectively. Importantly, while the current prevalence of overweight among children under five is low, young children who are stunted or wasted and gain weight rapidly in the first two years are more likely to become obese and suffer from non-communicable diseases later in life.

Poor diets and care practices are major determinants of malnutrition. Only 36% of mothers in Tajikistan breastfeed their children exclusively for the first six months, a significant decrease from 50% in 2003. Almost half of mothers start giving their children complementary food too early between four and six months. Only 63% of the children are introduced to complementary foods at an appropriate age, and only 9% of them receive the minimum acceptable diets in terms of food diversity and meal frequency. Similarly, poor diets of pregnant and lactating women characterized by high consumption of carbohydrates, oil and sugar, with low consumption of fruits and vegetables rich in vitamin A put not only themselves at risk of micronutrient deficiencies and overweight and obesity but also their foetus’ health through poor nutrition and pregnancy complications. Climate change, seasonal fluctuations in agricultural production and incomes, dependence on imported foods and price fluxes are all factors in Tajikistan which affect the availability, accessibility and affordability of adequately diverse diets, especially for growing children and pregnant and lactating women. Lack of knowledge and awareness about age-appropriate, adequate, diverse and nutritious diets result in poor Infant and Young Child Feeding practices and dietary patterns, and suboptimal management of childhood illnesses, lack of quality, equitable nutrition services and counselling, inadequate access to safe and clean water, and poor hygiene and sanitation practices further impede improvements to nutrition outcomes for women and children.

Malnutrition seriously hampers the chances of Tajikistan’s children for a better and productive future. Undernutrition and micronutrient deficiencies not only pose higher risk of morbidity and mortality and undermines physical growth and cognitive development in children but also affects academic performance, productivity and earning capacity. Overweight and obesity is associated with negative psychological effects due to stigma around body image and self-efficacy and with higher risk of nutrition-related chronic diseases. Collectively, malnourished population puts burden on the national health expenditure and slows down the national economic growth and development.

How can you make a difference?

The intern will be responsible for providing support to the Nutrition team with knowledge management and programme implementation and other day to day administrative/operational matters guided by the Nutrition Officer and working closely with relevant colleagues in the Health and Nutrition section as well as other sections in UNICEF, such as the Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (PME) section. The intern’s contribution will help ensure all key documents and records are in place all nutrition activities properly monitored.

The intern reports to the Nutrition Officer and provides support in knowledge management and programme implementation for the nutrition programme of the section. The internship will involve conducting field visits to monitor programme activities with sub-national health authorities, at health facilities and communities as well as organizing meetings and events related to the programme.

DUTY STATION/DURATION:

Duration: 6 months (May 2023 - October 2023)

Duty station: Dushanbe, Tajikistan

Supervisor: Nutrition Officer

Reporting to: Nutrition Officer

KEY DELIVERABLES:

• Support knowledge management for the nutrition programme, including entering data and information into Activity Info and data visualization in Power BI in collaboration with the PME section and documentation of programme related materials in the most suitable formats and platforms as required by the Nutrition team;

• Support the Health and Nutrition section with programme implementation, including preparing training activities, monitoring of activities under the Health and Nutrition workplan, following up on action points from programmatic visits, review of data submission by partners, documentation of programme activities and data collection in collaboration with republican centers implementing health, nutrition and ECD programmes;

• Support with day-to day administrative and operational tasks of the Health and Nutrition section;

• Help to organize meetings including taking responsibility for the finalization of meeting agenda, invitations, the production and distribution of documentation, and preparation of minutes of meetings; distribute meeting reports and information; and ensure follow-up on required actions;

• Helps in translation and editing of documents required for the section;

• Support development of a repository of approved nutrition-related policies, guidelines, protocols and programmes and SBC materials in the Nutrition folder of UNICEF SharePoint

• Any other task as required for the Health and Nutrition section.

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

• Be enrolled in advanced degree programme or be a recent graduate in the area of Nutrition, Public Health, Public Health Nutrition, Medicine, Social Science, Development Studies, Health Policy Management, or other relevant fields;
• Be proficient in English, Russian and Tajik languages;
• Have strong academic performance as demonstrated by recent university or institution records or, if not available, a reference letter from an academic supervisor;
• Good organization, analytical and communication skills;
• Possess high sense of responsibility, judgment, initiative, tact and discretion;
• Previous experience as a volunteer, demonstrated leadership /intern in INGOs or UN is considered an advantage;
• Demonstrated cultural sensitivity and ability to establish harmonious working relations in a multicultural environment;
• Good computer skills and management of work using online platforms; and
• Experience working with statistical software such as STATA or SPSS and online platforms such as Activity Info and Power BI would be an asset

Qualified candidates are requested to submit:

1. Cover letter, application and CV.

2. Proof of enrolment in degree programme in graduate school or if a recent graduate copy of degree/diploma.

3. University or institution records showing strong academic performance or reference letter from an academic supervisor.

4. At least two references;

Applications must be received in the system by May 18, 2023 on our website.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are... (1) Builds and maintains partnerships(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness(3)Drive to achieve results for impact(4)Innovates and embraces change(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity(6)Thinks and acts strategically(7)Works collaboratively with others.

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework 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. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. 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 is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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:

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.