National U-Report Project Manager, Astana, Kazakhstan

Contract

This is a Consultancy contract. More about Consultancy contracts.

Duration: from 1 February 2024 to 30 April 2025 Workplace: office-based Modality: full-time

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, a fair chance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=E1xkXZs0cAQ

Background

The UNICEF country programme 2021-2025 implicitly recognizes youth engagement as cross-cutting strategies which prioritize adolescent and youth skills development as underlying requirements for their meaningful participation and empowerment. The overarching and crosscutting goal of UNICEF Kazakhstan is to promote youth engagement in policy advocacy, provide young people with access to online social services, formal and non-formal skills building opportunities and participation platforms, increase national capacities to amplify their voices and be connected, actively engaged, and empowered, and to productively participate in their communities and society. According to renewed national legislation, youth is defined as people from 14 to 35 years old in Kazakhstan. In 2023, there were 6,5 million youth – 31% of the total population, with 62.2% living in urban areas. The gender proportion among youth is distributed evenly among women (48,08%) and men (51,92%). At the beginning of 2023, Kazakhstan’s youth made up about 60% of the country’s workforce. The adoption of the 2023 – 2029 State Youth Policy creates a unique momentum to nurture youth-led civic participation, ensure youth voice is heard in relevant governmental policies’ development and promote youth participation in important health and social issues. Modern conditions for youth development and COVID-19 pandemic consequences have revealed new risks and challenges for the health of the younger generation. Youth are often considered as the recipients of health care and other social services; their voices are often missing from conversations about how to transform the field to better meet their needs and support their lifelong health and well-being. Engagement of youth and creating equitable partnerships with them through digital platforms like U-Report – offers a unique perspective that can help accelerate opportunities to improve the health of the youth and engage them in Global Health Security activities. The U-Report Platform can engage with Youth through different modalities: Polls, Live Chat, Chatbots, Community action. Youth voices collected from U-Report are mainly used to inform UNICEF designs of programs and interventions, its advocacy priorities to the Government and as evidence to support UNICEF strategies in the country. Ministry of information and culture of Kazakhstan has impressed its interest in this social messaging tool and data collection system developed by UNICEF to improve citizen engagement, inform leaders, and foster positive change. Beyond being a powerful tool to connect with young people, U-Report is a timely and critical resource to prove life-saving information and gather real-time feedback from young people in affected areas. In terms of health security, having an extended network of young people connected through U-Report can be instrumental at the onset of an outbreak as well as during emergency response. Considering that young people could positively contribute towards the development of the urban and rural areas they are living in, propose innovative ideas and lead needs-based solutions development and implementation, UNICEF in Kazakhstan has been engaging youth and promoting youth participation giving them the opportunities and supporting them to be strong advocates and activists, particularly on the topics of eco-friendly, mindful and non-violent way of living, climate change, water scarcity, mental wellbeing, online safety etc. To ensure a launch of U-Report and scale up the initiative at national level with a concrete plan to reach into communities, gather relevant information, and use it to empower them to address child and adolescent relevant issues as well as use this information to exert influence on local, regional and national stakeholders, UNICEF Kazakhstan is looking for a National U-Report Project Manager. He/she is also expected to ensure that information collected feeds into UNICEF and the Government of Kazakhstan's’ joint strategic goals, outlined in the current Country Programme Document (CPD 2021-2025) and its relevant strategies.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment

The main objective of the consultancy is to provide technical assistance to UNICEF Country Office in Kazakhstan in launching and managing the U-Report Kazakhstan initiative with a concrete plan to reach into communities, gather relevant information, and use it to empower them to address adolescent and youth relevant health, education, environmental and social issues as well as use this information to exert influence on local, regional and national stakeholders as part of a larger governance and accountability strategy. He/she is also expected to ensure that information collected feeds into Government of Kazakhstan and UNICEF’s the programmatic goals with a specific focus on Global Health Security agenda, online safety, skills, girls empowerment, and climate change.

Scope of Work (U-Report).docx

Work Assignment Overview (U-Report).docx

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… • Education: Project management, social policy, sociology, youth policy, communications, IT or a similar field. • Experience: - At least 4 years of progressive experience in project management, partnership development, social policy, youth engagement and youth outreach - Proven ability to conceptualize, plan and execute ideas as well as to transfer knowledge and skills - Fluency in written and spoken English and Russian, knowledge of Kazakh language will be a strong asset - Knowledge and experience of administering websites and social media accounts will be an asset - Highly developed communication and partnership skills. - Ability to work independently and respond to feedback in a timely and professional manner. - Excellent analytical and organizational skills, attention to detail, and ability to contribute to a team. - Experience of working with civil society partners - Experience with a high-level communications campaign across multiple mediums, with national brand recognition - Experience engaging with political structures, civil society pressure groups, and other channels of national influence - Experience with monitoring and evaluation of large, complex projects with multi partner engagement. - Prior working experience with UN agency is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate… UNICEF’s core values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (https://www.unicef.org/about/unicef-culture)

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Evaluation Criteria A) Technical Evaluation (maximum 75 Points) the technical knowledge, skills, experience and capabilities, required for successful implementation of assignment i.e. specialized skills/knowledge that are not readily available in UNICEF, being proven, tested and demonstrated: • Strong expertise in project management - The consultant should have a proven track record in project management • Experience in planning and conducting communication campaigns - The consultant should demonstrate the ability to conceptualize, plan and execute high-level communications campaign across multiple mediums • Experience working with web-based applications and/or social media accounts - The consultant should have skills in working with web-based applications and/or social media accounts • Understanding and knowledge of polling fundamentals - The consultant should have at least basic skills and understanding of sociological researches with focus on public opinion polls B) Financial Proposal (e.g. maximum of 25 Points)

Remarks: • Completion of the UN/UNICEF mandatory trainings is obligatory upon commencement of the contract. • Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. • All materials developed will remain the copyright of UNICEF and that UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify them in the future. • The Consultant will perform his/her duties in line with UNICEF standards and procedures. • Individuals engaged under a consultancy 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. Consultants 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. • 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. • Costs indicated are estimated. Final rate shall follow the “best value for money” principle, i.e., achieving the desired outcome at the lowest possible fee. Consultants will be asked to stipulate all-inclusive fees, including lump sum travel and subsistence costs, as applicable. • Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant • The financial proposal should include all possible costs related to the implementation of the tasks under the present vacancy announcement including field trips to oblast centers to promote U-Report Kazakhstan and register U-Reporters (at least 7 local 2-day travel in 2024 and at least 3 local 2-day travel in 2025). UNICEF does not provide or arrange health insurance coverage.

• 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.