Re-Advertisement: National communication consultant to provide technical support to Communication and Health Sections in the implementation of demand generation activities for COVID-19 vacci

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.

Background

In January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). The outbreak has infected millions of people across the world and caused significant loss of lives. To protect people from the disease, vaccines against COVID-19 have been developed by several manufacturers in several countries.

Starting from 1 April 2021, the Government of Uzbekistan has rolled out COVID-19 vaccination in several stages with a focus on several priority groups (population above the age of 65, population with chronic diseases, health workers, teachers, etc.). Based on the Public Communication and Demand Generation Plan, a number of interventions and activities appropriate for these stages have been conducted. In June 2021, the group of eligible population to be covered with COVID-19 vaccination was extended to include the adults aged 18 and above, as well as voluntary Pfizer-BioNTech vaccination of children aged 12 and above.

In 2022, UNICEF, WHO and the Service on epidemiological wellbeing are planning to scale up the COVID-19 vaccination promotion to reach higher coverage with vaccination. In this regard, communication consultant services are needed to coordinate the implementation of the planned activities for demand generation for COVID-19.

Objectives

Under the direct supervision of C4D Officer and overall guidance of the Communication and Health sections Chiefs the consultant will be responsible for the implementation of activities on COVID-19 vaccines promotion, including:

Evidence-based communication for the public:

• Lead and manage UNICEF support to the scale-up of the “I am vaccinated” nationwide campaign, including in the social media and community engagement, in close collaboration with the MoH, Service on epidemiological wellbeing.
• Coordinate the engagement and guide the support of the creative team to support the scale-up of the “I am vaccinated” campaign to provide evidence-based information on COVID-19 vaccination, address rumors and misinformation identified through social media monitoring exercises, answer the populations’ COVID-19 related questions and build public trust to the national COVID-19 vaccination programme.
• Coordinate the organization of the pre-test of communication materials proposed by the creative team.
• Develop the influencer engagement plan and coordinate and manage the launch of social mobilization outreach of opinion-makers, influencers, bloggers and young people to promote COVID-19 vaccination.
• Coordinate the strengthening of the Communications Center under MoH to ensure availability evidence-based and up-to-date content on COVID-19 and vaccines, and to serve as one of the primary sources of information for media, health workers and the population in addressing their questions and doubts related to the COVID-19 vaccines.

Community Engagement and Mobilization:

• As part of the community engagement campaign, support community dialogues on COVID-19 and vaccination in each region of the Republic of Uzbekistan with prioritization of remote areas.
• Explore and widen the engagement of relevant stakeholders for the wider coverage of the population with community consultations.
• Coordinate the development of public service announcements (PSAs) for the promotion of COVID-19 vaccination, including with engagement of prominent community leaders.
• Lead the engagement of local theaters and other creative teams for promotion of COVID-19 vaccination.

Programme M&E:

• Coordinate the development of programme M&E framework and its implementation.

Timeline & Deliverables

Start day of the assignment: 1 January 2022

End day of the assignment: 30 November 2022

Management

The consultant will work under the supervision of C4D Officer, and overall guidance from Chiefs of Communication and Health sections.

Resource requirements and payments

UCO will offer a monthly fee based on acceptable deliverables. The contract will be issued for 11 months in 2022.

The Consultant will be paid on a monthly based on deliverables upon submission of her/his report and subject to certification by the Supervisor, based on the monthly work-plan, outlining the expected work outputs agreed in the beginning of the reporting period.

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

• Advanced university degree in communications, media, journalism, digital engagement or a related field
• At least 3 years of progressive professional experience in communications with strong community and digital engagement focus
• Work experience on public communication issues in the field of public health, ideally Immunization is an asset.
• Good command of Uzbek and Russian, knowledge of English is an asset

Procedures and Working Conditions

Consultant is expected to work from home and expected to participate at all required meetings online. The applicants shall be required to submit a statement of good health prior of commencement of work and to take full responsibility for the accuracy of that statement. Consultants are not eligible to participate in the life or health insurance available to UN staff members.

Reservations

UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if deliverable(s) incomplete, not finalized or for failure to meet deadlines. UNICEF will reserve copyright of all developed materials and own primary data collected through this assignment. The materials cannot be published or disseminated without prior written permission of UNICEF. UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify them in the future. The contractor must respect the confidentiality of the information handled during the assignment. Documents and information provided must be used only for the tasks related to these terms of reference.

UNICEF undertakes no liability for taxes, duty or other contribution payable by the consultant on payments made under this contract.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA).

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

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:

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

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.