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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, Commitment!

Pakistan was the sixth country in the world to sign and ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, less than one year after it was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. However, children and adolescents living in Pakistan still face acute challenges. 

UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan to accelerate progress for children, work to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and help children realize their rights under the Convention on the Rights of Children. This will be made through, among others things, strong partnerships with provincial authorities, teachers and health professionals, frontline workers and social mobilizers, communities and families, and of course, the children and adolescents themselves. 

In particular, UNICEF will work so that:

• Every child survives and thrives -- being in good health, immunized, protected from polio, and accessing nutritious food.
• Every child learns.
• Every child is protected from violence and exploitation and registered at birth.
• Every child lives in a safe and clean environment, with access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. 

To learn more about UNICEF work in Pakistan, please visit the country website, www.unicef.org/pakistan, and videos on YouTube and Vimeo.

Scope of Work

Adolescents are given special attention through the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). In Article 1 of the Convention "child" is defined as a person below the age of 18, unless the laws of a particular country set the legal age for adulthood lower. So, focusing on adolescents provides specific opportunities for advocacy and partnerships around the CRC. Adolescence is the time when neurological and physical growth is rapid and there is the onset of puberty and sexual maturity. It represents an important second window of opportunity to address childhood poverty, trauma, and lack of personal development. Caring families, conducive policies, and need based service provision is an important part of harnessing adolescent development potential.

UNICEF considers adolescent development as part of the life cycle approach to human development, especially for girls. In recent years UNICEF has also conceptually extended the age range for adolescence from 10 to 19 years to 24 years to emphasize neurological, physical, individual, and social development continues to age 24. UNICEF has been investing in programming with and for adolescents through engagement and service delivery in health, nutrition, education, child protection, WASH and social protection. The Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) agenda upholds adolescent-centric programming as reflected in UNICEF’s Second Decade Guidance, the Engaged and Heard Guidance and IASC Guidance for Working with and for Young People and various other policy mandates for investment and advocacy for adolescent related policies and programmes and adolescent engagement and participation. ADAP’s primary focus is putting adolescents at the centre of holistic, multi-sectoral programming for and with them, with their participation at the centre.

UNICEF Pakistan in its 2023-2027 Country Programme includes a greater focus on adolescent ADAP. Building on work done during the previous Country Programme in different sectors to develop adolescent related evidence, policies and programmes, the aim is to develop and implement cross sectoral ADAP programming with education/ALPs as entry point in collaboration with other sectors focusing on disadvantaged areas. The key step is to develop an ADAP strategy for UNICEF Pakistan.  

Main Task/Milestones:

• Support in refining the methodology and workplan with local context. Provide insights and data as necessary on national youth policies and frameworks to facilitate analysis of cross sectoral priorities and develop a sound institutional strategy on Second decade – adolescent development and Participation (ADAP)
• Based on the second decade- ADAP goal and priorities conduct situation analysis by identifying local constraints, opportunities, and priorities specific to Pakistan in line with the global, regional, and landscape for UNICEF Pakistan, including provincial specificities. 
• Support and co lead stakeholder meetings consultations, including community groups, local NGOs, and direct beneficiaries (if necessary). Facilitate engagement and meetings with stakeholders to identify sectoral priorities and gaps in the policy and programmatic ecosystem (both external and internal level) through stakeholder consultation.
• Research institutional and programmatic support available for adolescents’ development especially in thematic areas including: education, skilling leading to employment, Water Sanitation and Hygiene, protection, social protection, mental and reproductive health, nutrition, health, climate change, entrepreneurship, and civic engagement.  
• Identify opportunities for linkages/synergies with existing cross sectoral initiatives and approaches for adolescents (including Generation Unlimited) as foundations to build on.
• Support in making a costed action plan for the strategy.
• Priorities for ADAP with geographical and programmatic convergence and develop strategies and plans with indicative deliverables, indicators, and tools. For geographical convergence, considering the priority 
• districts of all sections, identify five districts in each province for convergent and integrated approach to ADAP.
• Suggest medium to long term partnerships (across sectors - government, development partners, CSOs/NGOs, and the private sector) to work on diverse issues related to adolescents in a cross-sectoral approach.
• Support in development of four-year strategy and plan with clear deliverables, indicators, outcomes and tools that address the constraints and create the needed support systems and incentives (2024 to 2027) in close collaboration with the international expert including methodology and tools for monitoring and evaluating and clear and measurable deliverables.
• Draft sections of the report related to the national and local context.

Deliverables to be achieved & timeline:

•Document with analysis of desk review and workplan and list of stakeholders to be consulted for strategy (5 working days).  

•Transcription and analysis as a document (25 working days).

For the following deliverables the timeline is 10 working days

• Submit final report with gap analysis and required outputs as outlined in the terms of reference as well as outlined in the workplan prepared in consultation with UNICEF 

• Report with data visualization and clearly articulated key findings.
• PowerPoint - A visually compelling presentation for dissemination with internal and external stakeholders.

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

• An Advanced University degree (Masters) in social science, Education, International Affairs, Economics, Public Policy, or similar field.
• Proven minimum of eight years of professional experience of working on issues related to young people’s (10-24 years) developmental, empowerment and participation needs.
• Extensive experience in quantitative and qualitative data collection and analysis, strategy development and report writing with ability to write in a clear and concise manner is required.
• Previous experience of working on development of institutional strategy is required.
• Ability to work independently and to a clear work plan being directly accountable
• Experience in interacting with and collecting relevant data from different levels of stakeholders
• Knowledge of children with disabilities and relevant guidelines and standards, disability inclusive education, human rights/child rights, gender equality and child protection
• Availability and willingness to provide high quality deliverables and going through various revisions for incorporating feedback and comments
• Fluency in English is required.  Knowledge of another official UN language and/or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.

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:  

• Estimated Duration: 40 working days spread over a period of 50 days.
• Applicants must submit a financial quotation indicating a lump sum fee for the whole assignment (40 working days) as part of the application.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have current health insurance coverage in place.
• 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 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.