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, reimagine the future.

How can you make a difference? 

The Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) oversees UNICEF's operations in 21 countries¹ ESARO provides technical support, policy guidance, and leadership to the UNICEF country offices in the region. UNICEF's work in Eastern and Southern Africa is guided by its Strategic Plan and the 2022-25 Regional Office Management Plan which focusses five key priority areas: (1) enabling children to survive and thrive,

(2) reducing stunting, (3) improving education quality, (4) supporting adolescent development, protection, and participation, and (5) scaling up social protection interventions to reduce child poverty. In order to sustain programme effectiveness and the achievement of impactful results, ESAR Country Offices are supported to accelerate the advancement of Child Rights through strategies that transform gender and social norms, build an evidence-base and its use in advocacy, promote partnerships, and respond robustly to crises, and regional stakeholders are influenced to advance child rights at scale through normative and intellectual leadership, policy dialogue, evidence-based advocacy and regional partnership.

It is in this context that the 2023 UNICEF Evaluation Policy1 sets out the purpose and use of evaluation, provides definitions, norms and standards and outlines governance arrangements and accountabilities as well as performance standards for the evaluation function. The revisions to the evaluation policy intend to support UNICEF in delivering independent, credible and useful evaluations at the corporate, regional and country levels, delivered in line with United Nations Evaluation Group (UNEG) norms and standards and the coverage norms.

The policy defines evaluation as “an assessment, conducted as systematically and impartially as possible, of an activity, project, programme, strategy, policy, topic, theme, sector, operational area or institutional performance”. All evaluations in UNICEF are supposed to follow the same guiding principles of rigor and transparency and share the same purpose of organizational learning and accountability. UNICEF provides guidance on the format and content of all evaluation terms of reference (ToRs) and reports, and UNEG Norms and Standards are the basis for an independent grading system for all final reports (GEROS)2. UNICEF also contributes to UNDAF evaluations where the overall performance of the UN system is assessed.

The UNICEF Procedure for Ethical Standards in Research, Evaluation and Data Collection and Analysis3 guide UNICEF’s evidence generation activities and to support the integrity of UNICEF’s evidence base to ensure that UNICEF’s programmes, policy and advocacy activities are grounded in ethical principles and practices. All evaluation and research activities in UNICEF involving human subjects or analyzing sensitive secondary data are supposed to follow the ethical standards procedure.

In alignment with ESARO’s Guidance on Evaluation Management and Quality Assurance, ESARO Evaluation is seeking individuals via Long-term Agreements to provide quality reviews of draft Terms of Reference (ToRs), inception reports (IR) and mature draft evaluation reports (DER) against UNICEF’s quality review templates, which reflect the standards provided by the organizational policy and ethical procedures standards. The office is establishing consultancy LTAs in order to promote flexibility and optimal use of resources whilst supporting programming effectiveness and decision making by providing credible and high- standard evidence.

PURPOSE OF ASSIGNMENT

The purpose of this LTA is to provide support to the Quality Assurance process of UNICEF managed evaluations, assisting ESAR Regional Office and Country Offices to ensure that evaluations in the region meet the highest quality and ethical standards. In particular, it will support a more efficient and regionalized production of high-quality evidence that will feed into UNICEF programming and advocacy efforts, supporting the decision-makers to make informed choices and plan strategically. To this end, UNICEF seeks to establish a pool of LTAs with individual consultants to provide professional, practical, timely and constructive feedback on the range of evaluative products that ESA Regional Office and Country Offices manage and commission.

PROGRAMME AREA AND SPECIFIC PROJECT AREA

This LTA relates to ESARO Regional Evaluation Framework, 2023 Evaluation Policy regarding the credibility, quality and coverage of evaluations in the region as well as the 2022-25 ROMP Programme Effectiveness outcome.

Responsibilities of the Consultant

As mentioned in section 4, individual consultants will be expected to review evaluation products by providing constructive comments and rating against each outlined criterion, include specific comments/queries in the document and be available for a 30min follow-up calls in case of needed clarifications. Each evaluation product will be the object of at least one (1) up to three (3) reviews, in case of unsatisfactory rating. Herebelow, a description of major tasks expected from the individual consultants:

1. Review of draft Evaluation ToRs : the consultants will be tasked to review and ensure that ToRs are in line with UNEG standards and are sufficiently exhaustive to i) understand the requested scope of work,

ii) align with the integration of Equity, Gender, Human Rights and Disability inclusion standards and policies.

2. Review of Inception Reports(IR): the consultants will be tasked to review and ensure that they are in line with GEROS and UNEG standards and i) are methodologically sound to enable the evaluation to meet the utilization needs and meet Equity, Gender, Human Rights and Disability inclusion standards ii) are duly taking into account ethical considerations, including child and youth-friendly aspects and ii) are fulfilling basic requirements for ethical approval submission.
3. Review of mature Draft Evaluation Reports (DER) : the consultants will be tasked to review the reports to ensure that they are satisfactorily meeting GEROS requirements and any other corporate requirements (such as the report structure, the branding, etc..) and suggest any improvements to ensure that the best achievable rating can be obtained, whilst meeting the initial evaluation objectives ( in terms of content and information needs)

Responsibilities of UNICEF

UNICEF will ensure supervision of consultants through a minimum of two calls per year to identify any need for improvements and communicate any intervening adjustments made on templates, as a result of the annual analysis or any organizational changes resulting from the 2023 Evaluation Policy and Global Evaluation Report Oversight System (GEROS).

UNICEF will share all necessary guidelines, documentation and templates to support the consultants in their Quality Assurance duties.

DELIVERABLES

• • Completed Review Matrix for Terms of Reference (up to a maximum of three reviews per evaluation)
  • Completed Review Matrix for Inception Reports (up to a maximum of three reviews per evaluation)
  • Completed Review Matrix for Draft Evaluation Reports (up to a maximum of three reviews per evaluation)

For ESARO, the total number of evaluation products to be reviewed for this LTA is expected to be consistent with the total number of evaluations that are planned each year – approximately 20 evaluations (each requiring a minimum of one review and a maximum of three reviews) per year. This will be shared across the roster of consultants participating in the LTA.

Noting that other UNICEF offices will also have access to the facility and may establish their own contracts against the regional LTAs, this will trigger a higher number of reviews per consultant.

The LTA holder will carry out reviews in a maximum of three (3) working days for a ToR, and a maximum of five (5) working days for an inception or mature draft report and send it to the requester, copying the designated ESA Regional Focal Point as the contract manager. CO or RO Requester may request an optional 30-minute follow-up meeting in order to discuss and clarify the nature of comments shared by the reviewer, as needed.

The duration of the LTA is 36 months from the LTA agreement date (expected to be in March/April 2025). The selected consultants will work remotely, using their own equipment.

LTA holders are required to meet the following requirements:

• • Advanced university degree (Master’s) in Evaluation, or another discipline relevant to the work of UNICEF with strong background in evaluation.

• • Eight years or more of experience in managing, designing and/or implementing evaluation and research projects with/for UN agencies (particularly with UNICEF) or other international partners,

1. covering a wide range of qualitative, quantitative and mixed methods and/or
2. covering experimental, quasi- and non-experimental evaluation designs, using participatory, case study, longitudinal as well as rapid approaches. Experience with impact evaluations is considered as an advantage.
   • At least 3 years’ experience and capacity in providing quality and/ or oversight of evaluation and research processes and outputs such as ToRs, as well as inception and mature draft reports, preferably with UN agencies. This is a requirement.
   • Core expertise and a deep understanding of evaluation quality and ethical issues in UNICEF areas of interventions, and more particularly for evaluations involving children, adolescents and youth as well vulnerable groups of population, including people living with disabilities.
   • A proven track record in specific sectoral areas of interest to the UNICEF Mandate (child protection, HIV- AIDS, education, health, nutrition, water and sanitation, social inclusion, adolescence, social policy, Communication for Development, climate change, innovations, gender equality) within development and humanitarian contexts.
   • Familiarity with UN agencies’ evaluation quality and ethical standards for ToRs, Inception reports and evaluation reports. Experience with applying UNICEF Quality Standards will be an added advantage.

• • Must exhibit the UNICEF Core Values of: i) Care, ii) Respect, iii) Integrity, iv) Trust, v) Accountability and vi) Sustainability

Competencies

While all personnel working within UNICEF should ensure they uphold the organization’s competency framework, the below competencies are key for success in this LTA:

Demonstrates Self-Awareness and Ethical Awareness (Level 1): Self-aware of own strengths, limitations, working style and deeply held convictions and biases. Displays ethical awareness through behaviours that are consistent and compliant with the standards of conduct for international civil servants, UNICEF’s values and relevant UNICEF policies and procedures

Drive to achieve results for Impact (Level 1): Commits to action and assumes responsibility and ownership for own performance and the associated outcomes.

Thinks and Acts Strategically (Level 1): Understands the big picture and is able to identify potential opportunities for action and challenges that exist. Forms sound evidence-based judgements in the delivery of UNICEF’s results.

Languages

Full professional proficiency (analytical, written and editorial) is required in English and/or French. Advanced proficiency in Portuguese will be considered an advantage.

The application to be submitted through the online portal should contain the following five (5) separate components:

1. A cover letter highlighting the bidder’s understanding of the assignment, his/her/their proven track record in similar type of work, as well as the type of evaluations (see section 3) and the sectoral areas of interest to UNICEF (as per requirement) that individual bidders apply to.
2. A detailed profile/CV listing relevant evaluation experience and qualifications, including any experience in applying/addressing ethical and quality issues in evaluations.
3. An example of an evaluation or research report written or QAed by the individual bidder.
4. Two recommendation letters and/or performance evaluation reports related to similar prior work (to be uploaded under other supporting documents).

5. A financial proposal indicating professional fee (expressed as a flat rate per type of deliverable) as per the above template (to be uploaded under other supporting documents).  Financial Proposal Template _LTA QA Consultants.docx

Without all the above five (5) components your application will be considered incomplete and invalid and will not be considered.

Additional Important Considerations for Applicants:

1. 1. Any attempt to unduly influence UNICEF’s selection process will lead to automatic disqualification of the applicant.
   2. Joint applications of two or more individuals are not accepted.
   3. Please note, UNICEF does not charge any fee during any stage of the process.
   4. Female candidates meeting the requirements are strongly encouraged to apply.
   5. UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion and encourages qualified candidates from all backgrounds including persons living with disabilities to apply.

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 committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic background, and persons with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. To create a more inclusive workplace, UNICEF offers paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. Click here to learn more about flexible work arrangements, well-being, and benefits.

According to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), persons with disabilities include those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual, or sensory impairments which, in interaction with various barriers, may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. In its Disability Inclusion Policy and Strategy 2022-2030, UNICEF has committed to increase the number of employees with disabilities by 2030. At UNICEF, we provide reasonable accommodation for work-related support requirements of candidates and employees with disabilities. Also, UNICEF has launched a Global Accessibility Helpdesk to strengthen physical and digital accessibility. If you are an applicant with a disability who needs digital accessibility support in completing the online application, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). 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 based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

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. 

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.