Working arrangement: Remote with travels 

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, Immunization

How can you make a difference?  

UNICEF’s Immunization Section, Health, Center of Excellence, Global Program Division, is seeking to hire a qualified individual consultant to provide technical and analytical support to the New Vaccine Introduction, Integrated Delivery and Reach Team.

UNICEF, as a key partner in the global immunization agenda, continues to support countries in introducing, scaling up, and sustaining equitable access to new and underutilized vaccines. The organization plays a leading role in vaccine introduction, system strengthening, and delivery optimization, working closely with governments, Gavi, WHO, and other partners.

With the acceleration of Gavi 6.0 strategy implementation and increasing country demand for support in new vaccine introductions (NVIs) and vaccine portfolio optimization, UNICEF provides high-quality, coordinated, and evidence-based global thought leadership and technical assistance to countries. This includes optimizing country vaccine portfolios, guiding investment prioritization, and ensuring readiness and long-term integration into primary health care and health systems strengthening frameworks. In furtherance of this effort, UNICEF would like to contract senior technical experts to carry out the below tasks.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

To provide direct technical expertise to countries on Vaccine Portfolio Optimization and Prioritization (VPOP) processes, ensuring timely, evidence-based assistance to selected Gavi-eligible low- and middle-income countries. The consultants will strengthen the planning, coordination, strategy design, documentation, and deployment of technical assistance for the introduction, optimization, and prioritization of new vaccines, aligned with Gavi’s Country Vaccine Budgets. Notably, the consultant will be responsible for ensuring that VPOP outputs are a key consideration in the National Immunization Strategy (NIS) update or development, and for supporting countries in developing holistic Gavi 6.0 applications to access Gavi support for the 2026-2030 period.

This Terms of Reference (TOR) are prepared to hire five (5) qualified consultants to provide technical expertise to support on Vaccine Portfolio Optimization and Prioritization (VPOP) processes. In addition, this TOR and the hiring process will be used to establish a pre-screened experts’ pool/ roster of consultants who may be engaged on a need basis over the duration of the assignment.

Candidates who meet the required qualifications but are not selected for the initial five positions may be retained on the roster. Pre-screened consultants may be called upon to provide short-term or intermittent technical assistance to Gavi-eligible countries, depending on programmatic needs and availability of resources.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here:  ToR NIS and Holistic Plng Imm.pdf

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

Minimum requirements: (Qualification/Experience/ Knowledge/Expertise/Skills)

• Education: Advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in Public Health, Global Health, Epidemiology, Medicine, or Health Policy and Management.
• Work Experience: Minimum 8 years of professional experience in immunization program design and management, new vaccine introduction, and/or health systems strengthening in LMIC and MIC contexts.

-       Demonstrated experience supporting Gavi-eligible countries on vaccine introduction or related health systems processes.

-       Proven analytical, coordination, and communication skills, with the ability to synthesize complex technical information for decision-           making.

-        Fluency in English (required); French(required), Portuguese, Russian, Arabic, or another UN language (an asset).

For every Child, you demonstrate...

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

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

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.

Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System):

• An up-to-date TMS profile and curriculum vitae (CV)
• Cover letter
• A separate financial proposal:  Financial Proposal xxx2258.docx
• A detailed technical proposal -Applicants are requested to submit a technical proposal outlining their proposed approach to delivering the assignment, including an overview of how they will provide strategic and technical support related to VPOP processes, NIS integration, and Gavi 6.0 holistic application support. The proposal should describe the consultant’s relevant experience, proposed methodology, indicative workplan and timelines, coordination and knowledge‑sharing approach, and any added value that would contribute to the successful implementation of the assignment.

Remarks:  If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not visible on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.