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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, health 

Health is a crucial aspect of the development of children and adolescents, encompassing both physical and mental well-being. Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which individuals realize their potential, cope with the normal stresses of life, work productively, and contribute to their community. The health and well-being of children and adolescents are critical for their development and future success. However, estimates indicate that around 11.2 million (13%) children and young people aged 19 and younger in the EU suffer from mental health conditions. Mental health issues among children and adolescents have far-reaching consequences, affecting their physical health, educational outcomes, and overall quality of life.
Mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for adolescents, caregivers, and education facilities is an institutional priority within UNICEF. MHPSS encompasses any local or external support designed to protect or promote mental health and psychosocial well-being and/or prevent or treat mental disorders. It builds upon both development and humanitarian programming across the health, child protection, and education sectors. UNICEF carries out MHPSS together with governmental counterparts, relevant institutions, and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). Under Goal Area 1 of UNICEF’s 2022-2025 Strategic Plan, promoting and caring for the mental health and well-being of children, adolescents, and their caregivers is a key result (RA5 Indicator 1.5.1: Number of countries integrating child and adolescent mental health services in primary health care (PHC), schools, and digital platforms).
Leveraging its convening capacity and institutional role, UNICEF can drive system-level change by modernizing MHPSS within health, education, and social services. UNICEF’s ability to mobilize partners and support reforms in mental health and psychosocial support enables the strengthening of child-centered systems, influencing national policies, fostering meaningful youth participation, improving public budget prioritization for children, leveraging public-private partnerships, and generating evidence to inform decision-making.
UNICEF has increasingly been called upon by governments to help modernize and strengthen mental health services for children and adolescents. The EU has engaged UNICEF’s Regional Office to support governments in improving and integrating mental health services for these groups.
The European Commission launched an action on ‘Promoting a comprehensive, prevention-oriented approach to children’s health’ (DP/CR-CA-24-26) with UNICEF under the EU4Health Programme for the period 2021-2027. The main objective is to promote good physical and mental health and prevent health problems in children and adolescents through impactful actions across various settings, enhancing the understanding of how to improve children’s health and how to address effectively the most pressing health challenges, thus also supporting countries in implementing the flagship actions and other initiatives of the Commission Communication on a comprehensive approach to mental health with a specific focus on children and adolescents (aged 0-19).
Under that initiative, a Toolkit for Child and Adolescent Health and Mental Wellbeing Promotion will be designed to serve as a comprehensive resource for 27 EU Member States, Iceland and Norway, specifically policymakers engaged in improving child and adolescent health and wellbeing. A selected number of countries that have expressed their interest and have areas for improvement, with a balanced geographical representation, will be supported in the national adaptation and use of some parts of the toolkit. The support will include facilitation of consultation among stakeholders at the national level and technical assistance for the national policy development phase.
Via dedicated collaboration activities with countries, UNICEF will facilitate knowledge sharing, capacity building and policy dialogue among the participating countries to improve cooperation and synergies in the implementation of other initiatives and actions related to child health promotion.
The consultant will report to the Regional Health Adviser and collaborate closely with the Project Manager, UNICEF’s Child Protection (CP), and Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) teams, the Regional Office Early Childhood Development (ECD) Specialist, Nutrition Specialist, and Immunization Specialists, as well as with the DG Santé Project Manager and the Project Steering Committee. The primary responsibility is to provide comprehensive support to ensure the successful implementation of the programme overall. The consultant will play a key role in the research phase, technical consultations, identification of best practices, modelling, capacity building, and knowledge dissemination to improve MHPSS service provision for adolescents.

How can you make a difference? 

Via dedicated collaboration activities with countries, UNICEF will facilitate knowledge sharing, capacity building and policy dialogue among the participating countries to improve cooperation and synergies in the implementation of other initiatives and actions related to child health promotion.
The consultant will report to the Regional Health Adviser and collaborate closely with the Project Manager, UNICEF’s Child Protection (CP), and Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) teams, the Regional Office Early Childhood Development (ECD) Specialist, Nutrition Specialist, and Immunization Specialists, as well as with the DG Santé Project Manager and the Project Steering Committee. The primary responsibility is to provide comprehensive support to ensure the successful implementation of the programme overall. The consultant will play a key role in the research phase, technical consultations, identification of best practices, modelling, capacity building, and knowledge dissemination to improve MHPSS service provision for adolescents.

Tasks:
• Contribute to institutional capacity-building efforts by identifying existing actors and networks in mental health (academia, professional bodies, EU institutions, alliances, and coalitions) to maximize synergies and collaborations around child and adolescent mental health.
• Provide strong Technical Assistance (TA) for the modernization and improved access to mental health services for children and caregivers. This includes supporting the development of policies, laws, and capacity-building plans at national level to promote the integration of MHPSS services.
• Assist in gathering and, when necessary, generating evidence on mental health services and psychosocial support to inform policies and efforts in countries and provide guidance in the EU. The available evidence will also be used to develop policy tools that strengthen capacity and enhance the financial sustainability of mental health programs in EU member states.
• Support the development of a comprehensive, evidence-based Toolkit for Child and Adolescent Health and Mental Wellbeing Promotion, a practical resource to enhance the development, implementation, and evaluation of health-promoting policies and programs for children and adolescents, with a focus on the most vulnerable (such as children at risk of poverty or social exclusion, refugees and migrants, children with disabilities, ethnic minorities such as Roma, in line with the European Child Guarantee).
• Facilitate the adaptation and adoption of tools in selected EU Member States to enhance Mental health services for children.
• Support Regional Office efforts in advancing policy dialogue among EU Member States, Norway, and Iceland to strengthen public health initiatives and health system delivery platforms, aiming at promoting comprehensive child and adolescent health, including mental health, with a focus on reaching all children, especially the most vulnerable and to foster cooperation on the implementation of actions addressing common challenges.
• Contribute to the enhancement of a common public health narrative by providing access to evidence and guidance for a comprehensive, prevention-oriented approach to children’s health.
• Support the Health Advisor and Project Manager in monitoring and reporting to DG Santé the project progress, identifying bottlenecks, and proposing corrective actions as needed.
• Contribute to the documentation of lessons learned and ensure the project’s commitments to DG Santé/donor institutions are met, helping to ensure the accountability and success of MHPSS efforts.

The consultant must be adaptable, as the scope of work may evolve to address emerging needs and priorities.
In the event that UNICEF establishes a Center of Excellence for Child and Adolescent Mental Health to provide sustained technical support to policymakers and implementing institutions across the health, education, and social services sectors, the consultant will be actively involved in its initial setup and foundational planning.

Working Modality: Part time. Total of 220 working days over the period between June 2025 and May 2027. Home-based in Europe with estimated 10 trips during the contract duration.

Work assignment overview:

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

• Advanced degree in psychology, medicine, social work, or other relevant mental health background.
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional work in mental health working in design, development, evaluation and implementation of MHPSS programmes for children and young people.
• Experience in conducting assessments, developing monitoring, evaluation, and learning frameworks for MHPSS programming, developing protocols and SOPs.
• Experience in Child Health and /or MHPSS project management in Governmental bodies, NGO’s, INGO’s and UN Organisations is a strong asset.
• Experience in EU policies in Child Health and MHPSS is a strong asset.
• Fluency in English is required
• Fluency in other European languages is a strong asset.

• Experience in developing guidance documents, conducting capacity building and knowledge dissemination activities (desired).
• Demonstrated experience in developing M&E frameworks and quality assurance mechanisms related to the field of MHPSS (desired).
• Experience working with UN/international organizations (desired)

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.