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TERMS OF REFERENCE

Background and Justification

 Uganda’s Ministry of Health officially declared an Ebola outbreak (Sudan ebolavirus) on January 30, 2025, after confirming the index case. This marked Uganda’s sixth Sudan ebolavirus outbreak since 2000. After 42 days with no new cases, the Ministry of Health declared the end of the outbreak on April 26, 2025, in a ceremony held in Mbale District, marking 87 days since the outbreak was first declared in Uganda. In total, the outbreak lasted roughly three months (late January to late April 2025).   

 The outbreak primarily affected central Uganda (Kampala and neighboring Wakiso District) but also involved eastern districts (Mbale, Jinja, Mukono) and a western district (Ntoroko) through travel and burial-related transmission. This meant both urban and rural communities were touched by the virus.  A Level 2 (L2) Corporate Emergency Activation Procedure (CEAP) for the Ebola Virus Disease – Sudan strain was triggered on 11 February 2025 for 3 months, until 9 May 2025. The L2 CEAP was deactivated on 10 May 2025 leading to the elaboration of an L2 Exit Strategy and a Post -SVD plan, in collaboration with partners and the Government of Uganda. 

In accordance with the coverage norms of UNICEF’s Evaluation Policy 2023, short-term level two (L2) emergencies must be evaluated at least once and protracted L2 emergencies should be evaluated once every three years. Such L2 evaluations are conducted by the Evaluation Section of the respective UNICEF Regional Office.

These terms of reference present the scope, objectives and key questions of the evaluation; evaluation methodology; stakeholder involvement; roles and responsibilities; evaluation process; deliverables; and evaluators' qualifications.

Scope of Work

Please refer to the full Evaluation Terms of Reference, including Evaluation Questions and Methods, through this link.

Purpose and Objectives

The UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) is proposing an evaluation of UNICEF’s response to the Level 2 Ebola Response in Uganda. The purpose of the evaluation is to strengthen UNICEF’s accountability to affected populations, partners, and donors supporting humanitarian response and will support the learning towards strengthening preparedness and response capacities to build resilience for increase integration within the humanitarian- development-peace nexus.   

The objectives of the evaluation are: 

1. To assess to which extent the recommendations formulated during the last response have been used to inform the current preparedness and response plan and identify any resulting good practices.  
2. To assess the effectiveness and contribution of the UNICEF Response to national efforts, in line with CCCs  
3. To inform the resilience efforts of the CO in terms of preparedness and Accountability to Affected Persons (AAP)  
4. To formulate recommendations to inform transition plan, coordination and PHE response from UN, UNICEF and national partners moving forward  

The primary audience for this evaluation is UNICEF staff, management, and regional advisors who were responsible for leading the UNICEF response to the L2 Ebola Outbreak in Uganda. The evaluation’s findings may also be shared with key counterparts, in addition to the main stakeholders involved in this evaluation at the community level. A list of external stakeholders is available in Annex 1, per response pillars.  

Scope: Please refer to the full Evaluation Terms of Reference, including Evaluation Questions and Methods, through this link.

Timeline, deliverables, and payment schedule: Please refer to the full Evaluation Terms of Reference, including Evaluation Questions and Methods, through this link.

 Important notes

• Data archive: Data gathered in the exercise is transferred to an organized archive that will permit follow-on users to replicate or extend the analysis. Suitable care is taken to ensure respondents' anonymity, which is documented in the inception and final reports.
• Monitoring work progress on deliverables that are not listed in the TOR will be periodically required.
• The format and page limits for the final deliverables will be decided in the inception period. A high value will be placed on concise products that communicate well with different audiences. Thus, the final
• products should be edited and produced to include infographics and print layouts in an easy-to-read format.

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

• Advanced university degree in disciplines relevant to evaluation (e.g., social policy, economics, demography, anthropology, public health).
• A minimum of ten years’ experience evaluating humanitarian action. Prior experience evaluating UNICEF humanitarian response in Eastern and Southern Africa will be considered as an advantage (P5 level)
• Experience in conducting multi-disciplinary evaluations, including evaluating rapid onset emergencies for UNICEF, other UN agencies or other international partners at the global, regional or country levels.  
• Knowledge of the latest qualitative and quantitative methods and approaches in humanitarian evaluation, especially participatory methods and accountability to affected populations. 
• Experience in desk review-based methodologies with strong qualitative and quantitative analytical and synthesis competencies.  
• Technical expertise relevant to UNICEF’s emergency operations, familiarity with UNICEF’s emergency response, including the Core Commitments to Children, preferred 
• Experience and knowledge of child rights and participation, equity, disability inclusion, and gender equality in research and evaluation, particularly in humanitarian settings 
• Excellent analytical, communication and drafting writing skills in English  

Significant advantages 

• Proven ability to develop attractive evidence products that present complex information via Infographics and other communication means. 
• Proven ethical use of Artificial Intelligence for data analysis  
• A work record in Eastern and Southern Africa and with experience in Uganda within a humanitarian context 
• In-depth knowledge of Ebola in the Eastern and Southern African Region specifically, with experience in preparedness and response to other public health emergencies 
• Record of top-ranked evaluation reports by GEROS or other UN entities  

 Languages:

Fluency in English is expected; Knowledge of local languages would be considered as an advantage.

Administrative issues

• The consultant is expected to be home-based with potential travel to up to 15 days to Uganda (Kampala and selected districts). Subsistance and transport costs should be included in the financial proposal.
• The International Consultant will be supported by a National Consultant, recruited separately by Unicef Uganda Country Office in consultation with the recruited International Consultant
• Progress meetings will be held throughout the assignment as and when needed, and on a weekly basis during the field data collection and the analysis period to guide the write-up of the evaluation report

Conditions

Please indicate any related conditions such as the following:

• The consultant will use their own equipment
• All travel will be by most economical fare and reimbursement will be as per UNICEF policy.
• As per UNICEF DFAM policy, payment is made against approved deliverables. No advance payment is allowed unless in exceptional circumstances against bank guarantee, subject to a maximum of 30 per cent of the total contract value in cases where advances purchases, for example for supplies or travel, may be necessary.
• 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.
• Individuals engaged under a consultancy 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 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.
• 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.
• Consultants are responsible for determining and meeting their tax or duty liabilities in accordance with local or other applicable laws. UNICEF does not issue statements of earnings to consultants.
• UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants 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.

Risks

The primary risk associated with this consultancy assignment is the potential for delays or issues with quality. To mitigate this risk, the evaluation section is committed to strictly following the timeline outlined in the Terms of Reference (TOR). Additionally, we will establish regular progress monitoring with frequent check-ins and progress reviews to identify and address any issues early. Clear and consistent communication

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about children’s rights and making a lasting difference on children’s lives, one of the global leading entities on children’s rights would like to hear from you.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

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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 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.

How to apply:

Qualified candidates are requested to submit a cover letter, CV, samples (2 minimum) of similar work where the candidate served as team leader and author, and their technical proposals to the online recruitment portal (Talent Management System).

Interested candidates are to indicate their ability, availability, and rate (daily/monthly) expressed in US$ to undertake the terms of reference. The fees should include all other costs incurred, such as travel, VISA, and subsistence allowances.

Applications submitted without a fee/ rate will not be considered.

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.