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For every child, care.

Purpose of Activity/Assignment:

The national consultant will support the National Agency for Social Protection (NASP) in facilitating the reintegration of children and young people from residential care into family-based and community-based care settings. The consultant will guide and supervise staff of the residential care institutions, child protection sectors, community social workers and Inson center supervisors in needs assessment, reintegration plans development, coordinated transitions and monitoring.

Scope of Work:

Uzbekistan has made significant progress in reforming its child protection system, transitioning from institutional care to family and community-based care. The Government has prioritized the deinstitutionalization of childcare, aligned with international child rights frameworks and national strategies such as the National Strategy for Social Protection. Despite these efforts, challenges remain in ensuring a well-prepared reintegration process, preventing family separation, and strengthening family support mechanisms.
Findings from the recent Situation Analysis of Children and Adolescents in Uzbekistan indicate that while residential care facilities are being closed, there is a pressing need for qualified personnel and social services to support reintegration. Many families lack the necessary financial, psychological, and social support to care for returning children adequately, increasing the risk of re-separation and trauma. Additionally, there is a need to prevent violence against children by equipping caregivers, social workers, and child protection professionals with the necessary skills to address family vulnerabilities and promote a safe and nurturing environment.
The consultant’s role is crucial in supporting these ongoing efforts by guiding and supervising comprehensive assessments, facilitating reintegration, and strengthening the capacities of child protection professionals to ensure sustainable family-based care solutions.

a) Assessment of Children’s and Families’ Needs

• Guide and supervise existing child protection-related social service workforce in conducting individual assessments of children and young people in residential care, evaluating their needs and discussing care plan.
• Guide and supervise community social workers, mahalla teams of sevens and supervisors in assessing the socio-economic and psychological conditions of families of origin to determine their capacity to reintegrate the child and ensure her-his wellbeing and protection from violence.
• Identify necessary support services required for both children and families in reunification process, and roles and responsibilities of service providers.

b) Development of Reintegration and Adaptation Plans

• Support social service workforce in developing individualized reintegration and adaptation plans for children and young people, ensuring their needs and best interests are met.
• Propose family strengthening interventions to support sustainable reintegration.
• Facilitate linkages with social services, education, and healthcare providers to ensure comprehensive support.

c) Coordination of Reintegration Processes

• Collaborate with child protection authorities, social workers, and community organizations to facilitate smooth transitions.
• Support professionals engaged in direct work with families to prepare them for the return of the child or identify alternative care.
• Organize and monitor child placements, ensuring proper follow-up and support mechanisms are in place.

1. Development of Transition Plans for Independent Living

• Design transition strategies for young people aging out of care to ensure their successful integration into independent, community-based supervised living.
• Support services providers to Identify educational, vocational, and financial support mechanisms for young people transitioning out of care.

2. Capacity Building of Child Protection and Social Work Professionals

• Conduct discussion of the multidisciplinary teams consisting of institutional staff, child protection officers, community social workers, and supervisors in target districts.
• Develop a brief SOP on reintegration, case management, and community-based support services/strategies.
• Provide ongoing mentoring and supervision to strengthen professional capacity in managing reintegration cases.

Work Assignments Overview - Deliverables/Outputs - Timeline (days)

1. Assessment of Children’s and Families’ Needs: consultant will be visiting target regions for meeting professionals and families, and supervising needs assessment process. He/she will also be revising the core needs assessment forms completed by the couched and supervised professionals of child care institutions, community social workers and child protection sectors. He/she will join child’s and family’s needs assessment with 50 children and young people - Recommendations to 150 completed core needs assessment for children -25 May – 25 June (20 days)

2. Development of Reintegration and Adaptation Plans:
Based on the needs assessment, consultant will guide and supervise social workers for family strengthening and support services are provided timely with the focus on reunification with the child, parenting skills strengthening, life skills development and intensive social protection services provision - Recommendations to 150 Individualized reintegration and care plans for children - 20 June – 20 July
(15 days)

3. Coordination of Reintegration Processes: the activity will include regular weekly basis coordination multisectoral meetings to discuss the case and progress achieved for every child and young person in the transition from institutions to family- or community-based care (18 sessions in total) - Coordination meetings and case follow-up reports (weekly basis) - 20 June -20 Nov (18 days)

4. Development of Transition Plans for Independent Living: for young people above 16, or those who cannot reunify with family of origin and do not want to be placed in alternative care, independent living plan will be developed and implemented. Consultant will guide service providers to Identify educational, vocational, and financial support mechanisms for young people transitioning out of care - Transition plans for independent living discussed and agreed with young people - 20 Aug – 20 Sep (5 days)

5. Capacity Building of Child Protection and Social Work Professionals: consultant will draft a short SOP on reintegration, and be providing constant support to the professionals of child care institutions, community social workers and child protection sectors in the whole reunification case management cycle - Draft SOP (5 pages), coaching and supervision sessions reports - 25 May – 25 Nov (12 days)

Local travel is required.

Please submit a professional fee (in USD) to undertake this assignment, without travel fees as this will be reimbursed as and when they take place.

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

• Advanced university degree in Social Work, Psychology, Law or related fields. 
• Minimum of 15 years of experience in child protection and social work, particularly in reintegration and case management.
• Experience in capacity building, supervision and training for social work professionals.
• Strong understanding of child protection policies and frameworks, including deinstitutionalization strategies.
• Fluency in Uzbek (Russian and English is an asset)
• Previous experience with reintegration assistance and services for children in care.
• Previous experience with international organizations is an asset (e.g. UNICEF, Save the Children, Every Child, etc.)

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

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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.