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For every child, Support

Consultancy Title: Sustainability and Climate Action Plan’ (SCAP) Consultancy

Section/Division/Duty Station: WASH, Eritrea, Asmara

Duration: 01 July 2025 to 30 September 2025 (03 months)

Home/ Office Based: Office Based (National Consultancy)

How can you make a difference? 

Eritrea is highly vulnerable to climate change, facing rising temperatures, droughts, and sea-level rise, which threaten agriculture, water, health, and livelihoods—especially for children. These impacts deepen inequalities, increasing malnutrition, disease, and educational disruption. Climate change affects all UNICEF sectors but also offers opportunities for integrated, child-focused solutions. In response, UNICEF Eritrea, with government partners, is developing a Sustainable Climate Action Plan (SCAP) 2025–2030, placing children at the center of climate adaptation and mitigation efforts. To support this initiative, UNICEF is seeking a qualified consultant to contribute to the development of climate policy, strategy, action planning, and climate finance mechanisms.

The consultant under the overall guidance of the WASH Officer will support the development of Eritrea’s SCAP 2025–2030, ensuring alignment with national priorities and UNICEF’s global framework, with a strong focus on child-centered climate adaptation and mitigation. Use existing evidence, including CLAC and national climate documents, to inform programming. Initiate the Climate, Children and Environment Strategy (CCES), advise on integrating climate actions across sectors, and strengthen partnerships with key ministries. Facilitate a multi-sectoral workshop to build consensus, lead SCAP finalization with an implementation and M&E framework and develop a climate financing strategy for UNICEF Eritrea.

 SCOPE OF WORK

Technical Advisory and Programming Support

• Provide technical assistance in developing Eritrea’s SCAP 2025–2030, ensuring alignment with national priorities and UNICEF’s global SCAP framework. The plan should reflect climate adaptation and mitigation programming priorities, implementation modality, and M&E with a strong emphasis on child-centered approaches and guided by the Climate Landscape Analysis for Children (CLAC) recommendations.
• Utilize existing evidence, including CLAC studies, to inform UNICEF Eritrea Country Office programming opportunities in line with government and UNICEF’s SCAP priorities. Conduct a desk review of key national climate documents such as Eritrea’s Third National Communication (TNC), Biennial Update Report (BUR1), Voluntary National Review (VNR 2022), Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC), National Adaptation Plan (NAP), Integrated Water Resource Managment(IWRM) etc. to build the rationale for climate action in the country.
• Support the initiation of the Climate, Children and Environment Strategy (CCES), including identification of foundational and mainstreaming elements as well as potential areas for acceleration.
• Advise programme areas on integration of climate change and environmental actions, building on the existing national climate adaptation and mitigation strategy ensuring that they are child centred and aligned with UNICEF’s SCAP programming priorities.
• Strengthen and cultivate partnerships with key government ministries and institutions engaged in environmental and climate action, particularly those addressing child rights and services. These include the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Land, Water and Environment, Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, and other relevant line ministries.
• Organize and facilitate a multi-sectoral stakeholder workshop with key government partners from sectors such as water and sanitation, healthcare, education, nutrition, social protection, and child protection, to secure broad-based participation and consensus on the SCAP priorities.
• Lead the development and finalization of Eritrea’s Sustainable Climate Action Plan for Children (2025–2030), including an implementation framework, priority actions, and a monitoring and evaluation mechanism.
• Development of climate financing strategy for UNICEF Eritrea.

Evidence generation

• Support evidence generation and data analysis on climate and environmental risks and their impact on children in Eritrea by recommending a mixed-methods approach. The consultant will combine desk reviews, qualitative interviews, and quantitative surveys as needed, along with spatial and policy analysis, to provide comprehensive and actionable insights.
• Prepare updates, briefing notes, working papers for regular reporting, including to partners, CO senior management and other entities, as required.
• develop a comprehensive technical report documenting the SCAP development process, including key findings, methodologies, stakeholder inputs, and recommendations for future climate and child-focused programming. The report should provide detailed analysis and clear documentation to support informed decision-making by technical and programmatic teams.

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

• An advanced degree in Environmental Science, Climate Change, Environmental Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, civil engineering (with experience in water and environment-related projects), soil and water conservation, land resource, and environment, environmental science, natural resource management, meteorology, hydrology, geology, social and economic development, or related areas.
• A minimum of five years’ experience in water and environment-related projects, soil and water conservation, land resource, and environment, environmental science, natural resource management, meteorology, hydrology, geology, social and economic development, or related areas.

• Fluency in English and the local language is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset. 

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills required:

• Thorough knowledge about Climate Change and Environment policy, programming and advocacy.
• Prior experience in the preparation of climate related national document in Eritrea such as National Communicaton, BUR, NDC, etc
• Very good communication and negotiation skills to establish and maintain trusted partnerships with diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to contribute to formulation of strategies and policies. High sense of confidentiality, initiative, and good judgment.  
• Proven ability to work effectively and efficiently as a team, coping with pressure and setbacks, as well as responding and adapting to change.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and establish harmonious and effective working relationships, both within and outside the organization.
• Excellent time management skills to deal with conflicting and urgent priorities.

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 for ensuring that the 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.