International Consultancy to prepare “Report card on Family Environment Data in Europe, and Central Asia. (home-based, 30 working days within a period Oct-Dec 2021)

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.

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UNICEF has a mandate to safeguard the rights of all children, which is rooted in the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), applicable to every child, and since 2015 in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Europe and Central Asia region have make remarkable progress for children to fulfil their rights and potential of development, that every child has a supportive family environment, better access to justice, improved preventions and response and deinstitutionalization.
An important area of work of UNICEF consists of strengthening child protection systems including data systems. Child protection data needs are driven by the goals and objectives set out in existing international and national child welfare and protection legislative and policy frameworks and cross-country agreements. Framed by the regional agenda for child protection and based on an extensive desk review, and several consultations within UNICEF, with governments and national statistical offices (NSOs) in the region, and with some external partners, and on the results of various assessments of national child protection data systems in the region carried out in the past three years, a list of child protection indicators by UNICEF were compiled that are considered essential for all countries in Europe and Central Asia. The list is not exhaustive. It represents a minimum set of quantitative indicators required to measure progress and change in key areas of child protection in the region. It considers the strengths and weaknesses of child protection data systems across the region, as well as the fact that international and regional statistical standards for most of the domains of child protection statistics have yet to be developed.
The regional TransMonEE data collection initiative with the NSOs allows to produce child-wellbeing data that inform global and/or regional databases and ensure comparability of data. Over the past two years, TransMonEE has been revisioned and the way that data is being collected has been adjusted to leverage other international databases and reduce the data collection burden on national partners. This year the data collection initiative with NSOs, comprises only four domains: (1) family environment, (2) access to justice for children, (3) Violence against children, and (4) children with disabilities.
At this juncture in the process of revisioning TransMonEE, the data and information generated through TransMonEE for family environment indicators needs an in-depth analysis, as many indicators are new. The analysis will look at regional trend in the context of the existing international child protection policy frameworks and the specific regional child protection agenda, and consider available data from qualitative research and child protection system assessments, from national case management systems, and other available information from key child protection stakeholders in the countries, including from children and young people (such as careleavers) themselves and their parents and other adult caregivers.
This end product will be an analytical report card that can be used by regional partners, national governments, academia and civil society actors in priority setting and decision-making, as well as in monitoring and evaluating progress made in implementing EuroChild/UNICEF Datacare project, international and national child protection policies and programmes and in achieving better outcomes for children, especially children who are socially excluded. The report card can further provide additional information for the countries, will make and support the case for investing in child protection data system strengthening, highlight promising/good practices, and support advocacy to improve laws, policies, systems and services for children in need of protection.

Scope of Work:

The consultant will work closely with the UNICEF Regional Office (RO) and Country Offices (COs) to
• Undertake an in-depth analysis of the data collected in the domain of Family Environment in the TransMonEE database and other sources such as EuroChild/UNICEF DataCare Project.
• Carry out secondary analysis and document lessons learned at the global and regional level in child protection data system reforms;
• Capture promising/good examples of Family Environment data ecosystem, sustainability, quality management (investment, role of NSO, partnerships, capacity development, system strengthening, linkages, etc.) from inside and outside the region for inspiration and guidance.
• Develop an agenda of priority actions for strengthening data systems in the region to increase the impact and effectiveness of family environment policies and programmes.
The consultant will also work with Child protection and other key colleagues working in the RO and COs of ECAR.

Work Assignment Overview:

Duration: 30 working days as per established timeline. Modality: Home-based. 

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in social sciences, international development or related fields relevant for the assignment
• Proven track record of working in child protection programme especially around family environment domain.
• Engaged in regional qualitative data analysis before, is familiar with administrative data systems in Europe and Central Asia region (ECAR), has indeed an understanding of family environment statistics and indicators, is familiar with regional child protection policy agendas and some of the national CP frameworks including M&E frameworks for CP.
• Excellent understanding of the family environment administrative databases and undertook systematic analysis.
• Strong literature review skills, analytical skills to compile and consolidate various inputs, and produce technical, concise, and easy-to-understand documents.
• Previous experience with UNICEF on child protection is an advantage.
• Relevant experience in the development of analytical reports
• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Fluency in English; Knowledge of one or more languages used in the region will be an advantage.
• Excellent writing skills including policy briefs

Qualified candidates should duly complete online profile and submit: 

• CV and/or Personal history form (downloadable from http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/P11.doc )
• Samples of previous work (links or attachments)
• A daily fee in USD for 30 working days. Applications without fees will not be considered.

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UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

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 also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. 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.

Remarks:

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

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.