National consultant to support the development of the Child Guarantee National Action Plan in Spain (home-based, part-time)

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, hope

How can you make a difference?

The purpose of this assignment is to provide technical support to UNICEF Spain and the government of Spain in developing the Child Guarantee National Action Plan (CGNAP), as required by the Council Recommendation establishing the European Child Guarantee. The CGNAP will aim to implement the Council Recommendation establishing the European Child Guarantee, while also ensuring that they are adapted to national, regional and local contexts.

BACKGROUND:

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, in advocacy and in operations. As part of its efforts to provide all children with an equitable chance in life, UNICEF works to identify, monitor, and effectively address the underlying causes of child poverty and deprivation.

Despite the strength of the European economy and a tradition of investment in the welfare of the most vulnerable citizens, nearly one-quarter of Europe’s children remained at risk of poverty and social exclusion as of 2018. Poverty and deprivation in childhood can have lifelong detrimental impacts, undermining an individual’s health, educational attainment, income earning capacity, and social connection, and contributing to an increased risk of exposure to violence, among others. The EU has long recognized the need to address entrenched issues of child poverty and social exclusion, including through a call by the European Parliament for a Child Guarantee to reduce inequalities. As families, societies, and governments around the world struggle to cope with the devastating impacts of COVID-19, which are expected to result in significant economic contraction, employment impacts, and a likely increase in poverty, these efforts have taken on a new urgency.

To test the European Child Guarantee in practice, the Commission has partnered with UNICEF Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ECARO) to pilot the Child Guarantee in seven Member States through July 2022. Four (Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece and Italy) are developing and testing for scalability, evidence-based models of services and interventions focused on ensuring access to services for the most disadvantaged children, with a focus on the four target groups: children with disabilities, children in precarious family situations, children residing in institutions and refugee and migrant children. Along with three other Member States (Germany, Lithuania and Spain) they are also planning their interventions in relation to the Child Guarantee objectives using nationally available policy and programme information, culminating in the development of “deep dives” which are designed to inform the National Action Plans.
On 14 June 2021 the Council of the European Union unanimously adopted the Recommendation Establishing a European Child Guarantee, according to which Member States are expected to develop national action plans on how to implement it within 9 months.

Background: Deep Dive Analysis and coordination mechanisms in Spain
The Deep Dive Analysis was finished in September. It was led by University of Alcala. The Deep Dive includes a compilation of indicators available that could be used to monitor and evaluate the Child Guarantee and also includes a literature review describing accessibility barriers. The analysis is based on the impacts of the ways in which national and subnational policies increase access to the CG thematic areas, and it identifies bottlenecks, barriers and provides policy recommendations. Finally, the work includes a proposal for a national framework for data collection, monitoring and evaluation.
To guarantee the participation and the governance of the process, there were created the following mechanisms:
• Management committee: UNICEF ECARO, UNICEF Spain, High Commissioner on Child Poverty, General Directorate for Children Rights.
• Steering Committee: different sectors of central Government and representatives of regional and local authorities who would be involved in the National Action Plan and the implementation of the Child Guarantee.
• Consultations: experts and representatives of social organizations and academia.
• Children consultation: special focus on participation of children in need.

The individual consultant will work closely with the Child Guarantee UNICEF Focal Point in Spain and the respective team members involved. The consultant will regularly coordinate with UNICEF ECARO and contribute to the learning process deriving from the 7 pilot countries of Phase III of the EUCG.
The individual consultant will provide technical inputs to the CGNAP development process and content to support national stakeholders, through the respective mechanism of governance and in coordination with the Child Guarantee National Coordinator, to develop the CGNAP. In particular, the consultant will ensure that the CGNAP:
• Addresses the needs of the children in need and particularly those experiencing specific disadvantages and barriers in accessing services;
• Builds on the findings of the Deep Dive Analysis of existing policies, programmes and services and of the local level testing of models of services and interventions;
• Is developed in a participatory manner and consulted with main stakeholders, including children, families, and service providers;
• Includes a clear monitoring and evaluation framework, is costed and budgeted, and has a clear timeline.
In doing so the individual consultant will:
• Support relevant national stakeholders to implement an effective planning process for the development of the CGNAP, in line with national legal and normative framework and in the spirit of the Council Recommendation establishing a European Child Guarantee.
• Facilitate effective coordination and engagement of different relevant stakeholders, in particular through the mechanism/platform established by the government to develop the CGNAP and with the Child Guarantee National Coordinator.
• Provide technical support to the working group tasked with the development of the CGNAP, provide inputs into the drafts of the CGNAP, and mobilizing additional in-country expertise,.
• Support Governmental partners to ensure consistency of the CGNAP with the findings of the Deep Dive Analysis, in particular ensuring that the CGNAP takes into account the needs of the most disadvantaged children and the enabling policy framework. This will also include presentation of the findings and recommendations of the deep dive analysis to the working group tasked with the development of the CGNAP and provide concrete proposals on how to reflect those in the CGNAP drafts. In addition, the consultant will identify any entry points in which other sectoral or inter-sectorial policies could benefit from the findings and recommendations of the Deep Dive Analysis and the discussions around the CGNAP.
• In cooperation with UNICEF team in Spain, advocate for the CGNAP to include the evidence-based and informed models of services and interventions tested as part of Phase III of the Child Guarantee, with the view to ensure their institutional and financial sustainability at the district or local level and foster further nationwide replication or scaling up.
• In collaboration with UNICEF Spain and regional level monitoring and evaluation specialists, provide technical inputs into the development of the CGNAP monitoring and evaluation framework, which include clear quantitative and qualitative indicators and targets, based on the results of the Deep Dive Analysis and operational research of the models of services and interventions piloted in the country.
• In collaboration with UNICEF Spain and regional level social policy specialists, provide technical support to ensure that the CGNAP is adequately costed and budgeted, taking into account the country existing fiscal space, requirements of the European Child Guarantee and other European funding instruments and has a clear timeline.
• Support the planning and implementation of the consultation process during the preparation phase of the CGNAP aimed at ensuring the participation of a wide range of stakeholders as expressed in the Council Recommendation (letter e), in particular with children, families, and service providers.
• Document the process of the CGNAP development and provide periodic updates on the progress to UNICEF through agreed tools and processes, including regular inputs into communication and reporting materials regarding the CGNAP development.
• Coordinate with UNICEF ECARO in a systematic way to ensure that lessons learned are documented and shared with other EU Child Guarantee pilot countries.
• Support the use of the Deep Dive into the planning of the CGNAP as requested by the ECARO and country office.
• Guarantee the periodic coordination with the Child Guarantee National Coordinator in order to share reports and lessons learned from other countries

Work Assignment Overview Modality: Home-based consultancy (60 working days from September 2021 until April 2022)
Tasks/Milestone:	Deliverables/Outputs:	Working days/timeline
Leading areas in CGNAP development, including providing monthly updates/reports in English on the progress, clearly documenting all processes, ensuring drafts are reviewed and technical inputs from UNICEF are incorporated.	Monthly updates/reports in English on the progress	20 days
Developing consultation plan for the National Action Plan	Approved consultation plan	5 days
Developing a child participation plan for the National Action Plan	Approved child participation plan	5 days
Contribution to a final National Action Pan, including the draft M&E framework and budget and support to validation with stakeholders	Monthly updates and final Action Plan	30 days

 

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

• University degree in Social Policy, Social Sciences, Political Science, or a related field
• A minimum of 10 years of experience in research, poverty analysis, social policy, or a related field
• A deep understanding of the children perspective, the Convention of the Rights of the child and gender perspective. In addition, it will be an advantage the understanding of the impact of public policies on children’s Rights. A deep understanding of the context, policy, and process for child poverty and social exclusion reduction at the national and subnational levels in Spain.
• A deep understanding of potential financial sources (European Funds, and at national level).
• Proven experience in conducting similar tasks (i.e. supporting government in policymaking processes, stakeholder consultations, research, reporting).
• Professional links/partnerships with relevant national and subnational bodies.
• The ability to be flexible and deliver results under tight deadlines.
• Previous engagement with and demonstrated understanding of the EU Child Guarantee development process will be an advantage.
• Spanish (native-level fluency) and English required.

How to apply: Interested candidates should apply online and complete the profile. In addition they should attach requested in the form documents including a CV and/or P11 form (downable from http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/P11.doc ) as well as indicate a fee. Applications without fees will not be considered.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

Click here to learn more about UNICEF’s values and competencies.

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.