National Individual Consultant to provide technical support and coordination of activities on implementation of Reimagine Education initiative in Uzbekistan

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.

Background:

The COVID-19 pandemic crisis has shown that millions of children and young people can continue their education online but even though the potential is exciting, these children and young people are in a minority. With countries looking for ways to get children learning again, there is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for public and private sector leaders to reimagine education.

The best digital learning solutions focus on enhancing teaching and learning that build foundational, transferable, digital and job-specific skills. Digital learning could be the great equalizer in education. That is why UNICEF, Generation Unlimited and Giga are coming together under the Reimagine Education umbrella initiative to radically scale-up digital learning solutions which work for the most marginalized children and young people.

In 2020, UNICEF launched its support to the Government in developing alternative pathways (including distance and blended learning) and pedagogies for imparting learning through a competency-based approach.  To support young people to access learning and skilling though world class ICT-enabled solutions which are customized to every child/youth’s unique learning needs in the Uzbekistan context, UNICEF is using the GenU 2020 funds under Reimagine Education component.

Reimagine Education initiative in Uzbekistan has two main areas:

• Customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling to every child/youth’s unique learning needs and Uzbekistan context.
• Launching specific initiatives to reach girls through supporting them in using the upgraded ICT-enabled education source for learning with curated content or/and specific interventions.   

To ensure Reimagine Education initiative in Uzbekistan is implemented in a timely manner with acceptable quality, UCO Education Section requires assistance of a national professional individual to provide technical operational and administrative support throughout the process of programme implementation.

Objectives:

The specific objective of this consultancy is to provide technical, operational and administrative support to UNICEF Uzbekistan in implementing the Reimagine Education initiative in Uzbekistan.  S/he will act as the focal point and project coordinator of Reimagine Education project in Uzbekistan. S/he will interact with the different programmatic sections and local stakeholders (government actors, partner NGOs) in the country, and coordinate and execute the required activities to help complete the work under Reimagine Education in Uzbekistan.

The scope of work includes:

• Act as primary Reimagine Education focal point for coordination of work of relevant government counterparts, Reimagine Education and UNICEF Uzbekistan.
• Conceptualize and conduct an initial needs assessment to identify relevant existing education sources for learning which matching the needs and capacity of the country.
• Coordinate the activities related to customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling which are appropriate to unique Uzbekistan context.
• Coordinate preparation of a workplan on reaching girls through supporting them in using the upgraded ICT-enabled education sources for learning.
• Prepare communication materials and ensure branding of the reimagine Education initiative based on the global strategy.

Timeline & Deliverables:

The consultant is expected to accomplish the assignment during the period 15 March – 31 December 2020. The following deliverables is expected to be provided by the end of assignment:

Activity	Deliverable	Timeline
Activities related to needs’ assessment
Develop a concept note including methodology and tools (U-report survey, FGD and interview formats) for conducting needs assessment to identify: (1) list of needs in digital education sources for learning such as digital content on foundational, transferable, digital skills, STEM and specific initiatives to reach girls and SEN students; (2) current capacity within the relevant government agencies to create, adopt, procure, curate and maintain open-source software;  (3) 2-3 relevant existing education sources for learning which matching the needs and capacity;	Concept note, methodology and tools are accepted	March
Collect and analyze data as per agreed methodology and tools	Data collected	April
Prepare a Needs Assessment report based on findings with the set of recommendations	Needs assessment report is accepted	April
Organize a workshop with different stakeholders to discuss the report on needs in digital education sources for learning and agree on the next steps	Next steps action plan is developed	May
In cooperation with UNICEF and MOPE Communication teams to develop a communication product on the needs’ assessment and next steps	Communication product on needs assessment and next steps	May
Activities related to customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling
Coordinate development of a work plan on curation of digital platform (platforms) content on foundational, transferable and digital skills including specifications on needed amendments/curations	Work plan on curation of digital platform (platforms) content is accepted	May
Coordinate work on upgrading selected education source (sources) for learning platform to address contextual learning needs with focus on learners from remoted rural areas, girls and SEN children (translating interface and sample content, adding offline options if needed, ensuring intuitive interface for Uzbek students, etc.)	Prototype of upgraded platform is available	May – June
Coordinate testing the upgraded prototype platform (platforms) by users from remoted areas, girls and SEN students and revising prototype if needed	Prototype of upgraded platform is tested and revised	May – June
Coordinate implementation of the work plan on curation of digital platform content and provide regular updates on the progress	20% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available 40% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available 60% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available 80% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available Upgraded and localized ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning with curated content for scale-up is available	July – November
In cooperation with UNICEF and MOPE Communication teams develop a communication product on customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling in Uzbekistan	Communication product on customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling in Uzbekistan	July
Prepare process document on customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling	Process document is accepted	December
Activities related to reaching girls through supporting them in using the upgraded ICT-enabled education sources for learning
Preparing a workplan on reaching girls through supporting them in using the upgraded ICT-enabled education source for learning with curated content or/and specific initiatives (Girls can Code, LP for Girls, with EQUALS) based on Needs Assessment results)	Work plan is agreed with stakeholders	May
Coordinate implementation of the work plan on reaching girls initiatives and provide regular updates on the progress	Two initiatives to reach girls are launched	June
Coordinate implementation of the work plan on reaching girls initiatives and provide regular updates on the progress	Monthly progress reports	June-December
In cooperation with UNICEF and MOPE Communication teams develop a communication product on reaching girls initiatives	Communication product on reaching girls initiatives	September
In cooperation with UNICEF and MOPE communication teams develop a communication product on results of Reimagine Education	Communication product on results of Reimagine Education	November
Prepare process document on reaching girls initiatives	Process document on reaching girls initiatives is accepted	December

Management:

The consultant will be working under the direct supervision and guidance of UNICEF Uzbekistan Chief of Education and in close collaboration with Education officer. The consultant will liaise between UNICEF and MOPE and other stakeholders to support the implementation of activities.

Resource requirements and payments:

According to UNICEF policy, the final fees will be set up based on the “best value for money” principle. 

The candidates are requested to submit their financial offer consisting of fee for the services to be provided. The consultant will receive direct payment to his/her indicated bank account in Uzbek Sums based on the UN currency exchange rate.

Consultant is responsible for his/her own health and travel insurance. Consultant is eligible for standard DSA for all work-related travel. 

The consultancy will be paid by bank transfer and upon acceptance of deliverables in accordance with the following payment schedule:

#	Deliverables	Instalment payments
1	Needs’ assessment concept note, methodology and tools are accepted	10%
2	Needs assessment report is accepted	10%
3	Communication product on Needs’ Assessment and next steps Work plan on curation of digital platform (platforms) for learning content Work plan on reaching girls initiatives is agreed with stakeholders	10%
4	Prototype of upgraded platform (platforms) for learning is tested and revised Communication product on customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling in Uzbekistan	10%
5	20% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available Two initiatives to reach girls are launched	10%
6	Communication product on reaching girls initiatives 40% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available	10%
7	60% of curated content of ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning is available	10%
8	Initiatives to reach girls are implemented successfully Upgraded and localized ICT-enabled education source (sources) for learning with curated content for scale-up	10%
9	Communication product on results of Reimagine Education	10%
10	Process document on reaching girls initiatives Process document on customizing and scaling up world class ICT-enabled solutions for learning and skilling	10%

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

1. An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in education, technology, business administration or management, public relations, international development or other relevant fields.
2. Professional work experience in education, management, ICT or a relevant field, some of which should be in an international setting.

3. Proven capacity to work with collaborative teams across different locations and with different technical skills.
4. Experience working with software tools, ideally in the phases of adoption and user requirements (user testing, user interaction, etc.)
5. Experience in preparing programmatic reports and data analysis
6. Experience working with or managing relationships with MOPE and Ministry of ICT
7. Ability to communicate data insights and to translate into programmatic impact.
8. Fluency in English, Russian and Uzbek is required.

Procedures and Working Conditions

Duty station for the assignment is Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The assignment will be conducted remotely, no space is required in UNICEF office, but consultant will be provided by UNICEF account.

The consultant will be responsible for any taxes that might arise because of this assignment and remuneration received from UNICEF, and UNICEF undertakes no liability for taxes, duty or other contribution payable by the consultant on payments made under this contract.  

Reservations

UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if deliverable(s) incomplete, not finalized or for failure to meet deadlines and contract can be terminated within 15 days of notice.

UNICEF will reserve all copyright of developed materials/reports and will own primary data collected through this assignment. The materials cannot be published or disseminated by the institution without prior written permission of UNICEF. UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify the materials/reports in the future.

The Consultant must respect the confidentiality of the information handled during the assignment and adhere to the ethical norms of UNICEF. Documents and information provided must be used only for the tasks related to these Terms of Reference.

UNICEF undertakes no liability for taxes, duty or other contribution payable by the consultant on payments made under this contract.

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:

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.