Consultancy: Advocacy Specialist (Humanitarian Advocacy Capacity Building) – 11.5 months, remote based – DOC, NYHQ – Requisition# 543615

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, a Consultant on Humanitarian Advocacy Capacity Building 

Three recent internal processes have underscored the importance of a renewed focus on advocacy and communication capacity building for colleagues in emergencies.

• September 2020: UNICEF’s updated Core Commitments for Children (CCCs), which underscore our duty to advocate publicly and privately for child rights and principled humanitarian action in emergencies.
• October 2020: The outcomes of the Humanitarian Review, which name the Division of Communication as Business Owners for a new long-term initiative to boost advocacy capacity at every level of the organization and to conduct a review of existing humanitarian advocacy structures. DOC is also listed as co-Business Owners, alongside Emergency Programmes colleagues, to ensure the ‘top-20’ humanitarian crises have strategic and integrated advocacy strategies.
• Sept 2021: The new Emergency Procedures (EPs) on Humanitarian Advocacy and Communication, which name the Division of Communication as Business Owners for new, practical requirements to ensure strategic and integrated advocacy and communications in emergencies.

These reflect growing awareness that UNICEF must strengthen and integrate our humanitarian advocacy at every level to achieve maximum impact for children. They also respond to the many challenges facing field colleagues when advocating publicly and privately on child rights

How can you make a difference?
With the support from key colleagues in the Advocacy section, the consultant will be responsible to deliver the following measurable results :

1. Humanitarian advocacy and communication knowledge, skills, and confidence are improved across UNICEF thanks to practical training and support [baselines will be established through surveys].
2. Two country offices in complex emergencies are supported to deliver integrated advocacy strategies.
3. Through the roll-out of UNICEF Emergency Procedures and practical training and support, UNICEF colleagues in emergencies are aware of humanitarian advocacy and communications responsibilities, accountabilities, and support [baselines will be established through surveys].
4. Peer-learning and regular and rapid communication on key emergency issues are facilitated through a new and thriving humanitarian advocacy community of practice.
5. To ensure the full delivery of the CCCs and other humanitarian policy requirements, UNICEF establishes a review of humanitarian advocacy across the organisation, with a clear Terms of Reference, modalities, and project plan and this review delivers practical and strategic recommendations with the backing of all relevant divisions and offices.

This assignment will center around five core priorities:

1. Working closely with relevant Division of Communication, Office of Emergency Programmes, and Regional and Field colleagues to create and roll-out new practical training modules on humanitarian advocacy and communication. This will involve building on existing materials and external resources to create the modules; creating and then project managing a practical roll-out plan; delivering the modules; and monitoring the impact of the roll-out.  
2. Dramatically improving our remote templates, tools and guidance for advocacy and communication in emergencies. This will include creating easy-to-adapt templates and worksheets for advocacy and communication planning and implementation, including template advocacy strategies, advocacy plans, press releases, statements, and advocacy briefs. It will also include gathering successful case studies and ensuring all these resources are well maintained.
3. Working closely with relevant Division of Communication, Office of Emergency Programmes, and Regional and Field colleagues to help deliver 2-3 integrated advocacy strategies for UNICEF ‘Top 20’ emergency contexts.
4. Facilitating cross-UNICEF collaboration and communication on humanitarian advocacy to ensure rapid and effective influencing that leverages all our resources and to ensure peer-learning.
5. Playing a key role in establishing a new review of humanitarian advocacy at UNICEF, creating a Terms of Reference, modalities, and project management structures. This will ensure we collect lessons learnt from points 1-4 above and make concrete recommendations for future humanitarian advocacy approaches.

Duty Station              :  Home based
Estimated start date :  1 November 2021
Estimated end date  :  15 October  2022 
Travel: TB Determined.  Contract will be amended  when trip date/s are determined and prior to the trip

Deliverables	Duration	Deadline
Learn about the Humanitarian Review requirements, the new Emergency Procedures, and the Core Commitments for Children.	6	Mid Oct
Learn about humanitarian advocacy and communication at UNICEF, the role of DOC and EMOPS within this, and the Advocacy Capacity Building Initiative.	10	Mid Oct
Build on existing resources to create a four-hour communication and humanitarian advocacy in emergencies training module that can be delivered remotely and adapted to different audiences in UNICEF.	12	Early Nov
Work with Humanitarian Advocacy Manager; Advocacy Capacity Building Specialist; and key Media, Digital, Field Support, Office of Emergency Programmes, Regional, and Country Office Colleagues to establish and roll-out plan for delivering this training, ensuring it reaches a diverse and strategic range of colleagues in UNICEF.	25	End Nov
Build on existing resources to create a one-day communication and humanitarian advocacy in emergencies training module. This should exist as a standalone module but also be integrated with the exciting Advocacy Capacity Building Programme.	12	End Dec
Work alongside Humanitarian Advocacy Manager, Advocacy Capacity Building Specialist, and Office Emergency Programmes colleagues to provide practical support to 2-4 emergency Country Offices ensuring they can deliver strategic, integrated humanitarian advocacy strategies. Exact modalities will be determined once in post.	25	End Jan
Create easy-to-adapt templates, worksheets, and guidance for quick humanitarian advocacy and communication planning and implementation, including template advocacy strategies, advocacy plans, press releases, statements, and advocacy briefs etc. These should be hosted on the Advocacy Portal; Core Commitments for Children; and Emergency Procedures SharePoint sites.	20	End Feb
Work alongside Emergency Programmes colleagues to ensure the integration of these materials into ongoing Emergency Procedures roll-out, ensuring colleagues are aware of their advocacy and communication responsibilities and supported to deliver. Help to ensure this roll-out is engaging for UNICEF staff in emergencies.	20	End Feb- Sept
Build, maintain, and grow a Humanitarian Advocacy Community of Practice across UNICEF.	20	Mid-March-Sept
Work alongside the Humanitarian Advocacy Manager and Office of Emergency Programmes colleagues to map out a Terms of Reference and agree the modalities for a review of humanitarian advocacy structures across UNICEF.	10	End Jan
Provide project management and knowledge management support to this review.	20	End Jan-Sept
Provide other support as necessary to ensure the successful realisation of the advocacy and communication components of the humanitarian review.	71	Ongoing
total	251 days

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

• Bachelors Degree in social sciences, international relations, public policy, international development, public relations, humanitarian policy, advocacy, or a related field.
• Seven years experience in advocacy strategy development and execution, with a specific focus on humanitarian advocacy and experience of working in emergency contexts.
• Fluency in English and working level French. 
• Experience in developing clear theories of change, with specific, measurable and timebound objectives and performance indicators.
• Experience in design and management of projects, including monitoring of results.
• Demonstrated understanding of the complexities of humanitarian advocacy and of working with or in a large, international organisation.
• Experience working for an advocacy or campaigning organization e.g. international or national NGO, UN or other multilateral organization and knowledge of the United Nations system or other international organisations are an asset.
• Detailed knowledge of international development, humanitarian issues, and children’s rights.
• Excellent written communicator with experience of producing engaging communication materials and easy to use tools and templates.
• Excellent oral communicator with facilitation experience.

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.
Core Values

• Commitment
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Integrity

Core Competencies

• Communication [I]
• Drive for Results [I]
• Working with People [I]

Functional Competencies

• Formulating Strategies and Concepts [II]
• Analyzing [I]
• Applying Technical Expertise [II] 
• Planning and Organizing [III]
• Relating and Networking [I] 

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.

Please indicate your ability, availability and daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference above (including travel and daily subsistence allowance, if applicable). Applications submitted without a daily/monthly rate will not be considered.

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4. At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage for the duration of the contract.

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.