Consultancy: Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups Consultant – Child Protection, PG, NYHQ/Remote – Req # 545751

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.

 

Consultancy Title: Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups Consultant

Section/Division/Duty Station: Child Protection, Child Protection in Humanitarian Action, HQ New York (home-based, remote position)

Duration: 11.5 months

 

About UNICEF

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world’s leading children’s rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children’s survival, protection and development. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries.

UNICEF is guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and supports governments, communities, families and children to fulfill and enable every child’s right to live from violence and exploitation. UNICEF supports the achievement of multiple Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), in particular Goals 5 (gender equality), 8 (decent work and economic growth), 10 (reduced inequalities), and 16 (peace, justice, and strong institutions). 

In 2020, UNICEF responded to 303 new and ongoing humanitarian situations, including situations of armed conflict.  UNICEF actions for child protection are guided by its Strategic Plans, 2018–2021 and 2022-2025, its Child Protection Strategy 2021-2030, Objective 3 on children experiencing violations and Programme Strategy 3 to effectively prevent and respond to child protection violations in humanitarian situations, as well as the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs). UNICEF leverages its long-standing comparative advantages, including having a field presence before, during and after emergencies; delivering multisectoral support and harnessing its network of partners, including governments, civil society, communities and the private sector.  UNICEF prioritizes prevention of recruitment and use of children by armed forces and armed groups (CAAFAG), separation of children from such forces and groups and provision of services to support children after their release and during reintegration with families and communities. During 2020, globally UNICEF supported more than 12,000 children who had exited armed forces or groups with protection, care, family tracing, reunification and reintegration support.    

In relation to CAAFAG, in addition to supporting its country teams, UNICEF contributes to the work of the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action (the Alliance), its working groups and task forces, including the Task Force on Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups (CAAFAG TF), which UNICEF co-leads. UNICEF also co-leads the Paris Principles Steering Group and the Global Coalition for Reintegration of Child Soldiers. UNICEF seeks the services of a consultant to support UNICEF in strengthening inter-agency collaboration toward improved programme design, delivery and measurement for services for children exiting armed forces or armed forces and armed groups (CAAFAG) and to prevent (re-)recruitment.

In this context, UNICEF seeks to strengthen CAAFAG programming across humanitarian and development contexts and between and among NGOs, UNICEF, the UN and government partners, including by strengthening the ability of practitioners and partners to plan multi-sectoral, sustainable, flexible age-appropriate, gender-sensitive programming with measurable outcomes. It will support engagement to develop a Joint Global Programme on Children Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups.

The consultant will also support UNICEF’s engagement in and support for the work of the Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action’s Task Force on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups (CAAFAG TF), providing technical support and leadership for the CAAFAG TF.

Scope of Work

The consultant will support UNICEF’s Child Protection in Humanitarian Action Team on:

• Inter-agency thematic coordination. Contribute to inter-agency coordination mechanisms and delivery of inter-agency technical support and capacity building on issues related to children associated with armed forces or armed groups. This may include supporting UNICEF’s leadership role by co-leading the CAAFAG TF of the Alliance UNICEF, contributing at other interagency fora and leading development of or providing comments on reports, standards, guidance, advocacy messages, training materials and other related documents.
• Technical assistance. Delivery of requested technical guidance to UNICEF COs and ROs, as well as backstopping programmatic interventions, capacity building, and with bilateral engagement on prevention of and response to child recruitment. Remote and in-person technical assistance/deployments, mentoring and coaching targeting priority countries on program design and implementation, monitoring and evaluation, capacity building.  Support coordination between UNICEF business units at all levels of the organization and within the CP section, as necessary, on issues related to prevention, release, and reintegration of CAAFAG.
• Advocacy, resource mobilization. Support development of UNICEF advocacy positions, briefing notes, talking points, communications products, donor report inputs etc., as needed for institutional reporting, section, and senior management. Contribute to global, regional and country-level thematic (CAAFAG) and cross-sectoral (CPHA) donor proposals/reports on CAAFAG programming, research, and capacity building as required.

Qualifications

(1) Education

• Master’s degree in Social work, child protection /child welfare, international development, anthropology, psychology, law, human rights, related social sciences.

2) Work experience

Knowledge and expertise required

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in child protection, humanitarian programme management, and or international development; experience in humanitarian operations in the field an advantage;
• Minimum of 3 years field experience working with CAAFAG;
• Demonstrated experience with programme management, planning, monitoring, and programme frameworks, preferably in child protection
• Strong communication, organizational, inter-personal and leadership skills;
• Ability to be flexible and work well under pressure in a fast-paced environment, with complex projects and deadlines from different stakeholders;
• Demonstrated ability to work independently, take initiative, and identify new opportunities and approaches;
• Experience in data analysis and report writing;
• Experience with coalitions, coordination and with relationship management;
• Strong oral and written English language skills.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills Desirable:

• Proven distance management skills
• Experience in a variety of ‘thematic’ child protection programmes
• Experience directly implementing child reintegration for CAAFAG
• Experience with working donors, NGOs and interagency processes
• Familiarity with human rights and humanitarian law 
• French, or Arabic language skills

Requirements

• Completed profile in UNICEF’s e-Recruitment system and provide Personal History Form (P11) Upload copy of academic credentials
• Financial proposal that will include:
• your daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR.
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability
• Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF.
• At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results. View our competency framework at: Here

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, race, sexual orientation, nationality, culture, appearance, socio-economic status, ability, age, religious, and ethnic backgrounds, 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, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.