Consultancy: Consultant, Oxygen Country Support – Health Section, PD, NYHQ/Copenhagen/Home based – Req # 540725

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: Oxygen Country Support

Section/Division/Duty Station: Remote based

Duration: 10 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.

 

BACKGROUND

COVID-19 has exposed a massive oxygen gap that existed in many low- and middle-income countries, with limited oxygen infrastructure and production capacity, hospitals not equipped for oxygen provision and a lack of trained human resources, both biomedical staff to install and maintain oxygen equipment as well as clinicians to provide safe oxygen therapy for COVID-19 and non-COVID patients.

UNICEF has over the past years and before the onset of COVID-19, invested in improving oxygen access, through updating oxygen device specifications with WHO, including a suite of oxygen therapy equipment in the UNICEF supply catalogue, developing an oxygen systems planning tool to provide support to countries in planning and costing oxygen needs, and by improving the quality of maternal, newborn and child health programming including through improved access to and safe use of oxygen as part of integrated service delivery at hospital and Primary Health Care level.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, UNICEF has supplied over 23,000 oxygen concentrators as well as accessories and consumables, including hypoxemia measurement devices, to 94 countries across the world. UNICEF country offices have supported the local oxygen response in multiple ways through needs assessment, local procurement and installation of PSA plants or liquid oxygen tanks, procurement of oxygen cylinders, service contracts with suppliers, capacity building and other efforts aiming to strengthen country oxygen systems with sustainable solutions for long-term impact beyond COVID-19 to improve child health outcomes.

The UNICEF global oxygen team, housed at Programme Division in New York and Supply Division in Copenhagen, has provided technical support to country offices throughout the response for planning, procurement and programming. The global oxygen team now seeks two consultants to provide surge support, including remote and, depending on travel restrictions, on-site technical support to UNICEF country offices.

 

Terms of Reference / Deliverables

The two consultants will work closely together to:

 

Qualifications

(1) Education

• Masters preferred. Bachelors with 5 additional years of relevant experience is acceptable.

2) Work experience

• 3-6 years of progressively responsive work experience in the design or delivery of public health programmes, specifically:
  • Technical expertise in oxygen systems planning and implementation in low and middle income countries
  • Expertise in programmatic use of oxygen especially in the context of maternal, newborn and child health is an asset
  • Knowledge of supply chain management is an asset
• Experience with partner coordination and collaboration, including with MoH/government
• Familiarity with UNICEF and experience working with international humanitarian organizations (WHO, NGOs, donors) is an asset.

3) Competencies

• Excellent analytical and writing skills
  • Language requirements: fluid in English, fluid in French and other UN languages are an asset
  • Highly proficient in a range of PC/web applications, including but not limited to: MS Work, MS Excel, MS Power Point, MS Outlook, and Lotus Notes
  • Able to work with a high level of autonomy

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.
• Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

U.S. Visa information:

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.  

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.