Home-based local consultancy: Expert on Mental health and psychosocial support (86 days)

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, results

Since the beginning of the migrant and refugee influx, UNICEF is responding to the unique needs of children and women who are seeking asylum in Europe, on the move, stranded or pushed back. In Italy, a two-pronged approach combines humanitarian service delivery with capacity building, policy reform and technical assistance on child protection and gender-based violence (GBV), with partner organizations and governments. UNICEF uses both partner centers and programme bases as well as mobile outreach to identify and refer at-risk boys and girls, particularly unaccompanied and separated children (UASC), to relevant services, including psychosocial assistance. UNICEF also focuses on providing alternative care to UASC, guarantee international standards in reception system, support the guardianship system, protect the most vulnerable and invisible children otside the formal protection system and promote the partecipation of adolescent boys and girls in all the decisions concerning them.

Many of migrant and refugee children and youth passed through violence, including GBV and sexual violence, torture, inhuman treatments, trafficking and exploitation in their Countries of Origin, as well as during the journeys and in the arrival destinations. Unaccompanied children, the majority of whom are adolescents, are reported to experience higher levels of anxiety, depression and symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to other refugee and migrant groups-. Their well-being is impacted, as well as their development, the self and other-trust and need appropriate mental health and psycho-social support. The UNICEF multi-sectoral response to the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe aims to ensure that protection, care and support is assured for refugee and migrant children and women including through the provision of integrated technical assistance and service delivery support, and a complementary focus on provision of direct services, systems building and advocacy.

How can you make a difference?

The purpose of this consultancy is to support development of an operational framework and tools for Mental Health and Psycho-Social Support (MHPSS) for migrant and refugee children and youth, including community-based MHPSS using IASC and UNICEF global guidelines on MHPSS. The consultant will work with the Child Protection and GBV team  to develop and finalize guidance, tools, capacity building plan for harmonised approach to MHPSS. The consultant will work closely with the  child protection stakeholders and Civil Society Organizations implementing partners of UNICEF and other UN Agencies.

Tasks

1. MHPSS Capacity Development in Italy

• Provides technical support to MHPSS-related activities implemented in Italy, making sure MHPSS is mainstreamed into the Child Protection (CP), Adolescent Development and GBV programme through the sharing of information, identification of response gaps, and follow-up through relevant protection stakeholders;
• Supports CP ad GBV sections to report progress against programme results framework with regards to MHPSS-related results, according with Italy Response workplan and commitments with donors;
• Supports capacity building and ongoing support of partners at various levels on MHPSS and supports institutional capacity building of government and other partners to ensure MHPSS is mainstreamed in the protection system for children on the move, women, and young migrants and refugees in line with UNICEF country priorities
• Advocates and supervises the development of a national mapping on MHPSS best practices for migrant and refugee children and youth, as well as related referral pathways between reception system and response  services, including gender specific considerations and sexual violence related services.

II. Technical Support

• Provides technical support to the country team in Italy and partners;
• Designs, develops, adapts project material such as training package, advocacy notes and  assessment tools as requested for health care and other relevant frontline practitioners (e.g. child protection, education, asylum service, etc.) from both public services and civil society organisations in charge of health care provision and/or referral, as well as caregivers such as guardians or foster families;
• Designs, develops, adapts project material, such as leaflets, videos or on-line banners to increase health literacy  and awareness among refugee and migrant children and their parents;
• Supports and advises colleagues and builds knowledge and programming practices in relation to MHPSS through information sharing and facilitation of external and internal trainings aimed at multi-sectoral prevention and response.
• Supports the Communication and Dissemination plan, including the development of programme briefs, press releases and fact sheets, in collaboration with colleagues from UNICEF National Committee and Regional Office.
• Supports the testing of sexual violence related tools/model as developed by the regional GBViE team.

Contractual arrangements:

• Duration: The contract duration will be 11.5 months.
• Supervisor:  The consultant will report the the Child Protection Specialist. 
• Payment: The consultant will be paid upon satisfactory and timely completion of each deliverable. Each request for payment must be supported by the supervisor’s written certification of the assignment performed (deliverable provided and/or days worked). Final payment is made only upon certification of the satisfactory completion of the assignment as a whole, and completion of the evaluation by the supervisor.
• Nature of Penalty Clause in Contract: If the final reports and documents are not submitted according to the deliverables stated in this TOR, the payments will be withheld.  UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if work/outputs is incomplete, not delivered or for failure to meet deadlines (fees reduced due to late submission: 20 days – 10%; 1 month -20%; 2 months -30%; more 2 months – payment withhold). All materials developed will remain the copyright of UNICEF and UNICEF will be free to adapt and modify them in the future. 
• Duty Station and Official Travel: The Consultant will be home-based in Italy; with travel to field locations (Sicily, Calabria) – a total of 4 trips, depeding on COVID-19 travel restrictions. The Consultant will be responsible for organizing their travel. All travel expenses (tickets, accommodation, public transport, meals) will be reimbursed upon submission of invoices. The maximum amount allocated for travel will be EUR 1,500.
• Travel clause: 
  • All UNICEF rules and regulations related to travel of Consultants/ Individual Contractors apply.
  • All travels shall be undertaken only upon the prior written approval by UNICEF.
  • The consultant will travel via the most economic and direct route.
  • Travel costs will be reimbursed after the completion of mission.
  • The consultant must be fit to travel, be in a possession of the valid UN BSafe certificate, obligatory inoculation(s) and have a valid own travel/medical insurance and an immunization/vaccination card.

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

Required:

• Advanced degree in psychology, social work, anthropology or other relevant mental health background;
• A minimum of 5 years of relevant professional work in child protection working in design, development, evaluation and implementation of psychosocial support/ MHPSS programmes in humanitarian and/or migratory settings;
• Demonstrated knowledge of IASC Guidelines on MHPSS in Emergency Settings;
• Excellent planning and organizational skills;
• Excellent analytical and written skills;
• Strong communication skills – both oral and written;
• Fluency in Italian and English;
• Good team player.

Desired:

• Demonstrated Experience in developing M&E frameworks related to the field of MHPSS;
• Demonstrated knowledge of trans-cultural approaches on MHPSS in consideration of different cultural backgrounds and ability to adapt western therapeutic techniques;
• Substantial experience in development of training materials and facilitating training workshops as well as in supervision of MHPSS teams;
• Experience in working through local and national systems of rendering psychological support;
• Experience working with UN/international organizations.

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.

View our competency framework at

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

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.

To apply: 

Applicants are invited to:

1. complete their UNICEF profile 
2. attach latest P-11, CV and Motivation Letter
3. Include a financial proposal with their daily fee in EUR, bearing in mind that the maximum daily fee for this consultancy is EUR 254. Applications without fees will not be accepted.

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.