International consultancy for Baseline Assessment, including LQAS Survey of the Integrated Child Survival and Development Project in Moyamba
Job no: 537462
Position type: Consultancy
Location: Sierra Leone Division/Equivalent: Dakar (WCAR), Senegal
School/Unit: Sierra Leone
Department/Office: Freetown, Sierra Leone
Categories: Consultancy
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, result.
To learn more about working for UNICEF and our work in Sierra Leone, please visit the following link: www.unicef.org/sierraleone
How can you make a difference?
Sierra Leone's under-five mortality rate of 109/1,000 is over four times higher than the Sustainable Development Goal target. Chronic malnutrition affects 26% of children under five nationwide and in some districts, like Moyamba, the prevalence of stunting is over 31%. Nationally, 5% of children under five are suffering from moderate or severe acute malnutrition. Moyamba District has the second highest wasting prevalence at 6.4%. In Sierra Leone, maternal mortality is among the highest in the world with a rate of 1,120 deaths per 100,000 live births. Progress in neonatal mortality reduction has largely stagnated at its current rate of 31 deaths per 1,000 live births. Nationally, only 52.2% of children under six months are exclusively breastfed and only 10.8% of children aged 6-23 months are receiving a minimum acceptable diet. In the Moyamba district these rates are even lower. Preventable childhood illnesses such as malaria, acute respiratory infections and diarrhoea diseases are still responsible for nearly half of all deaths of children under five. Water supply coverage is just 42% nationally, with the lowest coverage in rural areas. Moyamba has the lowest access to basic drinking water of any district at 29.3%. The national open defecation rate is 17% and an estimated 77% of the population are not washing their hands with soap at critical times. The harmful practice of reducing fluid intake when children have diarrhoea is reported for 45% of children. In addition, parents do not always seek care when their children are sick. Seventy-four per cent (74%) seek care for acute respiratory infections, 70% for fever and 64% for diarrhea. While 62% of the population lives in rural areas, only 30% of the health workforce serve there.
To help address the above issues, UNICEF will work with the Sierra Leone Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS) to implement the integrated Child Survival and Development Project to improve health and development for children under five in the Moyamba District of Sierra Leone. With this project and its other Health, Nutrition and WASH programmes, UNICEF aims to tackle the: high prevalence of wasting by strengthening early identification, timely referral and management of children with malnutrition; high maternal mortality by increasing registration of pregnant women and providing antenatal and postnatal care; high neonatal mortality by increasing coverage of quality maternal and newborn care and community awareness care-seeking practices; and sub-optimal feeding by promoting best practices through community health workers and mother support groups, including: (a) increasing exclusive breastfeeding rates for children under six months, (b) improving awareness on optimal nutrition and access to nutrition counselling services for children aged 6-23 months. UNICEF also aims to tackle the current poor sanitation and hygiene situation by providing 2,100 new or improved household latrines (disability-friendly wherever possible) to contribute to a reduction in open defecation and an increase in handwashing and poor caring practices for sick children through integrated management of neonatal and childhood illnesses and integrated community case management.
In this context, UNICEF seeks an international consultant to assist the MoHS and other national partners in conducting an assessment to obtain baseline values of key health, nutrition and WASH indicators of this project and related programmes, and in building in-country capacity to regularly conduct the similar assessment as part of the MoHS monitoring and evaluation (M&E) framework.
Purpose
The general purpose of the consultancy is to strengthen country-level capacity to conduct health, nutrition and WASH assessment for routine monitoring, with emphasis on use of the LQAS Survey methodology.
More specifically, the consultant is expected to engage and work with MoHS and Moyamba District Health Management Team (DHMT) staff, and will assist them and other national stakeholders in conducting an assessment that will obtain the baseline values of key indicators of the integrated child survival and development project in Moyamba and other Health, Nutrition and WASH programme supported by UNICEF. The baseline assessment will include an LQAS Survey that will measure indicators designed to track improvements in the health and development status of children under five in Sierra Leone. The consultant will also lead the training, coaching and mentoring of staffs of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation (MoHS), District Health Management Team (DHMT), and other partners and support the institutionalisation of LQAS Surveys as a means to assess performance in disaggregated units (supervision areas - e.g., community health centre (CHC) catchment area) within each district and to reliably compare coverage and health status indicators for routine monitoring of child survival and development activities.
Key activities and methodology
Expected deliverable and due date
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have...
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.
Remarks:
Consultants and Individual contractors are responsible for paying any taxes derived from the earnings received from UNICEF.
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.
Advertised: Jan 18 2021 Greenwich Standard Time Application close: Jan 24 2021 Greenwich Standard Time
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