UNICEF recruits 01 Individual contractor – Education Programme Coordinator

Individual contractor – Education Programme Coordinator, 11 months, Antananarivo, Madagascar

Job Number: 530428 | Vacancy Link

Locations: Africa: Madagascar

Work Type : 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, hope

The investments made on behalf of children, especially the most vulnerable, are not sufficient to ensure the long-term realization of their rights and for Madagascar to achieve the vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In fact, Madagascar has the lowest education expenditure per child in the Eastern and Southern Africa region, even though external aid for the sector has seen a significant increase this year (World Bank Development Indicators 2018).

Despite the government’s commitment to increase the budget allocation to Education to 26 per cent of the Government’s 2018 budget, the actual allocation in 2018 was 19.5 per cent and not sufficient to offer education to all children before 2030.  UNICEF works primarily with the Ministry of National Education and Technical and Professional Training (MNETPT), whose budget has decreased as a percentage of the total budget, from 22 per cent (2014) to 15 per cent (2018). By relating the MNETPT budget to the number of students in the public sector, the actual allocation per student has decreased from 152,211 Ariary (approx. US$ 43) to 139,712 Ariary (approx. US$ 39).

In this constrained financial context, the education system in Madagascar is facing a major dual challenge in relation to both access and quality. Only 29 per cent of children complete the primary level and not even one out of two of these children goes to lower secondary school. In addition, children and adolescents who attend school experience a learning environment in decline. The new Education Sector Plan (ESP, 2018-2022) aims to change this situation and proposes significant reforms to the operational environment for an effective new system.

The incapacity of the system to ensure quality services and a low esteem for the value of public education is the main reason parents do not enrol or keep their children in school. Indeed a recent World Bank study (SDI)  confirmed that i) only 0.1 per cent of teachers have the minimum competencies to teach, ii) on any given day, one in three teachers is absent from public schools across the country, iii) even if they are at school, teaching time is about 60 per cent of what is required by the curriculum and iv) only 10 per cent of students have access to school manuals. In some areas, the depleted school infrastructure constitutes an additional significant impediment to improving learning outcomes for children. Only 65 per cent of schools offer students the minimum resources of a clean toilet, a blackboard and enough light in the classroom to see the blackboard.  The school environment has deteriorated significantly with regard to water supply and adequate sanitation, with a limited number of new structures being built, repaired and renovated in the past decade. The SDI also indicates that only 44 per cent of the primary schools surveyed have access to water, and 41 per cent have access to sanitation; this negatively impacts the opportunity of children to go to school, stay in school, and learn in school.

In this context, UNICEF’s approach to system-wide strengthening for inclusive education, upstream and downstream for improvements in access, quality and educational institutions is more appropriate than ever and has contributed to important gains for children thanks to generous support from its donors and collaboration of partner UN agencies.

UNICEF Madagascar is thus seeking a qualified professional with the required expertise and commitment to children to plan, implement, monitor and evaluate UNICEF Madagascar Education section programme activities.

How can you make a difference?

Under the guidance and general supervision of the Chief, Education (Level 4), the Specialist (Programme Coordinator) supports the development and preparation of the Education (or a sector of) programmes and is responsible for managing, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting the progress of education programmes/projects within the country programme. The Specialist provides technical guidance and management support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of results on education programmes/projects to improve learning outcomes and equitable and inclusive education, especially for children who are marginalized, disadvantaged and excluded in society.

The Specialist contributes to achievement of results according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM), as well as UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, standards of performance, and accountability framework.

MAIN TASKS :

– Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results.

– Technical and operational support to programme implementation.

– Networking and partnership building.

– Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building.

The specific objectives of the job are:

1. Lead high quality programme development, implementation, management and reporting;

2. Ensure monitoring mechanisms are in place to track progress toward programme goals, disparity reduction and learning progress.

3. Maintain linkages with country programme documents, annual work plans, other programme goals and objectives per UNDAF and other partner interventions (ex. World Bank, AFD, JICA)

4. Liaise with donors to ensure transparent programme development and financial and technical reporting.

DELIVERABLES:

The efficiency and efficacy of support provided by the Programme Coordinator to programme preparation, planning and implementation, contributes to the achievement of sustainable results to improve learning outcomes and universal access to quality, equitable and inclusive education will be reported in monthly progress reports.

ESTIMATED DURATION OF THE CONTRACT AND PROPOSAL:

The contract will be for 11 months, starting tentatively in April 2020. Payment of fees is based on monthly progress reports and subject to satisfactory completion of deliverables as indicated above.

REPORTING TO:

Chief EDUCATION

WORK PLACE:

The consultancy will be office-based in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

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

An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in one of the following fields is required: education, economics, psychology, sociology, or another relevant technical field.

A minimum of five years of relevant professional experience  in programme planning, management and supervision in education in a development context is required.

Developing country work experience is required .

Relevant experience in a United Nations system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

Fluency in English and in French is required. Knowledge of a local language (Malagasy) is an asset.

In terms of experience and specialized knowledge, the consultant should have :

• Evident understanding of the overall global development context, including issues such as: gender parity, poverty, climate change and the impact of these factors on education and vice-versa; and inter-sectoral approaches to address such issues in collaboration with other agencies (ILO, WFP, UNESCO) sectors (including Social Policy, Child Protection, Nutrition, WASH, Health, and Communications within UNICEF).

• Evident education sector planning knowledge/ability, including the range of modalities for delivering education, linkages between different sub-sectors (e.g. preschool, Primary, Inclusive Education), cost-effectiveness and efficiency issues, key institutional structures, components and processes, as well as governance issues.

• Evident programme management in education, including staff supervision, programme design, costing, monitoring and evaluation and reporting.

• Evident ability to support engagement with partners e.g. concerned donors, Global Partnership for Education, Education in Emergency Clusters, Delivering as One, Inter-agency partnerships, as well as networking with other key partners.

• Some knowledge of global developments in education and international engagement strategies, including the application of the SDGs, equity lens and human rights perspectives to programming.

• Some ability to support policy dialogue: translation of analytical findings and evidence into development programme and policy discussions around equity and learning with partners, including government, development partners, CSOs and academia in relevant areas.

• Some education and policy sector analysis capacity, including understanding of the core education data sets and indicators; tools for analysis of equity; determinants of student access and learning; budget, costing, and financial management in education systems; political economy; and education policy and strategic planning.

• Some understanding of gender and inequity issues in relation to education and development and the application of gender / equity analysis to policy and planning in education.

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:

Please view the detailed TOR for this consultancy  ToR_Programme Coordinator_IC.docx

If you need assistance or have questions, please contact: hrantananarivo@unicef.org

Please indicate your ability, availability and gross monthly rate (in US$ or MGA) to undertake the terms of reference above (including travel and daily subsistence allowance, if applicable).  Applications must be included : cover letter, copy of highest academic degree and financial offer related to the monthly rate. Also, please mention the earliest date you can start.

Taxation: UNICEF and the United Nations accept no liability for any taxes, duty or other contribution payable by the consultant and individual contractor on payments made under this contract. Neither

UNICEF nor the United Nations will issue a statement of earnings to the consultant and individual contractor.

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.

Closing Date Mon Mar 16 2020 21:55:00 GMT+0100 (Paris, Madrid)