TERMS OF REFERENCE
1. Nature of consultancy:
UNESCO is seeking a consultant to support the planning and implementation of advocacy, capacity-building and knowledge management activities of UNESCO’s regional (Asia-Pacific) and country portfolio (Thailand) on education and health. The consultant will work with senior UNESCO and partner staff at UNESCO Bangkok, and regional and Thailand country partners to operationalize related projects.
2. Purpose of the assignment:
UNESCO has had a longstanding commitment to strengthening the links between education, health and well-being, consistent with international commitments set out in the 1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, the 1990 Jomtien World Declaration on Education For All, the 2000 Dakar World Education Forum Framework for Action and, more recently, the 2015 Incheon Declaration, Education 2030: Towards inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all.
UNESCO has also had a longstanding commitment to addressing HIV. As one of the founders of the UNAIDS Joint Programme, UNESCO has played a leading role in supporting the education sector response to HIV since 1996, guided by previous strategies including, most recently, its Strategy for HIV and AIDS 2011-2015.
UNESCO Bangkok’s programme contributes to achieving the objectives of UNESCO’s Education Strategy 2014-2021, especially the objective of ‘promoting health through education’, which commits UNESCO to ‘strengthen support for Member States to deliver health education that contributes to healthy lifestyles and gender equality through safe and equitable learning environments that promote overall well-being, good quality education and learning outcomes for all’ and the education sector result in UNESCO’s Medium Term Strategy. It is also well-aligned to the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Bureau’s Education Support Strategy 2014-2021 across numerous thematic priorities.
Most importantly, UNESCO’s programme addresses Member States’ capacities to achieve Agenda 2030, in particular in relation to SDG4 (pertaining to inclusive and equitable quality education and lifelong learning opportunities) and SDG 5 (relating to gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls).
UNESCO is seeking consultancy support to advance its regional portfolio on education and health in three strategic priority areas:
1. Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE):
o Provide inputs into tools to be used for a regional mapping of educational resources on CSE and gender, and the identification of relevant teaching and learning materials to be included in the mapping assessment.
o Assist with the preparation and delivery of a joint regional consultation on gender and CSE scheduled for end-August 2016, and communication materials about the consultation.
o Support the development of communication products for CSE implementation studies undertaken in the region, including reports, briefs, website articles and PowerPoint presentations communicating the process and the findings.
2. School-related gender-based violence (SRGBV), including bullying, violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity/expression (SOGIE):
o Support country counterparts to plan, implement and report on national consultations on SRGBV/SOGIE in 4 countries, including direct support to the consultation in Thailand.
o Support the development of communication products for SRGBV/SOGIE studies undertaken in 2 countries, including reports, briefs, website articles and PowerPoint presentations communicating the process and the findings.
o Support the development of assessment tools and the piloting of capacity-development products to integrate gender, violence prevention and respect in teaching programmes, as well as capacity-development tools to build broader UNESCO capacity to address these issues.
3. Education on adolescent health and well-being:
o Support resource mobilization efforts on other aspects of UNESCO programming (e.g. adolescent pregnancy, menstrual hygiene management, and puberty education) by mapping out data, evaluation data and programme examples to be considered in proposal development
4. Deliverables
· End-May: Draft training materials (agenda, facilitator’s guide) for internal UNESCO capacity-building programme on inclusion and diversity; draft plan for rollout of capacity-development products to integrate gender, violence prevention and respect in teaching programmes.
· End-June: Final training materials and plan, incorporating comments and feedback; draft expressions of interest for potential UNESCO programmes on identified areas of education on adolescent health and well-being.
· End-July: SRGBV/SOGIE national consultation reports (4); 2 country reports on SRGBV/SOGIE and 5 electronic communication products about the consultation and the reports.
· End-August: Final CSE and gender mapping tool and consultation materials (agenda, participant list, background document), and 2 country reports on CSE implementation.
5. Estimated Duration of Contract:
Contract to be initiated as soon as possible through 3 September 2016.
6. Official Travel Involved:
The consultant is expected to work onsite at UNESCO Bangkok. No travel is involved in this contract.
7. Qualifications
· Advanced degree related to a social science - including education, gender studies, development studies, human rights, or international policy;
· Demonstrated experience working in the thematic areas above, with a preference for someone with experience in all three UNESCO priority areas;
· Demonstrated experience in undertaking advocacy, capacity-building and knowledge management activities, preferably on the above themes;
· Familiarity with the Asia Pacific region is essential;
· Previous experience working with the UN/multilateral/bilateral institutions an asset, with preference for someone with experience implementing regional and country-level activities;
· Demonstrated ability to work under time pressures to deliver
Application
Interested candidates shall submit to UNESCO Bangkok Office (hivinfo.bgk@unesco.org) a written proposal by 8 May 2016 which should comprise:
· An up-to-date curriculum vitae, and
· Approach and methodology for carrying out the assignment.
· The amount to be charged for the assignment, which shall be quoted in US dollars.