Organization: UNICEF – United Nations Children’s Fund
Location: Remote | Nairobi
Grade: Consultancy – Consultant – Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
Statistics
Population matters (trends and census)
Closing Date: 2024-06-12
In ESAR, planning and preparation of MICS surveys are ongoing in Madagascar, Somalia and South Sudan. The number of countries planning to conduct MICS may also increase as countries finalize their SDG reporting plans or decide to conduct MICS for monitoring of national development plans. The Regional Office of UNICEF in ESAR (ESARO) will, therefore, hire an experienced household survey consultant to provide necessary technical assistance to country offices and their partners at critical survey stages in a timely manner and to provide specialized support for the implementation and review of specific MICS topics.
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.
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Background and Justification
UNICEF is a UN organization mandated by the UN General Assembly to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full potential. In Eastern and Southern Africa Region (ESAR), UNICEF is working with its partners to support the Governments to realize children’s rights on survival, development, protection and participation.
The Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) is an international household survey programme developed and supported by UNICEF. MICS is designed to collect estimates of key indicators that are used to assess and monitor the situation of children and women. Over the past three decades, MICS has evolved to respond to changing data needs, expanding from 28 indicators in the first round to more than 250 indicators in the current seventh round, and has become a key source of data on child protection, early childhood education, and a major source of data on child health and nutrition. In addition to being a data collection tool to generate data for monitoring the progress towards national goals and global commitments for promoting the welfare of children, MICS provided valuable data for the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) and recently for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) monitoring and reporting.
Since the inception of MICS in the 1990s, over 350 surveys have been carried out in 120 countries. As part of the global effort to further develop national capacities to generate and analyse high quality and disaggregated data, UNICEF launched the seventh round of MICS in 2023, with results of first surveys expected to be available by mid-2024. This new round is in accordance with the list of SDG indicators endorsed by the UN Statistical Commission in 2016, following the global adoption of the 17 SDGs and 169 targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The final SDG indicator framework currently includes 231 global indicators, of which around one-third are household survey-based. Today, after undergoing rigorous methodological and validation work to broaden the scope of the tools and include numerous topics that reflect SDG indicators and emerging issues in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development context, MICS, covering almost half of the SDG indicators that are household survey-based, is well positioned to play a central role in this Agenda alongside other key demographic, health and socio-economic surveys and to complement data from administrative sources and censuses.
MICS surveys are carried out by government organizations, usually the National Statistics Office, with the support and technical assistance of UNICEF. When countries adhere to the MICS protocols and recommendations and make use of the tools provided, the survey process goes very smoothly. However, in many countries, the provision of survey tools alone has not been sufficient without the additional support of experienced personnel providing technical assistance to MICS implementing partners. As part of the Global MICS programme, UNICEF will continue to strengthen its MICS technical support mechanism at the regional level so that country offices can receive the required level of technical assistance at critical stages of the survey and are in a better position to support the implementing partner.
In ESAR, planning and preparation of MICS surveys are ongoing in Madagascar, Somalia and South Sudan. The number of countries planning to conduct MICS may also increase as countries finalize their SDG reporting plans or decide to conduct MICS for monitoring of national development plans. The Regional Office of UNICEF in ESAR (ESARO) will, therefore, hire an experienced household survey consultant to provide necessary technical assistance to country offices and their partners at critical survey stages in a timely manner and to provide specialized support for the implementation and review of specific MICS topics.
Purpose, objectives & expected results
Under the overall supervision of the Statistics and Monitoring Specialist (Regional MICS Coordinator), the MICS Regional Household Survey Consultant has the responsibility for supporting the preparation and implementation of the three (3) ongoing MICS in ESAR and provide specialized technical assistance to the implementation and review of MICS survey topics like for example the foundational learning skills and violence against women.
Scope of Work
Activities and Tasks:
Key activities include:
Support the Regional MICS Coordinator in providing technical assistance and oversight for three (3) MICS in the region,
In coordination and collaboration with the Regional MICS Coordinator and other relevant experts, review and provide feedback to COs on the following documents for compliance with MICS standards:
For Madagascar
agenda of training of interviewers
field monitoring digital reports
For Somalia
agenda of training of interviewers
field monitoring digital reports
For South Sudan
Country Survey Plan including budget and sample design
questionnaires
pre-test and test of Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) programmes report.
Support countries through in-county visits in carrying out the following survey activities:
Pre-test training and pre-test (South Sudan)
Fieldwork training and monitoring (Somalia and Madagascar)
In collaboration with the MICS Regional Coordinator, provide country and regional status survey updates to RO and HQ,
Facilitate communication between the MICS HQ GIS expert and Census/NSO GIS experts, obtaining access to cluster geocodes and boundary shapefiles for the survey, and training activities (if GPS data collection is necessary)
In collaboration with the MICS Regional Coordinator and the MICS HQ team, provide specialized assistance to countries in the implementation and review of specific MICS topics like for example foundational learning skills and violence against women.
Work relationships:
The ESARO PPM Section will provide quality assurance and oversight for the consultant’s work with substantial feedback on the quality of the work.
For each assigned MICS survey country, the consultant will work in close collaboration with the UNICEF MICS Focal point, the National MICS Consultant and other UNICEF Regional or HQ MICS Consultants. Working closely with the Regional MICS Coordinator, the Sampling and Data Processing Consultants, the Regional Household Survey Consultant will carry out technical reviews and advise COs and implementing agencies at key moments in the survey process. The Regional Household Survey Consultant will also, often together with the Regional MICS Coordinator and / or the Sampling Consultant and / or the Data Processing Consultant, carry out a series of country visits, to monitor progress and be present at critical stages of survey implementation.
Payment Schedule and deliverables
The contract’s total duration is 87 non-consecutive days from 3 June 2024 to 15 May 2025.
Deliverables
Duration (No. Of days)
Timeline/ Deadline
Schedule of payment
Madagascar
Training of interviewers and supervision of 1st week of fieldwork report
10
31-Aug-24
11%
Data collection report including final data quality tables
2
31-Dec-24
2%
Somalia
Training of interviewers and supervision of 1st week of fieldwork report
15
30-Jul-24
17%
Data collection report including final data quality tables
2
30-Nov-24
2%
South Sudan
Country Survey Plan including budget and first draft of questionnaires
3
30-Jun-24
3%
Pretest and CAPI test report including revised version of the questionnaires
10
31-Aug-24
11%
Support to specific topics
Materials for training and quality assurance to country survey teams on the customization and implementation of specific MICS modules
20
15-May-25
23%
Revised customized tools related to specific MICS modules
10
15-May-25
11%
Tools developed to support the implementation and review of specific MICS modules
15
15-May-25
17%
Total
87
100%
All MICS standard tools from survey design to report writing are shared in MICS program website (www.mics.unicef.org). As per Technical Collaboration Framework, the consultant will provide technical support to Country Offices in reviewing customized tools and implementing key activities such as training of interviewers.
The consultant is to indicate all-inclusive (lump sum) fee for the services to be provided, including all associated administrative and international travel costs, if applicable (including, but not limited to costs for obtaining visas and travel insurance). Travel costs to MICS countries (10 days to Madagascar, 15 days to Somalia and 7 days to South Sudan) will be reimbursed based on the most direct and economy fare.
The Regional Household Survey Consultant must respect the confidentiality of the MICS data as well as any country specific MICS documents that will be produced throughout the MICS process. The Regional Household Survey Consultant can use the documents and the datasets only for the tasks related to these terms of reference.
Desired competencies, technical background, and experience
Education
At least a Master’s Degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Demography, Statistics, Epidemiology, or other related technical field with significant measurement or analysis component is required
Skills and Experience
At least 5 years’ experience in the coordination and/or management of quantitative household surveys. (Prior MICS/DHS coordination experience highly desirable);
Expertise in statistical analyses (familiarity with data processing and data analysis software, CSPro and SPSS highly desirable);
Experience in survey report preparation;
Fluency in English;
Oral and written communications in French will be an asset;
Excellent communication and interpersonal skills;
Ability and willingness to travel to all countries across ESAR
Other competencies
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and establish harmonious and effective relationships with national partners.
• Demonstrated leadership, managerial, and supervisory ability.
In addition, the candidate must exhibit the UNICEF Core Values of:
1. Care
2. Respect
3. Integrity
4. Trust
5. Accountability
6. Sustainability
The consultant should demonstrate the following competencies for the assignment[1]
1. Building and maintaining partnership
2. Demonstrating self-awareness and ethical awareness
3. Innovating and embracing change
4. Driving to achieve results for impact
5. Thinking and acting strategically
6. Working collaboratively with others
Administrative issues
The consultant is expected to be home-based with travel to Madagascar, Somalia, and South Sudan. The cost of travel will be included in the contract and the consultant will arrange travel on his own. Travel costs will be reimbursed via the consultant’s invoice. During country visits, UNICEF CO or the implementing partner will provide working space for the consultant.