Local consultancy to coordinate the enhancement and promotion of the parenting application FOLEJA, Prishtina, Health, 62 days, remote

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, champion 

Launched in Albanian and Serbian languages, Foleja is actively promoted across Kosovo through communication networks, including social media influencers, live streaming, and face-to-face activities in different regions. During 2023, UNICEF continued promoting the app through street action campaigns, live sessions with health professionals, and online promotion, reaching 15,000 downloads, 79 per cent by mothers, 18 per cent fathers, two per cent caregivers, and one per cent service providers. Targeted sessions and integration of Foleja app content promotion in various programme interventions are effective means to reach the families with limited access to various services and information.

UNICEF Kosovo plans to draw on the experience accumulated in Kosovo as well as across the Europe and Central Asia region to undertake the assignments outlined in this TOR for the purpose of further upgrading Foleja content and features to fit the needs of parents/caregivers in various contexts and situations in Kosovo. Further, to improve the sustainability efforts of parental support and service provider engagement via Foleja (e.g., health workers, educators, social and welfare workers, etc.), UNICEF plans to continue engaging NGO implementing partners in the promotion of the app with the support of this consultancy.

Under the overall supervision of the UNICEF ECD Specialist, and through working closely with the ECD Officer, the SBC Officer, and other designated staff of UNICEF Kosovo, the consultant will be the focal point for coordinating the promotion and development efforts of the Foleja app with involved institutional counterparts, implementing partners UNICEF Europe and Central Asia Regional Office (ECARO), within UNICEF Kosovo and other. The overarching goal of the consultancy is to advance user penetration and parental support through increased downloads and utilization of the app and by the implementation of the consultancy tasks.

Within the scope of this assignment, the completion of the following tasks is foreseen:

1. Oversee Foleja application in close coordination with the Kosovo Office and UNICEF ECA Regional Office teams. This includes the management of the Content Management System (CMS), testing and publishing new/enhanced app versions, monitoring utilization details for the app, coordination through regular meetings and proactive approach.
2. Regularly maintain coordination with the national working group members on Foleja, including progress updates and technical support.
3. Adapt and develop new content for Foleja promotion and uptake to ensure a targeted 50% increase of app downloads by the end of the consultancy and compared to the baseline at the onset of the consultancy. This includes, but is not limited to, the development and upload of new articles, push notifications for the app, social media packages and content for influencers, human interest stories.
4. Support new and existing partnerships, including programmatic and private sector, for integration and promotion of Foleja, through support and monitoring of programme activities and leveraging of new partnerships for integrating Foleja promotion.
5. Support for seeking options for digitizing and integrating child health booklet in Foleja.
6. Promotion of the new ECE Curriculum and Foleja application, including through social media editorials organizing of TV and radio presence events, development, and implementation of radio jingles.

1. Oversee Foleja application – 18 days. 

Work Assignments Overview: Regularly maintain the content management system and implement new App releases
Deliverables/Outputs: Draft tools developed, reviewed by UNICEF and MESTI and finalized.

Work Assignments Overview: Prepare regular quarterly reports regarding Foleja statistics, engage in continued communication with Foleja team in Kosovo and UNICEF Regional Office to carry out needed tasks for Foleja
Deliverables/Outputs:
– Quarterly reports compiled;
– User statistics regularly monitored and reported;
– Continued communication maintained via meetings and exchanges and Foleja tasks carried out.

Work Assignments Overview: App user guide finalized with design in both languages (Albanian and Serbian), in coordination with Foleja team.
Deliverables/Outputs: – App user guides finalized.

2. Regularly maintain coordination with the national working group members on Foleja, – 3 days. 

Work Assignments Overview: Engage Foleja National Team and endorse with them newly developed content via email, presentations, and/or online/in-person meetings (with brief presentations on updates). Support members on CMS utilization as needed.
Deliverables/Outputs: Meetings organized and update reports sent to National team members. Support for CMS utilization extended as needed.

3. Adapt and develop new content for Foleja promotion and uptake to ensure a targeted 50% increase of app downloads by the end of the consultancy and compared to the baseline at the onset of the consultancy – 30 days.

Work Assignments Overview: New content developed in the forms of articles, videos, push notification for the app, social media packages and content for influencers, and few short human-interest stories for the app’s utilization.
Deliverables/Outputs: New content developed, reviewed with UNICEF and relevant national team members and published/ disseminated.

4. Support new and existing partnerships, including programmatic and private sector, for integration and promotion of Foleja – 4 days

Work Assignments Overview: Maintain communication and support UNICEF Implementing Partners for the implementation, monitoring and reporting of programmatic activities integrating Foleja
Deliverables/Outputs: Brief reports of support provided and impact on user base prepared.

Work Assignments Overview: Design and support implementation of promotional activities for private and public sector partners.
Deliverables/Outputs: Agreements of relevant sectors and private partnerships reviewed and proposal for Foleja integration provided. Support extended for Foleja promotion events.

5. Support for seeking options for digitizing and integrating the child health booklet in Foleja – 2 days.

Work Assignments Overview: Review and coordination with UNICEF Kosovo and Regional teams on methods/ ways of the implementation of the physical Child and Pregnancy Health Booklet within Foleja app
Deliverables/Outputs: Alternatives for integration of child health booklet into Foleja identified.

6. Promotion of the new ECE Curriculum and Foleja application – 5 days. 

Work Assignments Overview: Develop social media editorials with key messages for the new Early Childhood Education core curriculum
Deliverables/Outputs: Social media editorials for the new core curriculum prepared, reviewed and submitted for dissemination.

Work Assignments Overview: Organized TV and radio presence events and develop radio jingles for the new ECE core curriculum
Deliverables/Outputs: 3 TV and radio presence events organized and radio jingles developed for implementation for the new ECE core curriculum

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

• • Bachelor’s degree in communication, psychology, social sciences, or other related areas.
  • Experience in project support, programme coordination in development organizations
  • Good digital skills
  • Good reporting and presenting skills
  • Communication verbal skills with various stakeholder
  • Ability to identify risks and to develop strategies to mitigate them
  • Good independent and team working skills
  • Experience working with UNICEF or other UN agency is considered an advantage
  • Working knowledge of English and Albanian.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

To view our competency framework, please visit  here. 

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment. 

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:  

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. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.