Consultancy for development of a technical note on for Vitamin A Supplementation Programme - Tenders Global
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Consultancy for development of a technical note on for Vitamin A Supplementation Programme

United Nations Children's Fund

tendersglobal.net

Job Description

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Description

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Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS) is a critical intervention for child survival, proving effective in reducing all-cause mortality in populations with vitamin A deficiency. Since 2000, global efforts to scale up VAS programmes have resulted in significant improvements in coverage, contributing to a notable decline in child mortality globally. Global VAS coverage reached its peak at 78% in 2009, with more than 290 million children fully protected from the consequences of vitamin A deficiency. However, between 2016 and 2022, global two-dose VAS coverage has fluctuated around 60% with a dip to 41% seen in 2020 due to service disruptions caused by the global pandemic.

While two-thirds of eligible children globally receive VAS, the remaining one-third, missing out on the life-saving benefits, likely represents those children grappling with various health and nutrition challenges. These are the children who arguably need VAS the most.

Many national VAS programmes conduct reviews of the programme after each round of supplementation. The findings from the review are to provide evidence for the programme strategies in the next round of supplementation. However, VAS programmes typically rely solely on coverage when assessing and evaluating performance at national and subnational levels. While coverage, a widely available indicator is useful as an overall summary of the programme, it does not give adequate insights into other aspects of the programme that may be contributing to suboptimal performance. Furthermore, the scope and scale of reviews vary from country to country. Even within countries, there may be variability by district. This makes tracking performance across years and different geographies challenging.

There is a need to provide further guidance to countries on methods and approaches to conducting a systematic review of their VAS programmes relying on indicators that extend beyond coverage. This consultancy aims to develop a comprehensive and standardized method to guide countries in reviewing their VAS programmes at national, sub-national, and service-delivery levels. The review process is intended to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the programme to inform future programmatic strategies.

Scope of Work:

The objectives of this consultancy are organized in two key outputs:

Develop a comprehensive and standardized method to guide countries in reviewing their VAS programmes. This should include information on the process of conducting the review and a framework to guide the review.

Activities under this output will include:

  • Desk review of available guidelines for programme review from related nutrition and health programmes, including immunization.
  • Draft technical note on method for review of VAS programmes
  • Consultation of key stakeholders on method for VAS programme review among select for feedback. The feedback will be used to refine the technical note.
  • Finalize technical note on review of VAS programmes
  • Implement the proposed method for VAS programme review in a select country.
Activities under this output will include:
  • Conduct a VAS programme review in accordance with the proposed methodology in a select country
  • Disseminate findings at the country level and in two UNICEF regions (West and Central Africa and Eastern and Southern Africa).
Qualifications:

Education:

  • MSc in Epidemiology and Nutrition with specific knowledge and expertise in epidemiological and biostatistical methods as applied to nutrition data analysis.
Work experience:
  • Minimum 8 years of professional experience in nutrition research and programming.
Competencies/Knowledge:
  • Familiarity with UNICEF programming operations at the country level, with knowledge of the global nutrition architecture and strategic stakeholders/partners.
  • Experience writing programmatic and technical guidance related to nutrition for program staff delivering public health interventions in resource-limited settings. 
  • Knowledge of nutrition humanitarian and development programming and indicators preferable
  • Experience in working with UNICEF preferable
Requirements: 
  • Completed profile in UNICEF’s e-Recruitment system and
  • Upload copy of academic credentials
  • Financial proposal that will include/ reflect:
  • the costs per each deliverable and the total lump-sum for the whole assignment (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference.
  • travel costs and daily subsistence allowance, if internationally recruited or travel is required as per TOR
  • Any other estimated costs: visa, health insurance, and living costs as applicable.
  • Indicate your availability
  • Any emergent / unforeseen duty travel and related expenses will be covered by UNICEF
  • At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage
  • Payment of professional fees will be based on submission of agreed satisfactory deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant.

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