Consultancy to pilot an assessment tool for benchmarking policy support for universal parenting

Context

Key Activities

1. Participation in online familiarization with the national assessment tool.

The National Consultant and UNICEF staff will participate in an online ‘training/familiarization’ training session(s) in English, likely to be two sessions (one for introduction and one for follow-up clarification). The purpose will be to (i) train the national consultant on the framework and methodology for conducting the assessment (desk review, key informant interviews, stakeholder reflections]; (ii) refine the framework and methodology through participatory exercise with the consultant and other participating stakeholders; and (iii) adapt the methodology and framework to the national context where necessary.

2. Rapid desk review

The consultant will conduct a desk review of national policy and programming documents relevant to universal parenting programmes, with the aim of identifying the national parenting context. This will include research on the national family context and parenting practices; current legal and policy context on issues relating to parenting from at a minimum the ECD, child protection, and health and nutrition sectors; resources available on current parenting interventions being implemented in Mexico; and data collection, monitoring and evaluation on issues related to parenting.

3. Benchmarking assessment

Conduct key informant interviews (KIIs) (online and in-person) with key national and sub-national actors using the  questionnaire aligned to the assessment framework,  that will identify data on laws, policies, systems and processes related to parenting, and will collect stakeholder perceptions on progress towards universal parenting in Mexico – [to determine, but to include at least the following: national / federal ministries covering child protection, ECD, adolescent health, family status, and other national drivers of harsh parenting; sub-national government stakeholders covering the same contexts; civil society, media and private sector providers of parenting interventions; academics conducting research related to parenting]

PLH consultancy team will draft tools, but these will need to be adapted by the consultant, in line with national context. e.g., PLH can draft a semi-structured interview questionnaire for national policy makers, but this would need to be revised for the relevant sectors that the consultant will be meeting and to reflect the federal context. The main tool is the twelve benchmarks and checkpoints developed by PLH consultancy team, that will be used to source written documents and get feedback.

Consolidate and analyze KII findings within the assessment framework.

Compile a draft national report, including completed programmatic framework, assessment methodology, and summary of key findings and present to UNICEF and stakeholders for review.

4. Participatory consultation on draft findings with key stakeholders

• Facilitate a series of consultative meetings (in-person and online) with key stakeholders [number, membership, process to be determined] to collectively review findings and reach consensus on benchmarks and checkpoints.
• Draft the final national benchmarking report including the completed assessment framework for review by UNICEF and national stakeholders and national recommendations / examples of good practices.
• Last round of refinement and a validation meeting with stakeholders (online).
• 1 travel each to Tijuana, Ciudad Juárez and Michoacán; meetings also in Mexico City.

5. Final national report on Mexico parenting policy

The consultant will support UNICEF in an in-person validation / launch meeting with key national stakeholders, including presentation of assessment process and results. The consultant will then prepare and submit a final report to UNICEF incorporating feedback from the validation meeting.

Deliverables