Individual Consultancy: Personal Assistant for a Staff Member with Visual Disability, Ha Noi, Viet Nam

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, an opportunity …

UNICEF is committed to promote equity and inclusion for all and to comply with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Article 9 of the CRPD^[1] recognizes the importance of accessibility, specifically referring to accessibility of buildings, roads, transportation and other indoor and outdoor facilities, including schools, housing, medical facilities and workplaces.

The Sustainable Development Goals have explicit references to children and adults with disabilities across the SDG framework, in particular to accessibility of the built environment in goals on Education and on Sustainable Cities and Human Settlements. UNICEF has also endorsed the Charter on Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Humanitarian  Action^[2], launched at the World Humanitarian Summit in 2016, thereby committing to make humanitarian action inclusive to children with disabilities.

Accessibility helps children and adults with disabilities to enjoy their rights as outlined in Human Rights instruments and development frameworks. Accessibility is a precondition for children and adults with disabilities to live independently and participate fully and equally in society.

While committed to promoting equity and inclusion at the global level, UNICEF has also made efforts to build an inclusive organisation and working environment.

In 2020, UNICEF adopted an HR Policy entitled the Procedure on Disability-Inclusive Human Resources Management Document Number: Procedure/DHR/2020/00. The UNICEF Procedure on Disability-inclusive HR Management provides specific provisions on inclusive recruitment, self-disclosure, reasonable accommodation, inclusive management, consultation of employees with disabilities, career progression and more.

The HR procedure (PROCEDURE/DHR/2020/009) also outlines the importance of reasonable accommodation for employees with disabilities. Reasonable accommodation is critical for employees with disabilities to deliver their job functions on an equal basis with others (e.g. sign language interpretation, assistive products and technology, personal assistant, flexible work arrangements). Some persons with disabilities require personal assistance support in order to navigate environmental barriers in the office and in relation to their work needs within and outside the office including for mobility purposes.

Purpose of Assignment:

To provide support to a staff member with a visual disability, enabling her full participation in work-related activities and assisting with tasks and challenges arising from visual impairment and barriers in the environment. The Assistant is expected to maintain a flexible and accommodating approach to meet the staff member’s specific requirements while upholding the highest standards of professionalism and confidentiality.

Scope of Work:

The Personal Assistant will work closely with, and directly under the supervision of the National UN Volunteer Inclusive Education Officer for the delivery of outputs of the work plan of this employee. In particular, the consultant will support UNICEF’s work on specific tasks of employee- accessibility in accessible information and communication, assistive technology, and inclusive education.

The scope of work is the following:

1. Support the mobility/orientation of the person during external visits and field visits (including setting up an enabling environment for the UNICEF employee they are supporting).

2. Support with note-taking during field visits as instructed by the UNICEF employee.

3. Support with formatting documents and inserting comments/ feedback, graphics and pictures.

4. Support with reading documents and describing graphics and illustrations which are not accessible to screen reader software.

5. Provide support to review and fill up forms related to agreements and contracts that may not be accessible for the employee.

6. Facilitate the employee’s collaboration with other Sections, Divisions, and internal partners on accessibility and assistive technology.

Expected Results:

– Support for mobility and orientation in new environments, external meetings, and field visits.

– Documents edited, proof reviewed and finalized.

– Edited text to be delivered to the supervisor in Microsoft Word with tracked changes.

– PowerPoint images and slides;

– Support in organizing workshops and meetings in external environments.

Note:  the work arrangement is flexible and will include both work on site at UNICEF offices, partner offices, in field location and remotely.

Work Assignments Overview:

– Mobility Assistance (including setting up an enabling environment for the UNICEF employee they are supporting): Through verbal cues and physical assistance support employee with visual disability in safe navigation, whether by guiding them or describing the surrounding environment during field visits, travels to international and national events, and meetings: 1 day per month/as needed.

– Document Accessibility Conversion & Technological Assistance: Convert inaccessible files, such as images, PDFs, Flip Charts, into alternative text formats that can be read by a screen reader. Support the Programme Officer in addressing technological barriers to ensure the full and effective inclusion of the employee with visual disability staff member in workplace activities:  2 days per month, with  half-day schedule in the afternoon of Monday every week.

– Presentations enhancement: Assist in accessing and creating presentations by engaging in activities such as editing/formatting, writing on flip charts, designing visually appropriate PowerPoint presentations, photocopying, distributing materials, and taking photographs: 2 days per month (flexible schedule), e.g. a half-day per week, Monday afternoon or Thursday morning.

– Proofreading:  Proofread and format documents as necessary to meet the expected visual standards.2.5 days per month, with a half-day scheduled every week (Monday afternoon).

– Ad Hoc Tasks: Undertake any additional tasks or responsibilities assigned by the Programme Officer to meet the staff member’s mobility needs and work requirements: 2.5 days per month, with a half-day scheduled every week.

Total: 10 working days per month.

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

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

To view our competency framework, please visit here.   

Assessment criteria:

For evaluation and selection method, the Cumulative Analysis Method (weight combined score method) shall be used for this recruitment:

a) Technical Qualification weight 75 points:

– Educational background:   Completion of Secondary School Education, preferably supplemented by technical or university courses in a field related to the work of the organization, 15 points.

– Relevant work experience:  experience working with persons with disabilities/ vision impairments: 20 points.

– Required language(s):  proficiency in spoken and written English and Vietnamese: 20 points.

– Others:  20 points

+ Patient, focused person, who can anticipate the needs of others and identify barriers in a physical or virtual environment.  Ability to work in a team, in an international environment.

+ Good editing, writing and computer skills;

+ Knowledge of disability and accessibility;

b. Financial Proposal weight 25 points:

– The maximum number of points shall be allotted to the lowest Financial Proposal that is evaluated and compared among those technical qualified candidates who have attained a minimum 50 points score in the technical evaluation. Other Financial Proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price.

– The Contract shall be awarded to candidate obtaining the highest combined technical and financial scores, subject to the satisfactory result of the verification interview if needed.

Submission of applications:

a. Letter of interest/confirmation of availability and CV;

b. Three references;

c. Financial proposal: All-inclusive lump-sum cost including consultancy fee and any other relevant costs for this assignment. 

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.