Individual National Consultant – Social & Behaviour Change (SBC) Field – Polio Surveillance and Response, Gaborone, Botswana, 6 months, 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, Health

How can you make a difference? 

Scope of Work

Background

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative’s (GPEI) Polio Endgame Strategy 2019-2023 aimed to achieve and sustain a polio-free world. However, the GPEI program in Botswana is facing significant challenges in responding to the current cVDPV2 polio outbreak. Recent initiatives have provided insights into addressing the cVDPV2 outbreaks, but there are pending tasks such as, reinforcing surveillance measures, and executing targeted nOPV2 mop-up campaigns. These campaigns are part of Botswana’s national immunization strategy and align with ARCC’s emphasis on a comprehensive strategy.

The recent detection of an emerging virus, BOT FRA1, highlights the dynamic nature of the polio threat, requiring continued consultant support for surveillance and response efforts including advocacy, communication and social mobilization. The complex and urgent nature of these tasks, linked to global and regional recommendations, necessitates awarding contracts for a field consultant to ensure resilience and adaptability in the pursuit of polio eradication in Botswana amid the current outbreak. Support and expertise are crucial to maintaining effective polio surveillance and response mechanisms.

As a key partner of the GPEI, UNICEF has the mandate of providing assistance to ensure evidence-based, fast tracked and effective SBC response whenever a polio outbreak is confirmed, as well as the support to strengthen routine immunization. The organization relies on highly trained and experienced personnel of staff and consultants to meet this obligation.

Scope of Assignment

In close co-ordination with the UNICEF SBC, Health section and MoH EPI and HPE unit, the consultant will undertake the following tasks:

a) Work with national and district teams to design, implement, monitor and evaluate an evidence-based SBC strategy for disease outbreaks as per the RCCE Pillar Group guidance, including specific strategy for Polio;
b) Support community engagement, social mobilization and specific behavior change interventions;
c) Facilitate communication assessments and rapid social-behavioral research and evidence building, especially in high risk and hard-to-reach communities;
d) Develop/adapt and tailor health messages and information products for various target populations/audiences, based on community knowledge, practices, and behaviors;
e) Facilitate the designing and implementation of specific plans of actions for immunization and/ or Polio eradication to reach groups, especially those affected by vaccine hesitancy;
f) Organize and facilitate training of health workers, especially in inter-personal communication (IPC) for social and behavioral change in underserved and hard-to-reach communities who are at high risk of vaccine preventable diseases;
g) Work closely with district teams to support mapping of rumors and misinformation for effective response and management;
h) Support advocacy activities to engage political, religious, and community leaders and other stakeholders.
i) Submit final consultancy report with best practices, recommendations, gaps & challenges.

Expected deliverables

The consultant will provide the following deliverables:

a) Work plan/inception report
b) Updated SBC Polio response plan
c) Conduct communication assessments and rapid social-behavioral research and evidence building, especially in high risk and hard-to-reach communities and produce report.
d) Facilitate community engagement
e) Support production of communication materials to support immunization and/or Polio SIA campaigns; facilitate dissemination of the produced materials.
f) Train health workers on IPC and SBC approaches.
g) Develop/ adapt communication monitoring tools, train community volunteers/ health workers and facilitate monitoring of activities.
h) Support advocacy activities to engage political, religious, and community leaders and other stakeholders.
i) Work closely with district response teams on developing and implementing a social media plan including addressing misinformation, disinformation and vaccine hesitancy
j) Working closely with district response teams to document and share lessons learned and best practices in child immunization interventions and polio campaigns.
k) Monthly progress reports
l) Final consultancy report with best practices, recommendations, gaps and challenges

Tasks/Milestone:	Deliverables/Outputs:[1]	Timeline
Develop Inception Report with detailed deliverables and schedule of work.	Inception report	1 week 08.02.2024
Work with national and district teams to develop or update ACSM preparedness and response plan for Polio surveillance and response.	Workplan developed/ updated and submitted.	2 Weeks 23.03.2024
Conduct SBC rapid assessment of high-risk populations and strategic & social data gaps that need to be addressed, including capacity mapping. Suggest specific strategies, areas and activities to be prepositioned should a Polio case be identified.	SBC rapid assessment report with specific plan of action to reach high risk populations developed and submitted.	2 weeks 08.03.2024
Work closely with UNICEF Social Listening Consultant and MoH national and district teams to implement effective social and community listening including response to rumours, misinformation and disinformation.	Social and Community Listening Plan developed and continuously implemented and adjusted.	2 weeks 15.03.2024
Submit monthly progress reports	Monthly progress reports including monitoring activities submitted	6 months Monthly reporting.
Support advocacy activities to engage influencers; political, religious, media and community leaders and other stakeholders on child immunization, and coverage of Polio surveillance and targeted nOPV2 campaign activities.	Report on engagement of political, religious and community leaders in advocacy activities	6 months Monthly reporting.
Document and share lessons learned and best practices in child immunization interventions and Polio campaigns	At least 2 human interest stories/lessons learned, and best practices documented and shared through internet and other online platforms with UNICEF and globally	30.03.2024 30.04.2024 30.05.2024
Final consultancy report including analysis of coverage and social data, challenges, gaps, recommendations & best practices	Final consultancy report submitted	End of consultancy 31.07.2024

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

Minimum Qualifications required:

Bachelor’s degree

 • Advanced university degree in Social & Behavioral Sciences, Communication for Development and Public Health. A first level           university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work experience:

• At least 5 years of professional work experience at national or sub-national level in health communication, immunization/Polio SBC, and other relevant programs
• Proven expertise in developing social and behaviour change strategies and plans for immunization, new vaccine introduction, and supplementary immunization activities and campaigns.
• Proven expertise in developing communication material for behaviour change programming.
• Experience in capacity building and supporting multiple working groups at national and sub national is desirable.

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.