OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST

UNESCO strives to promote education in Afghanistan as a fundamental human right while aiming to provide access to quality, relevant, and inclusive education for all. The Office focuses on ensuring access to and the quality of adult skill development, literacy, and non-formal education. Over the last 10 years, UNESCO has provided basic general literacy and skills-based literacy to over 1 million youth and adults in the country.

To achieve this, UNESCO has developed curriculum frameworks and instructional materials for Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education (YALBE) in two learning areas (literacy and numeracy) and Skills-Based Literacy (SBL) workbooks for eight skills: tailoring, poultry farming, first aid and basic health, starting your own business, beekeeping, fish farming, dairy products, and vegetable farming. As part of its current and new Skills Development and Literacy (SDL) programme, UNESCO is revising and developing the teaching and learning resources for non-formal education programmes, including current SBL and YALBE instructional materials with adding the additional skills of technical and high level occupation. This effort aims to integrate these resources into a comprehensive programme—“Skills Development and Literacy (SDL)”—to combine literacy learning with productive skills acquisition. This approach equips learners with skills they can potentially leverage for income generation or personal satisfaction, enabling them to support their families and contribute to their wider communities.

The repackaging of materials under the SDL programme is particularly focused on increasing access to skills development and basic general literacy programmes for adolescent girls and women. This initiative aligns with the broader goal of integrating literacy and vocational skills development to prioritise practical, market-driven training that enhances livelihoods and fosters community resilience while eradicating illiteracy. It is underpinned by accurate and reliable education sector data to ensure the materials are contextually relevant and effective.

To lead this effort, UNESCO is seeking to recruit a team of international consultants/experts in both literacy and technical and vocational education/skills to undertake the repackaging of YALBE Level I and SBL instructional materials, working with UNESCO Kabul’s curriculum team, to include new skills identified through an already conducted skills need assessment. The consultants’ role will focus on integrating literacy and vocational skills development, creating pathways for employability and income generation. The consultant will also provide capacity building and technical guidance to UNESCO’s SDL curriculum team and its partners. This includes leading the identification of existing materials in addition to the ones developed by UNESCO, development of new teaching and learning content and establishing effective methods for assessing learning achievements among youth and adult learners. The expert team will advise and align the newly repackaged programme with non-formal skills development/TVET programme to ensure the certification and level of competencies according to the TVET-A and MoLSA standards.

Their expertise will ensure the instructional materials are repackaged to meet the educational and economic needs of Afghanistan’s adolescents, youth, and adults, particularly women and girls, who face significant barriers to education and skills development.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall authority of the Officer-in-Charge of the UNESCO Kabul Office, overall supervision of the Head of Education unit, and direct supervision of the SDL unit Project Officer/Team Lead, the consultant shall perform the following duties and responsibilities:

Pre-repackaging Stage

1. Provide technical guidance to the SDL curriculum team and Curriculum TWG in planning, designing, implementing, and evaluating the curriculum and instructional materials repackaging process.
2. Develop and ensure implementation and completion of the workplan for the repackaging of YALBE Level I curriculum/skills development curriculum.

Stock taking and Analysis of Existing YALBE Level 1 and SBL Instructional Materials

3. Undertake a desk review of available resources to understand the supply and demand landscape of the skills development sector in the current situation in Afghanistan (e.g., assessment surveys, existing literacy and TVET strategies and plans, existing curriculums of National Occupational Skills Standards etc.) to determine the most appropriate and in-demand skills for the SDL programme.
4. Review the current YALBE curriculum framework (life skills competencies, performance indicators, and learning objectives) and revise them if necessary.
5. Conduct a desk review of the existing YALBE Level I curriculum and instructional materials and the currently available skills to identify areas/contents where literacy can be integrated with skills development.

Repackaging the YALBE Level I and SBL Materials

6. Provide technical guidance to the SDL curriculum team to ensure the repackaging of YALBE Level I curriculum (including textbooks/workbooks, teacher guides, and assessment tools) for each learning area.
7. Integrate the literacy YALBE Level I instructional materials into the skills development component so that learners can acquire literacy skills alongside vocational skills. Introduce at least two additional skills related to manufacturing and/or cultural services sectors (depending on the findings of the desk review) for which the content is available in Afghanistan education sector or neighboring countries as part of the SBL package.
8. Identify and adapt up-to-date approaches to teaching and learning vocational skills for youth and adult learners in the SDL programme.
9. Lead the monthly TWG meeting on YALBE curriculum repackaging and conduct consultation meetings/workshops with a variety of technical experts from the TWG and relevant counterparts.
10. Develop and finalize the repackaged materials of the SDL programme to be piloted.

Piloting the Repackaged YALBE Level I Instructional Materials and the new Skills-based literacy training materials

11. Enhance the capacity of the Master Trainers and IPs’ relevant staff in the repackaged materials to be piloted effectively and efficiently.
12. Conduct a mini pilot of the repackaged materials with a small sample audience and collect feedback for the further improvement of the material.
13. Contribute to the monitoring and evaluation of skill development programme and have more direct interaction with IPs and beneficiaries to understand the effectiveness of the curriculum.
14. Provide a final report detailing the process, outcomes, and recommendations for future enhancements of YALBE Level I instructional materials.
15. Revise the YALBE Level I and SBL instructional materials and based on the feedback from the mini-pilot phase.

In line with UNESCO’s overall gender mainstreaming strategy, the consultant is expected to integrate a gender perspective in all activities and apply gender analysis and mainstreaming concepts whenever feasible.

Timeframe

The consultancy is expected to start as soon as possible and will last for five months. By the end of each month the consultant is required to provide a monthly consultancy report demonstrating the work progress for that month against each main duty and responsibility, including results and achievements related to the repackaging of YALBE Level I and SBL instructional materials. The report should also outline challenges encountered, recommendations, and proposed next steps for subsequent technical work in the following month.

At the end of the consultancy, the consultant is required to provide a final report summarizing the achievements made during the entire period. This report should comprehensively cover the results and achievements of the YALBE Level I and SBL curriculum and instructional materials repackaging, including challenges faced and recommendations for future enhancements.

Deliverables

1. 1. Comprehensive work plan and timeline for the adapting and repackaging of YALBE Level I and SBL instructional materials, including the integration of at least two skills relevant to technical and high-level occupation.
   2. A desk review report of available resources and information (e.g., existing literacy and TVET strategies and plans, existing curriculums of National Occupational Skills Standards and etc.) to determine the most appropriate and in-demand skills for the SDL programme. .
   3. Draft versions of the repackaged YALBE Level I and SBL materials, including curriculum frameworks and instructional resources.
   4. Finalized instructional materials and pilot testing report, incorporating feedback and adjustments.
   5. A final consultancy report summarizing the process, outcomes, and recommendations for future enhancements.

COMPETENCIES (Core / Managerial)

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REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• Advanced degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Education, Psychology, Social Science or a related field.

Work experience

• At least 10 years of relevant professional experience in education, including curriculum development, teacher education.

Skills

• Sensitivity and adaptability (culture, gender, religion, race and nationality);
• Excellent research skills;
• Excellent analytical and writing skills;
• Competent computer skills for word processing, online collaboration, presentation and data analysis; and
• Excellent independent working skills.

Language

• Fluency in English (both written and spoken)

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

Education

• PhD in education, Psychology, Social Sciences or a related field.

Language

• Fluency in Dari/Persian or Pashto.

Work experience

• At least 5 years of relevant professional experience in curriculum development for non-formal education and/or TVET programmes; and
• Previous work experience in education projects with UNESCO in crisis-affected contexts such as Afghanistan.