Organization: UN Children's Fund
Country: Panama
Closing date: 01 Nov 2018
THE UNITED NATIONS CHILDREN’S FUND (UNICEF)
TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTOR/ CONSULTANCY
FOR
INTERNATIONAL CONSULTANCY FOR
Adolescent Mental Health in Latin America and the Caribbean
Location: Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean [LACRO]
Language(s) required: Fluency in English and Spanish is required
Closing date for applying to this consultancy: 31 October 2018
Duration: 10 months
Estimated start date of this consultancy: 15 November 2018
Estimated end date: 15 September 2019
BACKGROUND:
The world is currently home to the largest cohort of adolescent and young people. In Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 110 million adolescents aged 10 – 19 live in the region today. Behind the numbers, adolescents are the force that will contribute towards shaping the future and will be the prime actors at the time countries will show their achievements in 2030 in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). Investing in adolescents today will not only protect gains made early in life but will also ensure adolescents are nurtured and supported to transition towards adulthood to get the tools and skills needed to deal with the challenges of life and reach their full potential. Adolescence is understood as the life stage that begins with puberty and ends with the start of adulthood, a critical development stage where adolescents experience important physical, psychological, emotional, cognitive and social changes. As a social construct, it signals the transition from childhood to adulthood. It is also a crucial time for brain development, like the one experienced in early childhood. The physical changes combined with the plasticity of the brain during early adolescence presents a critical time of opportunities but also significant vulnerabilities. It is a time of high creativity with critical opportunities for learning, growing and thriving that could have a lasting effect later in life.
Addressing adolescent health is one of the key priority areas for UNICEF work in Latin America and the Caribbean. A regional framework on Gender Responsive Adolescent Health was developed in 2017 guiding the work of UNICEF in the region, with a focus on 6 priorities: preventing adolescent pregnancy, HIV, road injuries, non-transmissible diseases, including overweight and obesity, the role of the health sector in responding to different forms of violence and adolescent mental health.
Considering that more than 75 per cent of mental health disorders are first manifest before the age of 25, and about half of all disorders before 14 years of age, adolescence is a crucial moment to intervene and prevent future mental health disorders. The purpose of this consultancy is to support this area of work by exploring existing evidence, mapping current responses and establishing a community of practice on adolescent mental health in the region.
OBJECTIVE:
The purpose of this consultancy is to develop a regional approach to address adolescent mental health that will guide the work of UNICEF in the Latin America and Caribbean region.
EXPECTED RESULTS (measurable results):
The following results are expected at the end of the consultancy:
DELIVERABLES:
The consultant will be responsible for developing the following products:
Description
Duration
(Estimated # of days)
Delivery deadline
50
28 February 2019
30
15 March 2019
30
15 April 2019
40
15 June 2019
30
15 July 2019
30
15 September 2019
Monthly basis
Monthly basis
Total
212 working days
KEY QUALIFICATIONS, TECHNICAL BACKGROUND, AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:
Academic qualifications
Level of academic qualifications: Advanced University degree
Field of academic qualifications: Psychiatry, Psychology, Public Health, Adolescent Health, Counselling or other related field
Post graduate studies in related disciplines desirable.
Experience
Over five years of experience in adolescent mental health research, program implementation, management
Technical knowledge and skills
State of the art knowledge on adolescent mental health
Good understanding of key partners working in this field in the region
Experience in adolescent health
Experience compiling and preparing case studies
Good writing and communication skills
Ability to work independently
Language skills
Fluency required in: English and Spanish
MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS
This consultancy will be supervised by the LAC Regional Advisor Health and the Regional Specialist in Adolescent and HIV.
INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTOR’S WORKPLACE:
The consultant is expected to work from UNICEF LAC Regional Office in Panama. In case some travel will be required, this will be discussed and agreed between the consultant and the supervisor.
TRAVEL (IF APPLICABLE):
Travel will be covered by UNICEF as per policy.
Travel costs will be estimated and added to the contract once they are determined based on UNICEF Financial Rules and Regulations.
Please note, for travel to countries – it will be decided based on agreements with UNICEF and contractor/consultant. For agreed country visits, the contractor/consultant will be responsible in administering its own travel. UNICEF will reimburse travel related expenses based on actual costs or on the below criteria whichever is lower and upon presentation of receipts.
Any travel involved should be budgeted according to UN Travel Standards as a ceiling.
-Travel: http://www.un.org/esa/cdo/hr/CIRCULARS/STAI20064%20- %20OFFICIAL%20TRAVEL%20(SECTION%2010).pdf Section 4, paragraph 4.2 , numerals (d) and (e)
-Accommodation (Daily Subsistence Allowance, DSA): http://icsc.un.org/ (all countries and destinations can be found by navigating on the map)
FEES:
Candidates are requested to submit a financial proposal based on the deliverables mentioned above.
PAYMENT PROVISIONS:
UNICEF’s policy is to pay for the performance of contractual services rendered or to effect payment upon the achievement of specific milestones described in the contract. UNICEF’s policy is not to grant advance payments except in unusual situations where the potential contractor, whether an Individual consultant, private firm, NGO or a government or other entity, specifies in the bid that there are special circumstances warranting an advance payment. UNICEF will normally require a bank guarantee or other suitable security arrangement.
Payments will be made upon delivery and approval of deliverables by UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if outputs are incomplete, not delivered of for failure to meet deadlines.
Details of payments will be agreed in advance and individually between the consultant and UNICEF.
EVALUATION METHOD AND CRITERIA:
Consultants and/or Individual Contractors (CIC) will be evaluated based on a cumulative methodology, being the award of the contract made to the CIC whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:
Technical component score
Max. 70 points
Economical component score
Max. 30 points
TOTAL score
Max. 100 points
Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 50 points (of the total technical points) would be considered for the Financial Evaluation.
Technical Proposal
The technical proposal should include: cover letter referring to the required qualifications, timeline, workplan, proposed methodology, and 3 contact references from previous work experience.
Technical Evaluation
Technical Criteria
Technical Sub-criteria
MaximumPoints
Education
5
Maximum Points
5
Work Experience
Over five years of experience in adolescent mental health research, program implementation, management
Experience in adolescent health, program evaluation,
10
Maximum Points
10
Technical Knowledge
20
5
10
10
5
5
Maximum Points
55
Total Maximum obtained for Technical Criteria
(Note: the total maximum score must be equivalent to the weight assigned to the technical score)
70
Minimum score for technical compliance
50
Financial Proposal
In addition, separately from the technical proposal (as in another document), a financial proposal detailing the total costs of the assignment (not including costs for travel yet) must be submitted.
The total amount of points allocated for the economic component is 30. The maximum number of points will be allotted to the lowest price proposal and compared among those consultants which obtain the threshold points in the evaluation of the technical component. All other price proposals will receive points in inverse proportion to the lowest price; e.g:
Max. Score for Financial proposal * Price of lowest priced proposal
Score for price proposal X = —————————————————————————
Price of proposal X
HOW TO APPLY
To apply, click on the Apply link found either at the beginning or at the end of this ad.
Submit:
In case of doubts please send your comments to lacro-ops@unicef.org with the subject: Adolescent Mental Health at least 3 working days before the deadline.
The deadline to receive applications is31/10/2018. The pre-selection of candidates will be done after closing date. Please note only selected candidates will be contacted.
Important: In the selection of its consultants, UNICEF is committed to gender equality and diversity, without distinction as to race, sex, or religion, and without discrimination to people with disabilities.
How to apply:
UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization. To apply, click on the following link http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=517083
