UNICEF, guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, works together with partners in 190 countries and territories to promote and advocate for the protection of the rights of every child.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, a chance .

In Nigeria, UNICEF works in a complex humanitarian and development setting to fulfill and protect children's rights in partnership with the government, civil society, children, and families. UNICEF Nigeria is one of the largest UNICEF Country Offices globally - click the link to learn more about UNICEF in Nigeria: https://www.unicef.org/nigeria/

Background:

Education is a fundamental human right and a critical pathway for gender equality, girls’ empowerment and national development. Despite progress in expanding access to education, many adolescent girls continue to face barriers that interrupt their education, particularly due to adolescent pregnancy, child marriage, and other socio-economic factors. These challenges contribute significantly to school dropout rates among girls and limit their opportunities for learning, empowerment, and future economic participation.

How can you make a difference?

Purpose of the Assignment:

The Federal Ministry of Education, with support from UNICEF and partners, developed the National Guidelines for the Facilitation of Re-entry of Pregnant and Married Adolescent Girls into Schools (‘National Re-entry Guidelines), which provide a framework for ensuring that girls who leave school due to pregnancy, marriage, or related circumstances are supported to return, remain, and complete their education. The guidelines promote equitable access to quality education, strengthen school management capacities, establish supportive school environments, and provide mechanisms for tracking, referral, retention, and re-entry of adolescent girls. The guidelines also include actions to prevent adolescent pregnancy.

As part of efforts to strengthen inclusive education and ensure no girl is left behind, the Kwara State Ministry of Education, with UNICEF support, seeks to domesticate the National Re-entry Guidelines and develop a state-specific framework that reflects the state's context, priorities, existing policies, and implementation structures.

The consultancy aims to support the Kwara State Ministry of Education and relevant stakeholders to adapt, validate, and operationalize the National Re-entry Guidelines for effective implementation across the state.

Scope of Work:

UNICEF seeks an experienced consultant to support the domestication of the National Guidelines for the Facilitation of Re-entry of Pregnant and Married Adolescent Girls into Schools in Kwara State.

The consultant will work closely with the Kwara State Ministry of Education, SUBEB, Teaching Service Commission, Ministry of Women Affairs, Ministry of Health, State Planning Commission, civil society organizations, development partners, school administrators, and other relevant stakeholders.

The specific objectives of the consultancy are:

1.Conduct a desk review of the National Re-entry Guidelines and relevant state policies, laws, strategies, and institutional frameworks that support girls' education, retention, transition, and re-entry, to identify opportunities for alignment, contextualization, and effective domestication within Kwara State.

2.Facilitate stakeholder consultations and a state-level domestication workshop.

3.Adapt the National Guidelines into a Kwara State Re-entry Guidelines and Implementation Framework.

4.Develop practical monitoring, reporting, referral, and tracking mechanisms for implementation.

5.Support validation and finalization of the domesticated guidelines and implementation framework.

6.Produce a final document and implementation guidelines.

Work Assignment Overview:

1.Desk review of existing state documents for the domestication process.

Deliverable/output:

Draft analytical report produced - detailing key gaps and opportunities for alignment.

2.Facilitate stakeholder consultations and a state-level domestication workshop.

Deliverable/output:

Re-entry Policy domestication workshop conducted and report submitted.

3. Development of State Guidelines: Collate input from workshop and develop first draft of the re-entry guidelines for review by UNICEF and Kwara State ME.

Deliverable/output:

First draft guideline and implementation framework.

4.Validation and Finalization: Incorporate feedback from the state and UNICEF.

Deliverable/output:

Validation report and revised draft.

5.Produce finalized re-entry guideline documents shared with Kwara SME and UNICEF for copy editing and design.

Deliverable/output:

Final signed off Re-entry Guideline for Kwara state submitted.

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: Advanced university degree in Education, Gender Studies, Social Policy, Public Policy, Development Studies, Sociology, Law, International Development, or related field.

Work Experience: At least 5 years of experience in education policy development, gender and education, adolescent development, child protection, or related fields.

Skills: Experience facilitating multi-stakeholder consultations and policy dialogue.

Experience working with government institutions and development partners.

Demonstrated knowledge and experience in current global issues and best practices in education.

Demonstrated experience supporting policy development, domestication, and implementation at state or national level.

Strong understanding of girls' education, gender equality, inclusive education, child rights, and safeguarding.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

Knowledge of the Nigerian political landscape and recent developments in education.

Experience working with UN agencies or other international development agencies.

A good understanding of UNICEF’s programmatic areas.

Ability to work to tight timeframes and flexibility to adjust to needs of government and UNICEF

Ability to present ideas concisely for diverse audiences and to give practical, actionable advice grounded in evidence.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). 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 based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates’ willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel.
Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

National Consultancy-Domestication of the National Guidelines for the Facilitation of Re-entry of Pregnant and Married Adolescent Girls into Schools in Kwara State, Abuja Nigeria , 3 Months.