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For every child, the right to Protection

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbkJiMmvKqk

How can you make a difference?

1. The purpose of this consultancy is to support the Afghanistan Country Office in operationalizing UNICEF's Environmental and Social Standards (ESS) framework through implementation of the ESS Policy and Procedure in Programming and the Complaints and Feedback Management (CFM) Procedure. The consultancy will strengthen environmental and social risk management, programme stakeholder engagement, accountability, monitoring and corrective-action systems across UNICEF programming while supporting the organization's transition toward a "Do More Good" approach that enhances programme effectiveness, safeguards children and communities, and promotes sustainable development.

2. Complete the validation, finalization and operationalization of the WASH Environmental and Social Risk Management Plan (ESRMP), including integration of risk management, stakeholder engagement, Complaints and Feedback Management (CFM), monitoring, corrective-action and reporting requirements into programme implementation systems.

3. Support implementation of the new UNICEF CFM framework by establishing and operationalizing complaint and feedback arrangements, referral pathways, monitoring and trend-analysis mechanisms aligned with UNICEF's accountability to programme stakeholders and risk management requirements.

4. Conduct the complete ESS rollout from inception in two additional programme sections, including activity screening, risk assessment, stakeholder engagement, ESRMP development, CFM integration, monitoring systems, validation and operational integration into programme, partnership, procurement and monitoring instruments.

5. Strengthen country-office capacity to implement ESS requirements by supporting practical application, coordination with specialized functions, partner and vendor engagement, monitoring, assurance and continuous improvement processes.

6. Provide environmental and social safeguards support to the EERA-AF Project through incident documentation, escalation support, corrective-action tracking, and preparation of UNICEF-cleared reporting products consistent with applicable ESS and World Bank requirements.

7. Document implementation lessons, challenges, good practices and recommendations to inform the phased scale-up of Environmental and Social Standards implementation across UNICEF Afghanistan programmes.

Scope of Work:

Under the supervision of the Programme Specialist (ESS Lead) and in coordination with programme sections, technical specialists, AAP/SBC, Monitoring, Risk Management, Supply, Partnerships and Safeguarding functions, the consultant will support implementation of UNICEF's Policy and Procedure on Environmental and Social Standards in programming (ESS) and Complaints and Feedback Management (CFM) Procedure within the Afghanistan Country Office. The assignment will focus on operationalizing environmental and social risk management, programme stakeholder engagement, complaints and feedback management, monitoring and adaptive management systems, while supporting environmental and social safeguards and incident-management requirements associated with World Bank funded EERA-AF project.

Workstream A – ESS and CFM Operationalization of the WASH Pilot

Building on the completed WASH ESRMP pilot covering all AWP 2026 activities, the consultant will support final validation and operational implementation of ESS and CFM requirements.

The consultant will:

Consolidate validation comments and finalize risk applicability, ratings, management measures, implementation responsibilities, indicators, verification mechanisms and monitoring arrangements.
Validate application of ESS controls with UNICEF stakeholders, implementing partners, vendors and other responsible entities.
Confirm triggers for reassessment, escalation, specialist review and corrective action.
Integrate ESS requirements into workplans, programme documents, partnership agreements, procurement processes, TORs, contracts and monitoring arrangements.
Operationalize stakeholder engagement and complaints and feedback mechanisms associated with WASH activities.
Establish procedures for risk monitoring, corrective-action tracking, non-compliance management and closure verification.
Support implementation of risk-management measures across priority WASH activity categories.

Workstream B – Complaints and Feedback Management and Programme Stakeholder Engagement

In collaboration with AAP/SBC and responsible UNICEF functions, the consultant will support implementation of complaints and feedback management systems aligned with UNICEF's CFM Procedure and Programme Stakeholder Engagement requirements.

The consultant will:

Map and document existing country-office and partner feedback channels.
Assess accessibility, inclusiveness, confidentiality and appropriateness of feedback channels for women, children, workers, vulnerable groups and affected communities.
Establish complaint and feedback categorization, referral pathways, record-management arrangements and escalation protocols.
Support procedures for intake, acknowledgement, assignment, action, closure and analysis of complaints and feedback.
Establish trend analysis and reporting mechanisms for identification of recurring risks and programme improvements.
Support inclusion of CFM obligations within partner and vendor agreements.
Ensure alignment between programme-level feedback mechanisms and relevant safeguarding, PSEA, security and integrity pathways.

Workstream C – ESS Rollout and Institutionalization in Two Additional Programme Sections

For each designated programme section, the consultant will implement the full ESS rollout process from inception through operational integration.

The consultant will:

Conduct inception meetings and orientation sessions.
Review and consolidate workplan activities.
Screen activities against the eight UNICEF Environmental and Social Standards.
Identify environmental and social risks and proposed risk ratings.
Develop and validate section-specific ESRMPs.
Facilitate consultations with specialized UNICEF functions.
Establish stakeholder engagement, CFM and monitoring arrangements.
Integrate approved ESS requirements into programme implementation, partnership, procurement and monitoring instruments.
Support partner and vendor alignment with ESS requirements.
Develop implementation roadmaps and action registers for each section.

Workstream D – Monitoring, Assurance and Continuous Improvement

The consultant will strengthen systems for monitoring ESS implementation, assessing effectiveness of mitigation measures and supporting programme adaptation.

The consultant will:

Define monitoring indicators, evidence requirements, data sources and reporting responsibilities.
Establish monitoring schedules and reassessment triggers.
Integrate ESS monitoring into existing UNICEF programme-monitoring systems.
Develop dashboards and tracking tools covering mitigation actions, complaints and feedback, incidents, corrective actions and closure status.
Support management review processes and evidence-based programme adjustments.
Develop lessons learned and recommendations for future scale-up of ESS implementation within Afghanistan Country Office.

Workstream E – EERA-AF Environmental and Social Safeguards and Incident Management Support

The consultant will provide technical support for environmental and social safeguards requirements associated with EERA-AF implementation.

The consultant will:

Review applicable safeguard instruments, commitments and reporting obligations.
Maintain incident and action-tracking systems.
Support documentation, classification and escalation of environmental and social incidents.
Prepare draft reporting products for UNICEF review and clearance.
Track implementation of corrective and preventive actions.
Maintain secure records and appropriate confidentiality arrangements.
Support compliance with applicable UNICEF and World Bank safeguard requirements while recognizing that incident ownership, investigation and external communication remain UNICEF responsibilities.

Work Assignments	Deliverables/Outputs	Delivery Deadline
1-ESS Inception, Planning and Rollout Design	Inception Package: verified WASH pilot status; stakeholder and Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed (RACI) mapping (including AAP/SBC, Monitoring, Safeguarding and Risk Management); detailed rollout methodology for two additional programme sections; EERA-AF safeguards support plan, reporting pathways and approval map; consolidated workplan.	October 2026 (18 Working Days)
2-WASH ESS Validation and CFM Strengthening	WASH ESS Validation and CFM Package: finalized WASH ESRMP; validation record; stakeholder engagement and CFM architecture; channels mapping; complaint categories and referral pathways; intake–assignment–action–closure workflow; partner/vendor ESS and CFM requirements; anonymized CFM dashboard and analysis protocol.
3-WASH ESS Operationalization and Monitoring Systems	WASH Operationalization and Monitoring Package: validated indicators, evidence sources and monitoring matrix; integrated monitoring and assurance tools; corrective-action tracker; document integration record; partner/vendor orientation package; spot-check findings; implementation lessons learned.
4-ESS Capacity Building and Training Programme Delivery	Design and Deliver Environmental and Social Standards (ESS) and ESRMP Capacity Building Programme for UNICEF Staff, WASH Implementing Partners, Contractors, Vendors and Relevant Stakeholders: Develop and implement a structured training programme based on the revised ESRMP, UNICEF ESS Policy, ESS Procedure, and Complaints and Feedback Management Procedure. Training shall cover ESS requirements, environmental and social risk identification and mitigation, occupational health and safety (OHS), labor and working conditions, safeguarding/PSEA, community health and safety, stakeholder engagement, complaints and feedback mechanisms, incident reporting, contractor obligations, monitoring and reporting requirements, and site-level implementation of ESRMP measures. Training materials shall be adapted to local context and relevant stakeholder groups.	November 2026 (18 Working Days)
5-Programme Section 1 ESS Rollout and Integration	Programme Section 1 ESS Rollout Package: activity inventory; ESS screening results; consultations; validated ESRMP; stakeholder engagement and CFM arrangements; monitoring matrix and dashboard; integration into programme instruments; capacity-strengthening package and action plan.	November 2026 (18 Working Days)
6-Programme Section 2 ESS Rollout and Integration	Programme Section 2 ESS Rollout Package: activity inventory; ESS screening results; consultations; validated ESRMP; stakeholder engagement and CFM arrangements; monitoring matrix and dashboard; integration into programme instruments; capacity-strengthening package and action plan.	December 2026 (18 Working Days)
7-EERA-AF ESS Support and Assignment Close-Out	EERA-AF Environmental and Social Safeguards Support and Assignment Close-Out: continuous incident documentation and action tracking maintained throughout the assignment; UNICEF-cleared draft notifications, updates and reporting products prepared as required during the contract period; updated incident register; corrective-action status report; consolidated assignment completion report; lessons learned; recommendations for ESS scale-up; outstanding actions and 90-day roadmap.	December 2026 (18 Working Days)

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: A university degree in Environmental Engineering, Social Development, Natural Resource Management, Agriculture, Climate Change, Environmental Health, International Development, Safeguards, Risk Management, or another relevant field.

Work Experience:

A minimum of 2-5 years of relevant professional experience.
Demonstrated experience developing and implementing Environmental and Social Risk Management Plans (ESRMPs), Environmental and Social Management Plans (ESMPs), safeguard instruments, risk-management frameworks or comparable environmental and social risk-management systems.
Experience applying international environmental and social safeguard frameworks, such as the World Bank Environmental and Social Framework (ESF), IFC Performance Standards, UN system safeguards frameworks, or comparable standards.
Demonstrated experience conducting environmental and social risk screening, risk assessment, mitigation planning, monitoring and corrective-action management across programme or project cycles.

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:

Interested consultants are required to apply online, indicating availability and all-inclusive lump sum fee to undertake the terms of reference.

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.

Environmental and Social Safeguards (ESS) and Risk Management Consultant