Contract Duration – 11 months

Working arrangement: Remote with travel

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. 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 professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

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

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Purpose scope

UNICEF Pacific in partnership with Solomon Islands Government (SIG) requires technical assistance to support the development of key mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) tools and guidance materials for use within education, health, and community and counselling systems. The assignment will contribute to strengthening mental health service delivery and workforce capacity across the health, education, and community sectors through the development of practical, contextually relevant, and evidence-informed training resources, professional standards and implementation guidance. This includes developing curriculum content for teachers on children’s development, children’s psychosocial needs, identification and support pathways, and the importance of teacher self-care to sustain safe and supportive learning environments, as well as development of training and capacity building resources for health facility-based mental health personnel, including Training of Trainers (ToT) materials and related workforce development resources for mental health professionals.

The consultant will provide technical leadership and hands-on support to strengthen teacher capacity, school-based and integration of MHPSS into teacher professional development programming, and counselling systems in Solomon Islands.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: ToR x TMC0005936.pdf

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

Minimum requirements:
Education: Master`s University degree in Psychology, Social Work, Public Health, Mental Health, Education, or other relevant field is required.
Work Experience:
A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in mental health and psychosocial support, counselling, child and adolescent wellbeing, education or related systems strengthening is required.
Language Requirements:

Fluency in written and spoken English and knowledge of local language would be added advantage
Knowledge/Expertise/Skills:

Demonstrated experience in curriculum, teacher professional development or training material development for teachers, counsellors, social service providers or other frontline workers is required
Demonstrated experience supporting mental health, counselling or psychosocial support systems strengthening, including standards, professionalization, coordination mechanisms or institutional development, is required Relevant experience working with government, UNICEF, international organizations or NGOs in the Pacific or similar contexts is highly desirable
Experience working in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), particularly in the Pacific region, would be an advantage

Desirables:
Experience supporting multisectoral mental health or school wellbeing programmes, and experience in the UN system, are desirable
Demonstrated experience in mental health workforce development, training systems, supervision frameworks or professionalization of health or counselling workforces is highly desirable.

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

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 reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. 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.

Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System):

An up-to-date TMS profile and curriculum vitae (CV)
Cover letter
A separate financial proposal (only acceptable in the format of the linked template) Financial proposal TMC0005936.xlsx

Remarks: If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not downloadable on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers.

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.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

INTERNATIONAL ONLY -Mental Health and Psychosocial Support Consultant, Honiara Solomon Islands, 11 months (Remote with travel)