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.

For every child, Care!

https://youtu.be/PKSi-6RAhxc?si=IFjgmiX42Ldj7hF7

How can you make a difference?

Afghanistan country office is seeking an experienced home-based Consultant to prepare and deliver a high-quality strategic engagement to a high-level audience of donors, diplomats and development partners that:

Takes stock of progress against the commitments of the London Compact.
Outlines key recommendations and asks from the ACG to accelerate the London Compact commitments.

Background:

Afghanistan is experiencing a worsening nutrition crisis driven by multiple and compounding factors, including prolonged conflict, widespread poverty, climate-related shocks, population movements, restrictions affecting women and girls, reductions in social service financing, and disruptions to supply chains for essential nutrition commodities. These pressures have contributed to deteriorating nutrition outcomes, including rising levels of stunting, persistent severe food poverty among young children, and increasing rates of life-threatening wasting with a corresponding increase in the number of children in need of treatment.

Most recent nutrition surveillance data shows that global wasting has reached the highest levels on record, while reductions in funding to the health sector threaten the coverage, continuity and effectiveness of nutrition services. UNICEF estimates that up to 200,000 children with severe wasting or high-risk moderate wasting could lose access to life-saving treatment in 2027 if current funding trends continue.

As part of the high-level in-person ACG meeting, with attendance of donors, international financial institutions, Afghanistan-related diplomats, UN agencies and development partners, UNICEF requires a senior consultant with recognized expertise in nutrition and preferably, nutrition in Afghanistan, to provide a concise, evidence-based presentation on the evolving nutrition situation in Afghanistan, the implications of declining investments, and priority considerations and actions required to prevent further deterioration.

Scope:

Under the guidance of the Chief of Nutrition and Child Development and in close coordination with FCDO UK, the consultant will:

1. Undertake a rapid stock-take of progress against the London Compact milestones

2. Deliver a presentation at the ACG meeting covering –

a. The findings of the stock-take exercise

b. Key recommendations to accelerate progress against the milestones going forward

Work Assignment Overview	Deliverables/ Outputs (SMART)*	Delivery deadline
Work Assignment Overview	Deliverables/ Outputs (SMART)*	*Exact date to complete the deliverable**	Input days**
Initial review of available documentation and briefing with UNICEF leadership; carry out a rapid stock-take of progress against the London Compact milestones with all relevant partners	Stock-take report on progress against London Compact milestones, with key recommendations for future	13 October 2026	8
Attendance at the ACG meeting for delivery of the nutrition session.	Delivery of presentation and final meeting notes.	23 October 2026	2

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: Advanced university degree (Master's level or higher) in Nutrition, Public Health, Epidemiology, Medicine, International Development, Health Economics or related field.
Work Experience: Minimum 10 years of progressively responsible experience in nutrition, public health, humanitarian response and/or health systems.
Skill: Recognized experience and leadership of international nutrition programming and translating complex technical information into strategic messages for senior decision-makers. Proven experience presenting to donor, diplomatic, governmental or executive audiences. Strong understanding of nutrition programming in fragile, conflict-affected and humanitarian settings.
Language Requirements: English.

Desirables:

Experience in Afghanistan and/or South Asia region is highly desirable.
Familiarity with financing, health systems and development policy discussions is an asset.

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, discrimination, fraud, corruption and other forms of misconduct.
UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference, safeguarding and background verification checks. These checks may include verification of academic credentials and employment history, screening against relevant United Nations misconduct databases, and requests for misconduct disclosures from current and former employers, professional associations, other relevant organizations and participating organizations under inter-agency safeguarding initiatives, including the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS), where applicable.

Appointment, selection and continued engagement are subject to the satisfactory completion of all required checks. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information and consent to enable UNICEF to undertake these 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, 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 candidates 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.

International Individual Consultant to Deliver a High-Level Briefing at the Afghanistan Coordination Group (ACG) Meeting.