Contract Duration- Approximately 4 Month

Working arrangement: Remotely

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

The Maternal Care including Nutrition Norms and Standards aim to ensure the highest possible quality of care across all levels of maternal care provision, to improve maternal health and nutrition outcomes. This consultancy will build upon the existing National Norms (2014) and Standards (2015), updating them to align with current evidence and national needs.

Scope of Work:

1. Benchmarking and gap analysis report:

o Review the implementation and coverage of existing maternal care norms and standards. o Compare existing norms and standards against international best practices.

o Review all relevant local guidelines and protocols.

o Identify specific areas for improvement in both field and institutional settings.

2. Drafting the national maternal care norms and standards:

o Draft detailed norms for all maternal care settings in the field.

o Draft clearly distinguished norms for tiered levels of health institutions providing maternal care.

o Draft tiered standards for antenatal, intranatal and postnatal care protocols, defining the scope of care for each level of health facility with clear linkages across different levels.

3. Implementation Plan Development:

o Design a detailed implementation plan, including activities, timelines, and responsible parties.

o Identify resource requirements (human, financial, infrastructure).

o Develop communication and dissemination strategies.

4. Clinical algorithm compendium:

o Design a quick reference guide for frontline staff incorporating preventive and clinical care pathways.

o Ensure alignment with existing clinical pathways and the Sri Lankan context.

5. Monitoring and quality assurance framework:

o Develop a monitoring and evaluation framework, including key performance indicators.

o Update existing indicators to measure compliance with the new norms and standards.

o Develop a results framework outlining expected outcomes.

o Streamline or establish data collection and analysis systems.

o Design a system for regular reporting and feedback.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: Terms of Reference TMC0003702.pdf

Minimum requirements:

Work Experience: At least 10 years of work experience Strong understanding of the maternal healthcare system in Sri Lanka. Deep understanding of the continuum of care concept, specifically the link between community-based and hospital based maternal health services. Should have at least 10 years of experience in the above fields

Language Requirements: Excellent spoken and written command of English.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills: Proven experience in developing guidelines, norms, or standards, Track record in conducting situational analyses and data interpretation, Ability to synthesize diverse clinical inputs into user-friendly policy documents, Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.

Desirables: Experience working in low- and middle-income countries. Exposure to healthcare systems in advanced settings will be an added advantage

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 TMC0003702.docx

Remarks:

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.

Consultant for the Development of National Norms and Standards for Maternal Care, Colombo, Sri Lanka, Remotely, Approx. 4 months. (Open For Nationals of Sri Lanka Only) Req#594263