Contract Duration: 4 Months

Working arrangement: Remote/Homes Based

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.

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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.

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TERMS OF REFERENCE

Adolescence is a critical period of development during which mental health challenges can have lasting impacts. In Bhutan, mental health concerns among children, adolescents, young people, and women are increasing, with anxiety and depression accounting for more than 55% of reported cases, followed by alcohol -related mental and behavioral disorders. In response, WHO and UNICEF launched the Helping Adolescents Thrive (HAT) Initiative, including evidence -based guidelines, an implementation toolkit, a teacher’ s Guide, and a Comic Book to promote adolescent mental health and socio -emotional learning. To pilot the initiative in Bhutan, UNICEF partnered with the Ministry of Education and Skills Development (MOESD) and the PEMA Secretariat in 2025, implementing the adapted HAT toolkit in 24 schools over six months through school counsellors in 12 schools and mentor -mentee programmes in the remaining 12 schools.

The pilot implementation of the HAT initiative demonstrated positive outcomes in strengthening adolescents’ social -emotional skills, with participants showing improved emotional awareness and a greater willingness to seek support from peers, counsellors, and wellbeing focal persons. Teachers observed that students felt more comfortable discussing their challenges, while parents and caregivers reported being better equipped to understand and support their children after participating in the programme. A major factor contributing to the pilot’s success was the adaptation of the resources to the Bhutanese context, particularly the comic book Magnificent Meto and Friends, whose relatable characters and storylines resonated strongly with adolescents. Due to high demand, including among older adolescents aged 15 –19 years, UNICEF and the MOESD plan to develop a new HAT Comic Book and accompanying Teacher’s Guide specifically for this age group. The resources will be co -created with adolescents from the 24 pilot schools to address the key issues affecting their mental wellbeing and provide practical, age -appropriate tools for promoting socio -emotional learning, empathy, and resilience.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: TMC0004683 External ToR.pdf

Minimum requirements:

Education: Masters in psychology, education, public health , social work, sociology, anthropology, child development, Educational Psychology

Experience: A minimum of five (5) years of proven experience in developing adolescent‑focused communication, education, or behaviour change materials.

Skills: Strong understanding of adolescent mental health and social -emotional learning

Proven creative content development capacity

Educational resource development expertise

High -quality design and production capabilities

Excellent analytical and synthesis skills, particularly in translating consultation findings into actionable content

Experience conducting participatory consultations with adolescents and applying safeguarding and ethical engagement standards.

Proven experience working with government agencies, UNICEF and other development partners.

Language Requirements: Fluency in English and knowledge of dzongkha

Desirables: Previous experience developing comic books or graphic narratives specifically for adolescent wellbeing or education would be preferred.

Knowledge of Dzongkha and Bhutanese cultural contexts.

Prior work experience with UNICEF or other UN organization 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

This position has been assessed as an elevated risk role for Child Safeguarding purposes as it is either a role with direct contact with children, a role that works directly with identifiable children’s data, a safeguarding response role, or an assessed risk role. Additional vetting and assessment for elevated risk roles in child safeguarding (potentially including additional criminal background checks) apply.

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) TMC0004683 Financial proposal.xlsx
A detailed technical proposal Applicants are required to submit a technical proposal of no more than five (5) pages outlining their understanding of the assignment, proposed methodology and approach for developing the HAT Comic Book and accompanying Guide The proposal should also demonstrate the approach to integrating adolescent participation, safeguarding principles, and culturally appropriate mental health and socio -emotional learning content into the final products.

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 the Helping Adolescent Thrive Comic Book for Adolescents aged 15 -19 years. Thimphu Bhutan.4Months.Remote(with Travel) Nationals Only.#594884