Contract Duration: 10 Months

Working arrangement: Home 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.

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 purpose of this consultancy is to support the National Center for Health Promotion (NCHP), Ministry of Health, to develop a standardized, competency-based Village Health Support Group (VHSG) Training Package and Curriculum for the implementation of the Policy on Community Participation for Health (PCP-H) and its Operational Guidelines.

The training package shall strengthen VHSG competencies to effectively perform their roles as community health promoters, facilitators of community participation, agents of social and behaviour change (SBC), community mobilizers, referral and follow-up agents, and contributors to community health monitoring and accountability mechanisms at village level.

The package will align with the VHSG roles, responsibilities, and competencies outlined in the PCP-H Operational Guidelines.

The consultant will work closely with the NCHP PCP-H Team, relevant technical departments of the Ministry of Health, and UNICEF Cambodia to ensure the training package is technically sound, practical, scalable, and suitable for both face-to-face and digital learning modalities.

Scope of Work:

The consultant will support UNICEF and NCHP in two complementary areas:

(i) the development and piloting of a competency-based VHSG training package and curriculum aligned with the PCP-H Operational Guidelines and national community health priorities; and

(ii) the documentation and assessment of Interpersonal Communication (IPC) capacity-building initiatives to generate evidence, lessons learned, and recommendations for strengthening future VHSG capacity development and community engagement efforts.

1. Development of a Competency-Based VHSG Training Package and Curriculum

The consultant will develop a comprehensive, competency-based VHSG training package and curriculum aligned with the PCP-H Operational Guidelines and national community health priorities.

Key responsibilities include:

• Review the PCP-H Policy and Operational Guidelines, existing VHSG training materials, community health worker curricula, and relevant Ministry of Health technical standards and training resources.

• Develop a competency-based training package grounded in the core functions, roles, responsibilities, and competencies of VHSGs outlined in the PCP-H Operational Guidelines.

• Design a modular VHSG training package comprising facilitator and participant materials, session plans, practical learning tools (exercises, role plays, case studies, field assignments), job aids and counselling tools, community action planning tools, assessment and competency evaluation tools, refresher training materials, and digital/e-learning adaptations.

• Ensure the curriculum applies adult learning principles and participatory training methodologies, including practical demonstrations, peer learning, problem-solving exercises, and community-based scenarios.

• Develop a monitoring framework to assess competency acquisition, application of knowledge and skills, and post-training performance.

• Facilitate technical consultations and review workshops with NCHP, relevant MOH programmes, provincial and operational district representatives, development partners, and other stakeholders.

• Revise and finalize the training package based on stakeholder feedback and submit final Khmer-language materials and editable source files to NCHP and UNICEF.

2. Capacity Development, Orientation and Training of Trainers (ToT)

The consultant will support NCHP to prepare key stakeholders for implementation and scale-up of the VHSG training package.

Key responsibilities include:

• Develop a phased implementation and rollout plan for the VHSG training package.

• Design and facilitate Training of Trainers (ToT) for provincial and operational district participants in Preah Vihear and Siem Reap provinces to strengthen their capacity on VHSG roles, competencies, performance standards, supervision and mentoring, community monitoring and reporting, and integration of VHSG activities within local planning and health systems.

• Provide coaching, mentoring, and technical support to trained PHD and OD trainers to strengthen their capacity to deliver high-quality cascade training for VHSGs in collaboration with health centres and commune authorities.

• Document implementation experiences and lessons from the ToT and cascade training, including trainer readiness, functionality of training systems, knowledge and skills acquisition among VHSGs, and recommendations to improve future training delivery and learning outcomes.

• Develop supportive supervision, coaching, mentoring, and refresher training guidance to sustain competency development beyond the initial training phase.

3. Documentation and Learning on Interpersonal Communication (IPC) Capacity Building

The consultant will assess the effectiveness, application, and sustainability of existing IPC training and generate recommendations to strengthen future VHSG capacity-building efforts.

Key responsibilities include:

• Design assessment tools and data collection instruments to evaluate IPC training delivered to VHSGs, Commune Committees for Women and Children (CCWC), Commune Social Assistants, Health Centre staff, and other relevant community actors.

• Conduct field consultations in Ratanakiri, Preah Vihear, and Siem Reap provinces to assess the effectiveness and application of IPC training, including participants’ knowledge retention, use of counselling and IPC skills, community engagement, referral and follow-up practices, enabling factors and implementation challenges, gender, equity and inclusion considerations, and the adequacy of supervision, coaching, and mentoring support received following the training.

• Identify good practices, capacity gaps, lessons learned, and recommendations to strengthen the integration of IPC competencies within the VHSG core training package, supportive supervision systems, and coaching and mentoring approaches.

• Produce a concise learning and recommendations report to inform the national scale-up of IPC skills training and continuous improvement of VHSG competency in line with the PCP-H framework.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: Download File Terms of Reference TMC0004789.pdf

Minimum requirements:

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master's or higher) in Public Health, Health Promotion, Social and Behaviour Change (SBC), Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE), Health Education, Social or Behavioral Sciences, Communication, Adult Learning, Development Studies, or a related field.

Work Experience:

Minimum 7 years of professional experience in public health, community health, health promotion, SBC/RCCE, community engagement, or capacity development.

Demonstrated experience in developing competency-based training packages, curricula, and learning materials for community health workers, volunteers, or other frontline workers, using adult learning and participatory training approaches.

Demonstrated experience in designing and facilitating ToTs, capacity-building programmes, workshops, and multi-stakeholder consultations, including coaching, mentoring, and supportive supervision of trainers and community-level actors.

Proven experience in training evaluation, programme documentation, qualitative assessments, and learning reviews, including data collection, analysis, report writing, and development of practical recommendations.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in Khmer (written and spoken) is required.

Strong written and spoken English skills are required, including the ability to produce high-quality technical reports and training materials in English.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills:

Strong knowledge of community health systems, primary health care, and community participation approaches, with proven experience working with the Ministry of Health and sub-national health structures in Cambodia.

Excellent facilitation, communication, analytical, and report-writing skills, with the ability to work independently and deliver high-quality outputs within agreed timelines.

Desirables:

Previous experience working with UNICEF, WHO, other UN agencies, or development partners on community health, SBC/RCCE, or workforce capacity development programmes 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

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 TMC0004789.xlsx
A detailed technical proposal:

Technical proposal, sample of related work in English.

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.

National Consultant to develop VHSG training package, Programme Section, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 10 Months Remotely. (Open only for Cambodian Nationals) Req#594958