Nutrition and Early Childhood Development Specialist

Title: Nutrition and Early Childhood Development Specialist
Job no: 577720
Contract type: Temporary Appointment (364 days)
Duty Station: Kyiv
Level: NO-3
Categories: Nutrition, Early Childhood Development

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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For every child, hope

UNICEF Ukraine

Join Health Team at UNICEF Ukraine!

How can you make a difference? 

The start of the full-scale Russian invasion in Ukraine has had wide-reaching social and economic consequences, including those stemming from large-scale displacement, physical damage to buildings and infrastructure, and increased civilian casualties. As of June 2024, about 6 million people are refugees outside Ukraine1 and approx. 3.5 million people are internally displaced within Ukraine. In addition, some 6.9 million people remain in frontline areas (mainly in the east and south of the country) or in communities hosting large numbers of internally displaced people (mainly in the north and west). Physical and psychological stress limits the well-being of the population affected by the conflict and affects the social fabric. Reduced response capacities and overloading of local services are exacerbating the situation. While the war-related emergency continues, Ukraine has started to orient towards recovery in the Central and Western regions to build back better and prioritize policy reform.

UNICEF is dedicated to advancing the rights of every child, everywhere, focusing its programs, advocacy, and operations on this core mission. The organization’s Equity Strategy is at the heart of its commitment, aiming to rectify disparities by prioritizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families. This strategy translates the commitment to children's rights into action, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and is essential for fostering sustainable growth and stability within nations.

Within its new Country Program Document for Ukraine (CPD), UNICEF Ukraine has included Early Childhood Development (ECD) as one of three ‘Leadership Areas’ for the organization over the coming five year UNICEF’s Strategic Plan for 2022-2025. The ECD Leadership Area, known as Better Start to Life, is meant to serve as the ‘foundation’ for the other two ‘Leadership Areas’ - Better Care, which is anchored within Child Protection and focuses on the most vulnerable children with an emphasis on those at risk of abandonment and/or institutionalization, and prevention and  Better Learning and Skills which focuses on learning loss due to COVID and the war from pre-school through adolescence.

The health and nutrition programme takes a systemic, integrated multisectoral approach to Early Childhood Development (ECD) to embed nurturing care for young children in child-centred, resilient, gender-transformative and inclusive policies, programmes and parenting practices, pre-empting the intergenerational impact of the war, climate change and environmental degradation, in line with the global evidence showing that investing in young children has high returns later in life.

UNICEF Ukraine's Health section has made notable progress in integrating Early Childhood Development by implementing the Nurturing Care Framework within Primary Health Care. This effort includes providing facility-based ECD services through Child-Friendly Spaces (CFS) in primary health facilities, expanding the home visiting programme, introducing child development monitoring, offering IYCF counselling, and mapping zero-dose immunized children to better understand vaccine hesitancy or refusal. The programme includes providing parenting support at health facilities and during home visits and coordinates referrals to other health, social and educational sectors.

To spearhead these efforts, UNICEF Ukraine is seeking to appoint a Nutrition and Early Childhood Development Specialist who will be responsible for planning, implementing, and monitoring nutrition and ECD programmes in collaboration with the health and nutrition team at central level, field office health and nutrition officers, and UNICEF staff from the education, child protection social protection and SBC sections.

How can you make a difference?

The Nutrition and Early Childhood Development (ECD) Specialist supports the development and monitoring of nutrition and ECD programmes (operationalising nurturing care) and is responsible for supporting respective health and nutrition programmes and partners in implementation, monitoring, evaluating, and reporting the progress of nutrition and ECD programmes/projects. The Specialist provides technical guidance and support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of results on key child development domains, including mainstreaming and integration  of ECD and nutrition within health programmes and services.  

Job organizational context: The Nutrition and Early Childhood Development Specialist (NO-C) position is situated within the Country Office (CO) in Kiev, Ukraine. Reporting to the ECD specialist (P3), this role is crucial for advancing UNICEF’s strategic objectives in planning, implementing and monitoring integrated nutrition and ECD programmes within Health while ensuring cross-sectoral linkages with other sectors in UNICEF and with partners in Ukraine.

Purpose for the job:

Under the direct supervision of the ECD Specialist (Level 3), the Nutrition and ECD Specialist supports the coordinated development, planning, implementation, monitoring, and documentation of Nutrition and ECD programmes/projects within the Country Programme. The Specialist provides technical guidance and management support within section to facilitate the administration and achievement of results on nutrition and ECD related programmes/projects. S/he assists in coordination and cross sectoral work around the ECD within Health which links with WASH, Education, Child Protection, Social Policy, Communication for Advocacy and Partnerships and Social Behaviour Change programmes.

The Specialist works closely with ECD Working Group (a sub-set of the ECD Task Force) at the national level and with health officers in the Field offices and contributes to the achievement of convergent and sustainable results on ECD related programmes/projects according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM) and UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, standards of performance and accountability framework.

Key function, accountabilities and related duties/tasks

Summary of key functions/accountabilities: 

1. Promote convergence in development, management and monitoring of ECD programmes
2. Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results, with a focus on field implementation and ECD programming
3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation
4. Networking and partnership building, with a focus on field implementation
5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building on infant and young child Feeding and ECD Programmes

  1. Support programme development and planning

• Support and contribute to the preparation, design and updating of the situation analysis for the sector(s) to establish a strategic plan for development, design and management of the nutrition and ECD programmes. Keep abreast of development trends to enhance programme management, efficiency and delivery.
• Promote convergence in development, management and monitoring of nutrition and ECD programmes
• Participate in strategic programme discussions on the planning of health programmes. Formulate, design and prepare a sector of the health programme proposal, ensuring alignment with UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, the Country Programme, as well as coherence/integration with the UN Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF), regional strategies, and national priorities, plans and competencies.
• Establish specific programme goals, objectives, strategies, and implementation plans based on results-based planning terminology and methodology (RBM). Prepare required documentations for programme review and approval.
• Work closely and collaboratively with colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies, and to determine national priorities and competencies to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable results.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes to ensure integration, coherence and harmonization of programmes/projects with other UNICEF sectors and achievement of results as planned and allocated.

2. Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results, with a focus on field implementation and ECD programming  

• Plan and/or collaborate with internal and external partners to establish monitoring benchmarks, performance indicators, and other UNICEF/UN system indicators and measurements to assess and strengthen performance accountability, coherence and delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the assigned sector in health programmes.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, programme reviews and annual sectoral reviews with the government and other counterparts to assess progress and to determine required action/interventions to achieve results.
• Prepare and assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths and/or weaknesses in programme management, identify lessons learned and use knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve goals.
• Actively monitor programmes/projects through field visits, surveys and/or exchange of information with partners/stakeholders to assess progress, identify bottlenecks, potential problems and take timely decisions to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for timely resolution.
• Monitor and verify the optimum and appropriate use of sectoral programme resources (financial, administrative and other assets) confirming compliance with organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity, ensuring timely reporting and liquidation of resources.
• Prepare regular and mandated programme/project reports for management, donors and partners to keep them informed of programme progress.

3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation 

• Provide technical guidance and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and other country office partners/donors on the interpretation, application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes, and best practices and approaches on health-related issues to support programme development planning, management, implementation and delivery of results.
• Participate in discussions with national partners, clients and stakeholders to promote health and development issues, especially in the areas of gender, emergency preparedness, maternal and neonatal health, and child survival and development.
• Draft policy papers, briefs and other strategic programme materials for management use, information and consideration.
• Participate in emergency preparedness initiatives for programme development, contingency planning and/or to respond to emergencies in country or where designated.

4. Networking and partnership building, with a focus on field implementation 

• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with health sector government counterparts, national stakeholders, as well as global partners, allies, donors, and academia. Through active networking, advocacy and effective communication, build capacity and exchange knowledge and expertise to facilitate the achievement of programme goals on child rights, social justice and equity.
• Prepare communication and information materials for CO programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships/alliances, and support fund raising for health programmes (maternal, neonatal and child survival and development).
• Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate inter-agency (UNCT) discussions and planning on health-related issues to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNDAF planning and preparation of health programmes/projects, ensuring organizational position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in the UNDAF process in development planning and agenda setting.

5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building on infant and young child Feeding and ECD Programmes

• Apply and introduce innovative approaches and good practices to build the capacity of partners and stakeholders, and to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable programme results.
• Keep abreast and conduct research to provide evidence for implementation of best and cutting edge practices in health.
• Assess, institutionalize and share best practices and knowledge learned.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure optimum efficiency and efficacy of sustainable programmes and projects.
• Organize and implement capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of stakeholders to promote sustainable results on health related programmes/projects.

Impact of Results

The efficiency and efficacy of support provided by the Nutrition and Early Childhood Specialist to programme preparation, planning and implementation facilitates the delivery of concrete and sustainable results that directly impact the improvement of the health of the most marginalized and vulnerable women and children in the country. This in turn contributes to maintaining and enhancing the credibility and ability of UNICEF to continue to provide programme services to protect the rights of children, and to promote greater social equality to enable them to survive, develop and reach their full potential in society.

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

Minimum requirements:

Education:

• An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: Nutrition, Public health, Developmental/ Child psychology, child development, disability studies, human development, family studies or another relevant technical field.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of five years of professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: early childhood development early intervention, nutrition, maternal and neonatal health care, child health, public health planning and management.
• Experience in the implementation of nutrition and ECD programmes is required.

Language Requirements: 

• Fluency in English and Ukrainian is required.

Desirables:

• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency. 
• Experience working with Government stakeholders is considered as an asset.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.
• Knowledge of another official UN language or a local language 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 is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

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. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will 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.

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 may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

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’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable people with disability 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.

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.

Eligible staff members on fixed-term, continuing or permanent contracts applying to IP TA positions in a duty station designated as L2/L3, may be able to retain a lien and their fixed-term entitlements, subject to approval by their Head of Office. The conditions of the temporary assignment will vary depending on the status of their post and relocation entitlements may be limited as per the relevant policies.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

This position is based in Kyiv and the incumbent will be expected be work on-site. However, depending on the security conditions and advisory, s/he will be required to relocate within Ukraine.

Application Deadline: 06 January 2025 FLE Standard Time