SHORT TERM NATIONAL INDIVIDUAL CONSULTANCY for Disability Care: Support to the Ministry of Family and Social Services in analysis of centers-based services for strengthening of provision of early intervention services for children with delays/disabilities

Ankara

Organization: UNICEF - United Nations Children’s Fund
Location: Ankara
Grade: Consultancy - Consultant - Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Social Affairs
- Human Rights
- Political Affairs
- Children's rights (health and protection)
- Disability Rights
Closing Date: 2024-09-25

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, inclusion

You can watch our video to learn more about UNICEF Turkiye Country Office and a glance of our worklife.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

Data on children with disabilities (CwD) in Türkiye is limited and outdated. According to 2011 TurkStat data, 8.7% of total individuals with disabilities in Türkiye are children. On average, 2.2% of the population aged 3-19 reports at least one disability. Early detection of disabilities is crucial for a child's optimal development, but there are challenges in timely identification and provision of services. Challenges include insufficient budget allocation for people with disabilities, limited coordination among ministries and agencies, and an overstretched primary healthcare system. Despite all challenges in terms of data generation and service provision, in recent years, the Government of Türkiye has undertaken various initiatives to strengthen support to families and caregivers of children with disabilities.The devastating 2023 earthquakes vastly affected the access and availability of ECD services in 10 regions, pushing back development of universal support services to children at risk or delays of development, while also creating a double burden to children from Syrian refugee families.

The scale of destruction and the level of required support in reestablishing ECD and early intervention services is yet to be assessed.The damages to the country's infrastructure, particularly in areas such as healthcare, education, and transportation, have had a significant impact on people with disabilities who already struggle to access these essential services. As per Inter-Agency Disability Inclusion Task Team there is a lack of the access to information related to services provided to persons with disabilities. There is lack of data on persons with disabilities affected by the earthquake and lack of concrete evidence on the needs of persons with disabilities affected by the earthquake. Support services for persons with disabilities by public health centers are limited due to focus on emergency healthcare.

The 12th National Development Plan, prioritizes improving and scaling-up Early Childhood Development (ECD) services for the youngest children aged 0-6. To operationalize set targets with UNICEF support country developed a National ECD Strategy and Action Plan for 2024-2028, which currently is under the government approval.

The future actions target development and operationalization of a sound Early Detection of Disability and Intervention Program that includes early identification and early intervention; provision of services; parental support and monitoring and evaluation.

In 2024 UNICEF initiated support to the key line ministries in development of a cross-sectoral Model for provision of effective early childhood services in selected ECD demonstration areas. MoFSS is playing a leading role on the establishment of the early intervention services through the initiation of family centered early interventions to children with developmental delays or disabilities. Currently MOFSS supports communities through a network of Family Support and Training Centers, Social Solidarity Centers, Social Service centers and Day Care and Autism Support Centers.

Through this consultancy service, UNICEF will support the MoFSS analyse the potential of current centers to embed the provision of Early intervention services.

How can you make a difference?

The purpose of this task is support to the Ministry of Family and Social Services support the MoFSS analyse the potential of current centers to embed the provision of Early intervention services for children with developmental delays/or disabilities.

Scope of Work:

Assignment will include:

1)Analysis of scope of services and current regulations for provision of services at all types of MOFSS support centers

2)Analysis of staffing and capacity with a focus on ECD work force and disability-support (ECD specialists, psychologists, ergo therapists, etc.)

3) Mapping a potential for system strengthening and enabling Early Intervention support.

This assignment will provide valuable information about the current capacities of the centers, identify areas for improvement including capacity of staff, and contribute to the overall service quality. It is expected that at least 9 centers (2 Family Support and Training Centers, 2 Social Solidarity Centers, 2 Social Service centers, 1 Child Life Center and 2 Day Care and Autism Support Centers) will be analysed. Location and selection of the centers will be suggested by the MOFSS.

Tasks, Deliverables, and Payment Schedule

	Tasks	Deliverable	No of Workdays	Timeline	Payment
1	Conduct analysis of scope of services and current regulations for provision of services at all types of MOFSS support centers	Report with listing and analysis of scope of services, target audience, coverage, standards for service provision for each Center. E-submission in English and Turkish	7 Days	September 15, 2024	40%
2	Conduct analysis of staffing and capacity with focus on ECD work force and disability-support (ECD specialists, psychologists, ergo therapists, etc.)	Report with staffing and capacity gaps in ECD for each center developed. E-submission in English and Turkish	8 Days	October 1, 2024	40%
3	Map a potential for system strengthening and enabling Early Intervention support.	Final report with analysis and recommendation of type of Centers with potential for provision of early intervention work for 0-8 children.	5 Days	October 21, 2024	20%
	Total		20 Days		100%

*All deliverables as per the scope of work must be satisfactorily completed and accepted by UNICEF TCO to facilitate the payment. Delivery estimated working days are tentative.

ESTIMATED DURATION OF THE CONSULTANCY

The assignment is expected to be implemented within 20 working days in 2 months period from 30 August, 2024 to 31 October, 2024. The number of days for each task should be clearly mentioned in the technical and financial proposal.

Terms of reference for this consultancy can be accessed through here: Download File

National Consultancy for Disability Care Terms of Reference.pdf.

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

In addition to the technical requirements below, the experts need to have no criminal report or any connection with illegal organizations.
Overall requirements for the bidder:
- At least 5 years of professional work experience relevant to research, studies, and evaluation on children with disabilities.
- Demonstrated expertise in disability studies, early childhood development, social services, and healthcare systems.
- Good understanding of human rights-based approaches to programming and results-based management principles.
- Ethical sensitivity with regards to different cultures, local customs, religious beliefs, and practices, personal interaction, and gender roles, disability, and age.
- Knowledge of child rights issues with a particular focus on disability.
- Good interpersonal communication skills.
- At least 5 years’ experience in producing high-quality reports and analysis.
- Excellent English and Turkish report writing and editing skills.
- Work experience with UN and international organizations is an asset.
- The bidder is expected to provide CV, declaration of exclusivity and availability for the duration of the duty of key experts submitted in the application.

Duty Station and Location:

The modality of work for this consultancy may require travel to selected provinces

Process and Responsibilities:

Under the supervision and guidance from the ECD Manager, UNICEF Türkiye and in close cooperation with the MoFSS, the consultant will primarily be responsible for planning, designing, managing, conducting, and reporting on the assignment as per the tasks identified under Section. UNICEF will coordinate consultations with MoFSS for each deliverable.

The consultant will be responsible for arranging all the interviews and related administrative and logistical arrangements. UNICEF will also support by connecting with relevant partners when and if necessary.

Cost of the Consultancy:

The consultancy will be paid in TRY as per the submitted and approved financial proposal. The consultant is requested to use the financial proposal template to provide a detailed cost proposal containing information as to the cost of the different type of experts per day required for the

assignment as well as costs relevant to administration such as travel expense, supplies and equipment, administrative supplies, communications, etc. Refer to the notes in each page of the financial proposal and make sure information is fully provided.

Human Rights and Ethical Considerations

The application of the human rights-based approach and results-based management strategies will be integrated into the assessment. The assessment will be linked to the CRC (Convention on the Rights of the Child) and CEDAW (Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women) and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The assessment will be carried out in a way that is ethically sensitive with regards to different cultures, local customs, religious beliefs and practices, personal interactions and gender roles, disability, age, and ethnicity. In addition, requirements for participant informed consent and confidentiality will be maintained, including for children participating in the assessment. Please see the ToR for further information.

Prevention of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) and Safeguarding

All UNICEF contractors are expected to create and maintain an environment that prevents sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. Managers at all levels have a responsibility to support and develop systems that maintain this environment.

Beyond reporting to its own management, the contractor is required to “promptly and confidentially within 24 hours, in a manner that assures the safety of all involved, report allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse” to UNICEF. The contractor can submit its concerns or suspicions to the UNICEF Representative in Türkiye through the email (integrity1@unicef.org) or the UNICEF

Director, Office of Internal Audit and Investigations (OIAI), through the email hotline ().

Furthermore, the contractor should keep UNICEF (through the head of the Türkiye Country Office) informed on reported cases by sharing regular updates on findings relating to the case, the investigation process and outcome and referrals for survivors and others.

Performance Indicators

The Consultant’s performance will be evaluated against the following criteria: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, and quality of the products delivered.

Reservations

UNICEF reserves the right to withhold all or a portion of payment if performance is unsatisfactory, if work/outputs is/are incomplete, not delivered or for failure to meet deadlines.

All products will remain the copyright of UNICEF. Any future use of the data should be acknowledged to the actual source. The consultant may not use the data for its own research purposes, nor license the data to be used by others, without the written consent of all parties listed above.

Application Requirements

Award criteria: Cumulative Analysis.

The evaluation and award criteria that will be used for this institutional consultancy services is Cumulative Analysis evaluation (point system with weight attribution). The weighting ratio between the technical and financial proposals will be 70:30. Passing score for technical evaluation is 50.

Technical Evaluation Criteria with the below breakdown:

Item	Technical Evaluation Criteria	Max Points Obtainable
1	Letter of intent	5
1.1	Letter of intent that outlines knowledge and understanding of the tasks and deliverables requested	5
2	Proposal description	25
2.1	Scope of proposed approach and methodology including timetable, success indicators and staff combination	15
2.2	Risk management & flexibility of proposal in context of possible needs to make changes regarding time, duration, kind of activities.	10
3	Expertise and qualifications	40
3.1	Relevance of the background and professional experience	30
3.2	Experience in relevant research, studies, and evaluation supported by UNICEF/UN agencies	10
	TOTAL TECHNICAL SCORES	70

Financial Proposal should include:

Detailed budget as per the Financial Proposal Template_ECD Expert_DisabilityCare.docx
Explanation of budget assumptions with regard to planning, team composition, field work, etc.
The total amount of points allocated for the price component is 30.
Score for price proposal calculated as:
- (Max. score for price proposal (30 Points) * Price of lowest priced proposal)/Price of proposal X
- Total obtainable Technical and Financial score: 100
The Proposer(s) achieving the highest combined technical and price score will (subject to any negotiations and the various other rights of UNICEF detailed in this services) be awarded the contract(s).

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

To view our competency framework, please visit  here.

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.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

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 also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background 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.

Remarks:

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.

We do our best to provide you the most accurate info, but closing dates may be wrong on our site. Please check on the recruiting organization's page for the exact info. Candidates are responsible for complying with deadlines and are encouraged to submit applications well ahead.

Before applying, please make sure that you have read the requirements for the position and that you qualify.
Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.

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