Social Behaviour Change and Justice Consultant, UNICEF Child Protection, Prevention of Harmful Practices, Nairobi, Kenya, 6 months (remote) #594707

Contract Duration: 6 months

Working arrangement: remote

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

Social and behaviour change (SBC) is a critical component of UNICEF's efforts to prevent and eliminate harmful practices, including female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage. While many countries have enacted laws prohibiting these practices, implementation and enforcement often remain inconsistent, particularly where communities rely on customary, traditional and religious justice mechanisms to resolve disputes and uphold social norms.

UNICEF has recently completed a scoping review assessing the role of community-based and informal justice mechanisms in influencing compliance with child rights standards and laws protecting girls from FGM. This work has highlighted both the opportunities and the challenges in engaging these systems to strengthen community support for legal protections while safeguarding the best interests of children and protecting girls from harmful practices.

The purpose of this consultancy is to develop practical continental guidance on engaging community-based and informal justice mechanisms to strengthen their alignment with child rights standards and laws protecting girls from female genital mutilation (FGM) and child marriage across Africa.

Building on UNICEF's recent community justice scoping exercise and broader evidence base, including stakeholder interviews, the consultancy will analyse different models of interaction between formal and informal justice systems, focusing on countries within the UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to End Child Marriage and the UNFPA-UNICEF Joint Programme on the Elimination of FGM, define the different typologies of alignment between formal and informal justice across Africa, identify promising practices and develop practical guidance and recommendations for governments, practitioners and development partners to support alignment between informal justice mechanisms and laws protecting girls form child marriage and FGM.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy, please review the complete Terms of Reference here:  TMC0004415 ToR.pdf

Minimum requirements:

• Education: An advanced university degree (master’s degree or higher) in Law, Social and Behaviour Change, Social Sciences, Anthropology, Sociology, Political Science, International Development, Human Rights, Gender Studies, Public Policy, or another relevant field.
• Work Experience:
  • A minimum of 5 years of progressively responsible professional experience in child protection, justice sector reform, logal pluralism, governance, human rights, social and behaviour change, community engagement, gender equality, prevention of violence against women and girls, or a related field.
  • Demonstrated experience working on the prevention of harmful practices, particularly child marriage and/or female genital mutilation, in Africa.
  • Proven experience conducting qualitative research, including literature reviews, policy analysis, key informant interviews, synthesis of findings, and development of evidence-based recommendations.
  • Demonstrated experience conducting qualitative and mixed-methods research, including literature reviews, key informant interviews, data analysis and synthesis of findings.
  • Demonstrated experience analyzing legal and policy frameworks and their implementation within diverse cultural and community contexts.
  • Experience developing high-quality technical guidance, frameworks, toolkits, policy briefs, or other knowledge products for governments, UN agencies, or international development organizations.
  • Experience facilitating multi-stakeholder consultations, workshops, or co-creation processes involving government institutions, civil society organizations, traditional and religious leaders, community representatives, and development partners.
  • Experience working across multiple countries in Africa and engaging with regional institutions is highly desirable.
• Language requirement:
  • Excellent written and spoken English is required.
  • Fluency in French is highly desirable.
  • Knowledge of Portuguese or Arabic would be an asset.

•     Skills:

•     Strong understanding of child rights, child protection systems, and legal and policy frameworks related to female genital mutilation, child marriage, gender equality, and violence against women and girls.

•     Demonstrated knowledge of community-based, customary, traditional, and religious justice mechanisms and their interaction with formal legal systems, particularly within African contexts.

•     Strong understanding of social norms and community engagement approaches to strengthening implementation of laws and promoting protective behaviors.

•     Excellent analytical and conceptual skills, with the ability to synthesize complex evidence into practical, user-friendly guidance.

•     Strong report writing and technical writing skills.

•     Demonstrated ability to work independently, manage multiple priorities, and deliver high-quality outputs within agreed timelines.

Desirables:

• Previous experience working with UNICEF, UNFPA, United Nations agencies, the African Union and regional bodies, or international development partners.
• Familiarity with the African Union child protection and gender policy frameworks, including regional legal instruments related to harmful practices.
• Experience supporting policy implementation, legal reform, or justice sector strengthening initiatives related to child rights or gender equality.
• Experience analyzing the interaction between formal legal systems and community-based, customary, traditional and/or religious justice mechanisms is an asset Published research or technical publications related to child protection, social norms, informal justice mechanisms, or community engagement.
• Experience designing or facilitating participatory consultation and validation processes across multiple countries.

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  TMC0004415 Financial Proposal Template.xlsx

Remarks:  If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not visible on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers.

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.