National Consultant: Baseline assessment of Gates Foundation (GF) Testing Mobile Health and Nutrition Clinics project , Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The Position:

The consultant will report to the UNFPA M&E Specialist while closely working with the UNFPA Monitoring and Evaluation team and UNFPA SRH and Humanitarian team. 

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled.  UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the ICPD and SDGs in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.

Job Purpose:

UNFPA is dedicated to creating a world where every pregnancy is desired, every childbirth is safe, and every young person can achieve their full potential. The agency has been assisting the Government of Ethiopia and various Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in its key areas of focus: Integrated Sexual Reproductive Health, Population and  Development, and Gender Equality and Women Empowerment. These efforts aim to address national priorities in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the ICPD Programme of Action, and the UN Strategic Framework, thereby supporting Ethiopia's 10-Year Development Plan.  The Ethiopian Health Sector Transformation Plan puts health equity as one of the priorities in addressing the needs of different underserved and geographically hard-to-reach communities in the country.   

The glaring inter-regional and intra-regional disparities in health outcomes and impact indicators highlight the critical importance of adopting a robust strategy to reach such communities with life-saving services. In similar contexts worldwide, mobile health services have proven to be a sound strategy for reaching underserved populations. Thereby improving their access to maternal health services, Family Planning (FP), and gender-based violence (GBV) services, among other services. This service delivery modality bridges the gap in service access by bringing healthcare directly to communities or as close as possible. Also, when linked with a transparent and well-facilitated referral system, this modality enables community members to access more advanced healthcare and helps to bolster local healthcare system capacity. This is in recognition that Mobile Health and Nutrition Clinics (MHNCs) do not operate independently of the existing health system but are complementary to other forms of healthcare delivery, including static healthcare facilities.  

 To continue these efforts in providing mobile services, UNFPA Ethiopia has signed a Project agreement with the Gates Foundation to implement the “Testing Mobile Health and Nutrition Clinics (MHNCs) in Ethiopia” project from October 2024 to October 2027. This three-year project aims to support the testing of Mobile Health and Nutrition Clinics (MHNCs) to deliver integrated Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health and Nutrition (RMNCHN) care in Ethiopia and introduce priority innovations to key populations in need with poor access and high burden.  

This project builds on the GF’s existing Maternal, Newborn, Child, Nutrition, and Health (MNCNH) work with Mobile Health and Nutrition Teams (MHNTs), which provide a limited set of RMNCHN services. With the proposed MHNCs, it is envisaged that expanded RMNCHN services will be delivered with an innovative approach. The proposed MHNCs will be linked with ambulance and static health facilities in catchment areas, strengthening the referral linkage to reduce maternal mortality and promote RMNCHN, especially for populations in hard-to-reach areas. This project will contribute to identifying tailored MHNC solutions for each regional context by testing an innovative MHNC model in four different zones of three regions. 

This investment aims to develop a cost-efficient MHNC model that can be scaled beyond the test woredas, offering several more sophisticated and integrated sets of RMNCHN services. This investment seeks to contribute to the reduced rate of home deliveries in hard-to-reach areas by 2027 in targeted regions in target woredas with two intermediate outcome areas and five outputs: 

● Improved utilization of Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child Health and Nutrition (RMNCHN) services through innovative delivery models targeting hard-to-reach, high-burden communities affected by crises. 

● Enhanced knowledge, attitude, and practice in more supportive environments for individuals to access and use RMNCHN services through MHNCs 

This initiative will directly benefit four hospitals, 12 health centers, four mobile health and nutrition clinics, and four ambulances in the Somali, Afar, and Oromia regions. 

Rationale for the baseline assessment:

Addressing pastoralist populations' needs for improved utilization of Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health and Nutrition (RMNCHN) services through innovative delivery models targeting hard-to-reach, high-burden communities affected by crises. Enhancing knowledge, attitude, and practice Cost-Effectiveness and Optimization: Evaluate the cost-effectiveness of static health facilities in delivering primary care services by analyzing cost drivers and exploring optimization strategies. more supportive environments for individuals to access and use RMNCHN services through MHNCs. The baseline assessment will evaluate the availability of RMNCHN services and information and individuals' knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to accessing and utilizing these services. It will also examine whether clients' rights are upheld and whether GBV and SRHR care are provided safely, respectfully, and with dignity in the targeted service outlets, prioritizing a survivor-centered approach. 

Purpose and Objectives:

 This baseline assessment is a reference point for the project's planning, implementation, and evaluation. It aims to collect reliable and relevant data on satisfaction levels, knowledge, and access related to service delivery for our clients. It establishes a baseline before initiating services at the current outlets. The data gathered from the study will inform programmatic interventions addressing comprehensive and accessible sexual and reproductive health services in the project's target area.  

Specifically, the baseline assessment will focus on the following key issues. 

• Service Utilization and Efficiency: Assess the number of patients/clients served daily in existing health facilities and analyze key factors influencing their operational efficiency, including the role of technology in enhancing service delivery. 
• Demographic and Geographic Profiles: Identify the demographic and geographic characteristics of populations served by existing health facilities to determine the most suitable settings for health service delivery. 
• Cost-Effectiveness and Optimization: Evaluate the cost-effectiveness of static health facilities in delivering primary care services by analyzing cost drivers and exploring optimization strategies. 
• Quality of Care and Client Satisfaction: Assess measures implemented to ensure the quality of care in existing health facilities and evaluate client, patient, and survivor satisfaction with the services received. 
• Utilization of Maternal and Reproductive Health Services: Determine the number of pregnant women receiving at least four antenatal care (ANC4+) visits and calculate the proportion compared to the total number of pregnant women in the target population, deliveries attended by skilled birth attendants, and proportion of the postpartum women receiving family planning counseling or services within the first year after delivery in targeted health facilities. 
• Awareness and Accessibility of RMNCHN and GBV Services: Measure the population's understanding of RMNCHN services and assess the accessibility, affordability, and availability of SRH and GBV care, ensuring these services are safe, respectful, and aligned with a survivor-centered approach. 
• Community Feedback and Knowledge: Evaluate the role of community feedback in improving services and measure the knowledge levels of women, men, girls, and boys regarding SRH and GBV, including associated risks and pathways to support. 
•  Sustainability: Assess the key financial, operational, and policy-related factors influencing the long-term sustainability and integration of MHNCs into the national health system

Scope of the baseline assessment: 

This baseline assessment aims to provide a comprehensive assessment across all levels of the organization, incorporating interviews, desk reviews, and field visits to selected regions and targeted woredas.  

Study Setting:

 The survey will take place in selected districts within the three target regions (Oromia, Somali, and Afar), focusing on the project's goal to reduce the rate of home deliveries in hard-to-reach areas by 2027. 

Study Population: 

The baseline’s assessment will cover the following study populations within the three target regions:

 ● Women, men, girls, and boys who have accessed SRH and GBV services. 

● SRH and GBV clients, patients, and survivors who have received services and information to share their experiences regarding access and service delivery. 

● Community members, including women, men, girls, and boys, to assess their knowledge, attitude, and practice of SRH and GBV, its risks, and available support services. 

● Health facility staff (e.g., Skilled birth attendants, administrators, healthcare providers) to provide data on service utilization data, operational efficiency, and the role of technology in service delivery. 

● Community leaders and members to assess feedback mechanisms and knowledge levels about SRH and GBV. 

You would be responsible for:

● Participate in briefing and consultative meetings on the assignment at UNFPA. 

● Review relevant project documents. 

● Collaborate closely with the UNFPA SRH, M&E, and resource mobilization and partnership team to clearly understand the task and promptly address any challenges. 

● Develop a comprehensive inception report to guide the baseline assessment.

 ● Outline the roles of each team member proposed for the assessment. Docusign Envelope ID: 387FFD20-8A5A-4658-9F22-9AD6E4F9C34A

● Set and refine relevant environment-related indicators in consultation with the UNFPA Program Team. 

● Develop data collection tools and share them with the UNFPA team. 

● Refine data collection tools based on feedback from the UNFPA team. 

● Conduct data collection. 

● Provide quality and professional services in managing, coordinating, and supervising the entire process.

 ● Prepare and submit a comprehensive, well-structured draft baseline assessment report to UNFPA for review and comments. 

● Facilitate a validation workshop to share findings with key stakeholders and incorporate their views. 

● Review and incorporate feedback received from UNFPA. 

● Produce and submit the final report.  

Reporting:

The consultant will produce a report adapting the baseline report template from the UNFPA Evaluation handbook; the template will be finalised with the M&E team.   

Based on the agreed timetable (see above), the consultants will receive at least three feedback meetings conducted by UNFPA focal persons and M&E focal points to monitor the progress and address challenges. 

 The acceptance of the final report is subject to consultation with programme partners, stakeholders and UNFPA technical staff on the findings of the draft report  

The final report (40-50 pages without annexes) will be presented in electronic form and sent to UNFPA.   

The team lead is responsible for the timely submission of deliverables to UNFPA and to coordinate addressing of comments and resubmission.  

The entire baseline assessment will encompass fieldwork and report submission, which should take place from mid April to July with a span of 14 weeks. The review will follow the steps outlined below. The tentative schedule and work plan will be updated with the consultant.

Breakdown of working days by A key activities:

Place where services are to be delivered:

Addis Ababa, with field visits to Oromiya, Somali and Afar Region Regions. The team lead and the team member will each focus on one region for the data collection. This will be decided during the design phase.

Setting:

Delivery dates and how work will be delivered:

The baseline assessment contract will be structured around deliverables rather than a fixed number of working days as per the UNFPA evaluation policy (2024). The project is scheduled for a duration of 14 weeks, with one senior consultant leading his own team of two support members that he needs to bring at his own cost. The team lead is expected to complete the engagement between mid-April 2025 and July 2025, accounting for time to receive input and conduct quality assurance with the UNFPA team.

The consultant’s deliverables should be distributed across the months as indicated in the table below. 

Monitoring and progress control, including reporting requirements, periodicity format and deadline:

The selected consultants should submit and deliver the following deliverables: 

• Design report, including technical outline of data collection tools for the proposed method approach. 
• The Final report and PowerPoint presentation of the main findings.

Tentative calendar:

The consultant is responsible for the overall quality assurance of each deliverable. 

Other relevant information:

Methodology: The consultant/s is expected to propose a robust baseline assessment methodology, utilizing qualitative and quantitative data collection methods to generate comprehensive and actionable evidence. The processes employed should gather valuable information from both primary and secondary sources.

Study Design: An appropriate study design will be employed to address the baseline assessment objectives. This will involve a mixed-method approach, combining quantitative, qualitative, and triangulation methods to capture comprehensive data related to SRH services in the targeted service outlets.

Data Collection Methods: It will involve a combination of the following methods:

1. Document Review: Analysis of existing strategies, policies, processes, and tools relevant to the program.
2. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs): Conducting discussions with community members to gather qualitative insights.
3. Key Informant Interviews: Engaging with stakeholders knowledgeable about the program, including government counterparts, donors, partners (CSO, FBO..), implementing staff, volunteers, communities, and beneficiaries.
4. Field Observations: We will conduct site visits to selected woredas in the regions to observe and gather data directly from the field, including from the program-targeted health facilities.
5. Assessment:  which includes satisfactory and knowledge assessment tools

The qualitative data from these interactions will offer detailed insights into the selected indicators' baseline data. The baseline study will utilize various tools to collect data, including structured questionnaires for quantitative data collection, interview guides for key informant interviews, discussion guides for FGDs, and observation checklists for field visits.

Sampling Technique: The consultants will propose a feasible sampling technique to ensure the representation of the study areas and population groups. The sampling method may employ purposive, random, or correlated selection techniques, considering factors like convenience, security, and accessibility. Based on these same considerations, fieldwork site visits for the assessment will be conducted in the above-stated woredas. 

Quality Assurance: The consultants must demonstrate how they will ensure the quality of the research work, including task sharing and team composition. To guarantee the quality of the work, data from both primary and secondary sources collected through various methods and tools should be triangulated. UNFPA technical experts, advisors, and management staff will actively participate and take responsibility in reviewing the inception report and draft analysis reports, providing substantive and constructive comments to enhance the output.

A quality assessment procedure will be implemented to select competent consultants that meet the required service standards.  The consultants are also encouraged to outline their plan for ensuring quality assurance throughout the assessment, from inception to final deliverable, including the techniques and mechanisms proposed to maintain quality.

Ethical consideration:

Ethical procedures must be integral to the assessment, and consultants should follow protocols such as informed consent/assent, maintaining anonymity, and adhering to UNFPA policies and codes of conduct. The consultants must consider ethical standards and requirements during data collection. These include following the assessment methodology, the nature of stakeholder engagement (especially with youth and women), ensuring safe and non-discriminatory participation, obtaining voluntary and informed consent with the option for participants to withdraw, and maintaining confidentiality and anonymity of participants.

Qualifications and Experience: 

The Senior consultant  is  expected to have:

• Advanced degree (Masters or PhD) in public health, behavioral/social sciences, psychology, social works or related disciplines
• A minimum of 10 years of practical work experience in the fields of SRH and GBV
• Understanding of healthcare delivery models, particularly mobile health units and their integration with static facilities.
• Experience in training and mentoring of enumerators.
• Good analytical skills and report writing experiences with international and national organizations.
• Experience working with the most at-risk and  diverse populations, including understanding cultural norms and sensitivities. 
• Strong team-oriented organization.
• Previous experience in humanitarian settings.  
• Able to work effectively in a multicultural environment.
• Excellent oral and written skills in English and fluency in at least two local languages.

The expected support team members to be brought by  the consultant are  expected to have:

• Advanced degree in public health, behavioral/social sciences, psychology, social work or related disciplines
• A minimum of 5 years of experience in SRH, family planning and GBV experience with managing large-scale surveys.
• Understanding of healthcare delivery models, particularly mobile health units and their integration with static facilities.
• Experience in training and mentoring of enumerators.
• Good analytical skills and report writing experiences with international and national organizations.
• Experience working with the most at-risk and  diverse populations, including understanding cultural norms and sensitivities. 
• Strong team-oriented organization.
• Previous experience in humanitarian settings.  
• Able to work effectively in a multicultural environment.
• Excellent oral and written skills in English and fluency in at least two local languages.
  
   

Languages: 

Fluency in English; knowledge of Ethiopian regional languages and another UN language is an asset.

Required Competencies: 

Values:

Exemplifying integrity, 

Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system, 

Embracing cultural diversity, 

Embracing change

Core Competencies: 

Achieving results,

Being accountable,

Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen,

Thinking analytically and strategically,

Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships,

Compensation and Benefits:

This position offers an attractive pay. Please note that grade mention in the consultancy is just for reference purpose and actual renumeration will be determined upon evaluation of requirement and candidate's profile

UNFPA Work Environment:

UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Individuals from the LGBTQIA+ community, minority ethnic groups, indigenous populations, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA's workforce - click here to learn more.

Disclaimer:

Selection and appointment may be subject to background and reference checks, medical clearance, visa issuance and other administrative requirements. 

UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process and does not concern itself with information on applicants' bank accounts. 

Applicants for positions in the international Professional and higher categories, who hold permanent resident status in a country other than their country of nationality, may be required to renounce such status upon their appointment.