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.

Introduction and Context

The UNFPA is the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency whose mission is to deliver a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. The goal of the UNFPA is to ensure universal access to sexual and reproductive health, realized reproductive rights, and reduced maternal mortality to accelerate progress on the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) agenda, to improve the lives of adolescents, youth and women, enabled by population dynamics, human rights, and gender equality. As a result of strengthened global and localized advocacy, menstrual health management (MHM) has gained greater attention in recent years. It is now understood as an integrated, cross-sectoral response involving sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), education and life skills, water, hygiene and sanitation, and waste disposal, both in development and humanitarian contexts.

It is against this background that the South African Coalition on Menstrual Health Management was launched on 9-10 March 2020 to coordinate Menstrual Health and Hygiene Management and to provide a platform for different stakeholders to collaborate on a variety of topics that raise awareness on realizing the commitments made by the South African Government. The SACMHM a) Strengthens coordination among key stakeholders working on MH in South Africa; (b) Enhances collaborative partnerships, resource mobilization efforts, and advocacy for menstrual health policies for effective and sustainable menstrual health and hygiene management; (c) Unlocks domestic and international government and private resources for MH; (d) Provides a platform for learning and sharing among key stakeholders to trigger opportunities for taking programs to scale; and (e) Linking with regional efforts such as the African Coalition for Menstrual Health Management (ACMHM).

Since the launch of the coalition various partnerships have been formed which include among others the MHM COVID-19 response between government and nongovernmental organizations; resource mobilization for research projects, training of small, medium, micro enterprises on standards on Promoting Female Empowerment & Dignity Through Choice of Menstrual Products: Taking a Closer Look at Washable Reusable Menstrual Pads and of the SACMHM held on 13 October 2020.

In 2021, UNFPA, in partnership with the South Africa Coalition on Menstrual Health Management (SACMHM), hosted the Moving the Needle Forward on Menstrual Health and Hygiene in South Africa webinar to engage on sanitary dignity programme in the country. Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane of the department of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, noted that sanitary dignity in South Africa means that every girl child and woman in the country can manage their menstruation in a dignified manner. She further noted that this means that all girls and women, irrespective of socioeconomic status, will have the menstrual information, knowledge and access to menstrual products.

In light of the above advocacy initiatives and background, UNFPA seeks to engage a Communications consultant to:

• Collect and analyse relevant background information for the publication;

• Conduct interviews with key stakeholders and turn them into content for the publication;

• Draft and finalise the publication based on the abovementioned information.

• Print 250 copies of the publication.

Purpose of consultancy:

The purpose of the publication is to:

• Document and tell the story of UNFPA’s Menstrual Health and Management 5- year journey: documentation of key achievements and lessons to be learnt;

• Highlight the role that UNFPA played in advancing MHM in South Africa;

• Profile the leadership in government, civil society, development partners and the UN, that supported the effective implementation of the Sanitary Dignity Framework within UNFPA’s programme

Objectives: (Descript ion of services, activities, or outputs)

The scope of work for the assignment will include:

• Desktop research: Source and review all relevant background information for the publication;

• Interview preparation: Draft a comprehensive list of interviewees, interview questions and conduct recorded telephonic or face-to-face interview with selected stakeholders featured in publication;

• Draft publication: Produce a first draft of the publication based on the annotated outline, background information and the interview data gathered

• Second draft publication: Produce a second draft of the publication based on comments received;

• Submit a final draft of the publication, in which all comments have been addressed to UNFPA for final approval.

Submit to UNFPA all raw materials related to interviews and other research material for archive purposes.

• Editing and proofreading of publication to finalisation with oversight from UNFPA.

Duration and working

The assignment is for a duration: 28 June – 28 August 2024 A final draft of the document is expected to be completed by 30 August 2024.

Place where services are to be delivered

Consultancy will be home base and the consultant may be expected to travel to implementation sites.

Supervisory arrangements:

The consultant will be under the overall supervision of the UNFPA Communications and Advocacy Officer.

Required expertise , qualifications and competencies, including language requirements:

• Advanced degree in Social Sciences, Journalism, Media or related area ;

• Minimum of 5 years’ work experience in the field of Communications or Media with a strong background in producing high quality, written journalism or journalistic research ;

• Previous experience writing publications in the development sector ;

• Excellent command of the English language and excellent writing skills .

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.