OVERVIEW OF THE FUNCTIONS OF THE POST:

One billion children – nearly half of the world’s children – live in ‘extremely high risk’ countries on account of climate and environmental shock and stress. Nearly 40 million children a year have their education interrupted by climate-induced disasters and subsequent disease outbreaks following extreme weather events. Climate change is also linked to multiple indirect effects on children’s education, increasing risks of malnutrition, disruption of livelihoods, increased child marriage and child labor, which keep children out of school. Teachers are often not prepared to teach about climate change and environmental subjects, and schools are often not well-equipped to prepare students to become empowered to both find and apply solutions and mobilize their communities for climate action. The foundations of a just transition to green livelihoods and lifestyles depend on the ability of education systems to provide relevant, quality, equitable learning opportunities to all children. GPE partner countries as a whole are particularly vulnerable to climate change; out of the top 60 countries ranked by UNICEF as having the highest children’s climate risk in the world, 55 are GPE partners. In a survey of all GPE Partner countries in February 2023, 88.5% of survey respondents (23/26) indicated their demand for this type of support. The Climate Smart Education Initiative aims to enhance countries’ capacities to mainstream climate change adaptation and environmental sustainability into education sector plans, budgets and strategies as well as to enhance education ministry capacity for cross-sectoral coordination on climate and environment-related policy and programming.

Purpose of the Assignment

• The assignment for this consultancy is to support the inception and implementation of the Climate Smart Education Initiative on behalf of IIEP in up to three countries.

Duties and Expected Outputs:

1. Support the design of technical cooperation projects and programmes, including to reinforce capacities of MoEs for climate change adaptation and environmental sustainability (15%):

• Prepare detailed project or programme proposals.

• Ensure the linkage of these projects or programmes with IIEP’s MTS and with other ongoing or planned activities.

• Participate in discussions and negotiations with national and international partners.

2. Support the implementation and management of technical cooperation projects, in particular in the area of crisis-sensitive planning, in collaboration with internal and external partners and the Equity and Resilience Cluster Lead (50%):

• Plan the implementation of projects.

• Prepare and carry out technical cooperation missions and activities.

• Prepare and facilitate specific training workshops.

• Provide advice and guidance to technical staff in Member States.

• Provide technical guidance and support to members of the project/programme team, including consultants.

• Liaise and coordinate with national and international partners.

3. Support the monitoring and reporting of IIEP’s work, particularly in crisis-sensitive planning, in collaboration with the Equity and Resilience Cluster Lead (10%):

• Monitor the implementation of crisis-sensitive projects, including tracking results, updating relevant databases, and preparing reports.

• Develop monitoring and evaluation reports for crisis-sensitive planning projects.

4. Participate in the analysis and knowledge generation, particularly in IIEP’s crisis-sensitive planning work (20%):

• Support the drafting of knowledge products in the area of crisis-sensitive planning and planning through literature reviews, data analyses, and missions involving stakeholder consultations.

• Reflect on lessons learnt and future perspectives, particularly in the area of crisis-sensitive planning, and draft documents in this regard.

5. Undertake additional activities that may be required to ensure the success of the team and of the Institute (5%)

COMPETENCIES (Core / Managerial)

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REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

Academic qualifications

• Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in the field of educational planning and management, international development, social sciences or economics.

Work experience

• At least four years of experience in the field of education technical cooperation projects, in particular in the area of crisis-sensitive planning, of which preferably two years acquired at international level.

Skill and Competencies

• Strong knowledge of the issues surrounding education in the context of developing and/or emerging countries, in particular of those related to educational planning and management.
• Strong understanding of contemporary developments in the global education arena and of effective strategies for improving educational planning and management, in particular in crisis-affected contexts.
• Ability to design, manage and implement development programmes/projects.

• Proven competencies to advise Member States on questions related to the role of education in preventing crisis and mitigating its effects.
• Ability to design and implement training programmes and capacity development workshops.
• Ability to work with and lead multicultural teams.
• Ability to adapt to changing circumstances.
• Excellent ability to build and sustain effective partnerships inside and outside of the Organization.
• Excellent communication skills (oral and written).
• Excellent IT skills, including knowledge of MS software (Word, Excel etc.)

Language requirement

• Excellent knowledge of French and English.

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS

• Knowledge of other official UNESCO languages (Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, Russian).

Timetable and deliverables

For each month, the consultant needs to submit a monthly report to summarize activities and deliverables produced within the month.

Supervisory arrangements

Under the overall authority of IIEP Director and the Technical Cooperation Team lead, the consultant will report to the lead of the Equity and Resilience Cluster.

Duration:

• This consultancy is for 6 months.