Consultancy - Preparation of a Diagnosis on the Use of National Surveys Tender, Panama - 33695106

Procurement Summary

Country : Panama

Summary : Consultancy - Preparation of a Diagnosis on the Use of National Surveys

Deadline : 24 Jun 2019

Other Information

Notice Type : Tender

TOT Ref.No.: 33695106

Document Ref. No. :

Competition : ICB

Financier : United Nations Secretariat

Purchaser Ownership : -

Tender Value : Refer Document

Purchaser's Detail

Purchaser : UNITED NATION CHILDREN'S FUND
UNICEF/LACRO Edificio 102 Avenida Alberto Oriol Tejada Ciudad del Saber Panamá City, Country code 507 Tel: 301.7400 - PBX Facsimile: 317.0258
Panama
URL :www.unicef.org

Tender Details

Tenders are invited for Panama: Consultancy - Preparation of a Diagnosis on the Use of National Surveys for the Production of Priority Indicators for Children and Adolescents, in LAC Countries, Using Harmonized Methodologies, LACRO, Panama.

Background and Justification In 2015, the definition of a new Global Agenda was initiated with a view to the year 2030, which was reflected in a new international commitment: the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This Agenda combines the three dimensions of sustainable development (economic, social and environmental) in a balanced and integrated manner, and has defined 17 Objectives and 169 related goals of an integrated and indivisible nature, which are universal and affect the entire world, both developed countries as well as developing countries. The way children and adolescents live, in terms of health, nutrition, well-being, education, as well as the environment in which they are raised, is a predictor of what the future will look like. Therefore, many of the 169 goals of the 17 SDGs are closely related to the situation of children. A) Yes, In the coming years, it will be essential to systematically monitor the wellbeing of children through indicators that not only provide an accurate picture of how children live today, but also help us predict what the societies of the future will look like. The configuration of information systems constitutes a key element in the creation of a comprehensive protection system for the rights of children and adolescents. The availability of information is essential as an input for the actors that deploy policies and benefits, as well as for evaluating programs and the system in general (UNICEF 2018). In this sense, put the right data in the right hands at the right time, to impact the decisions that affect children, it requires the right balance between demand, supply and use of data (UNICEF 2017). To respond to the growing demand for timely, adequate and good quality information, countries have sources such as: administrative data, censuses and surveys. Regarding the surveys, and despite the progress made in recent years, significant deficits in this field are observed in many countries, especially in terms of geographical coverage, periodicity, the consistency of the data generated and their ability to respond. to the information requirements of public policies and programs (ECLAC, 2001). In particular, for the monitoring of the situation of children and adolescents, the production of reliable and high-quality data is required, question that poses a series of methodological challenges given the complexity and sensitivity of the necessary matters to be measured. An example of this is the measurement of violence, where the evidence has shown that it is not easy for victims to report on the acts of violence they have faced, even in the anonymity of the surveys (particularly when the perpetrators are people in whom the children trust or may not be willing to report them). Additionally, depending on their age and stage of development, children can not provide accurate information about their experiences. Likewise, in the use of retrospective methodologies, adults may also be unable to report what happened as children (UNICEF, 2017). Other methodological challenges in relation to data monitoring refer to the difficulty of operationalizing certain phenomena that particularly affect children and adolescents. For example, measurements of sexual violence or multidimensional child poverty change between contexts and subjects. Equally important, there are considerable ethical safeguards when obtaining measurements on minors. Additionally, the comparability of the data requires sharing a standardized approach (theoretical and methodological) to avoid inconsistencies. Otherwise, there may be cases of underestimation, erroneous interpretations of prevalence, or conceptually different indicators. The comparable and standard data can be easily used to design policies and programs to respond to the problems of children and adolescents in the region. On the other hand, the use of data also poses a series of methodological challenges. The analysis plan (tabulated) is an opportunity to identify the analytical domains in which it is desired to disaggregate the information, as well as to know which indicators will be calculated and the respective subpopulations of interest. This allows knowing the sample size necessary for the analysis (ECLAC, 2001). However, it is common that, once a survey has been carried out, with sample sizes established to produce reliable estimates at a given level of aggregation, Subsequently, there is a demand for data at a more disaggregated level (ECLAC, 2018). In this context, during the Ninth Meeting of the Statistical Conference of the Americas (CEA) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), held between November 14 and 16, 2017 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the Proposal for a biennial program of activities 2018-2019 was approved for the Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents. The work of the Working Group for the biennium is aimed at promoting the development of common methodologies and strengthening technical capacities to generate and disseminate quality statistical information on the situation of children and adolescents, with a special focus on aspects related to follow-up of the 2030 agenda and the SDGs. During the Ninth Meeting of the Statistical Conference of the Americas (CEA) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), held between November 14 and 16, 2017 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the Proposal for Biennial program of activities 2018-2019 for the Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents. The work of the Working Group for the biennium is aimed at promoting the development of common methodologies and strengthening technical capacities to generate and disseminate quality statistical information on the situation of children and adolescents, with a special focus on aspects related to follow-up of the 2030 agenda and the SDGs. During the Ninth Meeting of the Statistical Conference of the Americas (CEA) of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), held between November 14 and 16, 2017 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the Proposal for Biennial program of activities 2018-2019 for the Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents. The work of the Working Group for the biennium is aimed at promoting the development of common methodologies and strengthening technical capacities to generate and disseminate quality statistical information on the situation of children and adolescents, with a special focus on aspects related to follow-up of the 2030 agenda and the SDGs. carried out between November 14 and 16, 2017 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the Proposal for a biennial program of activities 2018-2019 was approved for the Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents. The work of the Working Group for the biennium is aimed at promoting the development of common methodologies and strengthening technical capacities to generate and disseminate quality statistical information on the situation of children and adolescents, with a special focus on aspects related to follow-up of the 2030 agenda and the SDGs. carried out between November 14 and 16, 2017 in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the Proposal for a biennial program of activities 2018-2019 was approved for the Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents. The work of the Working Group for the biennium is aimed at promoting the development of common methodologies and strengthening technical capacities to generate and disseminate quality statistical information on the situation of children and adolescents, with a special focus on aspects related to follow-up of the 2030 agenda and the SDGs.

Thus, the working group has proposed to strengthen, among the member countries of the group, the use of surveys for the measurement of indicators on childhood and adolescence, promoting adequate methodologies to increase the quality of the data, improve its coverage, opportunity, consistency, sustainability and complementarity of information with other national and international instruments. For this, a specialized consultancy is required to carry out a diagnosis on the use of surveys for the production of indicators on childhood in LAC countries and their methodologies, identifying opportunities for close information gaps through the generation of new indicators or through their harmonization with standardized methodologies.

General Objective To promote an improvement in the generation of indicators on childhood and adolescence through the use of permanent national surveys, based on recommendations for the harmonization of indicators with internationally standardized methodologies. Specific objectives

Conduct a diagnosis on the use of permanent national surveys for the generation of information on children and adolescents in the LAC countries, with special emphasis on priority indicators for children in the framework of monitoring the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs. The diagnosis will be limited to statistical information produced as of 2010 (or the latest data available).
Analyze the comparability of priority indicators for children and adolescents, contained in permanent national surveys used in the LAC countries, in terms of their definitions, conceptualization and methodology (following the guidelines proposed by the framework of the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs) .
Identify opportunities for harmonization with internationally recommended methodologies for priority indicators in childhood, as well as potential improvements in the quality of data produced by permanent national surveys in LAC countries.
Expected Products To achieve the proposed objectives, the consultant or consulting firm, under the direct supervision of the Monitoring Specialist of the UNICEF Regional Office in LAC, and with the support of the Statistical Offices, the member countries of the Childhood Statistics Group of the CEA, will carry out the following products and activities. All products must be submitted in digital format and must be reviewed and approved by UNICEF as Technical Secretariat and the members of the Working Group that are following up on this task.

Expected Products Schedule: EXPECTED PRODUCTS CHRONOGRAPH1.pdf

Profile and Required Experience The consultancy will be carried out by a consultant with relevant experience in the work on surveys and, in particular, in the measurement of indicators on childhood and adolescence. Academic level:

Professional with a degree in Statistics, Mathematics, Demography, Social Sciences.
Postgraduate degree in related subjects.
Work experience:

Minimum 10 years of experience in the construction of social indicators, in the management of information on population censuses, surveys and administrative records
Experience in measuring indicators on childhood and adolescence
Experience in the use of indicators in the framework of the SDGs
Experience in statistical analysis (data processing and analysis statistical packages)
Analytical capacity and experience in writing high quality reports
Ability to work independently
Computer skills:

Statistical packages / Data processing
Languages

Spanish (essential)
Written comprehension of English for interactions with the Caribbean
Corporate competences:

Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to work with offices located in different countries.
Excellent ability to communicate information and ideas effectively and visually creative.
Excellent organizational skills and ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines.
Work place Work will be done from home. The consultancy does not require travel.

Supervision The contractual management of this consultancy will be managed by the Monitoring Specialist of the UNICEF Regional Office. Technical supervision will be shared between the Child and Adolescent Statistics Working Group and the UNICEF Regional Office. The UNICEF Regional Office and The Working Group on Statistics on Children and Adolescents will be in charge of reviewing, providing inputs and validating the products and reports until obtaining their final versions.

Duration of the Contract : 8 months from the signing of the contract.

Payment Provisions Payments will be made at the time of delivery and approval of the deliverables by UNICEF. The details of the payments will be agreed in advance and individually between the consultant and UNICEF.

Criteria and Evaluation of the Offers: Criteria and Evaluation of the offers.pdf

How to apply: To apply, please send the following documents:

Presentation letter
Curriculum vitae
Technical proposal
Financial proposal (total cost)
***

Please note only short-listed candidates will be contacted.UNICEF reserves the right to make additional assessment of the pre-selected candidates, if needed

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply for part of the organization.

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, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

How to apply:
UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become part of our organization. To apply, click on the following link http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/?job=522817

[Disclaimer: The above text is machine translated. For accurate information kindly refer the original document.]

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