Consultant: Consultancy for review of quality programming in humanitarian action - Req.#580433

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential. 

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. 

And we never give up. 

For every child, HOPE! 

Vacancy Announcement: Consultant Consultancy Title: Consultant for review of quality programming in humanitarian action Section/Division/Duty Station: Programme Coordination and Strategy Hub, Resilience and Recovery, Programme Group – NYHQ  Duration: April 1, 2025 to 30 September 2025 Home/ Office Based: Remote  About UNICEF  If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments. UNICEF has over 12,000 staff in more than 145 countries. BACKGROUND UNICEF is committed to multisectoral and integrated programming, ensuring equity, linking humanitarian with long-term development, resilience building and climate action, localization, and the use of community engagement for social behavior change and humanitarian cash transfers to enhance the effectiveness and reach of humanitarian interventions.  Humanitarian crises demand swift and effective responses that not only address the immediate needs of affected populations but also safeguard their dignity and promote long-term recovery. UNICEF’s high-quality programming in humanitarian action is designed to achieve these goals by working in alignment with its Core Commitments to Children (CCCs), which ensure that interventions are grounded in humanitarian principles, human rights, and global standards.  UNICEF Program Group (PG) Division is accountable for the provision of quality programming in all settings and “focuses on strategic actions that enhance and assure UNICEF programme excellence in all contexts, that project UNICEF global technical leadership, and that shape the global environment in favour of actions that protect and promote children’s rights everywhere”. UNICEF is currently in the process of developing its new Strategic Plan, 2026–2030 which will guide the organization’s overall approach for the next four years. In parallel, UNICEF is undergoing an organization-wide reflection towards a new generation of Humanitarian Action in UNICEF, and a review of internal related procedures which set out the mandatory actions for all country offices (COs), regional offices (ROs) and headquarters (HQ) divisions responding to humanitarian crises. Against this backdrop, and in the context of the ongoing implementation of the outcome of the Humanitarian Review mid-term review, the purpose of this consultancy is to conduct an analysis that can provide essential insights into the quality of UNICEF’s programming in humanitarian action, with a focus on how well the organization is adhering to its CCCs and addressing the various challenges identified in recent evaluations.  Purpose of Activity/Assignment:   Recent evaluations of humanitarian responses (including thematic reviews and specific response evaluations such as those for the Horn of Africa and Haiti), and the UNICEF Humanitarian Review, have identified persistent challenges in the quality of UNICEF programme’s implementation. While these evaluations have offered valuable recommendations, there is a need to further consider programme-specific aspects to understand how UNICEF can improve its humanitarian programming to better serve affected populations. Focusing on trends and recurring challenges, the outcome of this consultancy will better inform UNICEF’s capacity to support the delivery of quality programming in humanitarian settings as defined in the CCCs. It will seek to make recommendations regarding required capacity and system changes and accountabilities amongst HQ divisions, and vis-à-vis regional and country offices to better ensure predictable, timely, and high-quality programme support. This work is critical to ensuring that UNICEF’s humanitarian interventions continue to save lives, alleviate suffering, and support long-term recovery and resilience for the most vulnerable populations affected by crises. The output of this consultancy will be a written report summarizing the main findings and conclusions of the review and providing sharp, actionable recommendations for Programme Group