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- BACKGROUND and JUSTIFICATION
Lesotho is a small land locked country with a population of about 2 million. It is a lower Middle Income Country. However, Lesotho is one of the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa and one of the most unequal in the world with a Gini coefficient of 0.53. Almost 1 out of every 2 persons in Lesotho lives below the national poverty line, with more than 1 in 3 persons below the national food poverty line (extreme poverty) of M 138 (about 10 USD) per adult per month. Children are the victims of poverty and inequality. As per the 2018 child poverty study, about 65 per cent of its children under 18 years of age are deprived of at least three basic social services.
The Government of Lesotho, recognizing the role of social protection in safeguarding vulnerable populations from the effects of multidimensional poverty and promoting social justice to generate stability and social cohesion, has been working since early 2007 with the support of the EU and UNICEF to strengthen the national social protection system. The system building activities were linked to four components: (1) formulation of social protection policies and strategies to address chronic poverty and vulnerabilities, cyclical shocks and the humanitrian situation; (2) implementation of a set of social protection programmes that address both social and economic vulnerabilities based on needs; (3) institutional arrangements and common administrative tools used across social protection programmes (tools for registration and storage of household information, beneficiary identification, case management, etc) including M&E; and (4) social protection coordination mechanism. Under component 3, the Government is establishing a national single registry, the National Information System for Social Assistance (NISSA). NISSA is a web-based database for storing and processing socio-economic information for all households in Lesotho. It is used for identifying vulnerable populations and targeting beneficiaries eligible for the different social protection programmes managed by the MoSD.
Lesotho social protection system has been presented in various regional meetings such as the African Union Technical Consultation on Social Protection for Children in Cape Town in 2014 and the Transfer Project Workshops in Addis Ababa and Dakar in 2016 and 2017. As a result, Lesotho social protection system has emerged as an influential programme in the Africa Region. Lesotho has noticed commendable interests from other countries and research organizations to Lesotho social protection system building activities. However, the system building activities have not comprehensively documented yet by the Government for its internal use and to share with interested Governments in other countries, donors, research organizations, etc. Thus, it is very important to profile and showcase the social protection system building interventions in Lesotho
In this context, UNICEF Lesotho seeks to recruit an international consultant to support the Ministry of Social Development to document the achievements, challenges and lessons learned under the four componenets. As the establishment of the NISSA is a milestone for the Government under the institutional arrangement, the review document will provide particular emphasis in documenting the processes and technical components of the NISSA. In addition to the main documentation, the consultant will prepare a brief paper (8-10 pages), covering the evolution of social protection in Lesotho. The brief would include what has so far been achieved, what has not been achieved yet and why, and what needs to be done and how to make the social protection system efficient and effective. The MOSD and UNICEF will use this brief for advocacy and consultation with policy makers.
- OBJECTIVE
The main objective of the consultancy is to review and document the social protection system building activities in Lesotho under the four components, covering achievements, challenges and lessons learned with emphasis on NISSA processes.
Methods: The assignment shall be completed based on existing available literature and consultation/interviews with relevant stakeholders. The document will have two parts. The first part will focus on the different components of system building and the second part on NISSA. The consultant will be provided with all documents related to NISSA processes.
- KEY ACTIVITIES AND DELIVERABLESAbout 235,948 Households have already been registered in NISSA; another 200,000 including recertification of 115,000 households will be included by March 2019.
Institutional arrangements include clear assignment of responsibilities, and common administrative tools (registry, beneficiary identification) used across social protection programmes in order to provide channels for effective programme management.
Activities
Deliverables
Time frame
Collect and review relevant literature; and draft an inception report, including structure and brief contents, methods and implementation timeline;
Finalize the inception report with inputs from the Ministry of Social Development and UNICEF;
Final inception report
5 days
Prepare questionnaires for and conduct consultations (individuals/groups);
Summary document highlighting results of the consultations
5 days
Prepare draft report;
Draft report
20 days
Finalization of report, incorporating GoL and UNICEF comments, and development of Brief.
Final report and Brief
5 days
Total
35 days
- WORK RELATIONSHIP:The consultant shall work with the technical teams of the Ministry of Social Development and UNICEF;
- Strategic guidance will be provided by the Principal Secretary of the Ministry of Social Development and the Chief of Social Policy UNICEF;
- The Consultant will work with the Director, Planning, the Ministry of Social Development and other relevant Officials
- The Consultant will report to the Chief of Social Policy and will directly contact by email, skype and/or phone as appropriate for the better management of the consultancy.
- PAYMENT SCHEDULE: Payment shall be made in three instalments as per the table below:
Deliverable
Payment as % of total contract amount
Submission of final inception report
15
Submission of draft report
50
Submission of final report including the brief
35
- QUALIFICATIONS AND TECHNICAL SKILLS (individual)
The international consultant will have at minimum:
- Master degree in Economics, Social Policy, Development Studies, Finance or other related field;
- At least 6 years of experience on social protection related research and evaluation;
- Excellent writing and analytical skills, with a proven ability to absorb, analyse and synthesise a large amount of qualitative and quantitative information in a short amount of time;
- Evidence on publishing research review reports;
- Previous experience in conducting similar social protection reviews;
- Experience in working with a team;
- Fluency in English; and
- Ability to complete the consultancy in the stated time with limited supervision.
- CONDITIONS
- The consultant will be governed by and subject to UNICEF General Terms and Conditions for individuals;
- The consultancy is fully office based with provision of field monitoring visits based on needs;
- The consultant will perform the work using own computer;
- UNICEF will provide working space;
- The consultant payment is Lump sum inclusive of travel (economic airfare) and living Allowance (@USD 100 per day while in Lesotho);
- The consultant will be authorized to access UNICEF LCO transport;
How to apply:
Qualified candidates are requested to complete an application including profile to the respective advertisement on https://www.unicef.org/about/employ/. Please indicate your ability, availability and financial proposal/quote to complete the terms of reference above. Rates must include all expenses related to the assignment (including administration and logistics).
Applications submitted without a fee/ rate will not be considered.
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 to become a part of the organization.
Remarks:
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
UNICEF 2018. Child Poverty in Lesotho, UNICEF Lesotho.
About 235,948 Households have already been registered in NISSA; another 200,000 including recertification of 115,000 households will be included by March 2019. Institutional arrangements include clear assignment of responsibilities, and common administrative tools (registry, beneficiary identification) used across social protection programmes in order to provide channels for effective programme management.
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 a part of our organization.
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