UN Children's Fund Development of District WASH Emergency Contingency and Preparedness Plans in South Central Somalia

UN Children's Fund Development of District WASH Emergency Contingency and Preparedness Plans in South Central Somalia

Title: Consultancy for the development of District WASH Emergency Contingency and Preparedness Plans in South Central Somalia Category & Level: NO-C
Type of contract: Special Service Agreement
Length of contract: 4.5 months
Organization Unit: Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH)
Date of issue: 25 November 2014
Closing date: 4th December 2014
Background
Purpose and Objectives
Somalia has been facing chronic emergencies due to ongoing fighting for more than two decades now coupled with recurrent droughts, disease outbreaks and floods.
Poor access to safe drinking water and lack of adequate sanitation facilities together with poor hygienic practices are major threats for the survival and development of children in Somalia.
The low coverage in safe water supply which stands at 29%, with more than 80% of rural population practicing open defecation, confirms the extent to which the water, sanitation and hygiene sub-sectors have been affected by the conflict.
A mix of factors contribute to the continued dire situation in Somalia, including insecurity from the on-going fighting/incursions, climatic factors (poor and/or irregular rains; flooding and seasonal droughts), lack of humanitarian access in some areas, increased use of damaging coping mechanisms, increased vulnerability and decreased resilience, areas with poor performance of crops (insect infestation, prolific weeds), lack of access to markets, restriction of commercial and population movements and deep-rooted poverty.
In response to the growing humanitarian situation, a joint national Contingency Plan for WASH and nutrition has recently been developed.
The contingency plan strengthens the Federal and Regional governments’ capacity to better prepare for floods, conflict, disease outbreak, locusts and cyclone within the Somaliland, South Central, and Puntland regions.
The Contingency Plan outlines the key scenarios and its relevant trigger indicator(s) and threshold values.
In addition, the Contingency Plan outlines the relevant interventions and its activities required for each sector (WASH and nutrition).
Scope
To further strengthen the Federal and Regional governments’ capacity to better prepare and respond to key hazards there is a need to have district level WASH contingency plans.
A WASH EPRP/CP at district level will serve as a management tool that would be used to analyze the impact of potential crises and ensure that adequate and appropriate arrangements/preparedness/prepositioning are made in order to respond in a timely and effective way to the water, sanitation, and hygiene needs of the affected populations in Somalia.
In this framework and as a first step, it is envisioned that a total of seventeen contingency plans will be developed at the district level, ten (Belet Weyne, Afmadow, Baidoa, Jowhar, Hudur, Bakol, Adadao, Kismayo, Qoryoley, Luuq, Badhadhe, Merka) of seventeen districts will from South Central Somalia, three (Bossaso, Dangoroyo, Dhahar) from Puntland and three (Ainabo, Lasanold, Elefwenin) from Somaliland.
To ensure national and district-level ownership and integration by the authorities, the district WASH EPRP/CP will an integral part of the federal and regional government preparedness and response plans.
The WASH EPRP/CP will provides a common framework to guide the action of all partners with an oversight by the district authorities.
It does not replace the need for planning by individual agencies in relation to the their mandate and responsibilities within clusters, but it provides focus and coherence to the various levels of planning that are required to effectively mount a humanitarian response.
Purpose of Assignment
The purpose of this consultancy is to work with district local authorities, the line ministries and government emergency/disaster preparedness management and coordination agencies in all the three regions to come up with a comprehensive WASH EPRP/CP section that would increase the level of district preparedness and enhance the district’s ability to provide a timely and effective humanitarian response in the country.
Objectives:

To provide technical support to the line ministries and local authorities, emergency preparedness management and state disaster coordination agencies to develop comprehensive WASH district Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans. These response plans interconnected to the national joint WASH and nutrition contingency plans.

To lead in the analysis of recurrent hazards and risks within each district, building scenarios and development of planning assumptions for the WASH EPRP/CP that would help the government and partners in early planning and forecasting.

To facilitate a consultative process within the specified districts to ensure ownership and coordination of the WASH EPRP/CP under the leadership of the disaster preparedness agencies of the respective district authorities.

To recommend effective disaster preparedness management structures and budget needs at district level to be able to timely respond to WASH emergencies. Management, Organization and Time frame
This section provides the structural relationships of involved bodies and individuals, as well as the implementation timetable and steps to be undertaken in the process of conducting the consultancy assignment
Management
The consultant will be recruited in line with standard UNICEF procedures for special service agreements.
The consultant will report to the Chief of WASH Programme.
The WASH cluster coordinator in conjunction with UNICEF WASH section and in close collaboration with the WASH teams at the three UNICEF field offices will take the responsibility of guiding the consultancy.

The consultant will be provided with office space, logistical support, administrative needs within the zonal offices in Somalia and USSC in Nairobi.

The consultant should provide their own laptop.

A working week is defined as 5 working days

DSA for travel to Somalia will be provided at UN rates

DSA and travel for as an international consultant will be negotiated. The consultancy will facilitate a consultative process involving the district authorities and regional line ministries of health, water resources, planning, government emergency/disaster preparedness management and coordination agencies and partners within the respective districts to develop a feasible comprehensive preparedness and response plans.
Organization
In line with the stated objectives, the exercise will be organized such that the consultant will liaise with regional supply hub managers, WASH Cluster regional/district focal persons and district authorities to develop and agree on the appropriate methodology.
The exercise will build upon the national contingency plan structure and the consultant will share the methodology to develop WASH EPRP/CP in the inception report before field work starts in the respective districts.
Work plan and tentative Time schedule
The consultant will be expected to sign a contract, by mid-December, which will commit him/her to commission the actual EPRP/CP and providing the agreed upon services on agreed upon dates falling between 17th December 2014 to 30th April, 2015.
The consultant shall be expected to confirm availability within this time frame.
Methodology and Technical Approach
It is proposed that the organization of the exercise will be conducted in a participatory manner that will enable the district authorities, authorities at the line ministries and state agencies responsible for disaster management in Puntland, Somaliland and Central South Somalia, UN agencies, local and international NGOs, CBOs, private sectors and other civil society stakeholders to participate.
The process will entail discussions and orientation on the overall task, to agree on the requirement, scope and added value of the outcome documentation.

It will involve a series of planning and consultative meetings and workshop sessions.

To ensure an inclusive planning process; development of the district WASH EPRP will follow a structured and logical process of analysis of hazards and risks, development of scenarios planning assumptions, and response planning and identified strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, this based on the National wash and Nutrition Contingency plan recently elaborated.

The exercise will be anchored on the common recurring multi-hazards that each of the target districts experience frequently. The consultant shall perform the following tasks.

Review of relevant sectoral documents, disaster management plans, and WASH cluster information for Somalia.

Development of planning tools to be used in the planning process.

Facilitate consultations for development of the WASH emergency preparedness and response plans / contingency plans highlighting the most common hazards, frequency and pattern of occurrence, average numbers of people affected in each district.

Drafting of the district WASH emergency preparedness and response plans.

Field Visits and Consultative Sessions

Consultative sessions will be carried out with stakeholders while key informants for the focus group discussions will be identified in consultation with the respective regional supply hub managers. Sessions will also include WASH cluster partners (active and non-active local NGOs).
While in the field, the consultant will carry out group discussions with beneficiary households.
These field visits will be facilitated by the respective UNICEF zonal offices and the regional/district Wash Cluster focal persons and supply hub manager, which will also provide the administrative base for information exchange with key informants and communities.
Deliverable at the end of the Assignment
The expected deliverables of the consultancy will include:

Inception report

First draft WASH EPRP by district

Second draft WASH EPRP by district

Final reports district WASH EPRP reports (word document and PowerPoint) Qualifications
The consultants should have the following qualifications:

Advanced university degree preferably in public health, disaster management and related fields with extensive work experience (at least 4 years)

Knowledge of the humanitarian reform (2005) and cluster approach, effectiveness of humanitarian responses and strategies for strengthening of partnerships would be an added value.

Experience in developing contingency plans for East Africa is an added advantage

Experience with participatory processes and methods - ability to organize and facilitate planning workshops is an added advantage.

Excellent analytical skills and proven ability to formulate and articulate ideas clearly in English (writing skills are critical);

Experience of the cultural setting of Somalia, preferably with previous working experience at the other social sector policy levels in the country and good knowledge of the social sector environment in Somalia;

Ability to work with people from a broad range of cultures - willingness to work in difficult circumstances; Remuneration

The consultancy fees will be set according to UNICEF standards applicable for national and international consultants. The contract will be processed in accordance with UNICEF standard procedures for special service agreements.

Consultants should have Medical Insurance before signing the contract.

No hazard/danger pay shall be paid to the consultants whilst in Somalia.

UNICEF Somalia will be responsible to cover return air tickets from and to the home country. The Office will also cover travel to/from and within Somalia.

Remuneration will be made deliverable-based.

25% upon completion of the inception report;

40% upon completion of the second Draft;

Remaining 35% upon completion of the final report and summary power-point presentation How to Apply:
Interested and qualified candidates should send their applications with updated UN Personal History Form P11, updated CV attaching copies of academic certificates to the email below. UN staff are requested to provide the last two Performance Evaluation Reports (PERs).
Applications submitted without a duly completed and signed Personal History Form (P11) which can be downloaded at Job Title will not be considered.*Please indicate your expected fee for the assignment - applications without quotation for fee will not be considered*.
The fee should be quoted as a lump sum, with any travel costs and daily subsistence amounts indicated separately.
Applicants must quote the vacancy number (UNICEF-SOM/2014/055) and post title in the subject line of the application.
Email application to: somaliahrvacancies@unicef.org
Only short-listed applicants will be contacted
UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all nationals, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organisation.