Social Protection and Gender, Care and Support Consultant

This consultancy delivers analytical, policy, knowledge and technical products on gender-responsive social protection and care and support systems, supporting UNICEF's Inclusive Social Protection thematic area. The consultant will develop evidence-based capacity building, policy dialogue, and programme delivery, synthesize cross-country evidence, and contribute to global advocacy and knowledge dissemination.

Responsibilities

• Develop evidence-based capacity building, policy dialogue, and programme delivery on gender-responsive social protection across priority countries and regions.
• Synthesize cross-country programmatic evidence on social accountability and engage civil society in social protection and adolescent girl programming, translating findings into policy-relevant guidance for country offices and global audiences.
• Develop technical and advocacy products on care and support systems, including country-level guidance and policy briefs, supporting UNICEF's engagement with the global Year of Care 2028 agenda.
• Contribute substantive technical input to thematic interagency and global platforms, including the UNICEF Global Technical Team on Family-Friendly Policies and Care.
• Support knowledge dissemination and communications for the Transfer Project, ensuring evidence on cash transfers and gender-responsive programme design is effectively communicated to policy and practitioner audiences.

Requirements

• An advanced university degree (Master’s) in social policy, development studies, gender studies, international development, or a closely related field.
• Minimum of 4–5 years of relevant expertise in gender-responsive social protection and care and support systems, including exposure to disability inclusive social protection and child-sensitive social protection systems.
• Demonstrated experience in gender-responsive social protection policy analysis, capacity building, global advocacy, partnerships, and civil society engagement across low- and middle-income country contexts.
• Solid knowledge of care and support systems frameworks, including the care economy, care-livelihoods nexus, and intersections with inclusive social protection, with direct experience translating this into policy products and country-level guidance.
• Experience developing and delivering capacity-building products and facilitating multi-stakeholder policy dialogue processes with government, civil society, and UN agency counterparts.
• Experience in driving social accountability outcomes through civil society and community organization engagement in social protection and policy.
• Demonstrated ability to synthesize cross-country programmatic evidence and translate findings into policy-relevant products, including briefs, guidance notes, lessons-learned reports, and advocacy packages.
• Experience engaging with and delivering outputs for multi-partner and interagency processes in UN system settings.
• Experience developing knowledge and communications products, including stories of change, multimedia content, and dissemination strategies.
• Familiarity with UNICEF's work on social protection, care and support, and gender and adolescent girls, or equivalent experience within the UN system.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN language is preferred.
• Strong analytical and policy writing skills, with the ability to produce clear, well-structured, and evidence-based products independently.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent deliverables across diverse thematic and geographic contexts.
• Sound judgment in translating complex technical and programmatic content into accessible policy and advocacy products.
• Ability to engage substantively and credibly with a range of stakeholders including government officials, UN agencies, research institutions, and civil society organizations.
• Strong attention to detail and ability to deliver high-quality outputs within agreed timelines.
• Ability to work independently while maintaining close collaboration with supervising staff and partner teams.

Skills

• Gender-responsive Social Protection
• Care and support systems
• Disability inclusive social protection
• Child-sensitive social protection
• Social Protection Policy Development
• Capacity Building
• Global Advocacy
• Partnership Development
• Civil Society Engagement
• Care economy frameworks
• Policy product development
• Multi-stakeholder Policy Dialogue
• Social Accountability Support
• Programmatic evidence synthesis
• Policy Writing
• Knowledge Product Development
• Communications Strategies
• UN interagency collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Analytical Skills

Languages

English