NGO JOBS

Organization: UN Children's Fund
Country: Kenya
Closing date: 21 Aug 2013

Background and Justification

In December 2007, The Government of the Netherlands and UNICEF in December 2007, signed an agreement on a Programme of Cooperation to bring safe and sustainable sources of drinking water and hygienic sanitation facilities to 1.3 million new users in 20 arid, semi-arid and flood prone districts and two post-election violence affected districts in Kenya. Under this agreement, the Government of the Netherlands provided $41 million for the WASH programme. The current agreement will expire in December 2014.

UNICEF oversees the overall implementation of the WASH programme, working with other development partners within a Sector-Wide Approach (SWAp) arrangement to support a sector fund for rural Kenya. The ministries for water, health and education provide the principal mechanisms to implement the programme. Funds are channelled through the Water Services Trust Fund (WSTF) of the Government of Kenya for the water component of the WASH programme. A Programme Monitoring Unit is housed at the former Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MOWI).

The WASH Programme experienced several constraints. Implementation started one year later than planned. The midterm review (MTR) in 2011 identified slow pace of implementation, inadequate focus on sustainability, and ambitious targets for sanitation and hygiene. In response, the MTR recommended to reduce the scope of the project and withdraw from areas of weak performing Water Service Boards, and extended the duration of the programme by one year from December 2013 to December 2014. Due to these considerations, UNICEF commissioned a special review of the WASH Programme as part of the Country Programme Review in the first half of 2013. A Country Programme (CP) review is a key milestone in UNICEF’s country programming process and provides the basis for making the strategic choices that the country office needs to make for the next Country Programme (CP). This was particularly important for the WASH programme to establish systems and capacity for risk and programme management, and more effective implementation in the current and next Country Programme. This was further supplemented by a special audit of the Dutch funded water programme, also as a response to concerns expressed by the donor as well as gaps identified in programme management since the onset of the Dutch funded programmes.

The above considerations have necessitated the appointment of a high quality technical assistance at senior level to support the programme in attaining the standards and flexibility in advocacy and negotiations that is required in the WASH sector within the new devolved governance structures in Kenya. Increased emphasis has also been placed on examining partner capacity and accountability towards programme design/implementation and the need for proper systems and oversight to manage resources; The technical assistance will work closely with senior management and the senior wash programme review consultant who will be brought in to design the new country programme starting July 2014.

Purpose

The purpose of this consultancy is to provide high quality technical oversight to establish/strengthen systems and capacities in WASH Programme that will be used to fulfill short/medium and long term goals set within the section and with the sector. The consultancy is thus seen to incrementally achieve the objective of revamping the entire WASH programme design and management systems towards the new country programme.

Broadly the aim will be to

1. Take the audit recommendations and the action plan matrix and use them as the starting point to open dialogue with partners and put in place strong structures, management and control systems on the programme which will help both UNICEF and its government partners to better manage risk on programme implementation and achieve the targets set in the programme.
2. Support government to meet some of the challenges of the devolved service delivery in the sector including negotiating a new MoU with MWI and WSTF for the use of the Dutch funds and using it to leverage long term changes in the way UNICEF engagement in the sector is placed.
3. Support the action plan for development of strong SWaP at national level with more focus on sector governance, monitoring and a sustainability compact in line with the proposals recommended in the recently concluded WASH programme review.

Scope of Work

Specifically, the consultant will;

1. Review the audit action points and in conjunction with the section team present them in a logical and sequenced workplan, identifying the key partners and resources needed. Undertake preparatory consultations with UNICEF and external stakeholders to build consensus on the workplan. Manage and facilitate the implementation, including producing the agreed products and establishing the ‘means of verification’. Immediate re-programming exercise will be undertaken to ensure that ongoing projects can be completed with available funds.
2. In collaboration with key partners, develop and implement a plan to accelerate improvement of internal controls, governance and risk management of the WASH programme. This would include: identification of key risks and mitigation measures; revision of programme targets and timelines; establishment of review mechanisms to monitor annual work plans of key partners; and strengthening of internal capacity of the UNICEF WASH section to support compliance with agreed standards and work processes.
3. Review and support capacity building of the Programme Monitoring Unit (PMU) housed in the former Ministry of Water and Irrigation of the GoK; support the PMU to develop annual workplans and report on progress against the plan; and, update the terms of reference of PMU as appropriate.
4. Review and update the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between UNICEF and the Government of Kenya/WSTF; and include a requirement for periodic review and reporting on compliance with all key expectations of the MoU. In updating the MOU, assign responsibilities and significantly strengthen Government/WSTF oversight of the MoU to ensure adequate planning, payment, and reporting on the use of cash transfers, in accordance with the MoU and UNICEF policies.
5. Develop stronger monitoring systems to provide the information that UNICEF needs to report to its donors
6. Support the office to develop a strong advocacy strategy to approach the governance dialogue using the experience through the Dutch funded programme and an accompanying fund rising strategy and priorities document for ensuring diversification in donor base.
7. Provide bi weekly updates on the progress in audit compliance in turn towards supporting the section to compile the monthly audit updates.
8. Together with the consultant appointed for developing the new Country Programme, utilize the opportunities afforded by the audit implementation to draw up a blue print for dialogue on the SwAps and section dialogue and to define UNICEF’s potential role at national and county levels in the sector.

All four WASH IRs will be covered in this consultancy

Key Deliverables
1) Inception Report and Work Plan
2) Revised MoU
3) Risk assessment and management strategy
4) Completed actions in the Audit action matrix, verified and tracked
5) Advocacy strategy for the SWaP approach refined and adapted to suit devolution and reflecting UNICEF’s change in engagement
6) Fund raising strategy

Desired background and experience

An experienced WASH professional with significant knowledge and experience of the relevant organisational systems and institutions in Kenya and the Kenyan WASH sector. The specific skills, technical background and experience required are as follows:

• Advanced degree in water and sanitation related area preferable;
• At least 10 years’ work experience in water and sanitation at national and sub-national levels;
• Experience of sector policy advocacy, strategy development and funding arrangements;
• Experience of WASH sector reviews and evaluations of WASH programmes;
• Experience of risk assessment methodologies;
• Knowledge of the Kenya WASH sector environment and understanding of the national mechanisms is desirable.
• Knowledge of UNICEF internal procedures and programming an asset;
• Excellent communication, analytical and writing skills, including writing reports, strategies and proposals in English;
• Ability and flexibility to work to short deadlines and prioritise work, with minimal supervision;
• Demonstrated ability to work in a multicultural environment and establish harmonious and effective working relationship both within and outside the organisation;
• Working knowledge of Kiswahili an advantage.

How to apply:

Interested and suitable candidates should ensure that they forward their applications along with their curricula vitae, to;

The Human Resources Manager
UNICEF Kenya Country Office
Email address: kenyahrvacancies@unicef.org

Please indicate Reference No. “KCO/SSA/WASH/2013/016” in the email subject.Interested candidates should also complete the Personal History (P11) form, which can be downloaded from the UNICEF Kenya website (http://www.unicef.org/kenya).

“QUALIFIED FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY”
ZERO TOLERANCE FOR SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND ABUSE
UNICEF IS A SMOKE-FREE ENVIRONMENT