UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture., coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, safe water and resilient services powered by sustainable energy.

UNICEF has been an active partner of the Government of the Philippines and civil society in realizing the rights of every Filipino child, in line with priorities to achieve the SDGs. UNICEF efforts have been focused on the most vulnerable regions identified by the Government of the Philippines Development Plan, particularly in the regions of Visayas and Mindanao. To ensure that interventions are sustainable and scaled up, UNICEF will support both the national and local government units (LGUs) as the main instruments of delivering services and building systems. The level of engagement with government institutions will consider capacities, economies of scale and sector issues.

UNICEF Philippines has two offices. One office is based in Manila and a field office in Cotabato City, the second largest city in Mindanao, Southern Philippines, with some 300,000 population. The city is the regional administrative center of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) and over 80 percent of the population is Muslim. Mindanao is both conflict-affected and prone to frequent earthquakes and typhoons.

Visit this link for more information on Philippine Country Office: https://www.unicef.org/philippines/

How can you make a difference? 

Under the supervision of WASH Specialist, the consultant will provide independent technical advisory and quality assurance services to ensure that contractors comply with national regulations, international best practices, and UNICEF standards in the design, installation, safety, and sustainability of solar-powered WASH systems.

Beyond coordination, the role involves validating technical integrity and offering expert recommendations, particularly for the hybrid solar PV system supporting the desalination plant and associated WASH facilities in Barangay Sikullis, Languyan, Tawi-Tawi, BARMM. The consultancy will also generate case studies and learning to support UNICEF’s organizational knowledge, replication, and scale-up of solarized WASH services in fragile and geographically isolated settings.

The consultant will provide specialized technical services and independent quality assurance to support UNICEF’s WASH Thematic Funding initiative on the solarization of key WASH facilities in Tawi-Tawi Province, BARMM. The consultancy will focus on ensuring the technical integrity, safety, and sustainability of the hybrid solar PV system installation for the desalination plant in Barangay Sikullis, Municipality of Languyan, including a nearby rural health unit, if feasible.

The postholder is required to perform the following tasks:

1. Technical Inception and Implementation Planning

2. Design and Procurement Technical Oversight

3. Installation and Commissioning Quality Assurance

4. Capacity Building and Technical Training Validation

5. Sustainability Planning and Policy Support

6. Technical Documentation and Assurance Reporting

7. Knowledge Management and Learning

8. Risk Monitoring and Adaptive Technical Management

Tasks and Deliverables:

1. Conduct technical inception and implementation planning workshop with key project stakeholders, contracted solar design firm and UNICEF

        Technical Inception Report submitted, summarizing:

• Findings from the review of project documentation by the contracted solar design firm (site assessment tool, baseline data, engineering concepts, PV design objectives, methodology and timelines).
• Identified technical gaps, risks, and context-specific considerations (e.g., logistical constraints, seasonal variations, security/access issues);
• Initial recommendations for technical sequencing, quality assurance milestones, and risk mitigation measures.
• Approved Technical Oversight and Monitoring Plan, and mechanisms for coordination focused on technical validation and decision-making, not administrative follow-up.

2. Design and Technical Oversight

• Conduct consultation with LGU officials and other stakeholders on the proposed solar PV design and submit a summary report on key agreements
• Technical report on the review of the solar design firm’s site assessment reports, load profiles, engineering designs, PV lay-out and Bill of Quantities (BoQs), including transport and warehousing/ storage requirements; ensuring that key agreements from the consultations are followed. Discuss with UNICEF CER team, the recommendations for final design approval.
• Review the Health Facility (rural health unit) Solar Electrification Assessment Report (using UNICEF template) from the solar design firm and provide recommendations and 
• Compile technical and administrative documents required for requesting permit
• Obtain necessary permits and declaration for the solarization work from relevant authorities

2. Assist UNICEF in the bidding process and selection of qualified solar package supplier
   •  

• Review the TOR for the Supply, Installation, Commissioning and Training for the solarization of the desalination plant and RHU and validate technical drawings, specifications, cost estimates therein, based on agreed design.
• Attend the pre-bid conference with potential bidders to respond exclusively to technical queries. Prepare and submit a consolidated documentation report capturing all technical questions raised during the pre-bid conference and the corresponding technical responses.
• Provide a Technical Evaluation Report of the technical proposals of the bidders, verification of references, and if needed, visits relevant projects or offices
• Submit accomplished Evaluation Forms of vendors/ suppliers of solar packages and services

2. Installation and Commissioning

• Submit 3x Monthly progress monitoring report on the following work process:
  • progress status based on workplan schedule

5. Quality Assurance
   • compliance to material specifications and quality of materials used
   • technical issues or challenges and recommended actions 
   • monitor the contractor’s practices in terms of traffic and protection of roads, properties and services, safety, PSEAH and child safeguarding measures, and care of the environment
   • Electrical integration and protection coordination report submitted and cleared prior to energization, including:
     • Protection coordination and safety verification
     • Grounding and earthing compliance
     • Interface validation between PV, generators, batteries, and desalination plant
     • Pre-energization safety clearance checklist
   • Submit a plan for integrated commissioning (desal + solar PV + RHU), O&M, and Performance Monitoring in collaboration with the contractor of solar package and services:
     • Commissioning protocols and acceptance criteria
     • O&M readiness checklist
     • Performance benchmarks and monitoring framework
     • Technical inputs to system handover and certification
   • With UNICEF WASH CER specialist, Provincial and Municipal LGUs, MENRE, certify that the desalination facility and RHU/health stations are fully functional and meet approved safety and environmental standards (refer to Substantial Completion Certificate)
   • Completion report on integrated commissioning (desal + solar PV + RHU), O&M, and Performance Monitoring
6. Capacity Building and Training Validation
   • • Approved training design, curricula, and illustrated job aids prepared by the firm.
     • Monitoring reports confirming that at least 15 youth and 5 LGU staff were trained and certified in solar PV operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting
     • Review the Operations Manual submitted by the contractor
7. Monitoring and Adaptive Management

• Ad-hoc alerts issued whenever significant technical risks, safety issues, or deviations are identified.
• Should there be any design variation that may arise from the solar PV system contractor or LGU counterparts, provide a recommendation to UNICEF based on an analysis of options, including potential cost implications.
• Provided technical inputs and briefings during UNICEF quarterly programmatic visits on four quarterly field monitoring missions completed and documented, with risk assessments and corrective actions where needed.

8. Governance, Documentation, and Reporting

• Immediate brief updates after every key milestone (e.g., completion of site assessment, procurement clearance, installation phase, each training session).
• Comprehensive final report with photographic documentation, confirming that the project meets all UNICEF standards and donor requirements.
• A consolidated report summarizing the project’s overall experience, approach, outcomes, and lessons learned, suitable for sharing within UNICEF and with BARMM stakeholders for future solar-powered WASH initiatives.

*Detailed Terms of Reference may be requested. 

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

Minimum requirements:

• Education: 
  • Bachelor’s degree in related discipline, including but not limited to Electrical Engineering, Energy Engineering, Solar Photovoltaics, Renewable Energy Systems; or other related field.
• Work Experience: 

  • At least five years of progressively responsible experience in renewable energy particularly solar solutions for WASH, health, or community infrastructure and in climate-resilient WASH and disaster-risk-reduction (DRR) programming.

• Skills:
  • Certification or formal training in solar PV system design and quality assurance is preferred.
  • Excellent technical reporting and stakeholder advisory skills with the ability to work effectively with government agencies, local communities, and multi-disciplinary technical teams.

• Language Requirements:
  • Proficiency in English is required; ability to communicate in local dialects such as Sama-Badjao or Tausug is highly desirable to ensure effective engagement with community stakeholders

HOW TO APPLY

Qualified candidates are requested to complete an online candidate profile in http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/ by 17 February 2026. Only applications sent through the e-recruitment portal under Job Number: 590880 will be considered.

All candidates are requested to submit a COVER LETTER, and the duly filled P11 Form which can be downloaded from our website at P11 Form.docx (sharepoint.com) indicating three (3) previous supervisors. Please indicate your professional fees and the soonest availability to take on the post based on the above terms of reference.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:  

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable eligible and suitable candidates irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, are encouraged to apply.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures, and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. The candidate may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid).

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.