Mission and objectives

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favouritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education, and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfil their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations

Context

The Government of Sierra Leone (GoSL) aims to improve access to and quality of education for all children, with an emphasis on providing quality foundational learning for the most marginalized early grade learners. The Government and partners have focused on transferring basic literacy, numeracy, and socio-emotional skills to children – the fundamental building blocks for all other learning, knowledge, and higher-order skills in order to transform the country’s education sector. The GoSL has prioritised investments in: a). foundational years to ensure that young children are prepared for future success in school and work, and b). strengthening systems to transform education by improving foundational learning out-comes across Sierra Leone. To achieve this ambitious goal of transforming education across the country, the GoSL, with technical assistance from UNICEF, are implementing the “Delivering the Foundations of Learning for All” program. This 4-year program is financed by three grants from the Global Partnership for Education, the System Capacity Grant (US$ 2.6 million), the System Transformation Grant (US$ 22.5 million) and the Multiplier Grant (US$ 15 million). With technical assistance from UNICEF as the grant agent, the programme is implemented by the Ministry of Basic and Senior Secondary Education (MBSSE), including the Teaching Service Commission (TSC), across all 16 districts in Sierra Leone from 2023 to 2027. Component 1 of the GPE program aims to improve the quality of and children’s access to pre-primary education, while Component 2 proposes key investments to strengthen the instructional core, teacher’ cadre, and system-wide capacity to improve foundational learning across Sierra Leone. The UNV will support implementation of priority activities under these two components, including supporting the literacy teaching and learning materials (TLMs) development process, teacher capacity building, digital learning to support teachers and socio-emotional learning training modules development.

Task Description

Under the guidance of the Chief Education and the general supervision of the Education Specialist (GPE Coordinator), the UN Volunteer will actively support the planning, implementation, monitoring and coordination of education projects, with a strong focus on strengthening the quality of learning. The UN Volunteer will be responsible for the following tasks: 1. Literacy TLM development support: • Coordinate writing workshops with the international literacy consultant and national writers, in-clouding logistics, materials, and budget preparation. • Liaise with the international consultant to provide on-site support for the writing process. • Monitor progress of the writing process to ensure timely completion. • Review draft materials for clarity, educator accessibility, and proofreading prior to external validation. • Develop TORs and manage engagement with a graphic design firm for TLM production. 2. Teacher capacity building (training and COP) implementation and monitoring: • Support planning, coordination, and delivery of national in-service teacher training for P0 and P3 and P4 literacy and numeracy. • Coordinate with the Ministry, district stakeholders, and FLN SQAOs to implement and monitor the Community of Practice (COP), including managing activity reports, following up with District Edu-cation Offices, and organizing district review meetings. 3. Digital learning to support teachers: • Collaborate with the Government, teacher training institutions (TTIs), partners, and consultant to conduct a needs assessment for teacher support through digital learning tools, including AI and digital content. • Develop and oversee implementation of a work plan to create digital resources that support teachers’ adoption of structured pedagogy. 4. Socio-emotional learning (SEL): • Facilitate technical consultations with MBSSE, MTHE, and partners on socio-emotional learning to support development of SEL modules for national teacher training. • Coordinate with partners to develop a work plan, recruit technical expertise as needed, and monitor progress on deliverables. • Prepare for implementation of SEL modules within the national teacher training program. 5. Documentation, reporting and knowledge management • Support preparation of technical briefs, presentations, success stories and lessons learned related to teacher capacity development, digital learning and SEL to inform UNICEF planning, partner coordination and donor engagement. • Support communication/advocacy on implementation progress, including maintaining activity trackers and drafting summary updates for UNICEF and partners. • Conduct programme monitoring and manage record of progress of the activities.

Competencies and values

☒ Accountability. ☒ Adaptability and Flexibility. ☒ Commitment and Motivation ☒ Commitment to Continuous Learning ☒ Communication ☒Ethics and Values ☒ Integrity ☒ Judgement and Decision-making ☒ Knowledge Sharing Planning and Organizing ☒ Professionalism ☒ Respect for Diversity ☒ Self-Management ☒ Technological Awareness ☒ Working in Teams

Living conditions and remarks

The UN Volunteer will be based at UNICEF’s Sierra Leone Country Office in Freetown with periodic travel to districts. Freetown is classified by the United Nations as Family duty station and living conditions are generally good. The UN Volunteer will be responsible for covering the costs of their own accommodation and other related living expenses while based in Freetown. Travel costs incurred in the performance of official duties will be covered in accordance with UN standards. UNDSS clearance to ensure adherence to minimum safety standards is required and will be facilitated by the Office. Freetown is the capital city of Sierra Leone, situated on the Atlantic coast of West Africa. Sierra Leone is generally safe, the security level is low, and the society is very religiously tolerant. Freetown is a family duty station. Floods and mudslides have been identified as the two main risks in the country in terms of emergency, in addition to epidemics including Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreaks (2014-2016), COVID-19 outbreaks and recent Mpox outbreak. The cost of living for expatriates is generally fair or high, especially for imported items, and there are good supermarkets, restaurants and hotels available. There are good communication services, including mobile and internet services, available with a fair price. Local and regional banks deal in both local and foreign currencies. ATMs are available, and credit cards are accepted in some establishments. However, this is generally a cash economy. Freetown has a tropical climate, with very high rainfall in the rainy season, Sierra Leone boasts the finest beaches in West Africa, within easy reach of Freetown, with excellent seafood, surfing and sunshine.