National Consultant on the Development of the Adaptive Social Protection Strategy in Uzbekistan
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
Consultant Consultancy Locallly Recruited Closing soon: 19 Mar 2026
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For every child, the right to protection!
Children are among the most vulnerable to climate-related and other covariate shocks. Floods, droughts, extreme heat events and other crises disproportionately affect children through increased poverty risks, disruption of education and health services, heightened exposure to violence, child labour, malnutrition and psychosocial stress.
Adaptive Social Protection (ASP), as advanced in global policy frameworks of the World Bank and UNICEF, integrates social protection, disaster risk management and climate adaptation approaches. ASP strengthens the capacity of national systems to anticipate, prepare, respond, and adapt to shocks. It promotes scalable and flexible social protection programmes, early warning-informed responses, coordinated institutional mechanisms, and sustainable financing arrangements that enable timely and predictable support to affected populations.
In this context, UNICEF will support the development of the National Adaptive Social Protection (ASP) Strategy for children and their families, including its Implementation Plan. The strategy will define the national vision, institutional and governance arrangements, financing mechanisms, preparedness measures and monitoring framework required to ensure that Uzbekistan’s social protection system becomes more resilient, inclusive and responsive to shocks.
Scope of Work
Under the overall supervision of UNICEF and in close coordination with the International Consultant on the Development of the Adaptive Social Protection Strategy in Uzbekistan, the National Consultant will develop of the National ASP Strategy and its Implementation Plan in Uzbekistan. The assignment will cover the undertaking of a desk review, including the findings of the Climate Vulnerability Needs Assessment; the development of the draft ASP Strategy and its implementation plan; and the presentation and submission of the draft Strategy.
Within the undertaking of the desk review, including the findings of the Climate Vulnerability Needs Assessment, the National Consultant, jointly with the International Consultant on the Development of the Adaptive Social Protection Strategy in Uzbekistan, will review existing legislation, policies, strategies and programmes related to social protection, disaster risk reduction, climate adaptation and emergency response in Uzbekistan.
The Implementation Plan will accompany the Strategy and will set out time-bound and costed activities required for its implementation, including clearly defined institutional responsibilities, sequencing of actions and a monitoring framework with measurable indicators to track progress. The first full draft of the National ASP Strategy and its Implementation Plan shall be submitted within six (6) months from the official start date of the contract.
The National Consultant will provide contextual, institutional and coordination support to ensure effective development, national alignment and institutional feasibility of the National Adaptive Social Protection Strategy and its Implementation Plan.
Lead translation of the draft and final versions of the national Adaptive Social Protection Strategy into Uzbek (and Russian, if needed). This task implies editing the machine translated text to ensure alignment in terminology, style and structure of the strategy documents in English and Uzbek (or Russian).
Integration of the Climate Vulnerability Needs Assessment Findings
Recommended Methodology
The National Consultant will apply and operationalize the agreed methodological framework in close partnership with the International Consultant to ensure that the development of the National Adaptive Social Protection Strategy and its Implementation Plan is grounded in the national institutional, legal and policy context.
The assignment will be implemented in a manner that ensures contextual accuracy, institutional feasibility and effective national coordination.
The overall methodological approach will emphasize institutional alignment, practical implementability and sustainable reform sequencing. It will ensure that the Strategy and its Implementation Plan reflect national governance structures, administrative capacities and policy priorities while strengthening the adaptive and shock responsive capacity of the social protection system.
Management
UNICEF’s Social Policy Section will act as the focal point for this consultancy. A designated UNICEF Programme Officer will oversee the assignment, provide technical guidance, and ensure overall coordination with the National Agency for Social Protection (NASP).
The International and National Consultants will work in close collaboration throughout the assignment. The International Consultant will define analytical requirements, drafting structure and timelines, while the National Consultant will provide contextual inputs and facilitate national coordination. Regular coordination meetings will be held to review progress, address technical issues and ensure alignment of outputs. The International Consultant will maintain version control and ensure editorial coherence of draft documents, while the National Consultant will support consolidation of stakeholder inputs and institutional feedback. The International Consultant bears ultimate
responsibility for the final technical quality and submission of the Strategy and Implementation Plan.
UNICEF will facilitate coordination with NASP and relevant stakeholders, including support in organizing technical meetings, consultations and validation events. Close collaboration with NASP technical counterparts will be maintained to ensure access to relevant documentation, alignment with national priorities and integration of institutional feedback into successive drafts of the Strategy.
The Consultant will provide regular progress updates to UNICEF and submit all deliverables in accordance with agreed timelines. Key milestones, including submission of the inception approach, the draft Strategy and the final Strategy, will be reviewed and cleared by UNICEF in consultation with NASP.
Operational and logistical arrangements for meetings and consultations within Uzbekistan will be coordinated by UNICEF in collaboration with NASP, as required.
The consultant is expected to support the international consultant during the mission to Uzbekistan for on-site data collection. UNICEF will assist with in-country logistics, including arranging meetings and providing office space during visits. However, the consultants must use their own work equipment (laptop, software, etc.), as UNICEF will not provide computers.
Payment
Payments will be disbursed upon successful completion of key deliverables.
Scope of activities - Deliverables - Days
1. Inception Phase and Strategic Desk Review Support - 30 days
Supporting the inception phase and strategic desk review through national context analysis, coordination with stakeholders and
consolidation of inputs relevant to the development of the National ASP Strategy.
Deliverable 1: Comprehensive Inception and Strategic Analytical Report (jointly developed with the International Consultant)
The National Consultant will contribute to the preparation of the Comprehensive Inception and Strategic Analytical Report by:
• Providing contextual analysis of the national social protection, disaster risk management and climate adaptation frameworks;
• Facilitating access to relevant national legislation, policy documents and institutional information;
• Reviewing and aligning the Report with the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 201 dated 30 October 2025 on the introduction of the unified system of strategic planning and development;
• Supporting stakeholder mapping and coordination with NASP and relevant ministries;
• Contributing to the integration of findings from the Climate Vulnerability Needs Assessment within the national context;
• Supporting the preparation of the annotated outline and workplan.
2. Strategy Drafting and Institutional Alignment Phase - 90 days
Supporting the development of the draft National ASP Strategy and its Implementation Plan through contextualization, coordination with national stakeholders and consolidation of institutional inputs.
Deliverable 2.1: Contribution to the First Draft of the National ASP Strategy
The National Consultant will:
• Contribute national policy analysis and contextual inputs to the strategic framework;
• Ensure that the Strategy and its Implementation Plan are developed in accordance with the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 201 dated 30 October 2025 on the introduction of the unified system of strategic planning and development;
• Ensure alignment of proposed governance and coordination mechanisms with existing institutional structures;
• Support drafting and refinement of sections related to institutional roles, operational mechanisms and national policy coherence.
Deliverable 2.2: Contribution to the Draft Implementation Plan
The National Consultant will:
• Support identification of feasible sequencing and institutional responsibilities within the national context;
• Contribute to contextualization of costing assumptions and implementation considerations;
• Assist in developing the monitoring and indicator framework in line with national systems.
3. Validation, Consolidation and Finalization Phase - 30 days
Facilitating the structured review, validation and refinement of the draft National Strategy on Adaptive Social Protection and its Implementation Plan through institutional consultations and formal review processes. This
phase will focus on consolidating feedback, strengthening alignment with national priorities, and finalizing the Strategy for formal consideration and endorsement.
Deliverable 3.1. Consolidated and Revised National Strategy and Implementation Plan
The National consultant will support with:
• Compilation and consolidation of stakeholder feedback;
• Coordination with NASP and relevant ministries during review process;
• Integration of agreed revisions into the final documents.
• Ensuring that the finalized Strategy and its Implementation Plan comply with the requirements on scope, style and structure as specified in the Presidential Decree of the Republic of Uzbekistan No. 201 dated 30 October 2025.
Deliverable 3.2. Final Presentation, Validation and Post-Conference Consolidation Package
The Final Presentation and Validation Package will support national validation, endorsement and final institutional alignment of the Strategy. It will include:
• A structured presentation summarizing the strategic framework, key reform directions and implementation roadmap, delivered during technical validation meetings and the national conference;
• Documentation and consolidation of feedback received during the validation process, including comments from NASP, relevant ministries and stakeholders;
• Post-conference technical refinement of the National ASP Strategy and Implementation Plan, incorporating any additional comments, clarifications or technical adjustments requested by UNICEF or NASP prior to formal submission and approval.
Total: 150 days
Local travel is applicable.
If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: [TOR national consultant.docx]
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…
Minimum requirements:
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.
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Remarks:
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