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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, the right to hope

The Middle East and Northern Africa Region (MENAR) is one of the largest, most diverse, and complex regions, with a total population of 568 million people (200 million children under 18 years and 106 million adolescents aged 10-19) in 2025 currently growing at 1.7% per annum, and a wide range of country typologies. In its current composition, UNICEF’s MENAR comprises 20 countries reaching from Morocco in the West to the Gulf states and Iran in the East and includes Sudan and Djibouti in northeastern Africa. It includes countries of all World Bank’s four income groups – from low-income countries such as Yemen and Syria to the high-income countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). MENA is also marked by multiple complex emergencies with more than half of the children in the region living in fragile and conflict-affected situations. A period of prolonged and complex crises, ranging from conflicts, natural disasters, epidemics and economic shocks to geopolitical shifts has created immense challenges in the region and an accompanying skepticism about the multilateral system and the ability of UN agencies to address these crises effectively.

In this situation, the official development assistance (ODA) system is facing a global crisis with the current trajectory of ODA indicating a more restrictive development and humanitarian funding landscape in the short to medium term. As a consequence, UNICEF conducted a Global Review examining the current organizational structures and ways of working with the aim of identifying opportunities for streamlining and increasing synergies and complementarity while improving effectiveness and efficiency amidst cuts in costs. Besides the decision to consolidate programme staff from regional offices and HQ into central offices (“Centres of Excellence”), UNICEF also decided to merge the two Regional Offices covering Middle East and Northern Africa (MENA) and Europe and Central Asia (ECA) into one new Regional Office located in Amman, Jordan.

The objective of this consultancy is to prepare a well-researched but concise background paper (30-40 pages, excluding annexes) providing a comprehensive overview of the MENA region and its countries with special focus on the situation and rights of children and adolescents.  This study seeks to provide a comprehensive, evidence-based analysis of the situation of children and adolescents across MENA countries, highlighting achievements, gaps, and priority areas for action in line with international human rights commitments.

The paper will serve as background document for the planning for the new Regional Office (RO) merging the current Regional Offices for MENAR and ECAR (Europe and Central Asia) and for the development of the joint Regional Office Management Plan (ROMP) to be finalized in January 2026. An advanced draft of the document will inform the joint regional Strategic Moment of Reflection in November 2025.

How can you make a difference? 

Similar to a traditional Situation Analysis (SitAn), the paper will focus on analysing violations and deprivations of children’s rights in order to shape planning and priorities related to children and adolescents. In contrast to a traditional SitAn, the paper will have an emphasis on global and regional megatrends and use a systems analytical approach to provide a summary of the situation with respect to the different types of countries in the region (types according to social, economic, political, environmental, and security-related characteristics). Most tables and charts with the underlying statistics will be part of the Annex.

The consultant will be responsible – with guidance provided by the Regional Office – for identifying the most critical megatrends and their impacts on children. Relevant topics to be considered will include the five impact areas of UNICEF’s new Strategic Plan 2026-2029. These impact areas refer to Health, Education and learning, Livelihood and poverty, Violence against children, and Climate change and environmental risks. An analysis of data availability and data gaps will be an important part of this exercise.

In addition, the will paper will analyse in greater details regional child rights priorities, in particular related to Migration and displacement, Primary Health Care and Health Emergencies, Climate and water scarcity, Learning & Skilling, and Malnutrition in its different forms (undernutrition, overnutrition, and micronutrient deficiencies). Separate chapters will specifically examine cross-sectoral regional priorities such as Young people and adolescent girls, the Leveraging of finances, and the Humanitarian-development nexus.

The consultant will elaborate on what are the main challenges affecting progress in child well-being and rights (finding commonalities and differences between countries, subregions, country typologies), and include a forward-looking analysis reflecting on how trends and potential scenarios which may impact children and adolescents in MENA (note that Sudan and Djibouti will not be covered by the new consolidated regional office but will transition to part of UNICEF’s Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office).

A Situation Analysis is currently under development by the Europe and Central Asia Regional Office. The draft of this document could be aligned if progress and time schedules allow.

Methodology:

The study will be based on a desk review of publicly available documents and reports including but not limited to global and regional reports by UNICEF (both public and internal) and other international organizations, documents related to the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC Committee) and academic papers. The consultant will conduct interviews or focus groups discussion with MENARO’s Regional Advisors as determined during the inception phase. In addition, it is expected that the consultant will:

• Analyze international databases (UNICEF, World Bank, ILO, UNHCR, etc.).
• Review national laws, policies, strategies, and CRC Committee Concluding Observations.
• Consult with key stakeholders (UNICEF, UN agencies, governments, civil society, youth representatives).
• Apply a child rights framework and equity lens throughout the analysis.

The submission for this consultancy should include the CV, samples of relevant work and the financial offer.

Delivery Deadline: 15 September - 20 December 2025 (30 days)

The consultant will report to Regional Advisor Monitoring.

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

Minimum requirements:

• Advanced university degree in Social Sciences, Development, Economics or any related field. 

• Minimum of 10 years’ experience in child related research and analysis
• Proven experience, within UN context, of writing data-driven strategic documents aimed at disseminating to the broad public.
• Strong analytical skills to compile and consolidate a variety of inputs and produce technical, concise and easy-to-understand documents. 
• Excellent writing skills
• Proven experience of having worked within a multi-cultural environment. A very good understanding of the developments and trends in the region.
• Creativeness and innovative skills in presenting results
• Language skills: Fluency required in English (oral and written), Fluency in French and/or Arabic) is an asset

 Desirable:

• Previous experience of working with UNICEF and the United Nations
• Experience with foresight analysis

 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

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 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.

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.

It is expected that the consultant will make visits to DOS. International and Local travel, and airport transfers (where applicable) will be under responsibility of the consultant in accordance with UNICEF’s rules and tariffs. All travel costs (international and local) should be planned properly in the technical proposal and included in the financial proposal. Please note that if selected, the contract can be a supporting document to obtain entry visa (if necessary). UNICEF will be unable to secure travel visas. Flight costs will be covered at economy class rate as per UNICEF policies.

Remarks:  

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates with disability are encouraged to apply.

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.

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.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.