TERMS OF REFERENCE
FOR CONDUCTING A FOR THE FULFILLMENT OF THE ASSESSMENT TOOL FOR THE IMPLEMETATION OF UN GUIDELINES ON ALTERNATIVE CARE OF CHILDREN IN AZERBAIJAN
“A child’s development to his or her full potential is best realised in a caring family environment. Recognising the role of the child in his/her own development, as well as the role of his/her family, community, state and other service providers, we work together with all relevant stakeholders to find the most appropriate response to the situation of children at risk of losing parental care and those without parental care”. (SOS Children’s Village Programme Policy)
SOS Azerbaijan plans to conduct a research on UN Guidelines on Alternative Care of Children in Azerbaijan, to analyse the situation of children without parental care and institutions, orphanages in Azerbaijan. The report will be developed based on a wealth of most recent data and analysis, coming from official statistics, studies, and surveys, which represent the key issues related to the situation of children in Azerbaijan, trends and perspectives. A comprehensive assessment/analysis of local realities, opportunities and commitments will be done in order to support formulation of realistic, targeted and applicable strategies for intervention in the field of child development.
The purpose of the study is to assess the Government position in relation to the implementation of the UN Guidelines for the Alternative of Children. (http://www.coe.int/t/dg3/children/ChildrenInCare/SOS-ISS%20Guidelines%20Publication.pdf), and to identify the measures to support families at risk of separation and the actors that cause children to enter alternative care arrangements. This assessment can be done through the use of specific assessment tool developed by SOS Children’s Villages International. The Assessment will also serve the Association to determine the violations of children’s rights in relation to alternative care.
The assessment tool (results of the assessment) will be further used by the SOS Children’s Villages Azerbaijan Association to support research based advocacy aimed at improving the state services with regards to the children at risk of losing parental care and children who had already lost parental care.
The external consultant will have to fulfil the assessment, using the tool provided by SOS Azerbaijan. This will involve:
- Desk research – reviewing existing documentation, including legislation and various reports, studies provided by the state bodies and NGOs; statistics.
- Definitions – the assessment requires providing various existing status of national system and legislation definitions relevant to the topic of the study. The definitions should be compared to the ones provided in the UN guidelines and be as precise as possible.
- Research planning – assess what data is already available and what needs to be researched. Provide timetable for interviews, focus groups and enquiries to be done. As much information as possible should be gathered from various key actors: state, local authorities, NGOs, service providers etc. This task should be fulfilled in close cooperation with the National Advocacy Advisor of the SOS that is responsible for the project
- Completing interviews and consultations in close cooperation with the National Advocacy Advisor
- Data collection of more information on alternative care system within the implementation of UN guidelines. Using various data sources to gather as much information as possible. Data sources can be media publications, press-releases, project reports, case-studies, court decisions if relevant, etc. assessing why some of the information is not available.
- Comparison with other data sources. Data triangulation, which entails gathering data through several sampling strategies, so that slices of data at different times and social situations, as well as on variety of people, is gathered.
- The final stage of the assessment is the combination of all the data and compiling an assessment report.
- Expected Outputs/DELIVERABLES
The expected deliverable is a comprehensive report in English and Azerbaijani and follows the outline proposed below. The report should not exceed 40 pages.
- Summary of key findings of….
- Profile of person(s) who carried out the study
- Description of data collection methods (e.g. who was interviewed, how many interviews/focus groups were carried out, which documents were reviewed)
- Executive summary highlighting the main issues, gaps identified in the field of child protection.
- The executive summary should contain a paragraph with the technical information: reasons for the report, focus and limitations of the report, legal framework on alternative care in the country, list of partners used in preparation of the report, availability and reliability of data, any legal or strategic changes in alternative care policy that is taking place or planned, major child rights violations, key statistics.
- The executive summary should contain a paragraph on recommendations that regard alternative care system in the country and conclusions.
- Analysis of the current local response to the needs of the target group and type of interventions and services most needed in the coming years
- Existing governmental and non-governmental strategies and advocacy efforts, in the area of promotion of alternative care models in the country in the frame of State de-institutionalization program.
8.1 Willingness and interest of the local government to align UN Guidelines with local legislation and in line with the state child welfare system
8.2 Conclusion: What are the steps for the alignment of UN guidelines and state child care system
- Conclusions of the Research Report
9.1 Is there any need for the alignment of UN Guidelines and state child care system and the challenges and expectations from the alignment process?
9.2 What kind of advocacy project or programs should be developed by SOS Children’s Villages in order to voice issues related to child welfare and consequently to achieve the quality in child care system
- SUPERVISION ARRANGEMENTS
The consultant will work under the supervision of the National Advocacy Advisor (NAA). The consultant will closely work with National Program Development Advisors, and other staff as assigned by National Program Development Director and NAA in developing approach, design of tools, analysis of data and preparing the final report.
- DURATION OF THE CONSULTANCY
It is estimated that the consultant will work over a period of maximum two months (October 1, 2014-December 1, 2014).
- QUALIFICATIONS/SPECIALIZED KNOWLEDGE/EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
- Advanced university degree and at least 5 years of experience of work in relevant area (social sciences, social work, psychology, social-pedagogy, community development, or economics)
- Experienced professional communicator with knowledge of child protection and child welfare system
- Knowledge of child rights issues. A thorough understanding of the situation of children without parental care or at risk of losing parental care, the legislation, governmental programmes, policies and strategies related to this target group, child protection issues in general, predominant child rights violations, and the socio-economic situation in the country.
- In-depth knowledge of substantive social and economic issues and experience with producing rigorous analysis
- Proven competence and experience in conducting social research
- Excellent writing skills and excellent command of the English language
- Previous publications on area of expertise
- PERFORMANCE INDICATORS
Consultant’s performance will be evaluated against the following criteria: timeliness, responsibility, initiative, communication, accuracy, and quality of the products delivered.
- Application procedure
All interested candidates should submit their CV and a letter of motivation to Vugar Salmanov, National Advocacy Advisor at Vugar.Salmanov@sosushaqkendleri.az by September 26, 2014. Research-oriented organizations can also apply and submit their organizational profile and CVs of their leading experts.
Children without parental care is the term used for all children not living with and being cared for by their biological parents, for whatever reason and in whatever circumstances
This last part should be performed in close cooperation with the National Advocacy Advisor.