National Consultant for the Development of Safe Schools Guide and IEC Materials for Learners and Teachers – 3 Months

ORGANIZATION AND ASSIGNMENT BACKGROUND

UNICEF works with governments, civil society, communities, children and families to protect children’s rights and improve their well-being.

Nigeria’s education system faces persistent safety threats arising from armed conflict, banditry, kidnapping, climate-related emergencies and weakened institutional structures. These threats contribute to fear, absenteeism, school dropout and reduced learning quality.

Nigeria has adopted several school-safety policies and mechanisms, including the Safe Schools Declaration, the Financing Safe Schools Plan, the National Policy on Safety, Security and Violence-Free Schools, minimum safe-school standards and the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre. However, implementation remains inconsistent across schools, communities, local governments and states.

ASSIGNMENT PURPOSE

The consultant will develop a practical, accessible and context-responsive Safe Schools Guide and accompanying information, education and communication materials.

These resources will help government agencies, school leaders, teachers, School-Based Management Committees, learners, parents and communities understand and implement school-safety measures.

The consultant will work under the overall supervision of UNICEF’s Education Manager for Learning and report directly to the Education Specialist for Access.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Review existing Nigerian school-safety policies, guidelines, minimum standards and related education-in-emergencies resources.
• Review documents developed by the National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre.
• Review the Managing Violence and Early Warning System handbook for schools.
• Develop a practical, user-friendly Safe Schools Guide.
• Provide guidance concerning school-level risk assessment and preparedness.
• Cover early-warning systems, violence prevention and inclusive school-safety planning.
• Establish practical actions and reporting channels for use before, during and after safety incidents and emergencies.
• Develop culturally appropriate information, education and communication materials.
• Ensure materials are gender-responsive, disability-inclusive and conflict-sensitive.
• Produce posters, flyers, child-friendly messages, school-safety rules, community-awareness messages, early-warning prompts and referral information.
• Incorporate appropriate safe-school information into the DNEMIS platform.
• Facilitate a technical review and validation workshop.
• Engage the Federal Ministry of Education, Universal Basic Education Commission and National Safe Schools Response Coordination Centre.
• Consult state education authorities, education-in-emergencies partners, teachers, School-Based Management Committees, learners and civil-society representatives.
• Incorporate stakeholder feedback.
• Submit editable and print-ready versions of all approved materials.

DELIVERABLES

• Inception report containing the methodology and assignment timeline.
• Desk review of existing policies, standards, guidelines and resources.
• Initial framework and first draft of the Safe Schools Guide.
• Electronic copies of draft school-safety IEC materials.
• Stakeholder review and validation workshop.
• Workshop report.
• Revised Safe Schools Guide and IEC materials.
• Final edited, validated, print-ready and editable materials.
• Final consultancy report documenting the process, stakeholder feedback and key recommendations.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Advanced university degree in Education, Education in Emergencies, Development Studies, Peace and Conflict Studies, Sociology, Child Protection, Social Sciences, Communication for Development, Public Policy or a related discipline.
• At least five years of experience developing practical guides, training resources, IEC materials or policy-implementation tools.
• Relevant experience should concern education, school safety, child protection or humanitarian programming.
• At least five years of experience producing child-friendly, gender-responsive and disability-inclusive materials is highly desirable.
• Demonstrated experience conducting risk assessments, including school-safety risk assessments.
• Experience supporting national initiatives that strengthen safe and inclusive access to education.
• Demonstrated experience engaging government institutions at different levels, community leaders and marginalized groups.
• Experience working with different tiers of government to address education challenges is desirable.
• Previous United Nations-system experience is an asset.

SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES

• Strong understanding of Nigeria’s education system.
• Knowledge of the national Safe Schools agenda and associated institutional architecture.
• Education-in-emergencies expertise.
• Child safeguarding and inclusive-education knowledge.
• Community-engagement and stakeholder-consultation skills.
• Excellent writing and editing ability.
• Training and workshop facilitation.
• Ability to prepare child-friendly and accessible communication products.
• UNICEF competencies concerning partnerships, ethical awareness, results, innovation, strategic thinking, collaboration and management of complexity.
• Fluency in written and spoken English.

CONTRACT DETAILS

• Contract modality: National individual consultancy.
• Duration: Three months.
• Duty station: Abuja, Nigeria.
• UNICEF job number: 594890.
• Functional category: Education.
• Supervisor: Education Specialist – Access.
• Consultancy fee: Not specified.
• Payment schedule: Not specified.
• Working arrangement: Not specified.
• Number of consultants: Not specified.
• Advertised: 3 August 2026.

SAFEGUARDING AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

UNICEF welcomes applicants regardless of race, ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socioeconomic background, minority status or another protected characteristic.

UNICEF maintains zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. It is committed to protecting and safeguarding children.

Selected candidates undergo academic, employment, reference and background verification.

Consultants are not UNICEF staff members and do not receive staff benefits. They are responsible for applicable taxes, valid health insurance and any required visa or health documentation.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Applicants must complete their applications through UNICEF’s official recruitment portal by 10 August 2026 at 11:55 PM.

Application documents: Not specified on the accessible vacancy page.

Only shortlisted applicants will be contacted.