Improving Hand Washing Triggering Procedure in Community Led Total Sanitation and Reviewing Suitability of Proxy Indicators for Hand Washing Behavior.

CONSULTANCY POSITION FOR

Improving Hand Washing Triggering Procedure in Community Led Total Sanitation and Reviewing Suitability of Proxy Indicators for Hand Washing Behavior.

VACANCY#: UNICEF/MLW/2011/006

Background

Hand Washing with Soap (HWWS) is the most cost effective intervention against disease according to a recent review of curative and preventative health interventions in developing countries. Prevention of transmission of the diarrhoea diseases (including cholera, dysentery) and intestinal worms are the main benefits from improved hand washing practice but recent evidence suggests that it can also lead to a reduction of respiratory infections.

However, changing behaviour is not easy as habits, once formed are hard to break. Many programmes waste too much effort trying to improve knowledge without focusing enough on the actual behaviour change. Studies have shown that the knowledge about a particular behaviour can often be well known in a community but only practiced by a few. Furthermore determining hand washing practices at critical times poses a challenge as it is not easy to directly measure the practice(s) and therefore often uses proxy indicators.

On the other hand, experience in promoting household sanitation through community led total sanitation has yielded positive results in that households stop open defecation and construct their own latrines after triggering. Using a similar approach UNICEF is therefore, seeking the services of a team of consultants preferably two a lead and an assistant consultant who will work together in the assignment of improving hand washing with soap triggering procedure through community led total sanitation and to review the suitability of proxy Indicators for hand washing behaviour.

Expected skills and qualifications:
A Local Consultant will team up with an International Consultant who will act as the team leader. They are expected to have the following major qualifications and competencies:-

Local consultant experience:-
• A Master’s degree(s) in Social Sciences or related discipline,
• At least 3 years’ experience in Water and Sanitation sector at field level;
• Experience in hygiene promotion particularly hand washing.
• Experience in CLTS an advantage
• Experience in research on indicators for hygiene behaviour an advantage
• Outstanding listening as well as verbal and written communications skills and the ability to express complex strategies in simple and actionable terms;
• Excellent communication skills and leadership skills, with experience of delivering high quality reports.


International consultant experience:-
• A master’s degree(s) in Social Sciences Public Health, Civil engineering or related discipline;
• At least 5 years’ experience in Water and Sanitation sector;
• Experience in hygiene promotion and proxy indicators of behaviour
• Research experience in hand washing practice;
• Outstanding listening as well as verbal and written communications skills and the ability to express complex strategies in simple and actionable terms;
• Excellent communication skills and leadership skills, with experience of delivering high quality reports.

Durations:
3 Months (with 3 months for local consultant and 6 week for the international)

Expected Deliverables and specific duties include:-
1) Report on the impact of Hand Washing triggering from CLTS including:
• Review of effective and appropriate methods of triggering HWWS within the context of CLTS.
• Motivation factors and barriers to the adoption of HWWS as an everyday routine practice
• Review of HWWS technologies with recommendations
• Recommendations for adjusting CLTS process to strengthen triggering of HWWS;
• Training programme for disseminating recommended HWWS triggering procedures to CLTS facilitators

2) Report on Key WASH Proxy Indicators in Malawi including:
• Review of HWWS proxy indicators relevant to the situation in Malawi;
• Study methodology;
• Key findings from the rapid assessment study;
• Recommended proxy HWWS Indicators.

Interested parties may submit a joint application or submit individually but, whatever the case, the local consultant will report to the international consultant (as the team leader). Please make it clear which position you are applying for. Only candidates who meet all of the above requirements need to apply submitting a letter of application along with their curriculum vitae on or before 31 July 2011 to:

The Chief of Operations
UNICEF
P.O. Box 30375, Lilongwe 3
Email: lilongwe@unicef.org

This consultancy is open to Malawian Nationals (or expatriate experts who are permanent residence of Malawi) and International experts.

ONLY SHORTLISTED APPLICANTS WILL BE ACKNOWLEDGED