Long Term Agreement Consultancy: Editor/Writer at UNICEF

TERMS OF REFERENCE

BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION

• UNICEF produces a variety of topical documentation for a diverse spectrum of audiences—including UNICEF personnel, governments, policy makers, development partners, NGOs, universities, schools, children and the public at large—to inform, mobilize and advocate for the rights of children in the Eastern and Southern Africa region.
• Ensuring the quality of this documentation requires specialized skills in editing, copy editing and proofreading (hereafter generally only referred to as editing) and writing and the ability to align with UNICEF style and guidelines. The demand for these specialized skills fluctuates based on ESAR needs; when needs arise, the support required exceeds the capacity and scope of the existing ESAR resources.

PURPOSE OF ASSIGNMENT

• The purpose of the consultancy is to provide ESAR with long-term editing and writing support from qualified individual consultants. Establishing several such consultancies would contribute towards achievement of results for children by improving the quality of regional evidence available to support child rights advocacy.

PROGRAMME AREA AND SPECIFIC PROJECT AREA

• The work relates to the ESARO PPM rolling workplan’s development effectiveness output (country offices have increased capacity for quality planning, programme monitoring, data generation and use, and knowledge management) under the key intervention on knowledge management.

OBJECTIVES

• The purpose is for the consultant(s) to assist UNICEF ESAR in the editing and writing of internal and external documents in accordance with UNICEF style guidelines. On an as-needed basis, the consultant(s) will be called upon to support ESAR with key internal and external documents, assuring the highest quality as per UNICEF guidelines.
• This includes reviewing for grammar, spelling, redundancy, formatting and consistency, as well as
• revising content and reorganizing material, including occasional re-writing or writing. The documents edited by the consultant(s) will result in the production of information packaged and adapted for various audiences, both internal and external, covering studies, research papers, donor reports and key internal meeting reports.

MAJOR TASKS FOR BE ACCOMPLISHED

• For each assignment, ESAR and the consultant will agree on the scope and timeline for the relevant editing and/or writing assignment. The consultant will work independently and will be home-based. The interaction between ESAR and the consultant will be by email, other virtual means or phone calls, as appropriate. The availability and willingness to take up an assignment on short notice is important.

Responsibilities of the Consultant:
Perform high-quality and timely substantive editing and/or writing, including:

• Review specific documents and ensure consistent style of writing and tone throughout documents.
• Restructure, consolidate and/or re-write sections of documents to ensure logical flow and clarity in messages when appropriate.
• Correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and syntax mistakes, eliminating repetition and ensuring concise writing.
• Ensure any graphics such as tables or figures are clear.
• Check tables of content against the respective document.
• Check the acronym list against the acronyms used in the document.
• Edit footnotes, references and bibliographies for completeness and consistency of style.
• Consolidate and produce a write-up based on content inputs and data provided by ESAR when required.
• Provide high-quality and timely rapporteur support at key regional events, including:
• Ensure accurate notetaking, including capturing of discussions and action points.
• Produce timely summary reports of events.
• For invoicing purposes, the following role descriptions should be considered:

Editor

• An editor edits or rewrites all copy for continuity, logical arrangement, readability, clarity of expression, internal consistency and impact, keeping the audience in mind. Conceptualizes themes and approaches, ensuring consistency with internal guidelines; solicits and evaluates materials from different sources.

Copy editor

• A copy editor checks the accuracy, internal consistency and logical flow. This includes ensuring grammatical accuracy, and consistency in capitalization, spelling, abbreviations, numbers, calculations, endnotes or footnotes, bibliographies and reference lists, tables of contents, cross references, titles and other sequences, graphs, figures and tables. A copy editor ensures that the text is clearly written. They must watch out for repetitions, clichés and incorrect verb tenses. The copy editor also verifies that all elements of a publication, including the front and back matter, are included and correct. The copy editor ensures that house style is maintained throughout the work.

Proofreader

• The proofreader’s primary function is to compare the master copy with the proof. This means that the proofreader compares the first proof (i.e., the layout or design copy in PDF) against the final manuscript (i.e., the document in Microsoft Word) to ensure that all the text in the Word document has been accurately reproduced. They mark any corrections or changes directly onto the page proof and check subsequent versions of the document to ensure that the revisions have been accurately reflected and that no new errors have been introduced. Like a copy editor, a proofreader should have a keen eye for details and sound knowledge of the relevant language. The proofreader should have some knowledge of basic graphic design principles, so that they are able to spot any design issues that are of concern, or that do not correspond to organizational branding guidelines.

Responsibilities of UNICEF:

• Provide the necessary guidance required to support success, including due supporting documentation (e.g., latest iteration of the UNICEF Style Book).
• Respond to follow-up questions and requests for clarification in a timely manner to enable the consultant to meet requested deadlines.

Deliverables

• Regional Office Annual Review meeting reports
• Regional Management Team meeting reports and related documents
• Regional Deputy Representatives reports
• Regional Office-wide meeting reports
• Thematic humanitarian and non-humanitarian donor reports
• Various public sector, NatCom and UN agency donor reports
• Various sectoral programme documents
• Draft country programme documents and related documents
• Country programme evaluation reports
• Other UNICEF-related editing/writing deliverables as deemed relevant

All edited and written documents should be in line with the latest iteration of the UNICEF Style Book, global UNICEF guidelines and ESAR guidance, as provided. All assignments should be submitted electronically by the specified deadline to ESAR. The consultant should provide track changes and comments directly in the document.

Estimated duration of LTA

• The duration of the LTA is 24 months.

Identification Of Risks And Plan For Mitigation:

• Risks include poor quality of internal and particularly external documents and/or late submission of documents, which could have potential reputational risks and programming implications for UNICEF ESAR. Mitigation measures include ensuring the UNICEF guidelines on writing and branding, as well as any ESAR guidelines and templates are used by the consultant(s), and clear expectations regarding deadlines are agreed upon at the beginning of all assignments.
• Risks include poor quality of internal and particularly external documents and/or late submission of documents, which could have potential reputational risks and programming implications for UNICEF ESAR. Mitigation measures include ensuring the UNICEF guidelines on writing and branding, as well as any ESAR guidelines and templates are used by the consultant(s), and clear expectations regarding deadlines are agreed upon at the beginning of all assignments.

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

• Education and Qualifications: A first University degree and a minimum five (5) years of progressively responsible relevant work experience in writing/editing of reports and publications.

Specialized Skills and Training:

• Capacity to provide high quality outputs in line with UNICEF writing style and reporting
• guidelines.
• Experience in branding and layout is an added advantage.
• Expert attention to detail is required.
• Flexibility and availability/willingness to take up assignments on short notice.
• Timeliness and ability to set and meet deadlines.
• Strong knowledge of development/humanitarian contexts and child right’s programming, particularly as related to the Eastern and Southern Africa region is highly desired.