Dealine extended: Roster of National Individual Consultants in Child Protection, Chisinau, Moldova

Organisation: UNICEF
Location: Chisinau, Moldova
Deadline: 9 November 2026

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Job no: 594930

Contract type: Consultant

Duty Station: Chisinau

Level: Consultancy

Location: Republic of Moldova

Categories: Child Protection

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 protection

UNICEF Moldova invites qualified candidates to express interest in being included in a roster of national consultants in child protection. Consultants included in the roster may be contracted to provide high-quality technical assistance in support of UNICEF programmes and national counterparts.

The purpose of the roster is to ensure timely and flexible access to specialised expertise for the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of child protection interventions, with a strong focus on strengthening national systems, advancing evidence-based policies, and supporting sustainable institutional reforms.

The roster will support UNICEF’s work across core and emerging child protection priorities, including:

• prevention of and response to violence against children (VAC), including gender-based violence (GBV) and its intersection with violence against women (VAW);

• strengthening child protection services for the most vulnerable children, including children with disabilities, young children, children with complex emotional needs, children without parental care, and children affected by poverty, migration or social exclusion;

• development of child-friendly justice systems, including support for children in conflict with the law and promotion of diversion and alternatives to detention;

• strengthening survivor-centred communication, including addressing gender stereotypes and promoting positive social norms;

• prevention of and response to sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), including strengthening safeguarding, accountability and reporting mechanisms;

• addressing online safety risks and digital harms affecting children, including cyberbullying, online exploitation and exposure to harmful content;

• supporting national reforms in the context of EU accession, including alignment with the EU acquis and implementation of the European Child Guarantee.

Consultants engaged through this roster will contribute to evidence generation, policy and legal development, system strengthening, capacity building and programme implementation, as defined by specific assignments from UNICEF.

How can you make a difference?

The selected consultants, when engaged for specific assignments, will work closely with UNICEF Moldova’s Child Protection team and, as relevant, with national and local authorities, civil society organisations and development partners. Assignments will focus on generating substantive outputs that strengthen child protection systems, improve service delivery, and support policy and legal reforms.

See TOR here: 2026 TOR_Child Protection Roster_Nat Indiv Consultant.docx

Consultants may be requested to contribute across the following thematic and functional areas :

• Child rights.

• Violence against children.

• Gender-based violence.

• EU accession and the European Child Guarantee.

• Investing in families and prevention of family separation.

• Deinstitutionalisation and development of social services.

• Justice for children.

1. Child Rights

Strengthening national systems, governance frameworks and public services to promote and protect the rights of every child, with a focus on equity, inclusion, non-discrimination and the best interests of the child. This includes advancing child-rights-based policies and legislative reforms; improving access to quality social and child protection services; strengthening child participation mechanisms; supporting evidence-based decision-making; and enhancing institutional capacities in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and international human rights standards.

2. Violence Against Children

Supporting prevention of and response to all forms of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation affecting children through integrated and child-centred protection systems. This includes improving multidisciplinary coordination and referral pathways; enhancing prevention and early intervention mechanisms; supporting data collection and evidence generation; addressing emerging risks such as online violence; and strengthening services for child victims and children at risk, in line with international and EU standards.

3. Gender-Based Violence

Strengthening prevention and response mechanisms addressing gender-based violence, particularly the intersection between violence against children and violence against women, through survivor-centred, rights-based and trauma-informed approaches. This includes strengthening survivor-centred communication, supporting coordinated institutional responses, preventing sexual exploitation and abuse, including online, building the capacity of frontline professionals, and advancing gender equality and protection standards in line with international and EU frameworks.

4. EU Accession, European Child Guarantee and Localisation

Supporting child-focused reforms in the context of the Republic of Moldova’s EU accession process, including alignment with the EU acquis in the field of child protection and justice for children, implementation of European Child Guarantee commitments, and alignment with other relevant EU policy frameworks and standards. This includes strengthening national and local governance, coordination and accountability mechanisms; supporting localisation and implementation of child-centred services at local level; advancing evidence-based planning, budgeting, monitoring and evaluation systems; and enhancing institutional capacities to deliver inclusive, equitable and sustainable services for children and families.

5. Investing in families and prevention of family separation

Strengthening child- and family-centred protection systems to enable children to grow up safely within their families and communities and to prevent unnecessary family separation, in line with the best interests of the child. This includes strengthening prevention and early intervention mechanisms for children and families in vulnerable situations; enhancing case management and referral systems to ensure that alternative care is used as a measure of last resort; and supporting integrated, multidisciplinary and community-based family support services.

6. Deinstitutionalisation and Development of Social Services

Strengthening gatekeeping and case management mechanisms; expanding foster care, kinship care and family support services; and supporting reintegration and independent living for care leavers and children with complex needs. This area also focuses on strengthening governance, workforce capacities and integrated social services at national and local levels, in line with child rights standards.

7. Justice for Children

Advancing child-friendly justice systems that protect the rights and best interests of children in civil, administrative and criminal proceedings, in line with international child rights standards. This includes strengthening protection and support services for child victims and witnesses; promoting diversion, rehabilitation and alternatives to detention for children in conflict with the law; enhancing procedural safeguards and multidisciplinary approaches; strengthening the capacities of justice and law enforcement professionals; and improving access to child-sensitive justice, protection and reintegration services.

For each thematic area, candidates may be considered for one or more of the following functional areas , depending on their expertise and the requirements of specific assignments:

a. Research and evaluation

b. Policy and legal framework development

c. Technical assistance and capacity building

d. Management information systems and digital solutions

e. Knowledge management and policy advocacy

The selected consultants may be required to travel within Moldova to gather evidence and collaborate with local actors. Any required travel will be specified in the ToR for each assignment. Consultants will be expected to include all travel-related costs in their financial proposals, where applicable. Consultants are also expected to use their own equipment necessary to complete the assignments.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have

Minimum and desirables requirements:

• University degree in social sciences, development studies, law, sociology, social work, public administration, economics, psychology, statistics, information technology or another relevant field.

• A minimum of five years of relevant professional experience in one or more of the following areas:

• providing technical assistance in child protection, child rights, justice for children, gender-based violence or survivor-centred communication at national and/or local levels;

• managing research, studies, knowledge management, data collection or analysis in child protection, child rights, justice for children or gender-based violence; and

• engaging with central and local governments, international organisations and civil society entities.