Purpose Of Assignment
In Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA), 62% of the population is less than 24 years and an estimated 26% of new HIV infections occur among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW), aged 15-24 years. HIV prevalence rates among young women are also more than twice as high compared to young men. This disproportionality is reflected in Namibia, with AGYW affected with higher HIV incidence rate (0.99 percent) than same-aged young men (0.03 percent) due to factors such as social isolation, economic disadvantage, discriminatory cultural norms, orphanhood, violence, and high school drop-out rates. The risk of HIV transmission is further compounded by high sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), with young women who have experienced sexual violence or abuse to be around 50%, in Namibia.
There is an urgent need to scale-up interventions that work across sectors to address the structural drivers and social determinants that increase the risk of HIV acquisition amongst AGYW and drive other vulnerabilities. Referral and linkage systems are key components of improved service demand and accessibility to a comprehensive package of interventions that cut across sectors to address multiple factors that directly and indirectly increase HIV risk.
To enhance the quality and efficiency of AGYW programming, the Global Fund has operationalized an Adolescent Girls and Young Women Strategic Initiative (AGYW-SI). As a trusted leader in adolescent and HIV policy, data and programming, UNICEF is working with the Global Fund to provide technical assistance (TA) and strengthen Global Fund AGYW grant implementation in priority countries. The requirement for TA in the area of strengthening linkages and referrals of interventions across sectors, including SGBV for AGYW has been identified.
It is against this background that UNICEF is looking for a technical consultant to provide TA to the Global Fund AGYW Principal Recipient (PR) and Sub Recipients (SRs) to support the strengthening identification, and linkages and referrals across services for a multi-sectoral comprehensive package for AYP, in particular AGYW.
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Scope Of Work
- Purpose: The purpose of this assignment is to support the principal and sub-recipients of the Global Fund in developing a comprehensive linkages and referral framework across services for AYP with a focus on AGYW.
- Objectives
- Map out services and interventions for AYP across different programme and government sectors and development partners with a focus on AGYW and their sub-populations and the various entry points (schools, community, health facilities etc.)
- Review the current linkage and referral systems at the district-level, including consultations to capture the experience of implementation and effectiveness, and with broader consultation to understand differences in implementation and outcomes in districts that do not currently have systems in place
- Provide recommendations on strengthening the current linkage and referral system and it’s implementation.
- Provide recommendations for the national scale-up of the linkage and referral systems across different sectors for the PRs to take forward
- Develop a national framework
- Learn from the implementation process and share lessons for regional learning
Activities And Tasks
- The consultant’s work will include the following:
- Attend an inception meeting with PRs/SRs and key national partners including MOHSS, MOE, TWGand to be present during the Stakeholder meeting
- Develop an Inception Report outlining the proposed methodology, workplan and tools and presented to country partners.
- Undertake a desk review of the latest literature, policy and evidence on linkage and referrals for AYP in Namibia and the region
- Liaising with key implementers to map current services and interventions for AYP/AGYW across different sectors
- Review the current systems, referral pathways, linkages between services and interventions, including associated programme implementation, outcome data and AYP retention and tracking processes within and between services and interventions
- Undertake consultations/key informant interviews through existing platforms of engagement to understand experiences of the linkages and referrals, including bottlenecks, challenges and lessons learned with regards to effectiveness and outcomes in those districts currently using a system compared to districts that are not
- Provide draft recommendation on strengthening the linkage and referral system, implementation, and draft framework, including for HIV, SGBV, SRH and broader layered interventions
- Develop and deliver a PowerPoint presentation (PPT), summarizing and circulating key findings and draft recommendations for feedback and validation from partners, including national-level stakeholders
- Based on validation meeting inputs, develop a final national linkage and referral framework, including recommendations for national scale-up
- Develop a final report with key lessons of TA support from the development through to sign off process, to share for regional learning.