job
Consultancy to provide Technical research oversight and quality assurance support for IDD / USI sentinel surveillance and sub-national iodine intake studies, GPD, CoE Nairobi, (Remote)#593078
UNICEFchildrenhumanitarianjob
Explore more
Full Description
Contract Duration: 9 months
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, love
How can you make a difference?
UNICEF seeks an experienced consultant to provide technical oversight, coordination and quality assurance support for ongoing and planned iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) / universal salt iodization (USI) evidence generation activities supported under the US-funded IDD project.
The consultant will support UNICEF Country Offices, governments, universities and technical partners to design, supervise, monitor and ensure quality implementation of sentinel surveillance systems, sub-national iodine intake assessments and related operational research in priority countries, planning or implementing iodine-related studies between June 2026 and February 2027.
The consultant will help ensure that country-level evidence generation is methodologically sound, policy relevant, timely and translated into practical recommendations to strengthen national iodine programmes and sustain USI mandates.
The scope of work covers technical leadership, research quality assurance, country support, protocol development, capacity strengthening, data interpretation and dissemination related to IDD / USI surveillance and research.
Research design and technical oversight:
• Provide technical guidance on design of sentinel surveillance systems for iodine status monitoring.
• Support development and review of protocols for sub-national iodine intake studies.
• Ensure alignment with WHO / UNICEF guidance and global best practice.
• Advise on sampling approaches, indicators, biomarkers, dietary intake methods and salt testing approaches.
• Support ethical review readiness and technical documentation.
Supervision of ongoing country research:
• Provide remote and in-country technical supervision of ongoing studies.
• Troubleshoot implementation bottlenecks affecting fieldwork, laboratories, procurement or timelines.
• Review inception reports, training materials, field manuals and progress reports.
• Ensure consistency and quality across countries implementing studies.
Data quality assurance and analysis support:
• Review data collection tools and digital systems.
• Support quality assurance procedures for urine iodine concentration (UIC), household salt iodine testing and dietary intake modules.
• Review preliminary datasets and analytical outputs.
• Support interpretation of findings and identification of policy implications.
Capacity strengthening:
• Build capacity of governments, universities and implementing institutions on surveillance methods and iodine programme monitoring and assessments.
• Deliver webinars, technical briefings and training sessions.
• Promote use of evidence for decision-making.
Knowledge products and policy translation
• Prepare country summaries, technical briefs and comparative evidence notes.
• Capture key lessons and findings from surveys and evidence generation into at least 2 scientific peer-reviewed papers.
• Support countries to translate findings into policy recommendations.
• Identify lessons learned and priority actions for sustaining USI programmes.
Other tasks:
• Coordinate with UNICEF Centre of Excellence team, country offices and other consultants.
• Support recruitment/ review of local research partners, if required.
• Any other related tasks assigned by supervisor.
If you would like to know more about this position, please review the Terms of Reference here: ToR Consultancy to provide technical research oversight and quality assurance support for IDD TMS.pdf
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have:
Minimum requirements: (Qualification/Experience/ Knowledge/Expertise/Skills)
Education: Master's degree in Nutrition, Partnerships, Advocacy, Development, Communications.
Work Experience:
• 10-15 years of relevant experience in nutrition surveys, public health research, surveillance systems or micronutrient programmes research an
Sign up free to get the apply link, save to pipeline, and set email alerts.
Sign up free →