Consultant Survey Coordinator - National Nutrition and Health Survey (NNHS) at UNICEF

Job Number: 508388
Location: Abuja, with travels to other States of Nigeria
Work Type: Consultancy

Background

• The Nigerian National Bureau of Statistics, National Population Commission with technical support from UNICEF have been conducting national nutrition and health surveys (NNHS) in the northern states of Nigeria using SMART methodology since 2010 (http://smartmethodology.org/).
• In 2014, with requests from the Federal Government, these surveys expanded in geographic scope to all 36+1 states of Nigeria, establishing a national surveillance system known as the National Nutrition and Health Survey (NNHS).  In 2016, implementation of the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey which collects similar nutrition data meant that the NNHS was postponed.
• A NNHS has been planned for 2017 to monitor the nutrition and health situation among vulnerable populations (children under 5 and women 15-49years) in the country. Findings from the survey will aid in tracking the progress of key health and nutrition indicators, and inform policy makers and program managers on priority issues/strategies for program adjustment.
• An international consultant is required to lead the survey process including training, field data collection, analysis and report writing.

Purpose of Assignment

• An international consultant is required to lead and manage all components of implementing the National Nutrition and Health Survey using SMART methodology in Nigeria; from survey planning, to field data collection, data analysis and report writing.

The Consultant will be expected to:

• Work closely with the Government of Nigeria (National Bureau of Statistics, National Population Commission, and survey steering committee.
• Manage and monitor data collection teams in the field to ensure that they adhere to survey protocol and standards. 
• Support the technical validation of the survey results and finalization at national and subnational forums.

Objective to which the Consultancy is Created
The objectives of the NNHS 2017 is to measure key nutrition and health indices in the Nigerian population; specifically children aged 0-59 months and women 15-49 years. The following are the specific indicators to be included in the survey:
Nutrition:

• Acute malnutrition among children aged 6-59 months; wasting, underweight, chronic malnutrition and overweight among children aged 0-59 months; and acute malnutrition among women aged 15-49 years.

Infant and Young Child Feeding Practice:

• Ever breastfed, early initiation of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding, minimum meal frequency, minimum dietary diversity and minimum acceptable diet among children aged 0-23 months.

Child Health and Immunization:

• DTP3/Penta3 and measles immunization coverage among children aged 12-23 months; proportion of children under five with fever, Acute Respiratory Infection (ARI) and diarrhoea who received an ACT, antibiotics, and ORS and zinc respectively.

Malaria:

• Household mosquito net ownership, universal coverage of mosquito net and utilization of mosquito net by under-five children and intermittent preventive treatment.

Reproductive Health:

• Skilled birth attendance, Antenatal Care (ANC) coverage and contraceptive prevalence rate and use of iron supplementation during pregnancy among women aged 15-49 years.

HIV:

• HIV testing during Antenatal Care (ANC).

Maternal Neonatal and Child Health Week (MNCHW):

• MNCHW coverage and, Vitamin A and deworming coverage among children aged 6-59 and 12-59 months respectively.

Major Tasks to be Accomplished

• Provide primary technical guidance and advice to Government (National Bureau of Statistics, National Population Commission, Federal Ministry of Health etc.) NNHS 2017.
• Review survey and training protocols, questionnaires and other survey tools 
• Co-lead the training of survey enumerators, supervisors, and monitors on survey protocols and use of anthropometric and other survey equipment
• Manage supervision of data collection teams and ensure implementation of daily quality control measures during data collection and data entry at all levels
• Lead data analysis and report writing process

Deliverables:

• Survey protocol, data collection tools and training manual reviewed, amended (if necessary) and pre-tested
• Survey teams trained
• Data collection completed, all data entered and submitted to online platform
• Analysis of data, technical validation of results (by Nutrition Information Working Group and Government of Nigeria), finalization of Summary report, Final Report, and PowerPoint Presentation of findings.

Estimated Time:

• 4 months including planning for and implementation of the Survey, Data Analysis and Survey Report Writing.

Qualifications or Specialized Knowledge/Experience Required

• Advanced University Degree in Public Health, Epidemiology or Statistics, along with relevant technical knowledge and experience in Survey Methodologies, Research Methods etc.
• At least 5 years’ experience in coordinating and managing surveys using SMART methodology
• Experience in managing a national level surveys
• Ability to conduct data analyses using statistical software (ENA/SMART, Stata, R, SPSS, etc.)
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Documented supervisory, staff management, coordination and organization skills
• Proven problem solving skills; to assess situations, identify needs, and respond with recommendations to address supply, human resources and survey implementation issues
• Willingness to travel and work in tough field environments

Language Skills:

• Fluency in English is required