National Consultant - State Engineer at UNICEF

Organizational Context and Purpose for the Job

• UNICEF Nigeria supports the Government of Nigeria at national and sub-national levels in providing equitable, sustainable, and climate-resilient water, sanitation, and hygiene services to children and their families, through the design and implementation of projects at the national and sub-national levels.
• Nigeria is one of the top ten most climate change vulnerable countries in the world. UNICEF in collaboration with government authorities and FCDO in Nigeria has developed an innovative project ‘Climate Resilient Infrastructure for Basic Services’ (CRIBS) that aims to scale a model for assessing climate risks and vulnerabilities of primary healthcare facilities (PHCs) and primary schools and subsequently identifying and implementing interventions to make those facilities more resilient.
• The first phase of the CRIBS project (2024-2025) successfully designed and tested an approach for assessing facility level climate risks and vulnerabilities, identifying interventions to minimize those risks and implementing those interventions in primary healthcare (PHC) facilities and schools in Kano and Jigawa states.
• UNICEF implemented climate resilient interventions in more than 39 PHCs and 45 primary schools in Kano and Jigawa states.
• In the CRIBS second phase (CRIBS II, 2025-2026), UNICEF intends to collaborate with the government of Nigeria at the national and state levels to scale the CRIBS approach to several states (Bauchi, Enugu, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, and Katsina) in Nigeria.

How can you make a difference?
UNICEF is seeking the services of seven Consultant State Engineers to achieve the following deliverables:

• Preparation of design and technical documents for climate resilient (CRIBS) rehabilitation interventions in schools and PHCs including WASH facilities
• Preparation and review of CRIBS construction workplan at the state level in consultation with the contractors and CRIBS team
• Monitoring and quality assurance of construction works in CRIBS project sites
• The Consultant will work very closely with UNICEF team in Abuja and Field Office (FO) on daily basis.

Scope of Work

• The consultant is required to support the implementation of CRIBS project in one of the target states (Bauchi, Enugu, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, and Katsina) by taking lead in planning, implementation and risk management of construction of climate resilient interventions in primary healthcare facilities and schools, in target LGAs.

The consultant is expected to undertake the following activities among others:

• Prepare CRIBS construction projects plan at the state level – including for the survey, design and bill of quantities (BOQs) preparations, and construction timeline.
• Quality assurance of the technical designs, BOQs, and compliance by verifying the data captured by site engineers / engineering firms and reviewing all documents (estimated 30 sites).
• Manage construction projects monitoring, construction risk management and guide site engineering firms for the necessary action with a copy to the CRIBS teams at FO and CO.
• Undertake construction supervision work (in estimated 30 facilities) to verify quality, timeline, compliance to CRIBS standards, and deliverables of the construction companies.
• Compile state level progress status and share in weekly/monthly meetings based on close progress tracking and timely action.
• Attend CRIBS related meetings in Field Offices to support the team in planning, implementation and reporting of emerging lessons as and when required.
• Prepare an analytical summary of progress made against construction milestones in each of the States, emerging issues, lesson learned and follow up actions. 

Requirements
Educational Qualifications:

• Advanced Degree in Civil Engineering, Construction Management, Development Studies, Economics, Public Health, Community Health, Public Administration, Engineering, Environment, Climate Change and any other related field. Some experience in climate resilience work would be highly desired.
• Relevant work experience can be considered as a substitute for a higher degree.

Experience:

• The consultant shall have a minimum of five years’ experience in building construction in rural areas with skills in climate resilient infrastructures construction in rural contexts. Prior experience with UN agencies would be an advantage.
• S/he should also have a solid analytical and writing skills in English language, with evidence of having done similar kinds of work at the national and sub-national level. Communication skills in Hausa language would be an added advantage.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English (verbal and written) is required. Fluency in Hausa language is an asset, and an added advantage.