Description
Finalization of UNICEF’s Theory of Change and Development of the Strategy to End Violence
Against Children in Latin America and the Caribbean
1. Background
The UNICEF Strategic Plan 2018-2021 details UNICEF’s future direction and strategic priorities over the
coming four years. It provides a vehicle to support the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and
responds to its call to ‘leave no one behind’. Both the Strategic Plan, UNICEF’s Gender Action Plan and
its Child Protection Strategy include measures around violence, and a commitment to addressing the
gendered causes and forms of violence. UNICEF’s new Strategic Plan (2022-2026) continues this
commitment to programming to contribute towards the achievement of Goal Area3 outcome, ‘Every
child, including adolescents, is protected from violence, exploitation, abuse, neglect and harmful
practices’. This is also reflected in the Regional Office Management Plan that maintains the End of
Violence against Children (EVAC) as a priority, a priority also reflected with the country office plans.
The protection of children from all forms of violence is a fundamental right enshrined in the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child. The inclusion of a specific target (SDG 16.2) in the 2030 Agenda
for Sustainable Development to end all forms of violence against children gives renewed impetus
towards the realization of the right of every child to live free from fear, neglect, abuse and exploitation.
Several other SDG targets address specific, and gendered, forms of violence and harm towards girls and
boys including, violence against women and girls including sexual exploitation (5.2). It is also recognised
that children in different situations such as child marriage (target 5.3) and child labour (target 8.7) as
well as in places separated from their families such as when migrating (SDG 10.7) or in care outside of
the family (e.g., 16.3) may be more at risk of violence.
Latin America and the Caribbean is the most violent region and unequal in the world; violence, gender
and ethnic inequalities are normalized. Violence is seen in the communities and also, in spaces
considered to be ‘safe’ such as the home, schools and childcare services. A few figures can illustrate
this:
- LAC is the only region that has seen an increase in homicide rates among adolescents aged 10 to
19 since 2007. Slightly less than 10% of the world’s adolescents live in the region, but nearly half
of all homicides among adolescents in 2015 occurred here.
- 14 of the 25 countries with the highest femicide rates are in Latin America. 2 out of 3 children
between ages 2-4 regularly experience some kind of violent discipline at home.3
- In school, 2 in 5 6th grade students were victims of some form of bullying.4
- It is estimated that between 230,000 and 375,000 children live in institutions in the region and
are likely to suffer all forms of violence and neglect.5
- 1.1 million adolescent girls (15-17 years old) report having been victims at least once of sexual
abuse and 4 out of 10 report intimate partner violence in their lifetime. We know that boys are
also suffering sexual violence, but data on this is scarce. 6
Violence changes as children grow: For infants and younger children, violence mainly takes the form of
maltreatment at the hands of parents, caregivers and other authority figures. As children grow older,
peer and intimate partner violence – bullying, fighting, sexual violence, and assault, often with weapons
such as guns and knives – also become common.7
Violence also changes with access to different places such as the access to on-line portals. Violence against children is a complex, multi-faceted and multicausal phenomenon. Inequality is intimately linked to violence in LAC, the most unequal region in the world
. Violence at home, family breakdown, gender norms and values and a predominant “macho”
culture or toxic masculinity are also behind VAC. Gender norms are a key society-level factor that make
children and adolescents vulnerable to violence; they can reinforce the low status of girls and women in
society and increase the likelihood that boys and men perpetrate violence. Authoritarian social norms,
weak governance systems, corruption, organized crime, narco-economies, urban marginalization,
history of conflict, presence of small arms… also fuel violence against children in many parts of the
region.
As the numbers show, violence against children is one of the top issues affecting children in LAC. It
compromises their present and their future wellbeing with results such as: early pregnancies, low school
performance/attendance/completion, health issues (STIs, mental health disorders, brain development,
physical injuries), social exclusion, etc. VAC is a reality in all countries in the region.
The UNICEF Latin America and Caribbean Regional Office is based in Panama, operating in 36 territories,
including 24 country offices. The UNICEF offices in the region have prioritised the ending of violence
against children, recognising this as critical for the fulfilment of all child rights. The types of violence that
is of specific focus is ending armed violence, corporal punishment, and sexual violence.
PURPOSE:
Under the overall guidance of the Regional Advisor of Child Protection, in collaboration with the Regional
Gender Advisor, the purpose of this assignment is to finalize the Theory of Change (ToC) to End Violence
against Children (EVAC) for UNICEF in Latin America and the Caribbean and to develop a regional, 4-year
EVAC strategy. Three types of violence will have a particular focus: corporal punishment, sexual violence,
and armed violence.
The Theory of Change will be developed based on the working version of a ToC prepared based on the
multi-country evaluation on VAC and the workshop with COs in February 2020. Other contributing
documents from the RO will be provided for the development of the Strategy, which should be based on
UNICEF’s normative principles around equity, gender and inclusion and provide a clear linkage to the SDG
declaration and the Leave No One Behind principle.
The assignment will include:
1 – Develop a consolidate methodology for the assignment. This should include participation of the
relevant stakeholders, especially UNICEF COs, at relevant points.
2 – Advance the draft EVAC ToC for Latin America and the Caribbean. This will be fully referenced and
developed with regional and country offices staff and benefit from review and comments from partners
such as the Issue Based Coalition (IBC) on Crime and Violence and other reference groups.
3 – Finalise the EVAC TOC based on all inputs. The document will be validated by the regional EVAC Task
Force and final EVAC ToC produced.
4– Draft a UNICEF EVAC strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean, inclusive of a M&E framework. This
will be fully referenced and developed with regional and country office staff and also, with the IBC on
crime and violence.
5 – Finalise the UNICEF EVAC strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean based on all inputs. The
document will be validated by the regional EVAC Task Force.
6– Executive summary of the EVAC Strategy (max. 10 pages) and PPT in Spanish and English
7 – Webinar to share the results
2. Solicitation
2.1 The purpose of this Request for Proposals for Services (“RFPS”) is to invite proposals for the " Finalization of UNICEF’s Theory of Change and Development of the Strategy to End Violence
Against Children in Latin America and the Caribbean Approach and guidance development to detailed in the Terms of Reference/Statement of Work attached at Annex B].
2.2 This RFPS document is comprised of the following:
- This document
- The UNICEF General Terms and Conditions of Contract (Services) which are attached as Annex A
- The full Terms of Reference/Statement of work attached at Annex B
- MDM Vendor Template Annex C
- Online registration to UNGM -United Nations Global Market – link: https://www.ungm.org/Account/Registration
2.3 This RFPS is an invitation to treat and shall not be construed as an offer capable of being accepted or as creating any contractual, other legal or restitution rights. No binding contract, including a process contract or other understanding or arrangement, will exist between the Proposer and UNICEF and nothing in or in connection with this RFPS shall give rise to any liability on the part of UNICEF unless and until a contract is signed by UNICEF and the successful Proposer.
PART II – PROPOSAL SUBMISSION PROCESS
1. Proposal Submission Schedule
CONTRACTUAL PROCESS
The schedule of the contractual process is as follows:
ACTIVITIES SCHEDULE:
1. Send Proposal: 25.06.2021
2. Questions and Answer if necessary: Until July 09th, 2021 before 23:59 (Panama Time)
3. Consolidates Q & A posted in UNGM: July 12, 2021.
4. Deadline for Proposals: July 14th, 2021 before 23:59 (Panama Time)
5. Proposals Review: July 15th –23rd, 2021. approximately
6. Award Notice sent and posted in UNGM: July 27th,2021. approximately
7. Contract begins August 02nd, 2021 approximately.