Consultancy: Professional Illustrator, 90 Days (Remote)

UNICEF Pacific is hiring a professional illustrator to conceptualize and design a wide range of visual elements featuring Pacific-relevant images related to Immunization, WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), Child Protection and general gender-based character for publications, social media, and other materials as required.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential. 

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. 

And we never give up. 

For every child, health

In the Pacific we work in Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu: These 14 Pacific island countries are home to 2.3 million people, including 1.2 million children and youth, living on more than 660 islands and atolls stretching across 17.2 million square kilometers of the Pacific Ocean, an area comparable to the combined size of the United States of America and Canada. Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu are classified as Fragile States according to World Bank/OECD criteria. 

All 14 Pacific Island countries and territories have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, but only a third are on track with reporting obligations. Explore the different areas of our work in the link provided here www.unicef.org/pacificislands. 

Background of Assignment: 

Creating high-quality illustrations requires specialized artistic skills that are not available within UNICEF staff. Professional illustrators can ensure accurate and culturally relevant representations, a task that may be challenging without specific illustration expertise. Illustrators excel in visual storytelling, ensuring effective communication of different themes linked to our Pacific culture across the 14 countries, with a particular focus on Kiribati and Samoa. This expertise may extend beyond the capabilities of internal staff. Maintaining consistency across various platforms and meeting publication, social media, and advocacy messaging material standards is best handled by professional illustrators with experience in the field. By engaging a professional illustrator, UNICEF staff can concentrate on their core responsibilities, ensuring the efficient use of time and resources. This approach enhances the quality, cultural relevance, and consistency of illustrations in UNICEF materials.

How can you make a difference? 

The objective of this project is to engage a professional illustrator to conceptualize and design a wide range of visual elements featuring Pacific-relevant images related to Immunization, WASH (Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene), Child Protection and general gender-based character for publications.  

Brainstorm and generate creative ideas for illustrations that effectively communicate key messages related to immunization, WASH, Child Protection, and gender-based characters, and develop concepts that are in-line with the Pacific audience while ensuring cultural representations.

Design:

• Create visually compelling and engaging illustrations in both jpeg and working AI file for different publication needs and target audiences.
• Utilize appropriate color schemes, composition, and visual elements as well as keeping the UNICEF brand in mind by ensuring that illustrations adhere to branding guidelines to maintain consistency across all visuals and collaborate closely with the UNICEF Communication team to understand specific requirements, target audiences, and messaging objectives, and incorporate feedback and revisions as necessary to update the visual and quality of illustrations.

Deliverables:

The consultant is required to create a series of new illustrations depicting 4 thematic topics (topics to be discussed and confirmed on signing of contract). Each topic will require a set of 8-10 illustrations, with a maximum of 40 new illustrations created. The consultant is also asked to create cultural variations of each of these illustrations, so that each of the three cultures is represented. Therefore, the 40 illustrations will be provided as a Polynesian set, a Melanesian set and a Micronesian set.

• Produce rough sketches for 8-10 illustrations per programmatic topic, illustrating scenes, characters, and settings that reflect each cultural backgrounds of Melanesia, Polynesia, and Micronesia.
• Create detailed illustrations based on these sketches, effectively portraying scenes for each of these topics such as immunization, WASH, child protection, and gender diversity. Ensure the illustrations include a variety of characters from babies to elderly individuals, incorporating unique cultural elements from the region. The specific topics to be illustrated will be determined and agreed upon with the illustrator once the contract is issued. In addition, the exact number of illustrations per pack, programmatic topic, and region will also be discussed at that time.
• Provide the final illustrations in both high-resolution raster formats (such as JPEG, PNG) and vector formats (such as SVG, AI) to ensure compatibility across different applications and platforms. Which include source files and editable formats to facilitate future modifications and updates, if required.

Please refer to the ToR ( Terms of Reference – Professional Illustrator.pdf) for further information on the deliverables and the timelines.

• This consultancy is home-based and does not require travel.
• The Consultant will arrange their research if needed to better understand each region in the Pacific.
• The Consultant will be supervised by the Senior Communication Associate based in Fiji.

GUIDANCE FOR APPLICANTS

This consultancy is for an Individual Consultant only. Please submit a separate financial offer along with your application/CV. The financial proposal should be a lump sum amount for all the deliverables and should show a break down for the following:

• Monthly/Daily fees– based on the deliverables in the Terms of Reference above.
• Miscellaneous- to cover communications and internet costs.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have… 

Education:

• Completion of secondary education is required.
• Certification in graphic design, art production or a related.

Experience:

• Minimum 5 years’ experience in graphic design and/or illustration is required.
• Proven experience in graphic design as demonstrated in complete graphics work, image capturing, manipulation and development. Previous work in the Pacific is a requirement.
• Experience creating illustrations of Pacific context and an understanding of Pacific cultures is desirable.
• Experience working for development or humanitarian agencies is an added advantage.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

To view our competency framework, please visit  here.

Remarks:  

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment. 

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check. 

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. 

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations, or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts. 

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.