National Consultant on assisting the MoI to improve efficiency of the National Hotline for Trafficking

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For every child, Protection

Albania is a country of source, transit and destination for human trafficking. Children, women and men are trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation and forced labour. The number of child victims detected in Albania is comparatively high and exceeds the average 30% of the overall victims of human trafficking in the country.The Government of Albania has approved the “National Action Plan for the Fight against Human Trafficking 2021-2023” and the Ministry of Interior is drafting the National Action Plan (NAP) for the Fight against Trafficking in Persons 2024–2025, as an instrument that will aim the coordination and cohesion of state and non-state actors, including international organizations, engaged in the fight against trafficking of persons. The new draft National Action Plan for the Fight against Human Trafficking 2024-2025 includes a dedicated measure that serves the purpose of the revitalization of the National Helpline for reporting cases of human trafficking which is to strengthen the capacities of the toll-free National Helpline 116-006 and the “Report and Save” App to enable counselling and reporting of possible cases of trafficking in human beings.

The Albanian Government has established the National Helpline for reporting cases of human trafficking since November 2006, while in June 2014 the helpline number was unified with the European Helpline number for victims of crime, that is 116 006. The National Helpline enables the reporting of cases of human trafficking and is accessible and toll-free for the public from any landline or mobile phone. To be accessible to the public, whenever assistance is required, it is preferable that the National Helpline is operational 24-hours and seven days per week; Available to everyone free of charge and preferably a digit number that is easily memorable and accessible to everyone, including children and young people through telephone. This includes incoming calls by phones, mobile, text messaging, SMS/text.

The main principles of operation for the national helpline are that i) the Helpline has a set of standards and procedures that facilitate the work of the Operators when dealing with difficult and emergency cases; ii) A well-coordinated mechanism for referral should be in place, including well-trained Operators that have a good knowledge on the national referral procedures and are consistently capacitated to support the people in need without delay; and iii) The availability of a sustainable and reliable national helpline.

The National Helpline was made functional by MoI at the end of December 2023, however continuous assistance needs to be provided for its long-term operationality. UNICEF has reached out to the Directorate of Anti-trafficking and Migration at the Ministry of Interior to provide additional human resources and technical support for the management of the helpline on day-to-day basis, to address the immediate challenges that are being faced by the Albanian government to ensure that the national helpline is professionally managed.

How can you make a difference? 

The consultant will support the Directory of Migration and Anti-trafficking at the Ministry of Interior for receiving, managing and addressing the telephone calls of the national helpline 116 006. He/She will be able to respond to people who might be undergoing trauma or are afraid to report a crime due to repercussions from traffickers or organized crime.

The specific deliverables will be:

Deliverable 1: Monthly report to document the helpline activity (incoming calls by phone, mobile, text messaging, SMS/text)

Tasks:

• Support the Directory of Migration and Anti-trafficking at the Ministry of Interior with the operational processes of the national helpline 116006
• Handle calls/communications regarding the National Helpline 116 006 – via telephone
• Number of inputs/ reports provided in view of reported cases through the helpline 116 006

Timeline for deliverable 1: 21 days/month per 10 months

Deliverable 2: Final report with best practices of national helpline operations and concrete recommendations.

Tasks:

• Identify number of best practices of national helpline operations in country and/ or abroad

• Prepare a number of recommendations for helpline improvement – processes, operationality, human resources.

Timeline for deliverable 2: By January 2025

Duration of the assignment: from 15 May 2024 – 15 March 2025 (21 days/month)

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

• A master’s degree in social sciences, Development Studies, Social Welfare, Social Policy, Social Work or related fields.
• A minimum of 2 years of relevant professional experience in the field of emergency operations for trafficking survivors.
• Previous experience in the social welfare field, specializing on issues related to trafficking, children, their protection, emergency operations, human rights and welfare/wellbeing.
• Specific capacity building training in helpline operation is considered an asset.
• Proven experience of having undertaken similar assignments is considered an asset.
• Sensitivity towards ethics with regards to human and child rights issues.
• Ability to produce content for high standard deliverables in both Albanian and English.
• Very good planning and time management skills.
• Excellent analytical capacities: excellent ability to synthesize information and relate action to results.

What to submit

1. Letter of intent to confirm the ability to perform the tasks and confirm qualifications.
2. Financial proposal – daily fee in ALL inclusive of all taxes

If you have any question, please contact Elvana Pernaska at epernaska@unicef.org

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. 

  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. 

Remarks:  

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

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.