National Consultant to draft booklet on achievements of the project aimed at HIV prevention

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Agency:
UNODC
Location:
Moscow
Duration:
20 working day (April- May 2008). Expected starting date 14 April 2008
Expiry Date:
2008-04-04
Description:

Background

As of December 2007, around 416,000 cases of HIV were officially registered in the Russian Federation, and high risk groups such as injecting drug users (IDUs) are disproportionably affected by the infection. Around two-thirds of HIV cases registered in the Russian Federation is due to injecting drug use and prevalence rates among some IDU groups in some Russian cities exceeds 60% although rates vary widely by geographic region. Another particularly vulnerable and marginalized population which is increasingly affected by HIV/AIDS is prisoners, many of whom are IDUs. Recent estimates show that prisoners in Russia have a reported prevalence rate of more than 4%. Among these, it is estimated that 90% are IDUs.

To help the Russian Government deal with the twin epidemics of HIV and injecting drug use, the United Nations on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Regional Office for Russia and Belarus (RORB) within the framework of the UNAIDS initiative Coordination in Action: Applying the Three Ones Principles in the Russian Federation, has started implementation of a project which aims to scale-up effective HIV prevention and care services for IDUs and in prison settings.

In 2007, project activities were initiated in Chelyabinsk, Irkutsk and Voronezh oblasts and the Republic of Tatarstan. In addition, RORB expects to launch project activities in the Perm kray and Moscow oblasts in the second quarter of 2008.

To date, RORB sponsored/managed regional project activities have six distinct components:

1) The World Health Organization (WHO), has been undertaken research relating to HIV behaviour among IDUs in the cities of Naberezhniye Chelny, Voronezh, Irkutsk, and Chelyabinsk.

2) The NGO, AIDS Foundation East-West (AFEW), case management services run by regional administrations and NGOs have been established in Kazan, Voronezh, Irkutsk and Chelyabinsk.

3) In Voronezh, a Drug Referral Scheme has been successfully piloted in cooperation with the local police.

4) In cooperation with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the NGO Humanitarian Action , a preparatory assessment has been conducted which is designed to expand prevention and treatment services for IDUs/sex workers in Bratsk, Irkutsk, Angarsk and Chelaybinsk.

5) AFEW and the Prison Administration of the Russian Federation have set up transitional case management services for ex-prisoners.

6) AFEW and the Prison Administration of the Russian Federation is in the process of conducting a HIV knowledge, risk and behavior study among prisoners in selected prisons.

In addition, several study tours and training events for senior officials of the Federal Drug Control Service, narcological service and the Ministry of Interior were undertaken in 2007.

Goal of contracting

Against this background, RORB is looking to contract a national consultant (either free-lance or working for an institute/organization/company) to summarize the project achievements to date in the form of a booklet/report which to be used for publicity and advocacy purposes.

For the most part, the information for the booklet/report will be drawn from documents already extant (e.g. Annual Project Reports, reports from partners, and Mission reports) and these can be obtained from RORB.

It is proposed that the booklet/report follows the format below:

1) Background information on the HIV/AIDS and injecting drug use in Russia

2) A brief description of the project, its goals, aims and objectives

3) A brief description of the regions where project activities are underway

4) A description of the project activities and main achievements to date, including the following:

• Second Generation Surveillance among IDUs

• Case management

• Transitional case management

• Drug Referral Scheme and HIV prevention activities involving law enforcement officers

• Training

• International networking/participation in conferences

5) Next steps and expectations for 2008-2009

The booklet/report will be published in the Russian and English languages. The target audience for the booklet includes senior Russian officials (Federal and regional levels); Duma Deputies, partners, donors, NGOs, practitioners working in the fields of HIV and injecting drug use prevention, treatment and care and their clients, and journalists.

RORB anticipates that the printed version of booklet will not exceed 12 A4 pages (without cover pages); and will include maps, photographs, tables/ charts and selected quotations from project partners/beneficiaries; photos and short bios of the project staff.

Specific tasks of the consultant

Under the supervision of the Project Coordinator, and in collaboration with other project staff and RORB’s Public Relations Officer, the consultant will be responsible for:

1) Reviewing the Annual Project Reports (available in English) and all other relevant project documents and extracting the necessary information to be included in the publication

2) Contacting WHO, AFEW, Humanitarian Action,, the United Nations Population Fund and other project partners working in the for the purposes of collecting additional information (photographs, data, quotations) for inclusion in the booklet/report

3) Under guidance from RORB, contacting the Federal Drug Control Service and the Ministry of Interior in order to obtain additional information

4) Prepare the draft Booklet in the Russian language and submit it to RORB for comments/editing. The literary style of the booklet/report must be written in plain, non-jargonistic/technical Russian

.

5) Having incorporated RORB’s comments/editing; prepare the final version of the booklet/report to RORB’s language editor

6) Work closely with RORB’s language editor in producing the final edited version of the booklet/report

7) Work closely with RORB and the design/printing company

Expected outcome and work load

RORB expects that the booklet will be ready for printing no later 19 May, 2008 in time for the Annual Project Meeting which is planned for the second week in June). Therefore the consultant will be requested to submit the drafts in following schedules:

1) The outline of the proposed booklet/report must be submitted to RORB within 3 days upon signature of contract (3 working days to review the project materials)

2) The first draft must be submitted to RORB for review by 23 April 2008 (RORB will provide its comments by 30 April – 5 working days)

3) The final draft for UNODC review must be submitted by 5 May 2008 (8 working days for collecting the additional information and incorporate RORB’s comments)

4) 1 working day to work with the language editor

5) 3 working days to work together with the designer on the lay-out

All drafts must be submitted to the RORB Project coordinator in electronic format.

Performance indicators

The consultant’s performance will be measured based on following indicators:

1) The ability to comply with the specified timelines and expected outcomes (indicated above)

2) The quality of the text (structure, grammar, and flair)

3) The ability to acquire the additional data/information indicated above

Minimum qualifications and experience of the applicant

The contracted consultant should have:

• a university degree in social sciences, journalism, arts or languages

• verifiable experience in drafting technical reports, articles or other public information materials on HIV/AIDS and/or drug prevention and treatment related issues (all such publication/reports must be listed separately in the Application letter)

• excellent writing skills in Russian

• ability to read and understand English (the majority of project documentation is in English)

Contracting

RORB will request UNDP to issue a contract to the consultant for a period not exceeding 20 working days. The fee for his/her services will be based on the standard daily rates for external consultants. If requested and justified, RORB will cover the travel expenses of the consultant according to UN Rules and Regulations.

Requirements for application

The candidates must submit the following documents in the Russian language:

1) an application letter

2) his/her CV

3) a budget (in Rubles)

4) a list (in the form of an Appendix) of all his/her publications

The candidates must be available for an interview in Moscow with RORB staff during the week 31 March- 4 April 2008.

Deadline for applications is the 3 April 2008

Contact Us:

All applications should be sent to UNODC Regional Office for Russia and Belarus by e-mail fo.russia@unodc.org or by fax +7 495 787 2129.

Tel.: + 7 495 787 2188

For further information please contact Ilze Jekabsone (Project Coordinator) United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Regional Office for Russia and Belarus

E-mail: ilze.jekabsone@unodc.org

Tel.: + 7 495 787 2125