[Hiring] Consultant for Developing Strategic Guideline for Non-Interventional Maternity Services and Respectful Care @UNDP

Role Description

The consultant is expected to work for 50 working days between 26 October 2026 to 25 December 2026 and the consultancy will be home-based.

The consultant will submit a daily log detailing working days and tasks, along with the following deliverables:

• Deliverable 1: Inception Report (30 October 2026, 7 working days)
  • Develop an inception report outlining the detailed methodology and analytical framework, detailed work plan and timeline, stakeholder consultation and validation approach, Delphi protocols and expert panel selection criteria, proposed structure of the National Strategic Guideline for Midwifery, and key data sources.
• Deliverable 2: Draft Recommendations Report (9 November 2026, 8 working days)
  • Evidence-based, prioritized policy- and technical-level recommendations to strengthen the midwifery system, including a set of 50 clinical recommendations for low-risk childbirth.
• Deliverable 3: Delphi Consultation Report (16 November 2026, 5 working days)
  • Develop a questionnaire and document the multidisciplinary expert consultation process, levels of agreement, revised recommendations, and issues requiring further discussion.
• Deliverable 4: National Expert Consultation and Consensus Workshop Report (1 December 2026, 10 working days)
  • Organize and document the workshop proceedings, validated recommendations, consensus reached, outstanding issues resolved through the Nominal Group Technique (NGT), and the resulting Action–Indicator Matrix.
• Deliverable 5: National Strategic Guideline for Midwifery (25 December 2026, 20 working days)
  • A comprehensive strategic guideline incorporating the situational analysis, validated recommendations, clinical recommendations, strategic priorities, and an Action–Indicator Matrix specifying actions, responsible institutions, implementation steps, monitoring indicators, and annual targets. Reflection of peer review inputs UNFPA, MoH etc.

All deliverables will be submitted electronically in the agreed formats. The main deliverables will be prepared in Turkish, with the English executive summaries. Acceptance of services upon completion of each deliverable will be certified through a Certification of Payment, countersigned by both parties (IC and UNFPA).

To mitigate timeline and implementation risks, the consultant will conduct regular weekly check-ins with the UNFPA SRH analyst to review progress against the work plan and address any data and coordination gaps throughout the Delphi and workshop phases.

Qualifications

• Master’s Degree in midwifery or obstetrics and gynecology nursing.
• Minimum 5 years of professional experience in midwifery, reproductive health, maternal and newborn health, health workforce planning, health systems strengthening and/or quality of maternity care quantitative research, training program design and delivery (including ToTs), and the development of reports, guidelines, and policy documents.
• Demonstrated experience in establishing, developing, or leading the academic and institutional structure of undergraduate and/or postgraduate midwifery programs, schools, or institutes, preferably including curriculum development.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office, Windows-based applications, spreadsheets, and databases.
• Demonstrated experience in developing or contributing to clinical guidelines, strategic frameworks, policy documents, standards, technical guidance, and/or evidence-based reports at the national and/or international level is a strong asset.
• Demonstrated knowledge and practical experience in health workforce assessment and planning, including assessment of workforce capacity, distribution and/or service delivery requirements, is a strong asset.
• Demonstrated experience in national curriculum development, quality assurance, evaluation and/or accreditation processes for undergraduate and postgraduate midwifery and/or health sciences education, including participation in national core curriculum development where applicable, is a strong asset.
• Demonstrated ability to collect, analyze, and synthesize qualitative and quantitative data, and to translate findings into practical policy and program recommendations, is a strong asset.
• Good knowledge of the national development context is a strong asset.
• Experience in working with international organizations is an asset.
• Experience in working with national and local authorities and NGOs is an asset.
• Previous experience working with or contributing to technical guidance, standards, policies, or programs of ICM, EMA, or other relevant international organizations in midwifery, maternal and newborn health, or respectful maternity care is desirable.
• Knowledge and/or practical experience applying the Robson Classification to analyze cesarean section patterns is desirable.
• Experience translating health-system, service-delivery and workforce evidence into investment, policy or strategic recommendations is desirable.
• Previous experience in Türkiye with national-level health policy development involving the Ministry of Health, professional associations, universities and/or other key health-sector stakeholders is desirable.

Requirements

• Fluency in written and spoken English and Turkish.
• Demonstrated ability to prepare and present high-quality technical documents, analytical findings, and recommendations in both Turkish and English.

Benefits

• UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance.
• We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply.
• UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity.
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA's workforce.