Home-based: Request for Proposal - Developing an Operational Model to ensure an Audience and an Influence for Children engaged in combating Child Sexual Exploitation

January - July 2024 (approx 30 working days)

Organisational Context: 

ECPAT International is a global network of organisations working together for the elimination of the sexual exploitation of children (SEC) in all its manifestations i.e., exploitation of children in prostitution, online child sexual exploitation, sale and trafficking of children for sexual purposes, sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism and some forms of child, early and forced marriage. The ECPAT Network currently consists of 126 members working at national and local levels in 105 countries.

The ECPAT International Secretariat coordinates the global work of the organisation and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. The Secretariat designs and implements global and regional level programmes, and undertakes programming, advocacy and research and facilitates a range of network initiatives.

Context of the Consultancy: 

ECPAT International has a long history of progressive action in realizing participation rights for children and young people, including young survivors, and creating spaces and opportunities for children and young people to inform and influence action.

Various models and experiences of child participation have focused on supporting children in sharing their views and having a voice. This is critically important but not enough. Prof. Lundy in her model of child participation (also known as the Lundy model, 2007) highlights the importance to providing children and young people with the opportunity to express their views in safe and inclusive spaces, supporting them to express their views but also ensuring their views are listened to; and acted upon them as appropriate. One of the key challenges when implementing a child’s right to participate is indeed to find ways to ensure that adults go beyond simply listening to children and young people; and that they take children’s views seriously and are open to being influenced by them and integrate them when appropriate to inform practices and policies. Although the Lundy model has been widely adopted already there is yet limited evidence on how the concepts of audience and influence can be operationalised in practice.

This consultancy aims to develop a model and the practical tools to implement child participation models in practice and create avenues for children to voice their concerns and adults to integrate them in order to strengthen the protection of children from sexual exploitation and abuse.

Objective: 

The objective of this consultancy is to develop an operational model with the related tools to operationalize the four components of the Lundy model of child participation in the context of combating child sexual exploitation. A particular focus will be placed on engaging with adults to ensure children have an audience that is open to listening to their views and able and equipped to act upon them, as this is an area that has been less developed in our contexts.

The consultancy will be expected to: 

• Review existing related practices and tools to engage children in raising their concerns and views on child sexual exploitation and on models and evidence-based practices where adults have integrated children’s views in policies and practices
• Draft an operational model to ensure meaningful participation of children on child sexual exploitation issues and ensure children are supported to have a voice and safe and ethical ways to raise their views, but also and particularly to ensure that adults are ready to listen and act upon these views as appropriate. This should include
  • Processes, session plans and specific tools to engage with adults to promote meaningful participation of children and ensure there are spaces for children’s views to be taken into account. This should include ways to explore and challenge adults’ views on children’s rights, agency and capacities to participate in issues related to the prevention and addressing of child sexual exploitation, according to their developing capacities. This may involve developing tools that can be contextualized to challenge unconscious bias, perceptions, social perceptions and social or gender norms on children, their agency, their role in society, their sexuality and rights including to be protected, and to create safe space, avenues and practices to more systematically consult children and more effectively take children’s views into account
  • Processes, session plans and tools to engage with children for supporting children to voice their ideas and views on child sexual exploitation prevention and responses, and creating and facilitating safe and ethical spaces for children to contribute to child sexual exploitation and abuse advocacy in a contextually adapted and safe manner. Aspects such as ensuring activities are respectful, trauma-informed, inclusive and adaptable, and will consider ethical aspects of engaging with children with lived experiences of sexual abuse or exploitation, disclosed or not, will be critical. The model should also offer various opportunities to participate and make a range of options available to children to accommodate their individual preferences, needs and abilities.
• Develop guidance and training programme for the implementation and contextualization of the operational model
• Develop ECPAT key facilitators’ capacities (online) to use the model
• Accompany the piloting of the model
• Integrate lessons learned and feedback to finalize the operational model, tools and sessions with the learnings from the pilot.

Expected Deliverables: 

An operational model to ensure safe and meaningful participation of children in child sexual exploitation and abuse prevention and response advocacy, including processes to engage with adults in creating the spaces, audience and capacity to take children’s views into account to influence policies and practices.

This will include: 

• A compilation and overview of existing promising practices and tools collected globally to promote and facilitate children’s engagement in child sexual abuse and exploitation advocacy
• An operational model of ‘how to’ with related sessions and activities plans, exercises, tools
• Training guidance and programme for facilitators to use and implement the model
• Contextualization guidance to be used with local actors

It is expected that these assignments will take approximately 30 working days.

Profile: 

The consultant or (groups of consultants) need to have: 

• Demonstrated experience in participatory approaches with children and young people on issues related to child sexual abuse and exploitation
• Track record of developing toolkits and methodologies on the participation of children and young people on issues of child sexual abuse and exploitation
• In-depth practical and theoretical knowledge of child rights, child protection and child participation
• High ethical standards
• Experiences in and understanding of contexts in South Asia is a plus

Additional Information: 

• This is a home-based position using its own equipment. The consultants should be available for online calls including with different time zones in particular with Thailand where ECPAT International Secretariat is based.
• The Consultant is expected to act at all times in a manner consistent with the values of ECPAT International and in compliance with the organisation’s policies and procedures including Child Safeguarding Policy and the Code of Conduct.

How to Apply: 

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST: please send to vacancy@ecpat.org. 

• CV detailing relevant experiences
• Daily fee in USD/ financial proposal in USD

Mention in the subject header: Your name and “Children participation model”

Deadline: 14 January 2024

ECPAT International is committed to keeping children safe. The selection process reflects our commitment to the safeguarding of children.