Background
COVID-19, with its highly contagious and transmissible nature, has led to the exponential increase of healthcare waste generated in healthcare and quarantine facilities, medical laboratories and biomedical research facilities. Additionally, the increase in the amount of personal protective equipment (PPE) used during the COVID-19 pandemic, compared to normal circumstances, has further contributed towards the increase in healthcare solid waste. For example, recent research estimated that every minute 3 million facial masks are thrown away globally.1 and in some cities in the Asia and the Pacific the volume of medical waste has been increased by 500% on average compared with before COVID-19 figures.2
If not properly treated and managed, such large amount of waste will pose serious risks of disease transmission to waste pickers, waste workers, health workers, patients, and the community in general through exposure to infectious agents. In addition, unmanaged or poor-managed waste will also cause pollution and create new environmental risks.
COVID-19 has put significant additional burden on all phases of medical waste management systems, from segregation, collection, storage, transportation, treatment to final disposal. In light of the serious issue, international organizations such as WHO have developed a series of guidelines to support the countries manage healthcare waste resulting from the current pandemic. Many countries have also formulated 1 Elvis Genbo Xu, Zhiyong Jason Ren. Preventing masks from becoming the next plastic problem. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering, 2021, 15(6): 125 2 ADB. Managing Infectious Medical Waste during the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020. 2 policies, plans and SOPs on COVID-19 medical waste management at national and local levels. However, institutional and capacity gaps continue to persist, such as shortage of waste treatment equipment and facilities, lack of technologies for safe transportation and disposal, lack of professional workers and expertise for safe operations and the need for awareness-raising and behavioral changes towards better management of COVID medical waste etc.
UNDP, in partnership with the Government of China, is undertaking a regional project to support COVID19 medical waste management capacity building in 5 countries: Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Nepal and Philippines. Under the project, the Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience Building Team at UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub (BRH), in collaboration with Country Offices in the project countries, aims to conduct a series of research to better understand the most pressing issues of medical waste management in 5 project countries through the systems approach, fostering changes in mindset, perceptions, behaviors and actions, towards more systematic and risk-informed medical waste management practices.
The research will take a phased approach, with baseline and benchmarking assessment as the initial step to map out the pinpoints that call for most attention and efforts of interventions, accompanied by a systems thinking workshop (either virtual or virtual/physical hybrid) for each country to facilitate systems thinking and design among stakeholders supervising or working on multiple medical waste management stages. Based on the findings of baseline and benchmarking assessment, a research and experimentation will be conducted by applying behavioral insights (BI) to nudge for better changes in COVID medical waste management.
UNDP Laos is hiring a national consultant to support 1) an international consultant working on Health Care Waste (HCW) baseline and benchmarking assessment, and 2) an international consultant working on HCW behavioral insights, in terms of in-country data collection, stakeholder coordination and other researchrelated activities in close coordination with UNDP Bangkok Regional Hub (BRH).
1 Elvis Genbo Xu, Zhiyong Jason Ren. Preventing masks from becoming the next plastic problem. Frontiers of Environmental Science & Engineering, 2021, 15(6): 125
2 ADB. Managing Infectious Medical Waste during the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020.
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the Team Leader, Natural Resources, Climate Change, and Disaster Risk Reduction Unit, UNDP Lao PDR and in close coordination with international consultants and UNDP BRH, the Consultant is expected to undertake the below roles and responsibilities:
- Supporting the international consultant on baseline and benchmarking assessment to collect relevant data and statistics of Laos, including coordinating and organizing focus group discussions, stakeholder interviews, questionnaires and consultations etc. ;
- Supporting the international consultant on baseline and benchmarking assessment to organize 1 systems thinking workshop with key stakeholders in Laos, such as government officials, professionals and practitioners of multiple HCW management stages to communicate the research results and facilitate system thinking on the causal dynamics and feedback loops within and between medical waste management stages for more coordinated, coherent and systematic future design and action;
- Supporting the international consultant on HCW behavioral insights to design and implement the behavioral experiment, including collecting relevant data and coordinating stakeholder meetings, experiment activities etc.;
- Supporting the communications of the research in the country, including preparing communications material and products (photos, videos, newsletters, tweets, blogs etc.)
- Any other tasks as assigned by the Team Leader, Natural Resources, Climate Change, and Disaster Risk Reduction Unit, UNDP Lao PDR.
4 EXPECTED OUPUTS AND DELIVERABLES :
1. Support provided to the development of 1 baseline and benchmarking assessment report in terms of in-country data collection, stakeholders coordination, organizing consultation meetings and other necessary research activities; due date 20 March 2022
2. Support provided to the organization of 1 systems thinking workshop in Laos; due date 8 April 2022
3. Support provided to the design, implementation and results documentation of 1 behavioral insights experiment in Laos in terms of incountry data collection, stakeholders coordination, organizing briefings and consultation meetings and other related activities; due date 15 May 2022
4. Relevant communications materials and products, due date 15 May 2022
INSTITUTIONAL ARRANGEMENT
The National Consultant will report the Team Leader, Natural Resources, Climate Change, and Disaster Risk Reduction Unit, UNDP Lao PDR. He/She will also work closely with 2 international consultants and DRT, UNDP BRH.
Competencies
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
- Displays integrity and fairness - embodies UN values and promotes the well-being of all individuals regardless of gender, religion, race, nationality, or age;
- Results-driven, initiative-taking, ability to work under pressure and to meet deadlines;
- Ability to work under minimum supervision;
- Highly motivated with a positive attitude and problem-solving approach; - Good interpersonal and networking skills, supports and encourages open communication
Required Skills and Experience
Educational Qualifications
Bachelor’s Degree or above in public administration, international relations, political science, development studies, medical science, environmental science, public health, medical waste management, or relevant.
Experience
- Minimum seven years of relevant work experience.
- Minimum five years of experience working with relevant public sectors, research institutions, medical waste management agencies or development partners.
- Proven experience and knowledge of medical waste management in the COVID-19 context.
- Proven experience and knowledge of existing medical waste management system and challenges in Laos.
Language: Fluency in English and Lao
Requirements for submission of proposals
All interested and qualified National Consultant should apply on-line using the following links:
UNDP Lao PDR Country Office website at https://www.la.undp.org/content/lao_pdr/en/home/jobs.html or
In order to make your submission, please read the relevant documents available on the link below
- TOR (Annex I)
- IC General Terms and Conditions _ Annex II;
- OFFEROR’S LETTER TO UNDP CONFIRMING INTEREST AND AVAILABILITY _ Annex III
- P11 Form
Documents to be included when submitting the proposals:
Interested individual consultants must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:
1. Technical Proposal
(i) Explaining why you are the most suitable for the work;
(ii) Providing a brief methodology on how you will approach and conduct the work including the work schedule for the delivery of outputs/deliverables;
2. P11 Form Education and work experience, including past experience in similar projects and contact references of at least 3 references for whom you have rendered preferably the similar services;
3. Financial proposal: Detailed financial proposal: Lump sum offer with clear cost breakdown against each deliverable. Please use this template OFFEROR’S LETTER TO UNDP CONFIRMING INTEREST AND AVAILABILITY _ Annex III
Instructions for on-line submissions:
Step 1: Please prepare all required documents electronically;
Step 2: Combine all documents in ONE SINGLE FILE (preferably in PDF however Word format can be also accepted) and upload to the UNDP Jobs using the links above;
Step 3: After that you will receive an auto reply from the UNDP jobs if your offer is received successfully.
Note: Any request for clarification must be sent in writing before the submission deadline to the following emails:
surith.sengsavang@undp.org with copy to eriko.nakanishi@undp.org
Incomplete proposals or proposals received after the deadline will be rejected.