Senior International Consultant for Skills Strategy Development in Afghanistan

JOB DETAILS Type of contract : Consultant Contract Level : Level 3 - Senior Hiring Unit : Education Sector (ED) Duty Station : Kabul Work location : Remote Duration of contract : 6 months Hiring open to : External candidates Application deadline (Midnight UTC+5 Time) : 28/06/2026 UNESCO Core Values: Commitment to the Organization, Integrity, Respect for Diversity, ProfessionalismOVERVIEW UNESCO has been supporting Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and skills development in Afghanistan through multiple strategies and programmes, including the TVET Strategy 2020–2024 and other sectoral frameworks. These efforts have focused on strengthening skills development systems, improving employability, and promoting socio-economic resilience. However, significant contextual changes following the August 2021 power shift have fundamentally altered the education and skills development landscape. These include: A shift from formal, system-based TVET delivery to community-based and non-formal modalities Severe restrictions on girls’ and women’s education, particularly beyond Grade 6, and on women’s participation in work and public spaces A sharp decline in international aid, affecting employment opportunities and service delivery systems A substantial increase in returnees from Iran and Pakistan, now estimated at around 10% of the population Weak coordination, standardization, certification, and accreditation systems for community-based non-formal skills development To respond to this evolving education, skills and labour-market context in Afghanistan, UNESCO seeks to lead a structured process to develop a strategy for skills development interventions by adapting, revising and updating past TVET and skills development strategies. The assignment will realign previous frameworks with current socio-economic realities, emerging learner and labour-market needs, delivery modalities, stakeholder configurations, and relevant global frameworks and priorities, including the SDGs, UNESCO’s Strategy for TVET 2022–2029, the 2015 UNESCO Recommendation concerning Technical and Vocational Education and Training, and ILO frameworks on skills development as well as lifelong learning frameworks. The revised strategy will place a strong emphasis on community-driven and private sector-driven livelihoods and skills development interventions, private sector engagement and partnerships, and the inclusion of adolescents, youth, women, returnees and vulnerable populations. It will also identify practical pathways for certification, quality assurance, recognition of skills, and linkages to employment, entrepreneurship and further learning. Under UNESCO’s leadership, the assignment will ensure structured consultations with education and skills development partners, relevant UN agencies, NGOs, private sector actors and other key stakeholders to promote ownership, alignment and operational relevance.Long Description The overall objective of the assignment is for the senior consultant to support UNESCO in developing a practical, evidence-based, and context-responsive Skills Development Strategy for Afghanistan for enhanced livelihoods and economic development. Specifically, the consultant will: Conduct a desk-based review of existing TVET, skills development and livelihood-related strategies, frameworks, assessments and programme documents, and update the knowledge base to inform the revision of the strategic framework. Review existing skills mapping results and develop data collection tools and undertake a mapping of non-formal skills training and education provision to fill data gaps, including relevant surveys and stakeholder consultations, to support coherence, standardization, and scalability of non-formal skills initiatives. Develop an updated strategic framework and strategy for non-formal TVET and skills development informed by the analysis that reflects current operational realities, contextual constraints, learner needs, delivery modalities an