National Consultant to Develop a National Fecal Sludge Management Frameworkat United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF)

United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund (UNICEF) works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential. Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: National Consultant to Develop a National Fecal Sludge Management Framework

Job ID: 582132
Location: Abuja (FCT)
Employment Type: Contract, Consultant
Categories: WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene)
Level: Consultancy
Duration: 4 Months

Purpose of Activity / Assignment

• This consultancy aims to assist the Federal Government of Nigeria, specifically the Federal Ministry of Environment (FMEnv) and its relevant agencies, in developing a comprehensive National Institutional and Regulatory Framework for FSM.
• The consultant will work closely with FMEnv, NESREA, State Environmental Protection Agencies (SEPAs), and in close collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Water Resources & Sanitation (FMWRS), Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH), local governments, private sector stakeholders, and development partners.

The Framework will explicitly focus on:

• Establishing clear and enforceable regulatory guidelines and standards for fecal sludge management applicable to both urban and rural sanitation systems.
• Clarifying and defining institutional roles, mandates, responsibilities, and coordination mechanisms among FMEnv, NESREA, SEPAs, and other relevant MDAs.
• Developing robust compliance and enforcement protocols to ensure adherence to FSM regulations across the sanitation service chain.
• Aligning national and state-level FSM regulatory practices to ensure consistency, reduce fragmentation, and strengthen governance.

Key Tasks:

• Conduct a detailed situational analysis of existing FSM-related policies, regulations, and institutional roles at federal and state levels.
• Undertake stakeholder consultations with federal, state, and local entities to gather inputs, build consensus, and validate the institutional and regulatory proposals.
• Draft the National FSM Institutional and Regulatory Framework clearly specifying regulatory guidelines, institutional responsibilities, enforcement procedures, and coordination mechanisms, accompanied by high-level guidance on technical standards and compliance measures.
• Prepare an actionable implementation roadmap with clear timelines, roles, responsibilities, and milestones for adopting and operationalizing the Institutional and Regulatory Framework.
• Support the national dissemination and advocacy efforts for effective adoption and implementation of the finalized FSM Institutional and Regulatory Framework.

Expected Impact on Nigeria’s Environment and Sanitation Sectors:

• Establishment of a clear regulatory and institutional governance structure that significantly enhances environmental protection, sanitation service oversight, and accountability.
• Clarified roles and streamlined coordination among federal, state, and local authorities, effectively eliminating institutional overlaps and strengthening compliance across states.
• Creation of standardized regulations and institutional templates, providing states with clear guidance for developing or refining their own FSM frameworks and policies.
• Formalization and regulation of private sector participation in FSM services, leading to improved sanitation service coverage and efficiency.
• Alignment of national regulations with global best practices and international standards, specifically tailored to Nigeria’s institutional and regulatory context.

How can you make a difference? 
Scope Of Work:

• The consultant will support the FMEnv, its agencies (including NESREA and SEPA), UNICEF, and stakeholders to develop a National Institutional and Regulatory for FSM in Nigeria.
• This framework will define regulatory responsibilities, institutional roles, regulatory oversight and high-level compliance standards for emptying, transport, treatment, and safe reuse/disposal of fecal sludge, coordination mechanisms, compliance guidelines and monitoring, addressing both urban and rural FSM contexts.

Key Assignments

• Support the coordination platforms and mechanisms for WASH in Institutions, MHH, and NTDs, including the WASH in Schools TWG, and MHH TWG, the Health SWAp and the NGDO NTDs coalition
• Revise the WASH in schools and MHH training manuals and materials to mainstream principles of climate resilience, sustainability, and gender transformative WASH, and support field offices to adopt updated training materials and test them in the field
• Support advocacy for increased investment in WASH in Institutions, MHH and WASH-NTDs. These can include facilitating media visits to schools and HCFs, development of concept notes and policy briefs, and advocacy plans
• Document progress on WASH in institutions and MHH, including progress and key results from the WASHFIT implementation and WASH in institutions systems strengthening
• Produce briefing notes to consolidate the results of field work.
• Support the production of key documents and knowledge products for the WASH-NTDs programme, and the end-of-year review

Key Assignments
Inception Workshop and Report:

• Conduct inception meeting with FMEnv, NESREA, Environmental Protection Board, FMWRS, FMoH, development partners and other relevant stakeholders to agree on expectations and deliverables.
• Prepare an inception report clearly outlining agreed objectives, deliverables, methodology, detailed work plan, and a preliminary structure for the National FSM Institutional and Regulatory Framework.

Desk Review:

• Conduct an in-depth review of existing national and state-level sanitation policies, FSM regulations, institutional structures, guidelines, and strategies.
• Analyze global, regional, and sub-national best practices (including the Bauchi FSM guidelines) to inform institutional arrangements, regulatory approaches, standard-setting practices, and coordination mechanisms.

Federal-Level Stakeholder Consultations:

• Lead consultations and meetings with key federal stakeholders including FMEnv, NESREA, FMWRS, FMoH, Agriculture, Urban Development, key state agency representatives, donor partners, NGOs, and private-sector associations.
• Identify and document institutional and regulatory gaps, bottlenecks, challenges, and opportunities within the existing FSM system.
• Collect detailed recommendations for institutional roles, regulatory enhancements, compliance mechanisms, and coordination structures.

State-Level Consultations and Field Visits:

• Conduct stakeholder consultations in strategically selected states covering the different geopolitical zones, capturing both urban and rural FSM practices.
• Engage stakeholders including state ministries responsible for environment and water, State EPAs, RUWASSAs, LGAs, utilities, private FSM operators, sanitation workers, and community representatives.
• Collect data and document the current FSM institutional structures, local regulatory practices, compliance challenges, existing enforcement mechanisms, and institutional innovations or best practices at the state level.
• Prepare a consolidated Stakeholder Consultation Report clearly highlighting key findings, recommendations, and implications for the national framework.

Draft the National FSM Framework:

• Synthesize insights from the desk review, federal and state consultations, and identified best practices into a coherent and structured draft document.
• Clearly articulate proposed institutional roles, mandates, responsibilities, and coordination mechanisms for FSM regulation across federal, state, and local levels.
• Develop regulatory guidelines and standards for FSM licensing, compliance, enforcement, and monitoring applicable across the entire sanitation chain.
• Provide high-level complementary guidance outlining recommended technical standards, principles for private-sector engagement, and broad financing approaches aligned to the institutional and regulatory framework.
• Include a clear, actionable implementation roadmap with milestones, timelines, and recommended monitoring and accountability measures

Work Assignment Overview:
Initial Stakeholder Engagement and Inception Meetings:

• Conduct initial consultations with FMEnv, UNICEF, and key stakeholders to clarify consultancy objectives and requirements.

Deliverables / Outputs:

• Inception workshop conducted.

Workplan Development:

• Prepare a detailed consultancy workplan, clearly defining objectives, methodology, key activities, timelines, roles, milestones, deliverables, and a draft FSM Framework outline.

Deliverables / Outputs:

• Detailed inception report submitted including comprehensive workplan, methodology, timeline, and proposed FSM Framework outline submitted and approved.
• Desk review of existing literature, policies, institutional and regulatory frameworks at the global, national and state levels to synthesize evidence and information and inform FSM Framework development.

Deliverables/ Outputs:

• Synthesis report of existing policies, literature, and global best practices completed and submitted
• Draft National FSM Framework Development: Synthesize findings and inputs to develop an initial comprehensive draft of the National FSM Framework.

Deliverables / Outputs:

• Draft National FSM Framework

Final National FSM Institutional and Regulatory Framework:

• Finalize the National FSM
• Framework document based on validation inputs, including an executive summary and detailed implementation roadmap.

Deliverables/ Outputs:

• Final National FSM Framework with implementation roadmap (incl. executive summary) 

Requirements
To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have:

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in Waste Management, Environmental Management, Public Health, Environmental/Civil Engineering (Water and Sanitation), Urban Planning, or related field. 
• A minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience in FSM, sanitation, or WASH sector planning and policy development, including experience in Nigeria or similar contexts within West Africa.
• Proven experience developing national or state-level sanitation policies, frameworks, or guidelines, and evidence of leadership in producing at least one significant sanitation-related policy document.
• Deep understanding of the FSM service chain, FSM technologies, treatment options, operational models, sanitation financing, private sector engagement, climate resilience, and safely managed sanitation.
• Proven capability in policy analysis, identifying institutional gaps, stakeholder mapping, and developing strategic, regulatory, and institutional recommendations.
• Familiarity with global best practices, international sanitation guidelines (e.g., WHO), and Nigeria’s WASH sector landscape (e.g., PEWASH, regulatory environment).
• Excellent analytical, technical writing, and policy drafting skills in English, with demonstrated ability to produce clear, concise documents.
• Strong verbal communication and workshop facilitation skills for multi-stakeholder consultations, including high-level officials and community representatives.
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset. 
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset. 

Application Closing Date
23rd July, 2025.

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online