BACKGROUND
The Global Nutrition Cluster is an initiative for the mutual benefit of the nutrition community, and affected populations, to improve the quality of nutrition in emergency preparedness, response and recovery. The technical arm of the GNC Operations Team, called the GNC Programme Team, is co-led by Action Against Hunger Canada and UNICEF. The GNC Programme Team exists to provide on-demand technical expertise to improve nutrition outcomes in emergencies, both remotely and in-country. GNC Programme Team services are available to any nutrition actor including governments, national and international NGOs, UN agencies, Red Cross/Crescent Societies and others.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is a country marked by recurring conflicts, particularly in the east of the country, where armed groups, including the M23, are stepping up their actions, leading to massive displacement and an alarming deterioration of the humanitarian situation. On the nutritional front, the last national nutrition survey conducted in September 2023, shows a persistent nutrition crisis, with an estimated prevalence of overall acute malnutrition (GAM) at the national level of 8.2% [7.5-9.0], with 2.6% [2.2-3.1] of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM), a rate exceeding the threshold for humanitarian emergency. In the DRC, one in ten children under the age of five is acutely malnourished, and one in two is stunted. The nutritional situation in the provinces affected by armed conflict in the east of the country for several years, including in Ituri, North Kivu and South Kivu, remains extremely precarious, due to multidimensional factors.
Since late January 2025, there has been an escalation of armed conflict in North and South Kivu provinces that has led successively to M23 control of the main cities of Goma and Bukavu and led to further mass displacement, exacerbating existing vulnerabilities, particularly in relation to nutritional security. This has led to increased humanitarian needs and pressure on the response capacities of partners on the ground. In the DRC, the nutrition information system (NIS) is structured around three main components: (1) routine data collection through health and community structures, (2) nutritional surveillance and early warning systems (SNSAP), and (3) periodic national nutrition surveys. The system is based on the DHIS2 platform, enabling centralised management and real-time analysis of nutritional data. It is an essential tool for the monitoring, evaluation and planning of nutrition interventions at the national level. However, several challenges exist, including:
• Data availability in areas affected by armed conflict and insecurity (North Kivu, Ituri, and Tanganyika provinces), hampering regular nutritional data collection, compromising ongoing nutritional monitoring.
•The limitation of qualified human resources trained in the use of data collection and management tools, such as DHIS2 or Community monitoring instruments, leads to data entry errors
• Multiple sources of data, namely through health facilities, NGOs and humanitarian agencies, without methodological harmonisation, resulting in duplication, gaps or inconsistencies of certain information.
• Data from certain sectors such as health, food security, water, hygiene and sanitation (WASH), the structural determinants of malnutrition, are not analysed very much to prioritise the problem of malnutrition, in order to better guide stakeholders.
This support will help address some of the issues mentioned above and provide the country and nutrition actors with innovative tools and approaches to help strengthen the nutrition information system in the DRC.
OBJECTIVE
The GNC advisor will work closely with ProNaNut, the nutrition cluster coordination team and nutrition cluster partners, in particular national and local NGOs, to strengthen sentinel site integration, develop a decision tree for nutrition surveillance, update the nutrition cluster prioritisation methodology and train nutrition partners on the SMART/CDC rapid screening tool.
SERVICE DESCRIPTION
Please see the details of service description here:
or here:
TIMELINE
The duration of this support is 8 weeks (46 days) over 3 months. Looking to start in mid-July, 2025.
PROFILE
QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE
Required:
1. Master’s degree in nutrition, public health, international development, social sciences or other relevant field OR first university degree with additional years of work experience and/or related training/courses.
2. At least 10 years of professional experience in nutrition and public health in emergency situations with NGOs and/or UN agencies
3. Proven experience in nutrition information systems and assessments (including SMART methodology)
4. Demonstrated experience in capacity building, including learning needs assessment and development of training materials and tools.
5. Experience in engaging and building the capacity of local actors
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, ABILITIES AND OTHER ATTRIBUTES
Required:
1. Strong coordination skills and ability to work effectively with a range of stakeholders, including nutrition clusters/clusters, partners and the Ministry of Health.
2. Motivated and able to work with a high degree of autonomy and strong time management skills.
3. Ability to manage and coordinate multi-stakeholder efforts towards a common goal and goal.
4. Highly developed communication skills, both written and oral.
5. Excellent knowledge of global guidance and best practices on nutrition information systems and nutrition assessments
6. Good understanding of the cluster approach and the humanitarian programme cycle.
7. Ability to work in French at a high level.
Desired:
1. Professional experience in the DRC
2. Practical knowledge of local languages in eastern DRC
Candidates with previous work experience in the country, or knowledge of the context, will be preferred.
DUTY STATION/LOCATION
The consultant will provide remote support (home-based assignment) and in-country support. The consultant may be required to apply flexible working hours.
SUPERVISORS
The consultant will be supervised by both the GNC Operations Team Coordination Unit and the in-country requestor (DRC Nutrition Cluster Coordinator).
CONTRACT MODALITY
Fixed-term deliverable-based contract.
Applications are open to individuals.
How to apply
Proposals responding to this RFQ should include:
• Updated CV
• Cover letter detailing experience in conducting similar work
• Three references for which you have conducted similar work
• Quotation – dated and signed. Please provide your daily rate in Canadian Dollars (CAD). A quotation template is provided with this RFQ, however, please feel free to use your own template if you prefer. Quotation must be dated and signed.
Please note that all travel and in-country costs will be covered by Action Against Hunger Canada and it is not necessary to include these costs in your quotation.
Signed Action Against Hunger Canada Good Business Regulations Form will be required prior to completion of contracting.
Please submit the proposal before Sunday 13th July 2025, at 23:59, EST/Toronto time to:
procurement@actionagainsthunger.ca
Please highlight “Consultancy on NIS support to DRC” in the subject heading.