Job Title: Research and Documentation of Unpaid Care Services Case Studies
Project Name: UCARE
Job type: Consultancy
Location of Position: Canada/Remote
Reporting to: UCARE Project Field Manager & Project Director
Remuneration: In line with market rates
Indicative LOE/Time Frame: Up to 20 days, Jun-Jul 2025
Language Requirements: English
Application Deadline: June 15, 2025
Application Instructions:
- A cover letter is mandatory to be considered. Cover letters should effectively align your skills and experiences with the specific job responsibilities outlined in the position's description, demonstrating your aptitude and enthusiasm for the role, your daily fee and current availability.
- Click the “Apply now” link to upload your cover letter and CV (Curriculum Vitae).
- Interested consultants should submit their full proposal (see below) to employment@alineainternational.com.
- Only successful candidates will be contacted. No phone calls please.
Alinea is an international development consultancy providing technical and management expertise that helps people improve their lives. We work with governments, investors, companies, and communities to create lasting change. Over 38 years, Alinea has successfully delivered more than 1000 projects worldwide. alineainternational.com
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DEIAB Statement Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging
At Alinea International we value diversity, equity, inclusivity, accessibility and belonging in everything we do. We are an equal opportunity employer opposed to all forms of discrimination. We actively seek and encourage applications from people of diverse backgrounds recognizing that an inclusive workforce enriches our organization and achieves smarter, more innovative results.
Protection
Alinea is committed to the protection of children and vulnerable adults. Due to the nature of our work, all candidates will be subject to due diligence checks and extensive background checks where appropriate.
Project Description:
The United for Care-sensitive Approaches to Rights and Empowerment (UCARE) Project is a five-year project (2024-2029) funded by Global Affairs Canada that seeks to enhance the realization of women and adolescent girls' rights to equal distribution of domestic work and reduced burden of unpaid care work in Northern Ghana.
UCARE will work collaboratively with national partners, regional and local governments to create an evidence-based, gender-responsive and care-sensitive policy and programming environment, and with families in northern Ghana to improve the agency and decision making of women and adolescent girls to exercise their rights related to recognized and valued unpaid care work.
The UCARE project will partner with local organizations SEND, NETRIGHT and women’s rights organizations using the Gender Model Families approach to recognize, reduce and redistribute the burden of UCW more equitably within households. UCARE will be implemented in 10 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the Northern, Northeast and Savannah regions, covering both urban and rural communities, reaching 225,000 women and men, and adolescent girls and boys.
About the work
To support evidence-based advocacy and programming, UCARE seeks to document and disseminate global best practices and lessons from at least five countries that have made significant public investments in unpaid care services and infrastructure. The project aims to compile case studies that demonstrate how such investments reduce time poverty among women and adolescent girls.
UCARE invites a consultant to lead the literature review, documentation and synthesis of these case studies. The findings will be used to advocate with policymakers, private sector actors, and civil society organizations about the experiences other countries have had prioritizing care-sensitive infrastructure, particularly with local governments in the project’s operational regions.
The Role
The consultant will be responsible for:
- Developing a detailed literature/resource list and work plan, including selection criteria for country cases (to be submitted as an inception report for approval).
- Conducting a desk review of existing documentation and virtual consultations (as appropriate) with experts and practitioners.
- Compiling a comprehensive report presenting at least five country case studies on public investment in unpaid care services and infrastructure.
- Producing a summary brief for advocacy purposes, highlighting key lessons and policy recommendations relevant to northern Ghana.
- Preparing and delivering a presentation to the UCARE team and other stakeholders, outlining findings and implications for policy and programming.
All deliverables must be submitted in English, in editable Word/PDF formats for reports and PowerPoint for presentations. All deliverables will be reviewed and finalised in collaboration with the UCARE team.
Methodology, Activities, and Timeline
The consultant will conduct a desk review of national policies, programmes, and implementation strategies from at least five selected countries that have invested in unpaid care infrastructure, focusing on their impact on time use, gender equality, and access to services. The consultant must adhere to ethical research standards, including informed consent and confidentiality, and comply with relevant data protection laws and organisational policies in both the selected countries and Ghana throughout the assignment.
| Task | Approximate LOE |
| Submission and approval of the inception report | 2 days |
| Review of existing documentation and identification of country cases | 3 days |
| Consultations with UCARE, partners, and relevant experts (as approved) | 2 days |
| Detailed case study research, writing, and synthesis | 9 days |
| Development of advocacy summary and presentation materials | 2 days |
| Internal review and incorporation of feedback | 1 day |
| Finalisation and submission of deliverables | 1 day |
| Total | 20 days |
Consultation Plan
The consultant will engage with:
- UCARE Project Field Manager, Canadian Project Director and relevant technical advisors
- Experts on care policy and infrastructure (identified in collaboration with UCARE), noting that the UCARE project addresses unpaid care work.
Key consultation objectives include:
- Refining the selection criteria for country cases
- Verifying key learning themes
- Ensuring relevance to Ghana’s policy context
Management and Reporting
The consultant will report to the UCARE Project Field Manager or Project Director and work closely with the technical team at the Project Management Office and Alinea headquarters in Canada. Regular virtual check-ins will be scheduled to review progress, provide feedback, and discuss draft outputs. The consultant will provide brief weekly progress updates throughout the assignment. UCARE will provide timely feedback on drafts, and the consultant is expected to incorporate comments within agreed timelines.
Intellectual Property and Confidentiality
All reports and materials produced under this consultancy will become the property of UCARE. The consultant must maintain the confidentiality of any sensitive information shared during the assignment and comply with data protection standards. UCARE retains all rights to the deliverables. The consultant must disclose any potential conflicts of interest before contract signing.
Financial Proposal
Interested consultants must submit a financial proposal detailing their daily professional fee and any anticipated incidental costs (such as communication, software subscriptions, or internet usage) required to complete the assignment. Consultant will be required to substantiate all fees requested. The total cost must be inclusive of all taxes and must not exceed 20 working days. Payment will be made in instalments tied to the delivery and approval of specific outputs as outlined in the Scope of Work.
Required Qualifications:
- A minimum of a Master’s degree in Gender Studies, Public Policy, Development Studies, Sociology, or a related social science field
- Proven experience in gender, unpaid care work, social policy or related research
- Strong skills in qualitative research and case study methodology
- Experience in policy analysis and synthesis for advocacy purposes
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills in English
Interested consultants should submit the following documents by 15th June 2025 to employment@alineainternational.com.
1. Technical Proposal (maximum 4 pages), including:
* Understanding of the assignment
* Proposed methodology
* Work plan and timeline
2. Curriculum Vitae demonstrating relevant qualifications and experience (including academic qualifications)
3. Financial Proposal clearly stating the daily rate and total cost
4. A sample of relevant past work (e.g., case studies, policy briefs, or research reports)
Shortlisted applicants may be invited for a brief virtual interview. Women and consultants with experience in gender-responsive research are especially encouraged to apply.
