TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR CONSULTANCY SERVICES: "Climate Change and the Nigerian Child”
I. Background
Nigeria, as a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), has a legal and moral obligation to safeguard the rights of every child to education, health, food security, livelihood, and protection. Yet, these rights are increasingly under threat due to the escalating impacts of climate change. Across the country, extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, and heatwaves are not only environmental concerns, but they are also becoming acute child rights crises.
Flooded schools and destroyed infrastructure disrupt access to quality education, while rising temperatures and the spread of waterborne diseases like cholera and typhoid strain already fragile health systems. Increasingly frequent droughts, another consequence of climate change, intensify hunger crises by reducing crop yields, drying up water sources, and worsening malnutrition, particularly among children. Children are especially vulnerable to these health shocks due to their age, nutritional status, and limited access to care. At the same time, climate-induced displacement, whether due to floods or droughts, is forcing families into unsafe conditions, exacerbating risks of child labour, early and forced marriage, trafficking, and various forms of abuse”
These effects are felt most deeply in marginalised communities that already face economic deprivation, conflict, food insecurity, and weak institutional protection. For many children, the climate crisis is multiplying existing inequalities and pushing essential rights even further out of reach.
Nigeria has made significant progress through instruments like the Child Rights Act (2003) and the National Climate Change Policy, but a critical gap remains: climate adaptation strategies rarely centre children or reflect the interconnected threats they face. The absence of child-sensitive climate planning, particularly at the intersection of education, health, and protection, has left children dangerously exposed.
There is an urgent need for rights-based, child-informed research that not only documents these realities but also ensures children's voices shape national and subnational responses. Without integrating child rights into climate policies and actions, Nigeria risks leaving behind its most vulnerable population in the face of a worsening climate emergency.
II. Rationale
Children are among the least responsible for climate change yet bear the greatest burden of its impacts. Nigeria’s children, especially in climate-vulnerable regions, are increasingly exposed to risks that undermine their survival, development, and protection. Despite Nigeria’s international and domestic commitments to children’s rights, minimal empirical data is capturing how climate change is affecting these rights across sectors and how children themselves are experiencing and coping with these changes.
This study is essential for the following key reasons:
- Generate evidence on climate change incidents in Nigeria (such as floods, droughts, and rising temperatures) that are directly impacting children’s rights in Nigeria
- Advocate for the integration of child-sensitive and community-driven solutions into climate resilience frameworks.
- Empower children as agents of change by documenting and disseminating their stories, insights, and demands.
III. Objectives of the Consultancy
The primary aim of the consultancy is to assess the extent to which climate change is infringing upon the realisation of children’s rights in Nigeria. The consultancy will focus on the following specific objectives:
- Analyse the Impact of Climate Change on Core Child Rights: Investigate how climate change is directly affecting children’s right to education, health, food security, livelihood, protection and civic participation with a focus on evidence-based documentation of climate-induced disruptions, including disrupted learning environments, health system stress, and increased vulnerabilities to exploitation.
- Identify Gaps in Policy and Practice: Identify key gaps in the current policy landscape and assess the effectiveness of existing child-centred climate adaptation strategies, particularly regarding national policies such as the National Climate Change Policy and the Child Rights Act.
- Amplify Children’s Voices in Research: Employ participatory research methods, including focus group discussions (FGDS), storytelling, and child-friendly interviews, to ensure that children’s perspectives are captured, empowering them to actively inform the study’s findings and recommendations.
- Provide Actionable Policy Recommendations: Develop actionable policy recommendations based on research findings, aimed at strengthening child protection and climate adaptation programming. These recommendations will be targeted at government agencies, child rights organisations, and development partners working on climate resilience.
IV. Output The consultancy will yield the following impactful deliverables:
- Comprehensive Research and Policy Paper : A detailed document outlining the nexus between climate change and children’s rights in Nigeria, backed by evidence of climate change incidents and their implications on education, health, and protection.
- Advocacy Report : A concise advocacy report designed for policy influencers, government agencies, civil society stakeholders, and child rights organisations to push for the integration of child rights into climate policies.
- Child-friendly version of Advocacy Report : To be used by child climate advocates in Nigeria.
- Actionable Recommendations for Climate Response : Practical recommendations for integrating child rights and protection into Nigeria’s climate response framework, ensuring that adaptation strategies are child-sensitive and inclusive.
V. Scope of the Work
To ensure national representation, the research will span four geopolitical zones and focus on states particularly prone to climate-related crises:
- North Central – Benue
- Northeast – Yobe
- Northwest – Zamfara
- Southwest – Lagos
The consultant will:
- Refine and finalise the methodology, including tools and sampling frameworks.
- Conduct both desk review and field research.
- Facilitate FGDS and KIIS in the selected states.
- Draft and finalise the study report based on field findings and secondary data.
VI. Methodology
The consultancy will apply a human rights-based and participatory approach. This will include:
- Desk Review:
- Review of relevant policies (e.g., National Climate Change Policy, Child Rights Act, Education Policies, Health Policies etc).
- Synthesis of existing academic and grey literature on climate impacts on child rights.
- Field Research:
- Key Informant Interviews (KIIS) with government officials, teachers, health professionals, traditional leaders, and CSOs.
- Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) using child-friendly tools such as storytelling, drawings, and participatory mapping.
- Analysis and Reporting:
- Thematic and rights-based analysis of qualitative data.
- Drafting of a report that reflects children’s voices and provides policy-relevant recommendations.
- Validation and Dissemination:
- Children and Stakeholder validation workshops to ensure accuracy and ownership.
- Public launch and dissemination of findings through a policy roundtable and media engagement.
VII. Deliverables
The consultant is expected to deliver the following:
- Inception report including detailed methodology and tools.
- Final list of selected locations and stakeholders for data collection.
- Draft report based on preliminary findings.
- Final research report with recommendations.
- Policy brief
- Child-Friendly advocacy brief
- Executive summary and PowerPoint presentation of findings.
- Documentation of children’s stories and narratives.
- Facilitation of a national dissemination event.
VIII. Location and Official Travel Involved
Fieldwork will be conducted in the selected states. All travel must be pre-approved and in accordance with Save the Children’s travel and per diem policies.
IX. Qualifications, Experience and Skills Set Required
Minimum Requirements:
- Advanced degree in Climate Studies, Human Rights, Child Development, Public Health, or related field
- Proven experience in child rights research and/or climate change adaptation studies.
- Experience in participatory and qualitative research with children.
- Strong analytical and report-writing skills.
- Ability to work in diverse cultural and religious contexts.
X. Reporting
The consultant will report directly to the Deputy Director, Advocacy, Campaigns, Communication and Media (ACCM) at Save the Children. All deliverables will be submitted through this office and are subject to review.
XI. Ownership / Copyright
All outputs and materials from the consultancy are the sole property of Save the Children Nigeria. The organization retains exclusive rights to publish, disseminate, or promote any part of the research output.
XII. Management and Technical Guidance
- The consultant will work under the supervision of the Advocacy and Campaigns Manager and the Generation Hope Campaign Focal Person.
- Close collaboration will be maintained with the FSL Advisor, MEAL unit, and safeguarding focal points.
- Save the Children will handle coordination with key stakeholders and provide access to relevant documents and information.
- All logistics, including travel and per diem, will be funded by Save the Children.
XIII. Guiding Principles and Values
- Adherence to Save the Children’s Child Safeguarding Policy and Safe Programming Standards is mandatory. The consultant and their team will undergo safeguarding training prior to the commencement of activities to ensure alignment with these standards.
- All research processes must ensure the safety, dignity, and voluntary participation of children.
- The consultant must uphold humanitarian principles and human rights norms in all project phases.
We employ approximately 25,000 people across the globe and work on the ground in over 100 countries to help children affected by crises, or those that need better healthcare, education and child protection. We also campaign and advocate at the highest levels to realise the right of children and to ensure their voices are heard. We are working towards three breakthroughs in how the world treats children by 2030:
- No child dies from preventable causes before their 5th birthday
- All children learn from a quality basic education and that,
- Violence against children is no longer tolerated
We know that great people make a great organization, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children.We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive workplace where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.
Application Information:
Please apply using a cover letter and up-to-date CV as a single document. Please also include details of your current remuneration and salary expectations. A copy of the full role profile can be found at www.savethechildren.net/jobs We need to keep children safe so our selection process reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.