National Individual Consultancy - Revision and Update of Basic Technical Standards for ICT Tools in Education Systems in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Organizational Context
UNICEF operates in over 190 countries, dedicated to saving children's lives, protecting their rights, and helping them reach their full potential. We are committed to promoting the rights of every child, viewing it as a calling rather than just a job. UNICEF offers diverse opportunities for professional and personal growth, fostering a sense of purpose while serving children and communities globally.
Job Purpose
The purpose of this consultancy is to provide advanced technical expertise to the Ministry of Civil Affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina to revise, update, and draft the new Basic Technical Standards for ICT Tools in Education for the 2027–2029 period. The consultant will ensure the updated standards transition into a performance-based and functional framework, moving away from rigid hardware lists. The resulting document must be practical, technologically neutral, socio-economically viable, and inclusive of emerging educational domains such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and environmental sustainability. Furthermore, the standards must upgrade the 2021 security baselines, which focused on local firewalls, antivirus software, automatic updates, and basic content filtering, into modern functional requirements. Driven by the transition to universal, high-speed school connectivity, the revised framework should shift from individual device protection to centralized security management, whether cloud-based, hybrid, or regionalized, robust student data privacy, and network-level threat mitigation.
Responsibilities
The consultant will be responsible for conducting a comprehensive technical gap analysis of the current 2021 standards document, identifying technical bottlenecks, obsolete parameters in desktop, notebook, and server configurations, and procurement limitations caused by rigid hardware metrics. They will map out areas that must be converted into functional and performance-based specifications. Additionally, the consultant will identify and analyze emerging technological trends relevant to the 21st-century classroom, including the modernization of cybersecurity and online safety. This involves assessing current ICT infrastructure, evaluating existing policies and standards, and researching best practices in educational technology and digital transformation. The consultant will also be tasked with drafting the revised Basic Technical Standards for ICT Tools in Education, ensuring they are performance-based, technologically neutral, socio-economically viable, and incorporate AI and environmental sustainability. This includes updating security baselines to reflect modern centralized security management, robust student data privacy, and network-level threat mitigation, moving beyond the 2021 focus on local device protection.
Work Experience
Minimum of 5 years of progressive experience in ICT policy development, educational technology integration, or technical standards development. Experience with public procurement processes and cybersecurity frameworks is highly desirable.
Skills
ICT policy development, Educational technology integration, Technical standards development, Cybersecurity frameworks, Performance-based specifications, Technological neutrality, AI in education, Environmental sustainability in ICT, Data privacy, Network security, Gap analysis, Technology trend assessment