LRPS-2026-9205216 Research services on healthy nutrition awareness and practices among children and caregivers for UNICEF Ukraine CO

UNICEF has now issued a Request for Proposals in order to select a supplier for Research services on healthy nutrition awareness and practices among children and caregivers for UNICEF Ukraine CO. Only for national vendors (non-VAT payers)

Healthy nutrition is one of the most important determinants of children's growth, cognitive development, learning outcomes, physical health, and long-term well-being. Dietary habits established during childhood often persist into adulthood, making early interventions critical for preventing obesity, non-communicable diseases, micronutrient deficiencies, and other health risks. At the same time, children's eating behaviours are strongly influenced by their family environment, food availability, social norms, school food environments, and broader socioeconomic conditions. Since 2020, Ukraine has been implementing a comprehensive school nutrition reform initiated by First Lady Olena Zelenska and supported by the Government of Ukraine, UNICEF, and development partners. The reform aims to improve the quality, safety, and nutritional value of meals provided in educational institutions while fostering healthier eating habits among children and their families. Key components include the introduction of updated nutrition standards, modernization of school canteens, capacity building for food service personnel, development of healthy menus, and large-scale communication and behaviour change campaigns promoting healthy nutrition. Evidence collected during the early stages of the reform demonstrated that knowledge about healthy eating does not necessarily translate into healthy dietary practices. A nationwide study conducted by Info Sapiens for UNICEF in 2021 found that while school-aged children generally understood the benefits of consuming vegetables, cereals, legumes, fish, fruits, and other nutritious foods, their actual food choices often differed substantially. Children frequently preferred sweet snacks, confectionery products, pastries, sugary drinks, and other highly processed foods, especially when purchasing food independently. School cafeterias were often perceived as offering food that was either unaffordable or unappealing, leading many children to rely on unhealthy snacks brought from home or purchased elsewhere. The study also highlighted the significant influence of caregivers and family practices on children's eating behaviours. Most families reported eating together at least once daily, and children's food choices closely mirrored parental habits. At the same time, practices such as distracted eating during meals, consumption of high-calorie processed foods, and limited intake of vegetables, fish, legumes, and whole grains remained common. These findings suggested that improving nutrition outcomes requires not only changes in food availability and quality but also shifts in household norms, attitudes, and daily practices. Since 2021, Ukraine has made substantial investments in school nutrition reform, including improvements to school meal standards, expansion of healthy menu options, communication campaigns, educational materials, and public awareness efforts. However, the full-scale war has significantly affected food systems, household incomes, access to nutritious foods, school operations, and family routines. Displacement, economic hardship, psychological stress, and disruptions to educational services may have altered nutrition-related behaviours among both children and caregivers. Given these changes, there is a need for updated evidence on current levels of knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to healthy nutrition among children and caregivers. Understanding what children and caregivers know about healthy eating, how they perceive healthy food, what barriers they face in adopting healthy diets, and how their actual eating behaviours have evolved will help assess progress achieved through the nutrition reform and identify remaining gaps. Such evidence will support UNICEF, government partners, and stakeholders in designing more effective social and behaviour change interventions, strengthening communication strategies, improving school nutrition programming, and promoting healthier dietary habits among Ukrainian children and families.

This tender will be run through the UNICEF e-submissions system.

By clicking on the blue ‘Express Interest’ button in the UNGM tender notice, the full UNICEF e-submission system instructions to bidders document (including instructions on how to access the tender documents and submit an Offer) will be automatically emailed to the ‘contact persons’ included in your UNGM registration. Alternatively, the full UNICEF e-submission system instructions to bidders document is publicly available on the UNICEF supply internet pages here: https://www.unicef.org/supply/index_procurement_policies.html .

In the tender management site, if you navigate to the documents tab and opt in to confirm your intention to submit a Bid – you will then see the mandatory placeholders for documents that must be attached prior to submitting your Offer (you will also see if there are any mandatory questionnaires to complete). As such, you are recommended to `opt in` well before the submission deadline so you are clear exactly what documents are required to be uploaded prior to completing your submission.

Please note that in order to access the tender documentation through UNICEF’s e-submissions system, vendors must: (i) be registered with UNICEF in UNGM as a company/NGO; (ii) have successfully completed all mandatory information currently required by UNGM when registering.

Please ensure that any files submitted as part of your Bid are not corrupt or damaged in any way. Please exercise particular caution when using compressed files. Any corrupt or damaged files may lead to your Bid being invalidated.

All vendors are strongly recommended to regularly log in to the UNICEF e-submissions system to check for any deadline extensions, new clarifications, new correspondence or updated tender documents relating to this tender.

Pre-bid conference will be held online on 27 July 2026 [11:00, Kyiv time].

Interested bidders are required to register for Pre-Bidding Conference by submitting their company name, list of attending representatives and their contact information via the 'Correspondence' tab in the UNICEF e-submission system

Subject: Pre-Bidding Conference Registration

You can join the meeting using the following link:

Microsoft Teams meeting

Join: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/324780763195996?p=V22YjXyvaqXO2xVMBS

Meeting ID: 324 780 763 195 996

Passcode: DP7Wt9Ss