Chief Advocacy & Policy

Purpose of the Position UNICEF is looking for a senior social policy and advocacy manager, who will be accountable for senior level engagement in social policy and social protection dialogue with the Government for programme development, advocating for increased public resource allocation and budgeting towards the social sector and sustainable decentralization of social services and local capacity building in support of the goal of universal coverage of essential social services and the creation of a protective environment for children. Conducts data collection and analysis to fill information gaps and to strengthen capacity for advocacy for children’s rights, and to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the UNICEF Strategic Plan 2018-2022.

For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

 Major Duties and Responsibilities

1. Social Policy & Social Protection Dialogue and Programme Development:
   • Participates in senior high level social policy & social protection dialogue, cooperation and dialogue with the Government, engages in and establishes constructive dialogue and partnerships between international and local stakeholders to support the development of social policies and social protection programmes contributing to the progressive realization of children's rights and strengthening of implementation and monitoring mechanisms at all levels of society, and ensures that the services reach out in innovative, effective ways to those most vulnerable pockets of children and families that have been previously left out.
   • Promotes the advocacy for juvenile justice reform, supports child rights-based reviews of national, provincial and local legislation, in close consultation with community-level structures and supports the health and education sectors and the social welfare system for children.

 Monitoring State Budget Resources

• • Monitors and updates current information on state budgeting and spending patterns for social programmes and decentralization status of social services on an on-going basis to support advocacy for greater public resources and budget allocation for social development, the prioritization of resource allocation for children, and universal coverage of essential services for children, to ensure that they reflect the best interest of children.

 Sustainable Decentralization and Capacity Building

• • Where the national decentralization process is taking place, collaborates with the central and local authorities to assist in planning, policy discussion and service delivery closely responding to the needs of local communities.
  • Provides on-going support in making decentralization sustainable through adequate local support while keeping decentralized services both accessible and effective.
  • Collaborates with the central and local authorities to strengthen community-based capacity on quality data collection, analysis for policy development, planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring of social policy and programmes.
  • Develops programme plans of action for children at provincial and district/municipality levels; strengthens coordination between sectors and between different levels of government structures for policy implementation.

 Data Collection, Analysis and Results-Based Approach

• • Collects systematically qualitative data for the sound and up-to-date assessment of the situation of children and women to provide the base-lines for result-based decisions on interventions and evaluations. Develops information systems for monitoring child rights indicators, with emphasis on community and child participation and gender equality.
  • Provides timely, regular data-driven analysis for effective prioritization, planning, and development; facilitates results-based management for planning, adjusting, and scaling-up specific social policy initiatives. Support maintenance of information system for monitoring gender/sex disaggregated data.
  • Analyses the macroeconomic context of social policy programmes and its impact on social development, emerging issues and social policy concerns, as well as implications for children, and proposes and promotes appropriate responses in respect of such issues and concerns, including government resource allocation policies and the effect of social welfare policies on the rights of children.

 Advocacy and Communication

• • Promotes and raises awareness on children's rights with both the general public and with policy makers, utilizing effective information dissemination, mass media campaign, special events, and other means, to ensure local buy-in, commitment, and continued relevance of UNICEF programming. Highlight interventions to attain social policy goals which are designed to reduce inequalities and disparities.

 Partnerships

• • Establishes effective partnerships with the Government, bilateral and multilateral donors, NGOs, civil society and local leaders, the private sector, and other UN agencies to support sustained and proactive commitment to the Convention of the Rights of the Child and to achieve global UN agendas such as the Millennium Development Goals and the World Fit for Children (WFFC) agenda.  
  • Identifies other critical partners, promotes awareness and builds capacity of partners, and actively facilitates effective collaboration within the UN family.

• UNICEF Programme Management
  • Supports and contributes to effective and efficient planning, management, coordination, monitoring and evaluation of the country programme, with attention to gender equality, identify and track gender inequalities and promote intervention to strengthen gender equality.
  • Ensures that the social planning project enhances policy dialogue, planning, supervision, technical advice, management, training, research and support; and that the monitoring and evaluation component strengthens monitoring and evaluation of the social sectors and provides support to sectoral and decentralized information systems.

 Qualifications and Competencies of Successful Candidate

 Education:

 Advanced* university degree in Social Sciences, International Relations, Political Science, International Finance, public relations, or other relevant disciplines.

*First university degree with additional two-years of relevant work experience may be exceptionally considered in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Work Experience:

• Eight years of relevant senior professional work experience in social policy and advocacy, preferably within a humanitarian context, and/or government institution.
• Previous similar experience with International NGOs and/or UN Agencies is an asset.
• Background/familiarity with Emergency work related activities is an asset.

 Languages:

 Fluency in English and another UN language.

Fluency in English and local working language of the duty station are essential for the national professional post.

Competency Profile (For details, please refer to UNICEF Professional Competency Profiles)

 i) Core Values (Required)

• Commitment
• Diversity and Inclusion
• Integrity

1. Core Competencies (Required)

• Communication [ III ]
• Working with People   [ II ]      
• Drive for Results   [ II ]

1. Functional Competencies (Required)

• Leading and Supervising [ II ]                      
• Formulating Strategies and Concepts  [ II ]
• Analyzing   [ III]
• Relating and Networking  [ III ]
• Persuading and Influencing  [ II ]
• Planning and Organizing  [ III ]
•  

HOW TO APPLY

 Qualified candidates are requested to complete an online candidate profile in http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/ by 31 March 2017. Only applications sent through the e-recruitment portal under Job Number: 503399 will be considered.

 Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages qualified female and male candidates from all national, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of our organization.