UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.
Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.
And we never give up.
For every child, Education :
The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programmes, in advocacy and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias or favouritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, nutrition, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfil their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.
How can you make a difference?
Under the overall guidance of the Deputy Representative, the Chief of Education is accountable for the development, design, planning, implementation and management of the Education programme within the country programme. As Head of Section, s/he leads a group of professional and support staff to develop and manage the education programme in collaboration with other programmes and sectors and with government and key development partners. S/he is accountable for the overall quality of the programme design and for ensuring that it is effectively and efficiently managed and monitored.
The Chief is responsible for managing and leading all stages of education programs/projects from strategic planning and formulation to delivery of results on strengthening national education systems to improve learning outcomes, universal access to and equitable and inclusive primary/early childhood education and renewing involvement in secondary education especially, for children who are marginalized, disadvantaged and excluded in society.
The Chief is responsible for leading and managing and establishing the plans of action to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable programs/projects results according to plans, allocation, results based-management approaches and methodology (RBM) and UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, standards of performance and accountability framework.
Key Accountabilities and Duties & Tasks
1. Managerial leadership :
- Establish the Section’s annual work plan with the education team; set priorities/targets and performance measurement. Monitor work progress and ensure results are achieved according to schedule and performance standards ;
- Establish clear individual performance objectives, goals and timelines; and provide timely guidance to enable the team to perform their duties responsibly and efficiently. Plan and ensure timely performance management and assessment of the team ;
- Supervise team members by providing them with clear objectives and goals and direction and guidance to enable them to perform their duties responsibly, effectively and efficiently.
2. Program development and planning :
- Lead/support the planning and conduct/update of situation analysis to ensure that current comprehensive and evidence based data are available to guide UNICEF’s strategic policy advocacy, intervention and development efforts on education programs and to set program priorities, strategies, design and implementation plans ;
- Keep abreast of national/regional/international development priorities on education to leverage UNICEF position and competencies with donors, national governments, communities and constituents to advocate/promote education initiatives and policies ;
- Lead, coordinate and supervise the development of education programs/projects (as a full component of the CO and/or UNDAF programs). Establish plans of action, program goals and results, using results-based planning methodology and terminology (RBM) ;
- Oversee the timely preparation of program recommendation and related documentation for inclusion in the Country Office Program recommendation ensuring alignment with the overall UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, regional strategies and national priorities, plans and competencies ;
- Consult and collaborate with national/global colleagues/partners/allies to develop partnerships framework to address specific needs and to leverage resources for enhancing up education programs/projects. Ensure synergy, integration, coherence, and harmonization of programs/projects with UNICEF Strategic Plans and priorities, donors’ development strategies/policies, national priorities/competencies and UN System development interventions/initiatives.
3. Program management, monitoring and quality control of results :
- Coordinate, plan and/or collaborate with monitoring and evaluation initiatives to establish benchmarks, performance indicators and other UNICEF/UN system indicators, to assess/strengthen performance accountability, coherence and delivery of concrete and sustainable results on education programs ;
- Participate in major monitoring and evaluation exercises, program reviews and annual reviews with government and other counterparts to assess progress and to engage stakeholders to take required action/interventions to achieve results ;
- Assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths/weaknesses in program and management, identify lessons learned and use knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve goals ;
- Monitor programs/projects to assess progress, identify bottlenecks and potential problems and take timely decisions to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for timely resolution ;
- Plan, approve, monitor and control the use of program resources (financial, human, administrative and other assets) certifying/verifying compliance with organizational rules, regulations and procedures, donor commitments and standards of accountability and integrity. Ensure timely reporting and liquidation of resources ;
- Submit program/project reports to donors and other partners to keep them informed on program progress and critical issues.
4. Advisory services and technical support :
- Provide technical advice to key government officials, NGO, UN system and other country office partners on strategies and best practices to influence approaches/policies and to support social/economic/political/legal development planning, implementation and delivery of results on education and other related issues ;
- Coordinate/ensure the availability of technical experts (with Regional Office/HQ) to ensure timely support throughout all stages of programming/project processes ;
- Participate in strategic discussions to influence policy and agenda setting for combating all forms of discrimination against children by advising on and advocating strategies and approaches that promote universal access to and equitable and inclusive education for children in the country.
5. Advocacy, networking and partnership building :
- Build and strengthen strategic partnerships through networking and advocacy with local/national governments, UN system agency partners, donors, internationally recognized institutions, NGOs, funding organization, research institutes and private sector to reinforce cooperation and/or pursue opportunities, leverage funds, to promote goals and achieve sustainable and broad results on education learning outcomes and equity and inclusiveness ;
- Develop communication strategies and implementation plans and activities for maximum communication impact and outreach to promote awareness, establish partnership/alliances for sustainable results and support fund raising for UNICEF and Country Office education programs ;
- Participate and/or represent UNICEF in inter-agency (UNCT) discussions and planning on education and related issues to ensure organizational position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in the UNDAF development planning and agenda setting process. Collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues the UNDAF planning and preparation of programs/projects including emergency preparedness.
6. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building :
- Promote critical thinking and innovative approaches and good practices for sustainable education programs/projects initiatives through advocacy and technical advisory services ;
- Keep abreast, research, benchmark, introduce and implement best and cutting edge practices on education programs and management. Institutionalize and disseminate best practices and knowledge learned ;
- Lead and/or develop policies and procedures and introduce innovation and best practices to ensure optimum efficiency and efficacy of sustainable programs and projects ;
- Lead/plan/implement capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders to promote sustainable results on education and related programs/projects.
Qualifications of Successful Candidate :
- An Advanced University Degree in education, economics, psychology, sociology or other social science field is required ;
- A first university degree with a relevant combination of academic qualifications and experience may be accepted in lieu of advanced university degree ;
- Minimum of ten years of progressively responsible relevant work experience in programme planning, management, and/or research in education at the international level, some of which preferably in a developing country is required ;
- Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is an asset ;
- Fluency in English and French is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (i.e. Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Spanish) or a local language is an asset.
For every Child, you demonstrate…
UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, and Accountability (CRITA) and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.
The functional competencies required for this post are…
- Nurtures, Leads and Manages People (2) ;
- Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (3) ;
- Works Collaboratively with others (3) ;
- Builds and Maintains Partnerships (3) ;
- Innovates and Embraces Change (3) ;
- Thinks and Acts Strategically (3) ;
- Drives to achieve impactful results (3) ;
- Manages ambiguity and complexity (3) ;
- Analyzing (3) ;
- Deciding and initiating action (3) ;
- Persuading and influencing (2) .
Technical Knowledge :
- In depth understanding of the overall global development context, including issues such as: poverty, conflict, and the impact of these factors on education and vice-versa; and inter-sectoral approaches to address such issues in collaboration with other sectors (including Social Policy, Child Protection, Nutrition, WASH, Health and Communications within UNICEF) ;
- Extensive knowledge of global developments in education and international engagement strategies, including the application of the equity lens and human rights perspectives to programming, and how to access, critically appraise and apply global research and evidence in education to policy, advocacy and programming ;
- Strong ability to support policy dialogue: translation of analytical findings and evidence into development programmes and policy discussions around equity and learning with partners, including government, development partners, CSOs and academia in the following areas: child development, curriculum, assessment, pedagogy, supplies, quality assurance, etc. ;
- Strong education sector planning knowledge/ability, including the range of modalities for delivering education, linkages between different sub-sectors (e.g. ECD, Primary, Secondary, Tertiary, Inclusive Education), cost-effectiveness and efficiency issues, key institutional structures, components and processes, as well as governance issues ;
- Strong education and policy sector analysis capacity, including understanding of the core education data sets, indicators, tools for analysis of equity, determinants of student access and learning, budget, cost and financing, education system management, political economy and application to education policy and strategic planning ;
- Rigorous programme management in education, including programme design, costing, monitoring and evaluation (including areas like classroom assessment, standardized learning assessment, examinations, impact evaluation) and reporting ;
- Strong ability to support engagement with partners (e.g. Sector Wide Approaches, Global Partnership for Education, Education in Emergency Clusters, Education Provider Forums, Delivering as One, Inter-sectoral partnerships such as in ECD), as well as networking with other key partners ;
- Strong understanding of gender and inequity issues in relation to education and development and the application of gender / equity analysis to policy and planning in education ;
- Strong working knowledge of Excel and of a statistical package software.
View our competency framework at : UNICEF_Competencies.pdf
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 organisation.
Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.
Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.