Social Policy & Economic Specialist - job from UNICEF - United Nations Children's Fund: Kampala, Uganda

Position title:  Social Policy & Economic Specialist


The Purpose of the Position
You will work closely with the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and other sector ministries to:

1. Under the general guidance of the Social Policy Specialist and close coordination with Alive, Safe and Learning team leaders carry out analysis of the budget and budgeting process and actively participate in relevant budget meetings and events to help ensure effective budget changes that favor women and children within the UNICEF areas of work, with a particular focus on health budgeting.
2. Analyze the Social policy environment and generate evidence for effective advocacy for social budgeting with direct impact on the MDG areas for acceleration.
3. Participate in relevant sector meetings and working groups including the Development partners economists group and development partner working groups. Develop key policy briefs for the focus areas and engage in budget revision at national and district levels to influence the allocation.
4. Ensure all UNICEF work, agreements, partnerships, advocacy etc. promotes the achievement of child mortality reduction.
5. Provide technical assistance to harmonize existing health sector costing using `Marginal Budgeting for Bottlenecks` (MBB) Tool and develop and/or strengthen capacity within the Ministry of Health and at District level for the effective application of the MBB tool.
6. Analyse UDHS, UNHS and other relevant household surveys to provide relevant analysis for UNICEF advocacy, particularly in the area of health.

The Key Expected Results

1. Analysis of the national and district budgets focusing on the areas of acceleration to achieve the MDGs. Actively participate in relevant budget related meetings.
2. Prepare policy papers that on UNICEF work areas that will form the basis for advocacy with Government, bilateral partners and NGOs.This should include as relevant focus analysis of relevant household surveys.
3. Active engagement with Social Sector ministries and relevant development partner meetings to advocate for increased budget allocation and accountability by the sectors with a focus on the health sector.
4. Support Budget reviews at district level and provide technical support to district officials in rational budget allocation in key areas of UNICEF Uganda`s work
5. Provide technical assistance to harmonize existing health sector costings using MBB with a focus on costing of the Child Survival Strategy and harmonizing it with the the Road map on Maternal and Neonatal Mortality Reduction. Develop and/ or strengthen capacity within the Ministry of Health and at District level for the effective application of the MBB tool.
6. In close collaboration with other UN agencies and bilateral partners influence the budget support review and influence its allocation towards achieving the MDGs
7. Identify and initiate socio economic studies required for improved advocacy towards resource allocation.
8. Participates in the preparation of all programme reports for management, Board, donors, budget reviews, programme analysis, annual reports, etc.

The Qualifications of Successful Candidate -

• Advanced university degree in economics, development planning, social policy, administration and or related fields.* -
• Five years of progressively responsible relevant work experience at national or international levels in social policy and economic and policy analysis. Experience in working within the health sector and/or within multilateral financing institutions an advantage. -
• Good knowledge of economics and financing of social development. -
• Quantitative and qualitative research skills. Ability to handle and analyse DHS surveys using Stata and/or SPSS would be a considerable asset. -
• Fluency in English is required.
• *A first level university degree with a relevant combination of academic qualifications and experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Key Skills and Competencies of Successful Candidate -

• Communicates effectively to varied audiences, including during formal public speaking. -
• Able to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment. -
• Sets high standards for quality of work and consistently achieves project goals. -
• Has good leadership and supervisory skills; co-ordinates group activities, ensuring that roles within the team are clear. -
• Translates strategic direction into plans and objectives. -
• Analyzes and integrates diverse and complex quantitative and qualitative data from a wide range of sources. -
• Quickly builds rapport with individuals and groups; maintains an effective network of individuals across organizational departments. -
• Identifies urgent and potentially difficult decisions and acts on them promptly; initiates and generates team- and department-wide activities. -
• Demonstrates, applies and shares expert technical knowledge across the organization.

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.

How tot apply for this Job
Apply from: Employers website
The Applications Closing date: Friday, 21 February 2014