The incumbent will be embedded into the Social Policy and Research team of UNICEF. He/she will provide support and contribute towards strengthened budget planning and monitoring in the social sectors, support effective coordination mechanisms in place to integrate human development interventions at district level and will contribute towards enhanced community participation and strengthened district capacity to deliver integrated human development services.

Under the overall supervision of the Social Policy Specialist, Public Finance, the UN Volunteer will perform the following tasks:

Strengthen capacity of local governments to plan, budget, consult on and monitor child-focused social services:
• Collaborate with central and local authorities to improve policies, planning, budgeting, consultation and accountability processes so that decisions and child-focused service delivery more closely responds to the needs of local communities;
• Support the central and local authorities to strengthen capacity on quality data collection, analysis for policy development, planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring of essential social services, with emphasis on community participation and accountability.

Improve use of public financial resources for children:
• Undertake budget analysis to inform UNICEF’s advocacy and technical assistance to Ministries of Finance, planning commissions and social sector ministries to improve equitable allocations for essential services for children; Work with sector colleagues to build capacity to undertake costing and cost effectiveness analysis on priority interventions to help in-form policy decisions on child-focused investments;
• Support the identification of policy options for improved domestic financing of child-sensitive social protection interventions;
• Undertake and build capacity of partners for improved monitoring and tracking of public expenditure to support transparency, accountability and effective financial flows for essential service delivery, including through support to district level planning, budgeting and public financial management as well as facilitating community participation.

Strengthen social protection coverage and impact for children:
• Support the development of social protection policies, legislation and programmes with attention to increasing coverage of and impact on children, with special attention on the most marginalized; Identify, generate and present evidence to support this goal in collaboration with partners;
• Support strengthening of integrated social protection systems, providing technical support to partners to improve the design of cash transfers and child grants and improve linkages with other social protection interventions such as health insurance, public works and social care services as well as complementary services and intervention related to nutrition, health, education, water and sanitation, child protection and HIV;
• Support improved monitoring and research around social protection impact on child out-comes, and use of data and research findings for strengthening programme results.

UNICEF Programme Management:
• Assist to manage and coordinate technical support around child poverty, social protection, public finance and governance ensuring it is well planned, monitored, and implemented in a timely fashion so as to adequately support scale-up and delivery. Ensures risk analysis and risk mitigation are embedded into overall management of the support, in close consultation with UNICEF programme sections, Cooperating Partners, and Governments;
• Support and contribute to effective and efficient planning, management, coordination, monitoring and evaluation of the country programme; Ensure 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 in-formation systems.

Improved data on child poverty & vulnerability for increased use for policy and programme action:
• Support the collection, analysis and user-friendly presentation of data on multidimensional and monetary child poverty, including strengthening national capacity to collect routinely, report and use data for policy decision making;
• Provide 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 to reduce child poverty;
• Analyse the macroeconomic context 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 re-source allocation policies and the effect of social welfare policies on the rights of children.

Strengthened advocacy and partnerships for child-sensitive social policy:
• Support correct and compelling use of data and evidence on the situation of children and coverage and impact of child focused services – in support of the social policy programme and the country programme overall;
• Establish 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 Sustainable Development Goals;
• Identify other critical partners, promote awareness and builds capacity of partners, and actively facilitate effective collaboration within the UN family.

• Integrity
• Accountability
• Commitment
• Planning
• Teamwork
• Communication
• Professionalism

Decentralization, Public Finance and/or Social Accountability, Social Policy, or Local Governance in a Governmental or international development context;
• Proven track record of working with district or sub-district structures is an asset;
• Good interpersonal, networking and communication skills;
• Fluency in English is required;
• Fluency in one of the local languages spoken in Luapula and or North-Western Provinces is required.

Zambia is a land-linked country with a population estimated at 18 million. It is a resource-rich country with sparsely populated land in the centre of Southern Africa. It shares its border with eight countries (Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe) that serve as an expanded market for its goods. Lusaka became the capital city of Zambia in May 1935. Lusaka’s central position in Zambia and its pleasant climate were two of the main reasons for its selection as the capital. It is a metropolis, which provides a home to about two and half million (3.3 M) inhabitants of different nationalities. It has grown to become the seat of the Government of the Republic of Zambia and as such all diplomatic missions, international organizations, industrial and commercial entities are based there. Its political, social, economic, and cultural significance has also increased through the years.

Public transport is provided by private operators using minibuses and taxis. The bus routes are not mapped, and roads are often congested. Good modern housing for rent is available on the open market. The official language is English, which is widely spoken. The country is generally food secure, with sufficient local fresh fruits and vegetables available in the markets, as well as various dairy, poultry and meat products. There are several international schools using the Cambridge GCSE or IGCSE syllabi, from key stage one through to A levels. Health conditions are generally good, although malaria is endemic. Zambia is generally a safe place to live in, although not free of crime. Some prudence is required. For more info, visit: http://www.zambiatourism.com; https.

Applicants from Mansa or Luapula Province and Solwezi or North-Western Province are strongly encouraged to apply.