UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, Connectivity

The Office of Innovation (OoI) is a critical driver of UNICEF’s mission, leveraging expertise and resources from across the organization and its partners to address key challenges facing children worldwide. By continuously ideating, testing, and scaling the most impactful solutions, the OoI plays a pivotal role in advancing the Sustainable Development Goals related to children.

Giga (giga.global), an initiative launched in 2019 as a joint effort between UNICEF and ITU (itu.int), seeks to connect every school in the world to the internet, thereby addressing the growing digital divide. With over 75 years of experience in delivering emergency assistance, technical advice, and building systems in health, education, and child protection, UNICEF, through Giga, aims to provide children with access to information, opportunity, and choice. The initiative not only focuses on connectivity but also uses schools as community hubs, creating broader economic and social opportunities.

The Giga team (https://giga.global/about-us/) has experience and background in building technology products, finance and investment, design, and infrastructure. It’s a global team, with two “centres of gravity” (in Barcelona, Spain and Geneva, Switzerland) with many team members located around the world.

Giga works across three main areas: Mapping, Finance, and Market Influence and Procurement. The Country Engagement Team supports the initiation and implementation of all three areas of Giga’s support in countries. The Mapping team maps schools and their connectivity, creating a real-time display of access and need on Project Connect (https://projectconnect.unicef.org/map). The Finance team works to create the financing (grant, loan, and investment) for connectivity. The Market Influence and Procurement team works closely with UNICEF Supply Division to support governments through public procurement processes for contracting sustainable, high quality and affordable school connectivity. There are also cross-cutting teams that support on communications, partnerships, staff wellbeing, and operations.

Giga is building a Global Connectivity Marketplace. The marketplace is envisioned to operate at the intersection of a carbon credits market and a universal service/access fund, serving as a catalyst for incentivizing connectivity in individual countries by issuing tokens for companies connecting rural areas, underserved populations, and public facilities. Companies can redeem these credits for varied incentives, including tax reliefs, through the respective Ministry of Finance or regulatory bodies, subject to individual country determinants.

The team functions similar to a tech start-up, but within the United Nations. We aim to have agility and flexibility in how we work, and to be driven by real time data about what we are doing. We also work within the political and global framework of the UN, which means that we can collaborate with policy makers and regulators, governments, civil society, and of course, most closely with our 135 country offices, in everything we do.

How can you make a difference?

Under the general guidance and direction of the Senior Adviser (Giga Financing and Market Shaping), the position will lead the operations and strategic development of a Global Connectivity Marketplace. He/she will (1) Conceptualize and drive the development of the marketplace, (2) oversee partnership building and stakeholder management activities, (3) manage the connectivity credits team, (4) ensure the legal and regulatory compliance of the marketplace, (5) lead the financial structuring and sustainability of the platform (6) lead communication and advocacy of the marketplace.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Conceptualize and drive the development of the marketplace:

• Develop a comprehensive understanding and layout of the Marketplace, addressing domicile, regulatory, legal, and financial frameworks.
• Work closely with the Giga Center in Barcelona to coordinate the development of country-level instances of the marketplace.
• Regular reporting and monitoring.

Oversee partnership building and stakeholder management activities:

• Forge strong alliances with global governments, with a keen emphasis on Swiss Government relationships.
• Develop corporate partnerships to ensure the marketplace’s supranational functionality, engaging with global tech companies.
• Support Giga’s partnerships team to grow and monitor existing partnerships related to the marketplace.

Manage the connectivity credits team:

• Recruit, lead, and manage a multidisciplinary team, including technologists in Geneva, responsible for building and supporting the global marketplace.
• Oversee the connectivity credits team members in Barcelona, ensuring cohesive development of the marketplace at the country level.

Ensure the legal and regulatory compliance of the marketplace:

• Collaborate with local legal resources in Geneva to explore and understand the diverse regulatory landscapes and options available for the marketplace.
• Work closely with the legal team at UNICEF to ensure legal compliance.

Lead the financial structuring and sustainability of the platform:

• Develop robust business cases focusing on independent financing and cash flows to ensure the long-term viability and sustainability of the marketplace.
• Strategize the pathway for the marketplace’s evolution into an autonomous decentralized entity, maintaining UNICEF, ITU, and other Swiss interests in governance structures.
• Create a comprehensive plan for the potential spinoff of the marketplace, envisioning its transition into a decentralized entity with varied stakeholders on the governance board.

Lead communication and advocacy for the marketplace:

• Develop foundational communication materials in collaboration with Giga’s communication team, focusing on clarity, accessibility, and extensive reach.
• Advocate for the marketplace’s objectives, aligning efforts with ITU to ensure compliance and compatibility with regulators through its network

Minimum requirements:

Education:

• Advanced University Degree (Master’s or higher) in business development, economy, computer science or related degree is required

Work Experience:

• At least 8 years of relevant work experience in managing and scaling technology-driven marketplaces or platforms, with a focus on innovative financing and partnership models in the public or private sector is required.
• Experience working with public and private sector stakeholders
• Experience working with software products and service delivery.
• Experience working with development or humanitarian programmes. Familiarity with the UN system and UNICEF is desired.

Skills:

• Technical understanding of international financial institutions and/ or blockchain technology and decentralized systems and blockchain networks (e.g. DLT, Bitcoin and Ethereum, DApps, DeFi, DAOs).
• Deep knowledge of Telecommunications (TMT) and particularly engagements around universal service funds and universal access funds

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others

(8) Nurtures, leads and manages people.

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.