Advocacy Specialist (Child Rights Education and Child Participation), (P-4), TA (364 days), Post # 129809, National Committee Relations, PFP, Geneva, Switzerland

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.

The National Committees for UNICEF operate in 33 high-income countries, and their functions include advocating for increased action by governments and other decision-makers to respect, protect and fulfill children’s rights nationally and globally.

National Committee Relations is the Section in PFP in charge of leading the partnership and relationship with National Committees. Within the Section, the Child Rights Advocacy Unit serves as the primary entry point for support to National Committees in their child rights advocacy activities both domestically and globally. The Unit works in close collaboration with all other relevant divisions and offices to ensure that UNICEF delivers on its commitment to provide access to relevant research, evidence, and information in support of National Committee child rights advocacy strategies as mutually agreed in the Joint Strategic Plans (JSPs).  

Child Rights Education (CRE) is defined for the purpose of this assignment as “teaching and learning about the provisions and principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the ‘child rights approach’ in order to empower both adults and children to take action to advocate for and apply these at the family, school, community, national and global levels.”

‘Child participation’ refers to the direct involvement in advocacy or decision-making of children under the age of 18, in line with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). For the purposes of this assignment, ‘youth engagement’ refers to young adults aged 18 years and above.

For every child, an advocate.

Under the overall guidance and direction of the Chief of Child Rights Advocacy (PFP), and with a dotted line to the Chief of the Human Rights Unit in the Programme Group (PG), the Advocacy Specialist will be responsible for supporting the National Committees in the design, implementation, and monitoring of:

1. Child Rights Education (CRE) initiatives, including but broader than Child Rights Schools (CRS) platform initiatives, undertaken in National Committee countries, and;
2. Child Participation and Youth Engagement (CPYE) initiatives undertaken by National Committees in the context of their child rights advocacy work.

The work of the Advocacy Specialist is to be divided equally between these two mandates, while identifying and pursuing opportunities for synergies across these two related fields of work.

How can you make a difference?

Support to National Committees:

1. Facilitate the regular interaction of the National Committees through the maintenance of the existing CRE Network and CPYE Working Group, including the organization of regular webinars -and some limited in-person gatherings- for mutual information sharing and exchange of rights-based practices.
2. Facilitate the interaction of the National Committees with the key relevant teams in UNICEF headquarters, particularly Human Rights Unit in Programme Group, Adolescent Development and Participation (ADAP) in Programme Group and Youth Engagement in the Division of Global Communications and Advocacy (DGCA).
3. Proactively share the key global developments in CPYE with National Committees (i.e. policy guidance, new initiatives, strategic documents, etc.), and lead the adaptation required to make them relevant to the National Committee context. Ensure that National Committees are aware of these developments and understand the implications for their work.
4. Promote constant alignment of the work of National Committees with the child rights approach and global UNICEF guidance and frameworks. Identify potential areas of misalignment and address them in a constructive manner with the National Committees and other relevant teams in UNICEF.
5. Promote mutual learning and networking through continuous exchange across countries and key divisions, using a deliberate approach to knowledge management and capacity building.
6. Proactively disseminate the best practices of National Committees throughout the broader UNICEF network, exploring ways to facilitate the exchange with Country Offices.

Monitoring and reporting: 

1. Provide guidance and support to National Committees on monitoring and reporting in the fields of both CRE and CPYE through the JSP and their own national tools and mechanisms.
2. Work with the Unit’s Knowledge Management Specialist in promoting the direct use of the Knowledge Exchange Platform and other collaborative tools by National Committees to facilitate the horizontal exchange of experiences, and proactively explore additional means of knowledge exchange.
3. Contribute to the development of key knowledge and reporting products including PFP and UNICEF Annual Reports, strategic-level meetings and dedicated National Committee products.

Child safeguarding and risk management: 

1. In collaboration with the Child Safeguarding Specialist in the Governance team, support the National Committees to ensure that the best interests of every child are always adequately considered and protected and that the risks associated with both CRE and CPYE are adequately managed.
2. Support National Committees to properly register and monitor any identified risks and risk management strategies as part of the JSP process and contribute to PFP’s risk register accordingly.

Ad-hoc initiatives: 

1. Support UNICEF in liaising with National Committees for the organization of specific initiatives and events involving CRE and/or rights-based CPYE (i.e. U-Report, youth engagement in global events, internal and external consultations, etc.).

DELIVERABLES:

• National Committees are supported on their CRE work around their Joint Strategic Plan and influence planning cycles, in a way that is consistent with the Cooperation Agreement, the Guidance for Programming in High-Income Countries, and globally agreed guidance specifically on CRE.
• National Committees are supported in the inclusion of CPYE in their child rights advocacy work and regularly collaborate with both UNICEF headquarters and other National Committees to share knowledge and opportunities in this area. Children (and youth) from National Committee countries contribute to UNICEF’s global child rights advocacy work in a manner compliant with ethical and safeguarding principles, standards, and practices.
• Knowledge exchange platforms such as SharePoint and Viva Engage (formerly known as Yammer) are regularly updated to support National Committee CRE and CPYE work.
• Compilation and regular dissemination of good practices through the monthly Child Rights Advocacy newsletter, PFP Pulse newsletter, JSP contribution stories, and other UNICEF tools.
• Bilateral support is provided to National Committees as needed, as well as support to headquarters divisions as needed, including in relation to global initiatives on CRE and CPYE involving National Committees.

Estimated Duration of the contract

• 364 days

Reporting To:

• The Chief of the PFP Child Rights Advocacy Unit.

Working Place:

• Geneva, Switzerland is the official duty station.  (Occasional travel to National Committee countries involved).

To qualify as a Champion for every child you will have…

Education:

• An advanced university degree is required in one of the following fields: international development, International Relations, Social studies, or another relevant field.
• Alternatively, a first-level university degree in a relevant field combined with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Minimum of eight (8) years of relevant work experience in child rights, child rights education, child participation, youth engagement, and/or advocacy work is required.
• Familiarity with the work of UNICEF National Committees is an asset.
• Experience working in High-Income Countries is an asset.
• Strong analytical and communication skills.
• Takes ownership and initiative and can work both independently and effectively in a team environment.
• Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills in interacting with colleagues at all levels.
• Demonstrated cultural sensitivity and ability to establish harmonious working relations in a multicultural environment.
• UN/UNICEF experience is an asset.

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…

• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (1)
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drives to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1) are required.

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: our competency framework. 

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 benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, 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.

UNICEF’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children.

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.