Education Specialist (Access to Education and Inclusion) – P3

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 Government of Kenya has allocated a significant budget to education, to implement reforms such as the Competency-Based Curriculum and a 100 percent transition from primary to secondary school. However, issues such as poor-quality teaching and large class sizes still affect the quality of children’s learning. The pupil-to-teacher ratio remains very high in some counties, such as 77 to 1 in Turkana.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, nationwide enrollment in primary education stood at 93 percent, but at the secondary level was only 53 percent. Kenya has made gains in reaching remote areas and disadvantaged communities at the primary and pre-primary levels. In pastoral communities, high dropout rates reflect a perceived lack of value in schooling, long distances to schools, and high rates of child marriage. In 2020, school closures interrupted learning for over 17 million children, who missed more than six months of formal education. They also faced increased risks of violence, child labor, and their mental well-being.

 

How can you make a difference?

The Education Specialist supports the development and preparation of the Education (or a sector of) programmes and is responsible for managing, implementing, monitoring, evaluating and reporting the progress of education programmes/projects within the country programme. The Specialist provides technical guidance and management support throughout the programming processes to facilitate the administration and achievement of results on education programmes/projects to improve learning outcomes and equitable and inclusive education, especially for children who are marginalized, disadvantaged, and excluded in society.   The Education Specialist contributes to the achievement of results according to plans, allocation, results-based-management approaches and methodology (RBM), as well as UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, standards of performance, and accountability framework.

 

Key Functions and Accountabilities

Support to access to education and inclusion programme development and planning 

▪ Support the preparation, design, and updating of the situation analysis for the education programmes to ensure that current and comprehensive data on education issues is available to guide UNICEF’s strategic policy, advocacy, intervention, and development efforts on education programmes. 

▪ Help the supervisor set priorities, strategies, design, and implementation plans. Keep abreast of development trends to enhance programme management, efficiency, and delivery. 

▪ Participate in strategic programme discussions on the planning of education programmes. Formulate, design and prepare programme proposals for the sector, ensuring alignment with UNICEF’s Strategic Plans and Country Programme and coherence/integration with the UN Support to Development and Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), regional strategies and national priorities, plans, and competencies. 

▪ Establish specific goals, objectives, strategies, and implementation plans for the sector using results-based planning terminology and methodology (RBM). Prepare required documentation for programme review and approval. 

▪ Work closely and collaboratively with internal colleagues and partners to discuss strategies and methodologies, and to determine national priorities to ensure the achievement of concrete and sustainable results. 

▪ Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes and ensure integration, coherence, and harmonization of programmes/projects with other UNICEF sectors and achievement of results as planned and allocated.     

 

Access to education and inclusion programme management, monitoring, and delivery of results 

▪ Plan and collaborate with internal colleagues and external partners to establish monitoring benchmarks, performance indicators, and other UNICEF/UN system indicators to assess/strengthen performance accountability, coherence, and delivery of concrete and sustainable results for the assigned sector on education programmes. 

▪ Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, programme reviews, and annual reviews with the government and other counterparts to assess progress and to determine required action/interventions to achieve results. 

▪ Prepare and assess monitoring and evaluation reports to identify gaps, strengths, and weaknesses in programme management. ▪ Identify lessons learned and use knowledge gained for development planning and timely intervention to achieve goals. 

▪ Actively monitor programmes/projects through field visits and surveys, and exchange information with stakeholders to assess progress, identify bottlenecks and potential problems, and make timely decisions to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for timely resolution. 

▪ Monitor and verify the optimum and appropriate use of sectoral programme resources (financial, administrative, and other assets) confirming compliance with organizational rules, regulations/procedures, donor commitments, standards of accountability, and integrity, ensuring timely reporting and liquidation of resources. 

▪ Prepare regular and mandated programme reports for management, donors, and partners to keep them informed of programme progress.   

 

Technical and operational support to access to education and inclusion programme implementation 

▪ Provide technical guidance and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and country office partners and donors on interpretation, application, and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes, and best practices and approaches on education and related issues to support programme management, implementation and delivery of results. 

▪ Arrange/coordinate the availability of technical experts with the Regional Office/HQ to ensure timely and appropriate support throughout the programming process. 

▪ Participate in education programme meetings including programme development and contingency planning to provide technical and operational information, advice, and support. 

▪ Draft policy papers, briefs, and other strategic programme materials for management use.   

 

Networking and partnership building 

 Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with relevant government counterparts, national stakeholders, global partners, donors, and academia through active networking, advocacy, and effective communication to build capacity, exchange knowledge/expertise, and reinforce cooperation to achieve sustainable and broad results on education programmes. 

 Prepare communication and information materials for CO programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships and support fundraising for education programmes. 

▪ Participate and/or represent UNICEF in appropriate inter-agency (UNCT) discussions on education and related issues to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNSDCF planning and preparation of programmes/projects ensuring organizational position, interests, and priorities are fully considered and integrated into the UNSDCF process in development planning and agenda setting. 

 

Innovation, knowledge management, and capacity building 

▪ Apply and introduce innovative approaches and good practices to build the capacity of partners and stakeholders and to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable programme results. 

 Keep abreast, research, benchmark, and implement best practices in education management. Assess, institutionalize, and share best practices and knowledge learned. 

▪ Contribute to the development and implementation of policies and procedures to ensure optimum efficiency and efficacy of sustainable programmes and projects. 

Organize and implement capacity-building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders to promote sustainable results in education and related programmes/projects.

 

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

• Advanced University Degree (Master’s required) degree in Business Administration, Social Science, Public Administration/Policy, International Development, or other related or relevant field. Additional 2 years of relevant experience and an undergraduate degree can be accepted in lieu of the advanced degree.
• A minimum of five years of professional experience in programme planning, management, and/or education research is required.
• Experience working in a developing country is considered an asset.
• Experience working in education programme particularly focusing on access to education and inclusion portfolio is a must.
• Experience working in UNICEF is a must.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

 

Technical Competencies

Technical competencies must be demonstrated in the following areas: 

Some understanding of the overall global development context, including issues such as poverty, climate induced emergencies and the impact of these factors on education and vice-versa; and integrated, multi-sectoral approaches to address such issues in collaboration with other sectors (including Innovation, Social Policy, Child Protection, WASH, and Social Behavioral Change within UNICEF). 

Knowledge of global developments in and managing the portfolio of « out of school children and adolescents » and international engagement strategies, including the application of the equity, gender and integration lenses. 

Some ability to support policy dialogue: translation of analytical findings and evidence into development programme and policy discussions around equity, access and inclusion (with a particular focus on children with disabilities) with partners, including government, development partners, CSOs, and academia in relevant areas. This includes experience in dealing with religious/ quranic schools. 

Some education and policy sector analysis capacity, including understanding of the core education data sets and indicators; tools for analysis of equity; determinants of student access and learning; budget, costing, and financial management in education systems; political economy; and education policy and strategic planning. 

Some programme management in education, including programme design, costing, monitoring and evaluation, and reporting. 

Good knowledge in designing programmes which aims at providing second chance to learning » through offering flexible, relevant, multiple and alternative pathways to education for the out of school children with clear pathways.

 

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

 

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 and (8) Nurtures, leads and manages people.

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

 

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 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 promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, 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.

 

Remarks:

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government 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.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

 

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