Evaluation Officer, NO-A, Pacific Multi-Country Office, Suva, Fiji, #126522 (Temporary Appointment, 364 days)

UNICEF Pacific is seeking to recruit an Evaluation Officer at the NO-A level on a temporary appointment of 364 days to be based in the Pacific Multi-Country Office in Suva, Fiji.

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, hope.  

In the Pacific we work in Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu: These 14 Pacific island countries are home to 2.3 million people, including 1.2 million children and youth, living on more than 660 islands and atolls stretching across 17.2 million square kilometers of the Pacific Ocean, an area comparable to the combined size of the United States of America and Canada. Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu are classified as Fragile States according to World Bank/OECD criteria. 

All 14 Pacific Island countries and territories have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, but only a third are on track with reporting obligations. Explore the different areas of our work in the link provided here. 

How can you make a difference? 

The Evaluation Officer reports to the Evaluation Specialist for supervision. The Officer provides professional technical, operational and administrative assistance throughout the evaluation process, in preparing, executing, managing and implementing a variety of tasks that contribute to evaluation planning, implementation, and reporting to ensure that evaluations are carried out according to schedule, and that results and recommendations are implemented, used and followed up in the 14 Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs). 

Under the guidance of the Evaluation Specialist the Officer will strengthen evaluation partnerships, toward national and Pacific wide evaluation capacity building and innovation in localized evaluation approaches.  This in turn will help strengthen the UNICEF Pacific evaluation processes, systems and tools, and provide technical analytical and methodological support across the multi-country office and field offices.  

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:  

1. Evaluation project cycle

Under the guidance of the Multi-Country Evaluation Specialist: 

• Undertake evaluability assessments of themes in the costed evaluation plan and other cross-sectoral assistance as required, and assist in the actioning of recommendations to improve the evaluability of themes.
• Draft and/or develop terms of reference for external consultants and initiate the recruitment process to ensure the timely selection and recruitment of evaluators. Support the management of various processes of assessing and/or selecting consultant and evaluation teams to facilitate the recruitment/selection process.
• Organize materials, briefings and all required administrative arrangements to ensure external consultants are provided appropriate and comprehensive information to start and continue effectively and efficiently the conduct of evaluations.
• Participate in evaluations as an embedded member of the evaluation team with the consent of the regional evaluation adviser and following due consideration of risks and benefits.
• Organize validation workshops to discuss evaluation findings with the evaluation team, and facilitate the wide involvement of stakeholders including community members where feasible.
• Monitor and quality check the evaluation products according to the terms of reference, UNICEF guidelines and quality standards (e.g. GEROS).
• Facilitate the dissemination, use, and learning from evaluation evidence by preparing presentations, organizing consultations, and preparing evaluation communication products for diverse audiences on relevant platforms.
• Update the UNICEF tracking platform for evaluative evidence (EISI) and the regional office evaluation tracker throughout the project cycle of the evaluation.
• Carry out any other evaluation project cycle tasks as necessary.

1. Evaluation practice, systems and tools

• Assist with introduction, development and use of culturally responsive, participatory, localized evaluation design and associated theory of change design, data collection methods and analytical frameworks.
• Assist in the identification of data gaps and opportunities to establish ongoing systems for data collection to improve evaluation against targets.
• Review and propose refinements to the multi-country office standard operating procedures for evaluation.
• Support review of tools and guidance from the Monitoring, Research, Evaluation, Studies Committee (MRESC).

1. Partnerships and capacity building in evaluation

• Build and strengthen partnerships with national governments, local universities, research institutes, private sector, and NGOs for relevant, efficient, and innovative models of evaluation.
• Facilitate evaluation capacity strengthening of national partners through their involvement in evaluation processes and possibly through specific capacity building initiatives.
• Research and report on innovative approaches for developing planning of knowledge products and evaluation systems.
• Participate as a resource person in capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of partners, stakeholders, and UNICEF Pacific multi-country office and field offices.

1. Evaluative analytical and methodological support

• Provide technical analytical and methodological advisory support to the sectoral and cross-sectoral programmes and field offices for assessing output and outcome level results.
• Identify, capture, synthesize and share lessons learned from evaluations for integration into annual reports, donor reports, mid-year reviews, annual work plans, moments of reflection and other key programme milestones.

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

Education 

• A university degree with some training in research methods is required, preferably supplemented by an advanced degree in the social sciences, economics, public policy, or statistics.

Work experience 

• A minimum of one year of professional experience in implementing evaluation or research of social or development programmes is required.
• Experience in supporting national capacity in evaluation or research and working with academia and research institutes is required.
• Experience in evaluation or research design, qualitative and quantitative data collection, data cleaning and validation, data analysis and interpretation is required. Familiarity with UNICEF and UNEG norms and standards for evaluation in the UN System would be desirable.
• Familiarity with related evidence functions is an asset, including Social Policy, Public Policy, Programme Audit, and Programme Monitoring.
• Experience in both development and humanitarian contexts is an added advantage.

Languages 

• Fluency in English is required.  Knowledge of the local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate… 

UNICEF’s values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS). 

The functional 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)
• Drive to Achieve Impactful Results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

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

Remarks 

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization. 

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. 

With regard to higher educational qualifications, UNICEF only considers degrees obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU) / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed at http://www.whed.net/ 

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 also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. 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.  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. 

Internal and external candidates are welcome to apply. 

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