Programme Specialist

<!–

Description

–>

How can you make a difference?

Join UNICEF in Advancing Child Mental Health and Psychosocial Support (MHPSS)

As UNICEF drives cross-sectoral progress in the development, evaluation, and roll-out of targeted MHPSS interventions, this role offers a unique opportunity to shape the integration of these critical programs across the organization. You will contribute to creating evidence-based MHPSS interventions, tools, and training materials, supporting their implementation and evaluation in diverse settings. Key responsibilities include providing technical guidance to country and regional offices, ensuring quality and sustainability in MHPSS initiatives, and promoting UNICEF’s global leadership in the field through research and thought leadership. This position directly supports UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, with a focus on Health and Child Protection, and offers the chance to make a meaningful impact on the well-being of children and families worldwide.

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

The role involves extensive programme development, planning, and management, with a focus on enhancing mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) for children and families in humanitarian and development contexts. Key responsibilities include supporting the development of MHPSS proposals and partnerships with a range of stakeholders, including UN agencies, civil society, governments, and academic institutions. This work aims to build innovative, impactful projects that contribute to global evidence and improve practice. The position also involves advising on donor relations, particularly with GIZ and BHA, ensuring alignment with UNICEF’s Strategic Plan and international standards, and contributing to monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on UNICEF’s MHPSS work, both internally and externally.

The role further includes providing technical support for the development and evaluation of new MHPSS interventions, ensuring they incorporate the latest scientific and practice-based evidence. This includes work on interventions like mhGAP for mental health in primary healthcare settings and BLOOM for young children. The position also offers support to regional and country offices in adapting and implementing MHPSS interventions, and ensuring they are integrated with other sectors. Advocacy is a key component, with responsibilities for global coordination, networking, and representing UNICEF at high-level forums to elevate the organization’s leadership in MHPSS for children and families. Additionally, the role involves leading innovation and knowledge management efforts by facilitating the roll-out of new MHPSS interventions, collating evidence on their effectiveness, and ensuring that knowledge is shared and used to improve practice at regional and country levels.

The following minimum requirements:

• An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: psychology, social work or other relevant social welfare, or another relevant technical field.

Work Experience:

• A minimum of 8 years of professional experience in mental health, social work, MHPSS and/other related areas at national or international levels, most of which were served in humanitarian contexts is required.
• Experience in intervention development and evaluation required.

Desirables/Assets:

• Relevant experience in child protection, human rights and related areas, programme/project development and in a UN system agency or organization is an asset.
• Experience in intervention development, research and evaluation, developing comprehensive training and professional development plans for intervention delivery, and knowledge management experience are desirable assets.
• Experience in both development and humanitarian contexts is an added advantage.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English (verbal and written) is required. Knowledge of an additional UN Language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish) is considered an asset.

Source: https://jobs.unicef.org/cw/en-us/job/577212

<!—

<!–

–>