Job Opportunity: Specialist Program at UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund, Cameroon.

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,  Equality

UNICEF has been working in Cameroon since 1975 to allow women and children to fully realize their rights to development without restriction, as enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. UNICEF provides financial and technical support to Cameroon across seven areas to fully realize the rights of women and children. These areas include Health, HIV/AIDS, Water-sanitation-Hygiene, nutrition, education, child protection, and social inclusion. UNICEF focuses mainly on children and the most vulnerable and excluded families. Cameroon’s 2020 population is estimated at 26,545,863 people according to UN data. The population is young and generates strong socioeconomic demand. In rural areas, limited access to basic social services and the effects of climate change lead to household impoverishment and severe child deprivations. The task is immense but not insurmountable; it requires the energy of all stakeholders in Cameroon and outside of Cameroon: also, women, men, youth and children, government, technical and financial partners, donors, civil society, the private sector, parliamentarians, communities. Everyone is invited to participate in the struggle to meet the challenges ahead. Together, we will act for Cameroon, a country that summarizes the challenges and hopes of Africa.

To learn more about UNICEF Cameroon, use the below:

link  https://unicef.sharepoint.com/sites/CMR/SitePages/AboutUs.aspx

How can you make a difference?

In alignment with the GAP, the role of the Gender Program Specialist is primarily technical and programmatic, with the normative advocacy and coordination roles serving a secondary function. Under the direct supervision of the Deputy Representative, the Program Specialist (Gender and Adolescents) provides technical guidance/operational support throughout all stages of programming to facilitate the management and delivery of results contributing to gender equality and adolescent development and participation in alignment with the Gender Action Plan. S/he:

1) supports the development, implementation, and monitoring of high-quality gender and adolescence programming across sectors.

2) supports senior program colleagues and management of the Country Office to mainstream gender and adolescent participation by prioritizing key results within relevant sector(s) and sub-sectors;

3) leads cross-sectional collaboration and coordination on key programmatic results on gender and adolescence, ensuring coherence, maximization of synergies and efficiency in utilization of resources and delivery of results;

4) works with program colleagues and management so that gender and adolescence results are effectively defined, measured, and reported, and high quality assessment, research, evidence generation and evaluation is undertaken and utilized,;

5) Supports/leads effective review, assessment, planning, capacity building, and knowledge management on gender and adolescent development and participation;

6) Supports the assessment and identification of gender and adolescence needs for emergency preparedness and response, and provides gender and adolescence-relevant guidance and technical input on emergency programming.

Key functions and accountabilities include:

1. Management and/or advisory support to Deputy Representative, or Representative
2. Support to program/project development and planning
3. Program management, monitoring and delivery of results
4. Advisory services and technical support
5. Advocacy, networking and partnership building
6. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

 118272_Specialist Program (Gender Adolescent) P-3.doc

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

• Advanced university degree (Masters or higher) in the social sciences (ie sociology, demography, psychology, political science, social policy or economics), public health, public policy, public administration, international development, or in an area relevant to UNICEF’s sectoral work (eg Health, Nutrition, WASH, Education, Child Protection, Social Inclusion, HIV/AIDs, etc.).
• Academic credentials in gender are a strong asset.
• Minimum five years of progressively responsible professional experience and demonstrated track record of having undertaken and led substantive programming and research on gender and development in key issue areas that are the focus of UNICEF’s Gender Action Plan.
• Experience in designing, implementing, managing, and delivering results-based programs/projects on gender and development or any other cross cutting program, especially at country/field level, experience in emergency response is an asset.
• Fluency in both English and French is required.

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.

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 including 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 promoting 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.

Notes:

UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female are encouraged to apply.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

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 who 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 advanced to the next stage of the selection process.