Contract Duration – 8 months

Working arrangement: Home Based

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 for as long as we are needed. 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 professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

TERMS OF REFERENCE

Governments across Africa forgo significant revenue through tax expenditures such as exemptions, deductions, credits, preferential rates and tax holidays. In 32 African countries with available data, these incentives cost at least USD 56 billion annually, equivalent to 2% of GDP and 18% of tax revenue in the median country. Unlike direct spending, tax expenditures are rarely scrutinized, approved, time-limited or evaluated, and little is known about who benefits. Most reported tax expenditures lack a clear policy objective, beneficiary group or sector classification, making their impacts on children and poor households largely invisible at a time of rising fiscal pressure and debt burdens. This assignment will assess the scale, composition and equity implications of tax expenditures across Africa, examine how they are granted and reviewed, identify lessons from reform efforts, and support UNICEF country offices in engaging governments on the issue.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy on the detailed deliverables and expected outcomes, please review the complete Terms of Reference here: TMC0006094 TOR.pdf

Minimum requirements:

Include the minimum requirements as per the approved TOR. Ensure that the vacancy criteria are fully aligned with the qualification for the assignment.

Education: Master’s - Economics, public finance, taxation, public policy, development economics or a closely related field

Work Experience:

• Minimum seven years of professional experience in tax policy, public finance or domestic revenue mobilisation, including substantive work in African contexts.

• Demonstrated experience analysing tax expenditures, tax incentives or fiscal cost estimation. Familiarity with the Global Tax Expenditures Database, the Global Tax Expenditures Transparency Index or equivalent national tax expenditure reporting is a strong advantage.

Skills:

• Strong quantitative and data analysis skills, including demonstrated ability to construct comparable cross-country datasets from heterogeneous national sources and to produce clear, publication-quality data visualisations.

• Demonstrated ability to analyse the distributional and equity impacts of fiscal policy. Experience with child-focused or poverty-focused public finance analysis is an advantage.

• Track record of producing analytical writing of publication standard for both technical and policy or advocacy audiences.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required. Working proficiency in French is highly desirable, given the concentration of detailed tax expenditure reporting in francophone West Africa.

Desirables:

Established professional networks among relevant institutions (COATE member organisations, ATAF, ATRN, ICTD, ODI Global, IISD) an advantage.

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 promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

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 based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. 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 verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal (Talent Management System):

An up-to-date TMS profile and curriculum vitae (CV)
Cover letter
A separate financial proposal TMC0006094 Financial proposal.docx

Remarks:

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.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Tax Expenditures in Africa: Scale, Equity Impact and Reform Pathways for Children Consultancy, 8 months, Remote, International