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For every child, the right to Health

Job organizational context:

The Programme Specialist – Polio Team Lead, based in Peshawar, provides strategic leadership for UNICEF’s support to Pakistan’s polio eradication programme. Working with the Government and partners, the role advances immunization coverage, strengthens community engagement, addresses vaccine hesitancy, and supports high-quality interventions to reach every child and accelerate progress toward a polio-free Pakistan.

Purpose for the job:

The Programme Specialist – Polio Team Lead in Peshawar reports to the Chief of Field Office (CFO) for general guidance and supervision and will work under technical guidance of the Polio Team Lead and works within the provincial polio emergency operations centre framework to support Programme Operations, Management, Risk Assessment and Decision Support, Detection and Response, Communications and Synergy and additional activities Areas of Work (AOW) and related Task Team.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

The incumbent will be responsible for supporting the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Polio Teams in their day-to-day polio activities and perform the following key functions / accountabilities:

Programme management and planning
Advisory services and technical support
Programme monitoring and delivery of results
Advocacy, networking and partnership building

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: Download File Programme Specialist - Polio Teal Lead in Peshawar P4 2 Nov 2023 (004)_MC.docx

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have…

Minimum Requirements:

Education: An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: Social Sciences, International Relations, Government, Public Administration, Public Policy, Social Policy, Social Development, Community Development, Public health (preferably in epidemiology or child health), pediatric health, family health, health research, global/international health, health policy and/or management, environmental health sciences, biostatistics, socio-medical, health education.
Work Experience: A minimum of eight years of professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: public health (including polio/routine immunization) planning and management, maternal and neonatal health care, or health emergency/humanitarian preparedness.
Skills: Experience working in Programme Management, Team Leadership, Public Health, Monitoring & Evaluation, Partnership Management, Strategic Planning.
Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

Knowledge of local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.
Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) is an asset.
Previous experience in epidemiology specialization, emergency operations centers, C4D, social mobilization, cross-border health programming, routine immunization strengthening are highly desirable.
Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.

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
(8) Nurtures, leads and manages people

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

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 a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation 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, discrimination, fraud, corruption and other forms of serious misconduct.

UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference, safeguarding and background verification checks. These checks may include verification of academic credentials and employment history, screening against relevant United Nations misconduct databases, and requests for misconduct disclosures from current and former employers, professional associations, other relevant organizations and participating organizations under inter-agency safeguarding initiatives, including the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme (MDS), where applicable.

Appointment, selection and continued engagement are subject to the satisfactory completion of all required checks. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information and consent to enable UNICEF to undertake these 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments are conditional on the selected candidates' willingness to comply with current or future vaccination requirements, should UNICEF mandate it for personnel. Failure to comply with such requirements, where applicable and without a duly approved medical exemption from the relevant UN authority, will result in the cancellation of the selection or may lead to other administrative measures, including separation from service.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions 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.

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.

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

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Programme Specialist, (Polio) P-4, Fixed Term Position Peshawar, Pakistan, #00111987