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For every child, the right to Education

UNICEF Venezuela (VCO) is currently going through a Country Programme Document (CPD), which began in March 2023 and is currently scheduled to end in December 2026. To align with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) extension, a one-year extension is underway until the end of December 2027.

Due to its geographic location, Venezuela is highly exposed to natural hazards. The events recorded in recent decades reveal that several areas of the country are exposed to at least one or multiple hazards associated with climate change, other natural conditions and human dynamics.

UNICEF remains a cornerstone of humanitarian action in Venezuela, leading three clusters (WASH, Nutrition, Education) and one AoR (Child Protection). In line with the Core Commitments for Children (CCCs), interventions include:

Delivery of essential services and supplies in health, nutrition, WASH, child protection, and education.
Strengthening of institutional capacities and empowering communities to participate in decision-making and claim their rights.
Promoting Social and Behaviour Change (SBC) to support child survival, development, and protection.

Furthermore, the recent earthquakes have severely impacted the population, estimations have concluded that more than 864,000 people including 281,000 children will require humanitarian assistance, more than 13,000 people are sheltering in public facilities, with limited access to safe water, health services, education, and protection.

How can you make a difference?

The Chief Education is responsible for managing and supervising all stages of education programmes/projects. This includes strategic planning and formulation, as well as delivery of results on strengthening national education systems to improve learning outcomes, universal access to quality, equitable and inclusive primary/early childhood education, and renewed involvement in secondary education, especially for children who are marginalized, disadvantaged and excluded in society. Incumbent leads a group of professional and support staff to develop and manage the education programme in the country.

Key functions/responsibilities include:

1. Managerial leadership: establish the education section's annual plan, priorities, and targets, monitoring progress to ensure timely, high-quality results. Supervise and guide team members with clear objectives. Foster intersectoral collaboration (Health, Nutrition, WASH, Protection) while integrating gender, SBC, and AAP principles.

2. Programme development and planning: provide technical and operational support to maintain comprehensive education data, guiding strategic policy, priorities, and implementation plans. Stay informed on development priorities to leverage UNICEF's position and advocate for education initiatives. Supervise programme development and coordinate timely Country Office recommendations.

3. Programme management, monitoring and quality control of results: collaborate on monitoring and evaluation initiatives, participating in programme reviews with counterparts. Assess reports to identify gaps and resolve bottlenecks timely. Plan, control, and certify resource use, preparing donor reports to communicate progress and critical issues effectively.

4. Advisory services and technical support: advise government, NGO, and UN partners on education strategies and policy planning. Coordinate with RO/HQ to secure technical expertise throughout programming. Participate in strategic discussions to influence policies promoting universal, equitable, and inclusive education while combating discrimination.

5. Advocacy, networking and partnership building: strengthen strategic partnerships with governments, UN agencies, donors, NGOs, and the private sector to maximize cooperation. Prepare impactful communication strategies to promote awareness, foster partnerships, and support fundraising. Proactively drive fundraising efforts and represent UNICEF in inter-agency (UNCT) education discussions.

6. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building: research, benchmark, and implement cutting-edge practices in education and management, institutionalizing and disseminating lessons learned. Introduce innovative policies and procedures to optimize programme efficiency. Organize and implement capacity-building initiatives to enhance stakeholder competencies and promote sustainable results.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: Download File JD_Chief Education_P4 FT.pdf

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: A completed advanced university degree (Master or equivalent) in one of the following fields is required: Education, Economics, Psychology, Sociology, Development Studies, Anthropology and any other related fields.
Work Experience: A minimum of eight years of professional experience in programme planning, management, and/or research in education at the international level is required.
Experience working in a developing and emergency country context is considered essential, especially in Latin American contexts.
Skills: Experience in leading teams as a supervisor is required.
Good knowledge of global developments in education and international engagement strategies is required.
Good ability to support policy dialogue is required.
Good education sector planning knowledge and policy sector analysis capacity including the range of modalities for delivering education, linkages between different sub-sectors are required.
Good ability to support engagement with partners is required.
Language Requirements: Fluency in Spanish and English is required.

Desirables:

Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French or Russian).
Experience in successfully raising funds is a strong asset.
Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered a strong asset.
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…

Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (2)
Works Collaboratively with others (2)
Builds and Maintains Partnerships (2)
Innovates and Embraces Change (2)
Thinks and Acts Strategically (2)
Drive to achieve impactful results (2)
Manages ambiguity and complexity (2)
Nurtures, Leads and Manages People (2)

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

This position has been assessed as an elevated risk role for Child Safeguarding purposes as it is either a role with direct contact with children, a role that works directly with identifiable children's data, a safeguarding response role, or an assessed risk role. Additional vetting and assessment for elevated risk roles in child safeguarding (potentially including additional criminal background checks) apply.

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 and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote 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, 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 may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

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.

Chief Education (P-4), FT, #00109191 Caracas – Venezuela, LACR