UNICEF’s Education Financing team within the Centres of Excellence provides strategic guidance, economic analysis, and technical assistance to help governments design equitable, efficient, and sustainable education systems aligned with national priorities. By addressing challenges like low investment, fragmented financing, limited policy capacity, and fiscal constraints, the team supports evidence-based reforms, capacity building, and cross-sectoral collaboration to advance inclusive learning outcomes and achieve education-related SDGs.

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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.

For every child, the right to Education

Education Financing in UNICEF’s Centres of Excellence (CoEs) provides strategic policy and financing guidance to governments, enabling them to make informed decisions that promote equitable and sustainable learning and skills outcomes for children and young people. Their work supports the CoEs’ mandate to deliver predictive, integrated, and trackable technical assistance that aligns with national priorities and maximizes impact.

The Education Financing team plays a pivotal role in advancing education system reform nationally and globally. In addition to conducting customized economic evaluations—such as cost–benefit analyses, benefit-incidence analyses, budget impact assessments on learning outcomes, and fiscal space analyses—the team supports governments in designing and implementing equity-focused education policies. Particular emphasis is placed on integrating learning assessments and data into financing decisions to improve efficiency and equity.

The team also leads capacity-development efforts, working closely with national and mid-level officials to strengthen institutional capabilities in education planning, budgeting, and public finance. Through its management of the Panama satellite office, the team ensures responsive, context-specific technical assistance to Country Offices, fostering regional coherence and knowledge exchange. Cross-sectoral collaboration, especially with the Child Poverty CoE, enhances the integration of education financing with broader social protection and public finance for children strategies.

Current Thematic Focus and Team Responsibilities The Education Financing team is currently addressing several critical challenges that hinder progress toward equitable and quality learning and the achievement of education-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These include:

1. Low and Unequal Education Investment: Many countries in the region spend below recommended thresholds on education, with disparities in resource allocation across regions, levels of education, and population groups. These disparities result in inequities in access and learning outcomes.
2. Inefficient and Fragmented Education Financing: Weak governance structures and underdeveloped financing mechanisms limit the effectiveness of education systems and hinder the scale-up of inclusive, quality learning.
3. Limited Capacity for Policy Implementation and Reform: Gaps in institutional capacity and technical expertise slow the adoption of evidence-based policies and reforms, particularly in foundational learning and early childhood education.
4. Economic Volatility and Fiscal Constraints: Debt burdens and competing priorities restrict fiscal space for sustained investments in education, especially for the most disadvantaged children and adolescents.
5. Gaps in Scaling Cost-Effective and Evidence-Based Interventions: Proven solutions, such as structured pedagogy and alternative learning pathways for out-of-school adolescents, remain underfunded and poorly implemented. 

How can you make a difference?

Under the supervision and guidance of the Director of Education, the Senior Adviser (Education Financing for Scale) provides high-level technical leadership and strategic guidance to countries, enabling UNICEF to remain at the forefront of education financing, policy reform, and capacity development. The incumbent champions innovative, equitable, and efficient financing of education systems and leads efforts to strengthen institutional and individual capacities in education sector planning, budgeting, and reform. Anchoring global frameworks in national realities, the Senior Adviser translates global strategies and economic evidence into practical, pro-equity solutions that inform policy, planning, and financing reform at scale. The incumbent also manages the education satellite in Panama, overseeing technical assistance across the programmatic areas of delivery toward Strategic Plan results for education.

A key responsibility is the leadership and management of a regionally focused technical team, ensuring a consistent standard of excellence across UNICEF’s programmatic work. This position coordinates with thematic areas within education and public finance across sectors to contribute to country-contextual education systems strengthening, ensuring that intervention coverage and response are sustainable and equitable for all children. These contributions support the UNICEF Strategic Plan and the achievement of the SDG 2030 targets, ensuring that policy, finance, institution-building, education workforce development, digital governance, and community engagement are strengthened.

By shaping and influencing national-to-global education financing dialogue, advising on evidence based policy reforms, and leading the development of public goods and innovative solutions, the incumbent provides the highest level of technical expertise to UNICEF Country and Regional Offices, as well as governments and other partners in the education ecosystem. This expertise supports governments in informing and resourcing education sector plans and budgets for sustainable, equity-focused results for all children and adolescents, particularly the most marginalized.

The role also includes capacity development of national and mid-level officials on public expenditure, budgeting, and innovative financing approaches. The incumbent serves as the focal point between the Education and Child Poverty CoEs, fostering cross-sectoral collaboration on innovative financing and social protection, ensuring effective technical assistance aligned with UNICEF’s Strategic Plan results. The incumbent also forges strategic partnerships with multilateral banks, finance institutions, private sector actors, and global platforms to expand resource mobilization and catalyze financing at scale, while advancing UNICEF’s leadership in education sector financing and policy reform across development and humanitarian contexts.

Key functions, accountabilities and related duties/tasks:

1. Technical Advisory on Strategic Planning, Policy Formulation, and Review
2. Evidence Generation, Economic Analysis, and Capacity Building
3. Domestic Resource Mobilization, Government-Led Financing, and Capacity Strengthening
4. Cross-Sectoral Coordination and Integration
5. Country Office Focal Point Support
6. People Management, Team Development, and CoE Oversight
7. Global Advocacy and Representation
8. Strategic Leadership, Policy Development, and Capacity Building

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  JD - Senior Adviser (Education Financing for Scale)_P5.pdf

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

Minimum requirements:

• Education: Master or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Economics, Finance, Education, Early Childhood Development, Public Financing and any other related fields.
  A Bachelor or equivalent (First Level University Degree) in a relevant area combined with 2 additional years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree. This is applicable to internal (FT, Continuing and Permanent) staff only.
• Work Experience: At least 10 years of relevant work experience in Education, Planning, Education Economics, Public Finance for Education and any other related fields.
• Skills: Excellent drafting skills, including the ability to translate data insights into simple narrative/papers. Data translation, Donor Coordination, UNICEF Programming.
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English and Spanish is required.

Desirables:

1. Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French or Russian) or a local language is an asset.
2. Demonstrated experience supporting government-led education planning and budgeting processes and in the application of education financing tools (costing, value-for-money analysis, benefit-incidence, MTEFs, etc.).
3. Experience working with multilateral/bilateral agencies and Ministries of Education and Finance.
4. Experience in strategic collaboration across sectors (e.g., child poverty, child protection, health, nutrition).
5. Experience in ECE policy and programming. Knowledge of education and ECE/D indicators, learning outcomes data and equity analyses.
6. Policy research and analytical skills, including quantitative analytical skills, as shown by prior substantive contributions to policy reports and/or academic publications.
7. Familiarity with UN/UNICEF programming and experience working with UNICEF field offices is considered a significant advantage.
8. Experience with GPE, World Bank, other international development agencies and Ministries of Education is considered a significant advantage.
9. Experience with Education in Emergencies financing mechanisms (e.g. GPE, ECW) is considered an additional advantage. 
10. 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

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 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.

In this role, you will collaborate with colleagues across multiple locations. For effective collaboration, we encourage flexible working hours that accommodate different time zones while prioritizing staff wellbeing.

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.