Early Education and Child Development Officer (P-2), #103241, Panama City - Panama, LAC RO

1. Support to program development and planning

• Contribute to the preparation/update of situation analysis for the program sector/s for development, design and management of education related programs/projects. Research and report on development trends and (economic, social, health etc.) data for use in program development, management, monitoring, evaluation and delivery of results.
• Contribute to the development/establishment of sectoral program goals, objectives and strategies and results-based planning through research, collection, analysis and reporting of education and other related information for development planning and priority and goal setting.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes by executing/administering a variety of technical, program, operational and administrative transactions, preparing related materials/documentations and complying with organizational processes and management systems, to support program planning, results based planning (RBM) and monitoring and evaluating results.

     2. Program management, monitoring and delivery of results.

• Work closely and collaboratively with internal and external colleagues and partners to discuss operational and implementation issues, provide solutions, recommendations and/or alert appropriate officials and stakeholders for higher-level intervention and/or decision. Keep record of reports and assessments for easy reference and/or to capture and institutionalize lessons learned.
• Participate in monitoring and evaluation exercises, program reviews and annual reviews with government and other counterparts to assess programs/projects and to report on required action/interventions at the higher level of program management.
• Monitor and report on the use of sectoral program resources (financial, administrative and other assets), verify compliance with approved allocation/goals, organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity.
• Report on critical issues/findings to ensure timely resolution by management/stakeholders. Follow up on unresolved issues to ensure resolution.
• Draft regular/mandated sectoral program/project reports for management, donors and partners to keep them informed of program progress.

3. Technical and operational support to program implementation

• Conduct regular program field visits and surveys and/or exchange information with partners/stakeholders to assess progress and provide technical support, take appropriate action to resolve issues and/or refer to relevant officials for resolution. Report on critical issues, bottlenecks and potential problems for timely action to achieve results.
• Provide technical and operational support to government counterparts, NGO partners, UN system partners and other country office partners/donors on the application and understanding of UNICEF policies, strategies, processes and best practices on education and related issues to support program implementation, operations and delivery of results.

     4. Networking and partnership building

• Build and sustain effective close working partnerships with government counterparts and national/regional stakeholders through active sharing of information and knowledge to facilitate program implementation and build capacity of stakeholders to achieve and sustain results on education programs.
• Draft communication and information materials to promote awareness, establish partnership/alliances and support fund raising for education programs.
• Participate in appropriate inter-agency (UNCT) meetings/events on programming to collaborate with inter-agency partners/colleagues on UNDAF operational planning and preparation of education programs/projects and to integrate and harmonize UNICEF position and strategies with the UNDAF development and planning process.
• Research information on potential donors and prepare resource mobilization materials and briefs for fund raising and partnership development purposes.

5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Contribute to identifying, capturing, synthesizing and sharing lessons learned for knowledge development and capacity development of stakeholders.
• Apply innovative approaches and promote good practice to support the implementation and delivery of concrete and sustainable program results.
• Research and report on best and cutting-edge practices for development planning of knowledge products and systems. Participate as resource person in capacity building initiatives to enhance the competencies of clients/stakeholders.

6. Provide technical assistance to Country Offices in planning and organizing capacity development initiatives on early learning and early childhood development

7. Assist in the development of appropriate communication and information strategies on Early Education and Child Development to support and/or advocate for program development

8. Participate in intersectoral collaboration with other sections (WASH, health and nutrition, child protection, social policy, gender, among others) to develop early learning and early childhood development initiatives, strategies and programs

9. Maintain and update a knowledge base on Early Education and Child Development, drawing on available data and research

 Education:

A university degree in Education, Psychology, Sociology or other social science field is required.

 Experience:

A minimum of 2 years of professional experience in social development planning and management in education and related areas at the international and/or in a developing country is required. Relevant experience in education, early childhood development, and related areas, program/project development and management in a UN system agency or organization is an asset.

 Language Requirements:

Fluency in Spanish and English is required. Knowledge of Portuguese, French and/or Dutch would be an asset.