Consultancy: Statistical Data and Metadata eXchange (SDMX) Modelling Specialist, D & A Section, DRP, Requisition #513868

New York City

Organization: UNICEF - United Nations Children’s Fund
Location: New York City
Grade: Consultancy - International Consultant - Internationally recruited Contractors Agreement
Occupational Groups:
- Operations and Administrations
- Statistics
- Logistics
- Information Technology and Computer Science
- Supply Chain
- Statistics and Monitoring
Closing Date: Closed

The Data and Analytics team is implementing Helix, a data management platform that brings UNICEF’s disparate data sources under one roof, sharing storage and reference data, as well as conforming to a common set of structural and communications standards via Statistical Data and Metadata eXchange (SDMX).

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

Background & Rationale

Problems that go unmeasured often go unsolved and we believe that smart demand, supply and use of data drives better results for children. When the right data are in the right hands at the right time, decisions can be better informed, more equitable, and more likely to protect children’s rights. Decades of partnerships, capacity building and technical work have put UNICEF in a global leadership position on data for children. As UNICEF works toward improving the use and sharing of data on and for children we have an opportunity to build on those assets and adapt our work to a shifting data environment.

UNICEF’s Division of Data, Research and Policy (DRP) was created in 2014 to more effectively link and lead the organization’s data, research, policy and strategy functions, so that UNICEF can better track a rapidly changing world and strengthen policies and advocacy in an integrated way. The Data and Analytics (D&A) Section within the division maintains representative global databases used to guide UNICEF’s advocacy and policy programming, analyses data for programmatic policy and decision-making, and innovates on new methodologies, indicators, and monitoring tools. More information is available on data.unicef.org. D&A leads the Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys (MICS) programme, a country-led household survey programme that generates high quality, internationally comparable data for monitoring the progress and improving the wellbeing of children. Our team works closely with other divisions and units across the organization levering the potential of the data to deliver results for children, especially the most vulnerable and hardest to reach.

Purpose

As the custodian for ten sustainable development goals (SDGs), and co-custodians for another seven, UNICEF collaborates at country level and with other international agencies across the international development community sharing data and standards as part of delivering SDGs.

We’re looking for an SDMX modelling expert to work closely with domain experts to structure their data sets following SDMX principles, using and extending existing global and UNSD code lists for dimensions and attributes where possible, and creating new code lists as required. Creating SDMX data structure definitions as well as related SDMX artifacts such as data flows. The work has already commenced, and we plan to conclude within 2018 with a unified, fully stocked data warehouse.

Ideally this position would be partly on-site partly off-site, however being a local candidate is not a requirement and travel is optional.

Expected Results

* Modelling of the following UNICEF data domains as SDMX data structure definitions (DSD):

Gender
Migration and Urbanization
Child poverty
Climate change
Demography
Migration and trafficking
Mortality
Health
HIV
Immunization
Nutrition
WASH
Education
Child protection & development
Disability

* Creation of UNICEF specific code lists together with usage of Global, UNSD and other partner organization code lists where appropriate, used in the DSDs and compatible with upcoming implementation of data catalogue (will hold source data from which UNICEF indicators are derived).

* Identification and creation of data flows

* Population of data warehouse with code lists, DSDs and actual data

* Creation of metadata structure definitions for data catalog

* Assist vendors implementing data visualization components that use SDMX data

* Assist data catalogue implementers that need to access SDMX metadata

* Active participation and input to SDG teleconferences

* Other SDMX artifacts and data-related activities as required

Duty Station: Remote-based work with potential travel to UNICEF’s New York Headquarters. Consultant may be required to work on weekends and holidays.

Time Frame

Start date: 16 July 2018
End date: 15 January 2019

Deliverables	Duration (Estimated # of Days)	Deadline
Creation of UNICEF specific code lists and concept schemes	20	15 August 2018-
Modelling of UNICEF data domains as SDMX data structure definitions	20	14 September 2018
Creation of metadata structure definitions for data catalog	10	1 October 2018
Identification and creation of data flows	10	15 October 2018
Population of data warehouse with code lists, DSDs and associated data	30	30 November 2019
Other SDMX artifacts and data-related activities as required	20	15 Jan 2019
Total	110 days

Key competencies, technical background, and experience required

You are an experienced data modeller with a solid history of working with statistics such as time-series, census, survey and administrative data. You are standards-oriented and driven by good practices in the design, collection, processing, analysis and dissemination of data, information and knowledge. You are sensitive to the varied needs inherent to the widely divergent domains that fall within UNICEF’s mission and thrive within a global, multi-lingual, multi-cultural environment.

Required:

A university degree (Bachelor’s) or equivalent in information science, library science, computer science, software engineering, mathematics, statistics or related discipline.
8+ years professional experience
Relational data modelling experience and proficiency with SQL
Experience implementing SDMX, including code lists, concept schemes and data structure definitions
Ability to read and write mark-up languages such as XML and JSON

Desirable:

Experience with star and snowflake schemas
Experience with one or more SDMX community tools.
Experience producing and consuming REST APIs and SOAP web services
Proficiency in one or more programming languages, e.g. Python

Confidentiality:
This position will be working with data which may not be public or not yet made public. Non-disclosure of UNICEF data is a contract condition.

Please indicate your ability, availability and daily/monthly rate (in US$) to undertake the terms of reference above (including travel and daily subsistence allowance, if applicable). Applications submitted without a daily/monthly rate will not be considered.

Remarks

With the exception of the US Citizens, G4 Visa and Green Card holders, should the selected candidate and his/her household members reside in the United States under a different visa, the consultant and his/her household members are required to change their visa status to G4, and the consultant’s household members (spouse) will require an Employment Authorization Card (EAD) to be able to work, even if he/she was authorized to work under the visa held prior to switching to G4.

At the time the contract is awarded, the selected candidate must have in place current health insurance coverage.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

This vacancy is now closed.
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