Consultancy: Financial structuring, Office of Innovation, remote, 3 weeks

UNICEF Office of Innovation is seeking a consultant to propose and present structured financing models for the global level and for three regions. This work will kick off a year-long process for developing bids that align with expectations various actors from public financers to bidding companies would have.

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.

For every child, innovate...

UNICEF has a 70-year history of innovating for children. We believe that new approaches, partnerships and technologies that support realizing children’s rights are critical to improving their lives. The Office of Innovation is a creative, interactive, and agile team in UNICEF. We sit at a unique intersection, where an organization that works on huge global issues meets the startup thinking, the technology, and the partners that turn this energy into scalable solutions.

UNICEF's Office of Innovation creates opportunities for the world's children by focusing on where new markets can meet their vital needs. We do this by:

• Connecting youth communities (or more broadly -- anyone disconnected or under-served) to decision-makers, and to each other, to deliver informed, relevant and sustained programmes that build better, stronger futures for children.
• Provoking change for children through an entrepreneurial approach -- in a traditionally risk-averse field -- to harness rapidly moving innovations and apply them to serve the needs of all children.
• Creating new models of partnership that leverage core business values across the public, private and academic sectors in order to deliver fast, and lasting results for children.

The Office of Innovation specifically looks to form partnerships around frontier technologies (like drones and UAVs, blockchain, 21st century skills, urban technologies, new banking tools, wearables and sensors, or 3D-Printing) that exist at the intersection of $100 billion business markets and 1 billion person needs – and to identify how they can grow and scale profitably and inclusively.

Our team

We're an interdisciplinary team around the world tasked with identifying, prototyping, and scaling new technologies and practices. With our partners, we focus on convening and collaborating on new and different solutions, low- and high-tech, by:

• Looking at the 2-5 year horizon to evaluate emerging and trending technologies and to see how UNICEF can work with the private sector on doing better business while improving essential services for children;
• Investing in early stage solutions that show great potential to positively impact children in the 0-2 year future including the Venture Fund that invests in open source technology solutions from start-ups based in UNICEF’s programme countries;
• Identifying proven solutions that can be implemented at national scale in multiple countries – taking the ideas that help thousands in one country, bringing them to dozens of countries across multiple sectors, and impacting the lives of millions of children.

UNICEF Ventures is currently exploring the launch of a Common Bid for Connectivity:

• What we want to do right now (Aug-Sept 2019): bring together the right people at C-suite private sector / Development Bank / UN / Govt Prime minister level to start having these discussions with a bit of “rigorous financial” background (i.e. “the work we need done now” below)
• What do we want to do in in longer term (i.e. 2020-2021): create a bidding structure where companies, joint ventures, or existing ‘integrators’ can bid on multi-billion-dollar contracts to connect every school across a set of countries – while being able to monetize from the community around each school; also allowing them offset some risk through public/grant money.
• What regions do we start with: We want to start in 2-3 regions (for example: 10 countries in East Africa, 15 in Eastern Caribbean etc.) to build up these financing structures. A regional approach enables us to leverage relationships neighboring countries might have already built. Eventually, this work will steer towards a global approach.
• What will the process be: A year-long process for developing bids that align with expectations various actors from public financers to bidding companies would have.  We assume this will look like a 10B$+ per country/per year package depending on size of country, bringing a regional bid package to about 50B$+.
• What’s the innovation: for the first time ever we can monitor school connectivity in real-time through “Project Connect” (http://school-mapping.azurewebsites.net/) and write it to a blockchain. This will enable transparency and accountability for internet service providers that have set promised a certain speed of internet connectivity to a school.  Also we believe that new financing structures (i.e. where there could be public sector holding equity stakes, citizen ownership of shares, etc.) could all be crowded into a blended financing model.
• Why schools?: they are the “greatest common factor” – they are tangible and measurable set of infrastructure that exist everywhere, can be identified and ‘pooled' through ministries of education, and can be identified through satellite imagery and AI (ie what Project Connect does). A company that can connect the school, though, will also connect the community around it in order to monetize on its investment.

How can you make a difference?

For the Common Bid for Connectivity, we are seeking a consultant to propose and present structured financing models for the global level and for three regions.  This work will kick off a year-long process for developing bids that align with expectations various actors from public financers to bidding companies would have.

Main responsibilities will be:

Develop the 20-30 slide deck to articulate the initial structured financing models for the global Common Bid and three sub-regional bids for Connectivity. This deck requires tailored messaging for specific UN General Assembly convenings and events - including Broadband Commission, WEF Impact Summit, Goalkeepers, GenU board meeting.

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

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in relevant field (finance, macroeconomics, business or public policy or related areas). *A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional;
• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience in developing financial models for public sector and infrastructure at national, regional and global levels;
• Experience in consulting and advising on relevant technical areas;
• Demonstrated strong writing and presentation skills;
• Familiarity with emerging technology areas such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and  digital connectivity;
• Solid understanding of the role technology plays in the development and humanitarian sectors;
• Adept at turning complex projects and concepts into easy-to-understand, accessible content;
• Project management skills including task prioritization, workflow coordination, and results-driven strategies;
• Understanding of UNICEF Innovation operating environment and priority partners;
• Ability to work with a diverse team in a rapidly-changing work environment and adapt to unforeseen changes;
• Experience working in the social impact space;
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s core values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The competencies required for this post are: Communication, Applying Technical Expertise, Analyzing.  

View our competency framework at:

http://www.unicef.org/about/employ/files/UNICEF_Competencies.pdf

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.

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. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.

Remarks:

• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
• Payment details and further considerations

• One time payment upon delivery of final products;
• Consultant is responsible for his/her own health and travel insurance;
• Consultant is eligible for standard DSA for all work-related travel.

• Duty Station: Remote
• Duration: 3 weeks