Social Policy officer

Details

Mission and objectives

Guided by the 2030 Agenda principle of “leaving no one behind”, UNICEF Rwanda under the current country programme will contribute to five priorities under the social transformation pillar of the National Strategy for Transformation 2017–2024: (a) Ensuring access to quality health for all; (b) Reducing malnutrition; (c) Ensuring access to and improving the quality of education; (d) Moving towards a modern Rwandan household, and; (e) Enhancing graduation from poverty and promoting resilience. The country programme will be implemented as part of the United Nations Development Assistance Plan 2018–2023 (UNDAP II), specifically contributing to Strategic Result Area 2: Social Transformation.

Context

Over the last two decades, Rwanda embarked on important socio-economic and structural reforms, sustain economic growth rates and maintained peace and stability across the territory. Rwanda now aspires to reach Middle Income Country (MIC) status by 2035 and High-Income Country (HIC) status by 2050. This aspiration will be carried out through a series of seven-year National Strategies for Transformation (NST1), underpinned by detailed sectoral strategies that are aimed toward achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Rwanda’s strong economic growth was accompanied by substantial improvements in living standards, with a two-thirds drop in child mortality and near-universal primary school enrolment. A strong focus on homegrown policies and initiatives has contributed to significant improvement in access to services and human development indicators. Measured by the national poverty line, poverty and extreme poverty rates stood at 38% and 16% respectively in 2017, while life expectancy at birth improved from 29 years in the mid-1990s to 69 years in 2019. However, the COVID-19 crisis dramatically contributed to increase poverty and threatening human capital gains of the last many years. The headcount poverty rate is estimated to have risen by 5.1% (more than 550,000 people) in 2021, compared to the no-COVID scenario. In this context, the UNV Social Policy officer will provide technical support and assistance in all stages of social policy programming and related advocacy from strategic planning and formulation to delivery of concrete and sustainable results. This includes programmes aimed at improving (a) public policies to reduce child poverty; (b) social protection coverage and impact on children; (c) the transparency, adequacy, equity and efficiency of child-focused public investments and financial management; and (d) governance, decentralization and accountability measures to increase public participation and the quality, equity and coverage of social services. This encompasses both direct programme work with government and civil society partners as well as linkages and support to teams working on education, health and nutrition, early childhood development, child protection, water and sanitation.

Task description

Within the delegated authority and under the supervision of the Chief of Social Policy, or his/her designated mandated representative(s), the National UNV Social Policy Officer will: • Support the design and implementation of analytical works promoting Public Finance for Children within the Social Policy section and across other programme sections, with a focus on Early Childhood Development and Early Childhood Education • Support the development of financing options for the expansion of existing Social Protection interventions and introduction of new cash grants in Rwanda • Support the development of annual budget briefs to monitor public investments in social sectors and poverty reduction financing for children, adolescents and young people. • Support the design of capacity building interventions for local and central government officials to promote integrated approaches for effective planning and budgeting (with a focus on Nutrition, Early Childhood Development and Disability) • Support preparatory work for Rwanda’s next Household Integrated Living Conditions Survey (2023/24) and a new Multiple Overlapping Deprivations Analysis (2024) • Contribute to macroeconomic analysis and monitoring to identity socio-economic vulnerabilities and risks affecting children, young people and other vulnerable population • Contribute to organization of national and local level policy advocacy and dialogues for increased resources to child focused sectors, • Contribute to capacity building across programme sections and with government partners in areas relating to child poverty, public finance for children, social protection, budget transparency, and accountability • Support knowledge management and documentation of good practices. Contribute to the preparation of funding proposals, donor reports, annual reports and other documents across all components of the section’s portfolio • Perform other assignments as may deemed necessary by the supervisor. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to: • Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country. • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities. • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly arrived UN Volunteers. • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.