Consultant - IT Architecture Modernization Consultant

Organizational Context

The UN Secretariat, through the Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) and its Statistics Division, is engaged in capacity development initiatives like "Data for Now" and "DATAS" to assist national statistical offices. These efforts aim to enhance the use of innovative and administrative data for official statistics, addressing challenges in IT infrastructure and technical skills.

Job Purpose

This consultancy aims to support national statistical offices (NSOs) in modernizing their IT architecture by designing, configuring, and deploying a modular, open-source data lake technology stack. The role will foster in-house data engineering skills, provide practical guidance, and develop reference materials for sustainable data and IT architecture modernization. The consultant will contribute to improving the integration and processing of diverse data sources for official statistics, supporting policy decisions and the 2030 Agenda, and sharing learnings globally.

Responsibilities

The consultant will collaborate with NSO IT and statistical focal points to assess existing systems, gather requirements, and provide technical advice for IT architecture modernization, covering data ingestion, storage, processing, analytics, dissemination, and security. Key duties include developing a report with modernization recommendations for at least two countries, delivering technical assistance and hands-on support for data lake technology stack implementation, and conducting training sessions. The role also involves supporting the development of country case studies and general guidance on IT architecture for non-traditional data sources, ensuring adherence to UN policies and data governance frameworks.

Work Experience

A minimum of five years of progressive experience in enterprise data management, data warehousing, big data technologies, GIS analytics, or cloud-based data solutions is required. Hands-on experience with open-source technologies like Apache NiFi, MinIO, JupyterHub, Docker, and Kubernetes is essential. Experience with National Statistical Offices, particularly in developing countries, is desirable.

Skills

IT Architecture Modernization, Data Lake Technology Stack (Apache NiFi, MinIO, JupyterHub, Trino, open-metadata, Kubernetes), Data Engineering, Technical Requirements Gathering, Technical Assistance, Training and Knowledge Sharing, Data Ingestion, Data Storage, Data Processing and Analytics, Data Dissemination, Security and Access Management, Open-Source Technologies, Agile Project Management.

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