Data Specialist
Organizational Context
The UN Secretariat's Resident Coordinator System (RCS) supports countries in achieving development priorities and SDGs. This role is within the UN Resident Coordination Office (RCO) in Kabul, Afghanistan, reporting to the Head of RCO. The RCS is undergoing a UN 2.0 shift, emphasizing data, digital, innovation, and strategic foresight.
Job Purpose
This Data Specialist role is crucial for optimizing statistical efficiency and quality within the UN Resident Coordination Office in Kabul. The purpose is to develop and implement robust databases, data collection systems, and advanced analytics strategies. The role contributes to the UN's mission by analyzing trends, identifying patterns, and supporting the development of monitoring and evaluation products for Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks. By leveraging data, the specialist will inform decision-making, enhance reporting capabilities, and support capacity-building initiatives for national statistical partners, ultimately contributing to the acceleration of the 2030 Agenda and SDGs.
Responsibilities
Develop and implement databases, data collection systems, and analytics strategies to enhance statistical efficiency and quality. Analyze and interpret trends and patterns using statistical methods, identifying key variables from diverse data sources. Implement analysis, reporting, and quality control capabilities, and identify opportunities for process improvement. Support the creation of monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) products for UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks using approved tools like Power BI. Collaborate on co-designing digital tools and dashboards with national statistical partners to track SDG progress, ensuring interoperability. Produce reports, dashboards, and data visualizations to communicate findings effectively to management. Document methodologies and establish data standards. Support capacity-building for UNCT statistical initiatives and national statistical systems, including brokering funding and facilitating data-partner convenings. Collaborate with data engineers and scientists to improve data flows and quality. Stay updated on data analytics best practices and technologies. Conduct outcome-level analysis and contribution studies. Identify gaps in national statistical systems and recommend coordinated UN responses. Support model evaluation and conduct data analytics training for staff and government partners.
Work Experience
A minimum of five years of progressive experience in data manipulation and analysis, including data structures and statistical methods. Proven knowledge of the data lifecycle (collection, wrangling, analysis, visualization, deployment, monitoring, reporting). Experience with data storytelling and visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI, R) is required. Programme/project management skills and experience in developing training programs are desirable.
Skills
Professionalism, Strategic Thinking, Analytical Thinking, Data Validation, Relational Databases (SQL), Programming Languages (Python, R), Data Analysis and Interpretation, Data Storytelling, Data Visualization (Tableau, Power BI, Qlik, R), Communication, Planning and Organizing.