Education Officer-ECED (UNV)
Organizational Context
UNICEF is dedicated to promoting the rights and well-being of every child, working in 190 countries to support vulnerable and excluded children. In Nepal, UNICEF's Education programme focuses on ensuring children complete quality education in equitable, inclusive, and safe environments, with a special emphasis on disadvantaged communities. The program aligns with Nepal's School Education Sector Plan and UNSDCF Outcome, collaborating with all government levels to improve learning outcomes, recover pandemic-related losses, and equip children with foundational skills.
Job Purpose
The Education Officer (UNV) will provide crucial technical and operational support to UNICEF's Early Childhood Education and Development (ECED) initiatives in Nepal. This role involves assisting local governments and implementing partners in the quality execution and monitoring of the SCALE initiative, strengthening coordination mechanisms, and building capacity on Early Learning and Development Standards. The position contributes to situation analysis, data collection, and the promotion of innovative approaches to enhance ECED program delivery, ensuring equitable access and learning for all children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Responsibilities
Provide technical and operational support for the SCALE initiative's quality implementation and monitoring. Assist local governments in coordinating education stakeholders and designing ECED programs aligned with local plans and needs. Build capacity of partners, schools, and local governments on Early Learning and Development Standards and other SCALE interventions. Collect human-interest stories, case studies, and lessons learned from ECED programs. Support monitoring visits, missions, and assessments. Contribute to sector situation analysis and share implementation insights. Represent UNICEF in inter-agency discussions on education. Introduce innovative approaches to enhance partner capacity and achieve sustainable program results. Integrate UNV mandate by promoting volunteerism and engaging with communities.
Work Experience
A minimum of 3 years of relevant professional experience is required, with 5 years of experience in Early Childhood Education, particularly in government-related ECED training, programming, and planning, being highly desirable. Experience in education sector planning, programming, monitoring, evaluation, and reporting is also beneficial.
Skills
Key competencies include building and maintaining partnerships, self-awareness, ethical awareness, driving results, innovation, managing ambiguity, strategic thinking, and collaborative work. Essential values are care, respect, integrity, trust, accountability, and sustainability. Strong communication, presentation, coordination, networking, advocacy, and interpersonal skills are required, along with proficiency in MS Office applications.