Consultancy Assignment at UNICEF Jordan

UNICEF Jordan is seeking anational programme officer to support the scale-up of Makani Social Innovation Labs:

Innovations; Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (PME),UNICEF, Jordan Country Office

Location / Selected candidate will be based in the UNICEF Country office in Amman, but must be willing to go to field locations in Jordan as required. UNICEF will ensure providing transportation to the field.
Reporting to / Supervision by Innovation Specialist

Background

Jordan is a stable middle income country in a region that has experienced great instability over the past several years. Currently, it is estimated that 1/5 people in Jordan is a Syrian refugee. UNICEF Jordan provides humanitarian support to refugees living in Jordan, while ensuring that the country’s overall development progress is strengthened as well. The complex situation in Jordan has led many to seek new approaches to being more effective; more responsive to needs; and to achieve more with less.

One of UNICEF Jordan’s flagship programmes is the network of 240 Makani Centres located across Jordan. Thirty-one of these Centres are in refugee camps; 140 are located throughout Jordan; and the remainder deliver services to mobile populations (informal tented settlements). Makani Centres offer integrated support to children and youth, including remedial education, psycho social support, and lifeskills training. Currently, UNICEF Jordan is working to provide access to innovation lab facilities to all Makani Centres via mobile labs which will deliver lab curriculum at all Makani Centres, while increasing the capacity for each Centre to incorporate ongoing lab activities. The lab programme has several elements:

  1. Outreach: emerging technology exhibition to drive engagement, spark imagination, and teach kids about technology.
  2. Lab Activities: in addition to a hang-out space, labs provide a social innovation curriculum that leads adolescents through a process of identifying, understanding, and attempting to solve challenges in their communities.
  3. Post- programme opportunities: the lab infrastructure should support adolescents to discover their talents and come up with good ideas. Post-programme opportunities, including competitions, further training, scholarships, etc. should allow adolescents to go further with their talents, interests and ideas.

To date, several activities have been undertaken in support of the lab scale up design:

-Two pilot lab programmes in different Makani Centres

-A multi-stakeholder workshop to design the lab activities

-A UNICEF workshop to explore social innovation and how it can support our work.

Currently the labs are being operationalized, including the following activities:

-Development of multi-stakeholder board including innovation leaders from the private, public, and non-profit sectors in Jordan to guide lab development

-Procurement of vehicles and other equipment

-Logistics and outreach to all Makani Centres

-Planning and technical support to implementing partners

-Outreach via multimedia platforms and a network of inspiring “social innovation ambassadors”

-Internal UNICEF communications on lab-scale up process, including ensuring lab plans develop in line with overall UNICEF Jordan strategic vision.

-Development and implementation of monitoring and evaluation system/ feedback loops

-Strengthening and developing “post programme opportunities,” including outreach to potential partners.

Purpose of the Position:

The purpose of this positionis to support all elements of the lab scale-up process.

Major duties and responsibilities:

(1)Working with Innovation Specialist, Partnership Specialist, and Innovations intern, manage Makani Social Innovation stakeholder board

Deliverables: Clear ToR for board activities and participation; establishment of regular bi-monthly meetings

(2)Working with Innovation Specialist, UNICEF Makani managers, and Makani implementing partners, support the logistics of lab-roll out

Deliverables: All Makani Centres have received minimum lab kit.

All Makani Centres are aware of and participating in social innovation process

Schedule of lab activities across all Makani Centres is established.

(3)Working with Communications team, Innovation Specialist, and key external partners, establish mechanisms for “social innovation ambassadors” to engage with labs.

Deliverable: Clear ToR for “Social Innovation Ambassador”; 5-10 social innovation ambassadors have engaged in lab activities

(4)Working with UNICEF’s Youth Section, Social Policy Section, Education Section, the Innovation Specialist and key external partners, strengthen network of post-programme opportunities.

Deliverable: at minimum, establish relationship with 4 technical training opportunities; 4-5 innovation competitions or challenges; and 2-3 scholarship opportunities.

(5)Working with implementing partners, technical experts, and lab participants, support the establishment of a real-time feedback system on the labs.

Deliverable: real time monitoring of lab process and outcomes is establish; UNICEF and implementing partners have mechanisms to respond to challenges as they are surfaced.

Working conditions:

Selected candidate will be based in the UNICEF Country office in Amman, but must be willing to go to field locations in Jordan as required. UNICEF will ensure providing transportation to the field.

Timing:

Time period of assignment: 4 months, starting August 2016

Qualifications and Competencies required:

Assignment-specific qualifications

  • 2-5 years of programme management experience
  • Experience with the private sector
  • Experience using data to drive decision making
  • High quality English language writing skills
  • Fluency in Arabic
  • Experience in innovation, design thinking, systems innovation, or similar field.
  • Demonstrated understanding of social innovation processes

Competencies

  • Communicates effectively to varied audiences, including during formal public speaking.
  • Able to work effectively in a multi-cultural environment.
  • Sets high standards for quality of work and consistently achieves project goals.
  • Translates strategic direction into plans and objectives.
  • Negotiates effectively by exploring a range of possibilities.
  • Quickly builds rapport with individuals and groups; maintains an effective network of individuals across organizational departments.
  • Contributes and tries out innovative approaches and insights.

1