Purpose:

The Programme Specialist-Demographic Dividend provides strategic and technical support to ensure that the ICPD Programme of Action in population and development is firmly placed within the global development agenda, including the achievement of the SDGs, focusing on countries that are at early stages of the demographic transition. Responsibilities of the Programme Specialist- Demographic Dividend include: 

• Technical and programme support
• Capacity development
• Evidence and knowledge development and dissemination
• Strategic partnerships, technical representation and global positioning

You would be responsible for:

Technical and programme support

• Ensuring soundness of technical and programmatic approaches on population-development linkages, with a focus on the demographic dividend and countries in the early stages of the demographic transition.
• Overseeing the development, quality assurance and dissemination of strategic, technical and programmatic reports.
• Generating and supporting the roll-out of products and tools to strengthen national capacities to analyse demographic trends and incorporate population dynamics into development planning. 
• Providing substantive advice on evidence- and rights-based population policies that advance the demographic dividend and the transformative results.
• Promoting harmonization of UNFPA's demographic dividend programs and initiatives across regions, and ensuring coherence and alignment with the broader spectrum of population and development interventions in high, medium and low fertility contexts.
• Supporting resource mobilization efforts for advancing the global technical and programmatic work in population and development.  

Capacity Development 

• Developing and providing guidance to countries and governments on tools and models used to assess the demographic dividend, including National Transfer Accounts and time use accounts.
• Organizing technical meetings, trainings and other learning and cross regional events for UNFPA and external partners including virtual eLearning sessions, in-person seminars and workshops on demographic dividend and linkages to development issues.
• Facilitating south-south and cross-regional exchanges, creating platforms for dialogue and information sharing on policy successes and challenges encountered. 

Evidence and knowledge development and dissemination

• Collecting and analysing population and development data, writing reports, technical papers, policy briefs, speeches, op-eds, and briefing notes, on high fertility, population growth, women’s empowerment and youth engagement, among others, and disseminating key findings in population conferences and symposiums.
• Tracking scientific developments and innovative approaches in relevant areas and providing advice on their relevance to demographic dividend programming.
• Providing evidence of global, regional and national population trends and dynamics, and their links to other megatrends and relevance to core programmatic concerns of UNFPA, including the high level results of the UNFPA Strategic Plan. 
• Scanning the substantive technical and policy environment and maintaining relevant partnerships on technical issues with regional and national technical staff in order to identify substantive gaps and needs related to demographic dividend and development.

Strategic partnerships, technical representation and global positioning

• Representing UNFPA in global, regional and inter-agency meetings on substantive issues in area of expertise, and participate in international, inter-governmental, U.N., and other policy and technical meetings and fora, to elaborate UNFPA's substantive global perspective, and ensure UNFPA’s visibility.
• Engaging in interagency and strategic partnerships and collaborations, including with UN agencies, academia, research and training institutions, professional societies to advance UNFPA’s population and development mandate.
• Supporting the Branch Chief, Division Director and UNFPA Senior Management in high-level engagements with governments, civil society, donors and other partners and in intergovernmental fora  by drafting briefing notes, preparing talking points and presentations, preparing for and participating in meetings.
• Developing new strategic partnerships to advance the global position of UNFPA as a significant lead on matters of demographic dividend.
• Carrying out any other related duties as may be required by the Branch Chief or Division Director.

Qualifications and Experience: 

Education:  

Advanced university degree in demography, sociology, population studies, geography, public health, statistics, or economics with a special emphasis on population data analysis. A PhD is considered an advantage. 

Knowledge and Experience: 

• 7 years of professional technical and programmatic  experience addressing policy-relevant population and development issues in high fertility contexts;
• Prior professional experience in any of the following areas is beneficial: sexual and reproductive health; human rights; international migration; urbanization; population and climate change; HIV/AIDS; populations in humanitarian crises; and gender equality and women’s empowerment.
• Understanding of the human rights dimensions of population and development; 
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills;
• Strong track record of technical leadership and proven ability to produce demonstrable results;
• Extensive professional network within the development and academic community;
• Experience in policy development and national development policy and planning processes an asset;
• Experience with working with governments in developing countries and/or regional development institutions is highly desirable.