Economist II/Statistician II - 2 Posts

Role Overview

This post sits within a technical unit that converts raw economic, statistical and demographic evidence into the analysis that decision-makers depend on. On a typical day, the holder of this position gathers and validates data from surveys and administrative sources, runs quantitative analysis, and writes up the results as briefs, reports and projections. The work matters because budgets, development programmes and public policy are only as reliable as the numbers and interpretation standing behind them.

Key Responsibilities

• Collect, compile and cross-check economic, statistical and demographic data drawn from field surveys, administrative returns and partner institutions.
• Apply sampling, survey and demographic techniques so that the data gathered is representative, comparable and fit for its intended use.
• Clean, code and manage datasets, and keep records and databases in a state where any published figure can be traced and reproduced.
• Carry out quantitative analysis — trend and indicator analysis, projections, and cost or benefit assessment — using statistical packages and spreadsheets.
• Draft technical reports, statistical abstracts, policy briefs and presentations that make findings intelligible to readers without a technical background.
• Support the design, costing, monitoring and evaluation of programmes and projects, including setting indicators and tracking performance against them.
• Liaise with colleagues in other departments and with external stakeholders to harmonise data definitions, reporting formats and reconciliation of discrepancies.
• Keep abreast of methodological developments in economics, statistics and project planning, and apply recognised professional standards to the work.

Requirements & Qualifications

To be appointed to this grade, a candidate must satisfy the following:

• Hold a bachelor's degree with at least Upper Second-Class Honours in Economics; or in Economics and Mathematics; or in Economics and Statistics; or in Statistics; or in Project Planning and Management, from a recognised university.
• Alternatively, hold a bachelor's degree with at least Upper Second-Class Honours in any of the disciplines listed above, with a demonstrable leaning toward computer science, operations research, survey techniques or demographic techniques, from a recognised university or institution.
• Alternatively, hold a bachelor's degree with at least Upper Second-Class Honours in Statistics with an appropriate specialisation, from a recognised university or institution.
• Possess a postgraduate degree in Economics, or a postgraduate diploma or master's degree in any of the disciplines described above, from a recognised institution.
• Be a member of the relevant professional body.