Mission and objectives

The mission of this UN Volunteer assignment is to support UNICEF’s Social Policy programme in Ukraine by providing day-to-day technical and operational assistance to Lviv Field Office team, with a particular focus on strengthening capacity of local and regional authorities in using Public Finance for Children (PF4C) and emergency preparedness principles in planning and delivery of services to children and young people in Education, Social Protection, Child Protection, Youth Policy and other sectors. The UN Volunteer Social Policy Officer will contribute to ensuring timely and effective interventions aimed at strengthening the capacity of hromadas and regional authorities in delivering quality, cost-efficient and shock-responsive services for families with children and young people. The assignment supports coordination, monitoring, analytical work, training delivery and implementation of Social Policy activities, working closely with both the UNICEF Lviv Field Office, the UNICEF Country Office Social Policy team and partners to strengthen coherence, policy alignment and operational effectiveness. The UN Volunteer will ensure strong technical linkage between field-level implementation and national-level Social Policy, PF4C/public finance governance workstreams, contributing to harmonized methodologies, analytical standards and reporting streams across offices.

Context

UNICEF works across 190 countries and territories to reach the children and young people who are most at risk and most in need. We work to save their lives. To protect their rights. To keep them safe from harm. To give them a childhood in which they are protected, healthy, and educated. To give them a fair chance to fulfil their potential, so that someday, they can build a better world. The full-scale war in Ukraine has placed unprecedented pressure on local governance systems and public service delivery. Population displacement, destruction of infrastructure, fiscal constraints, and increased vulnerability of families with children have significantly affected the capacity of hromadas and regional authorities to plan, finance and deliver quality social services. In this context, strengthening public finance management for children and ensuring that limited resources are allocated efficiently and equitably have become critical priorities for recovery and long-term resilience. In response, UNICEF Ukraine’s Social Policy programme supports national and subnational authorities in applying PF4C principles to budgeting, planning and service delivery. The programme focuses on strengthening the capacity of local governments to conduct cost analysis of services, improve budget transparency, develop evidence-based social and education programmes, establish functional referral pathways for vulnerable children and families, and integrate recovery-oriented service models at the community level. In western Ukraine, UNICEF works closely with oblast administrations, hromadas and sectoral departments (Education, Child Protection, Youth Policy and Social Protection) to enhance institutional capacity and promote sustainable, child-centered, gender-responsive governance and public finance management Given the increasing demand for technical support at local level and the need for systematic monitoring, coordination and operational follow-up, UNICEF Lviv Field Office seeks to engage a UNV National Expert – Social Policy Officer. The UN Volunteer will provide day-to-day technical and operational support to Social Policy activities, contribute to capacity strengthening of local and regional authorities, support cost analysis and referral system development, and facilitate coordination with the Country Office and partners to ensure effective and timely implementation of programme interventions. Close coordination with the Country Office Social Policy team is essential to ensure that field-level operations, evidence, cost analyses and lessons learned inform national policy dialogue, donor reporting and strategic planning processes.

Task Description

Under the supervision of the Programme Specialist, UNICEF Lviv Field Office, and with regular technical coordination with the UNICEF Country Office Social Policy team and PF4C/LGs, the UNV National Expert (Social Policy) will carry out the following tasks: 1. Assessment and improvement of child and youth-oriented services Support development of assessment tools, service mapping methods, data collection instruments, and budget analysis approaches. Help identify priority sectors, coordinate with local authorities and partners, and facilitate access to administrative and financial data. Contribute to quantitative and qualitative analysis of service coverage, costs, efficiency, and gaps. Support validation of findings with hromadas and oblasts, prepare analytical briefs and recommendations, and translate results into actionable guidance for planning, budgeting, and sustainable financing. 2. Strengthening integrated referral and child protection coordination Assist in situational assessments of key services, identifying gaps and barriers. Contribute to service mapping tools and provider registries to improve referral pathways and integrated care mechanisms. Support intersectoral coordination and facilitate improvements linked to local budget capacities and long-term sustainability. 3. Documentation and modelling of flagship programmes Collect and systematize qualitative and quantitative data, support the development of replicable programme models and implementation frameworks, and contribute to cost and efficiency analysis. Facilitate validation with authorities and UNICEF teams and prepare briefs and knowledge products to inform scale-up and policy dialogue. Integrate PF4C principles into programme models and support national-level knowledge sharing. 4. PF4C support, training, and analytical integration Develop training materials and guidance on public finance, budgeting and cost analysis; co-deliver trainings for local actors; contribute to analytical studies; align field-level work with PF4C methodologies; consolidate data and lessons learned into national products; and ensure regular technical coordination with the Country Office. 5. Contribute to enhancing emergency cash preparedness Support the FO to facilitate data collection and partnerships for integrated cash and care services for children.

Competencies and values

- Care - Respect - Integrity - Trust - Accountability and sustainability

Living conditions and remarks

As it is a national UN Volunteer's assignment, the UN volunteer shall organize his/her accommodation by themselves. Entitlements of National UN Volunteer Specialist >> USD 1690 The contract lasts for the period indicated in the vacancy with the possibility of extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity, and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment. This is a full-time contract. Allowances: • Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA): A Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) USD 1690 (equivalent in UAH) is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities, and normal cost of living expenses. This includes Well-Being Differentials for the period while the ICSC applies hardship classification to duty stations in Ukraine as “E”. • USD 400 entry lump sum, one-time payment. Medical and life insurance: • Medical insurance: The UN Volunteer and eligible PFU dependents will receive UNV provided medical insurance coverage. Coverage for UN Volunteers begins from the Commencement of Service and normally ceases one month after the last day of the UN Volunteer Contract date. • Life Insurance: UN Volunteers are covered by life insurance for the duration of the UN Volunteer assignment. If a UN Volunteer dies during the UN Volunteer assignment, the eligible designated beneficiaries will be entitled to receive a life insurance lump sum. Leave entitlements: • Annual leave: UN Volunteers accrue an entitlement to 2.5 days of Annual Leave per completed month of the UN Volunteer assignment. Unused accrued Annual Leave up to a maximum of 30 days is carried over in case of a contract extension within the same UN Volunteer assignment. Unused accrued Annual Leave may not be carried over in case of reassignment or a new assignment. • Learning leave: Subject to supervisor approval and exigencies of service, UN Volunteers may request up to ten working days of Learning Leave per consecutive 12 months of the UN Volunteer assignment, starting with the Commencement of Service date, provided the Learning Leave is used within the contract period. • Certified Sick Leave: UN Volunteers are entitled to up to 30 days of certified sick leave based on a 12-month cycle. This amount is reset every 12-month cycle. • Uncertified Sick Leave: UN Volunteers receive seven days of uncertified sick leave working days in a calendar year. This amount will be reset at the established interval period.