Background
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UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
UNDP Bhutan, in partnership with the UNDP Seoul Policy Centre (USPC), is implementing the AI in a Box pilot initiative. The initiative deploys offline-capable edge AI devices at partner government institutions, addressing a common constraint: public institutions hold large volumes of paper or unstructured digital records that cannot be processed using cloud-based AI tools due to data sovereignty, connectivity, and cost constraints. AI in a Box provides a locally controlled, offline AI compute environment that brings document digitization, OCR, and intelligent search capabilities within reach of institutions that would otherwise be excluded.
The pilot is organized into three parallel batches, each anchored by one Country Office working hands-on with USPC. UNDP Bhutan serves as the anchor case for Batch 1 — Digitization, OCR & Search. A cohort of follow-on Country Offices — including Lesotho, Ecuador, Venezuela, Zimbabwe, El Salvador, and Guatemala — observes and participates in the anchor's working sessions in real time, so that when their cases become active, they already understand the pipeline and playbook. The programme operates as a community of practice grounded in South-South and Triangular Cooperation (SSTC) principles, with the Bhutan anchor experience serving as a direct source of practical knowledge for the cohort.
In this context, UNDP Bhutan is partnering with the Medical Records Department (MRD) of Jigme Dorji Wangchuck National Referral Hospital (JDWNRH) to address a critical bottleneck in health records management. Approximately 100,000 paper medical records are held in physical archives alongside unstructured digital records from the Maternal and Child Health programme, none of which are currently searchable. The pilot will establish a sustainable scanning operation and an AI-assisted field extraction and indexing pipeline, connecting to the hospital's existing Electronic Patient Information System (ePIS). All processing takes place on a locally deployed edge AI device; no patient data is transmitted to external cloud services.
To deliver this pilot effectively, UNDP Bhutan is recruiting a Fellow who will serve as the primary in-country implementation coordinator — managing day-to-day relations with the hospital partner, coordinating operational logistics, tracking implementation progress, and acting as the principal communication link between UNDP Bhutan, JDWNRH, and the USPC technical team. While deep technical expertise is not required, the Fellow must have sufficient understanding of AI and data systems to engage meaningfully with the USPC technical team, assess the quality of outputs, and flag issues that require technical attention. The Fellow will also contribute, from an SSTC perspective to the documentation and sharing of Bhutan's implementation experience with cohort Country Offices in Batch 1.
Duties and Responsibilities
Pilot Implementation and Project Coordination
• Lead the day-to-day coordination of the AI in a Box pilot, ensuring that scanning operations, pipeline deployment, and system integration activities progress as planned.
• Serve as the principal point of contact on the ground, coordinating across UNDP Bhutan, JDWNRH, and the USPC technical team, and escalating issues to the supervisor or USPC as appropriate.
• Build and maintain productive working relationships with hospital stakeholders, ensuring that partner needs and feedback are accurately conveyed and addressed throughout implementation.
Monitoring, Reporting, and Documentation
• Track implementation progress against agreed milestones and maintain regular reporting to the supervisor and USPC technical team.
• Document operational lessons, context-specific adaptations, and key decisions in formats suitable for sharing with cohort Country Offices and for inclusion in the AI in a Box shared playbook.
• Participate in the AI in a Box community of practice, representing the Bhutan anchor experience in batch-level meetings and contributing to knowledge exchange across the batch.
Support, Collaboration, and Capacity Building
• Provide ad hoc support for various activities as required, ensuring that these efforts contribute to the strategic objectives of UNDP Bhutan related to enhancing AI and digital innovation.
• Collaborate with UNDP units, partner governments, and external stakeholders on initiatives that fall within UNDP Bhutan’s mandate, focusing on strengthening partnerships and cooperation for development outcomes.
• Participate in knowledge sharing and continuous learning activities related to development cooperation, both within UNDP and in the broader development community. Engage in forums, workshops, and networks to enhance the Fellow’s expertise and contribute to the team’s strategic goals.
Competencies
• Interest and motivation in working in an international organization and contributing to development outcomes.
• Strong coordination and organizational skills, with the ability to manage multiple workstreams and stakeholder relationships simultaneously.
• Proactive and initiative-taking, with the ability to identify problems early and propose solutions.
• Communicates effectively when working in teams and independently, across both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Responds positively to feedback and differing points of view.
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
Candidates must meet one of the following educational requirements:
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Project Management, Public Administration, International Development, Computer Science, Information Technology, Data Science, Information Systems, Health Informatics, Public Health, Library and Information Science, Business Administration, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience in digital project coordination, digital innovation, or development cooperation work may be considered in lieu of a directly matching degree.
IT Skills
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office productivity tools.
• Familiarity with data systems, digital document management, or AI tools — at a level sufficient to understand pipeline outputs, assess quality, and communicate effectively with a technical team.
• LLMs, OCR, or document processing concepts is highly desirable
Language Skills
• Fluency in English is required.
• Other UN languages is an advantage.
Disclaimer
Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.
UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.
Applicant information about UNDP rosters
Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
Non-discrimination
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
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