Senior Economist – Field Operations

at United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
Location Nairobi, Kenya
Date Posted October 23, 2020
Category Administration
Operations
Job Type Full-time
Currency KES

Description

UNHCR was created in 1950, during the aftermath of the Second World War, to help millions of Europeans who had fled or lost their homes. We had three years to complete our work and then disband. Today, over 65 years later, our organization is still hard at work, protecting and assisting refugees around the world.

The Senior Economist is the designated focal point for providing economic analysis and strategic support on behalf of DRS in support of the Global Compact for Refugees (GCR) objectives 1 and 2Ease the pressures on host countries and Enhance refugee self-reliance. Concretely, the Senior Economist will provide key input regarding the indicators measuring the success of the Global Compact for Refugees and particularly the proportion of refugees living below the national poverty line in the host country. Depending on where the Senior Economist is based, the reporting lines will differ. If based in Headquarters it will map to the DRS Partnership Analytics Research and Knowledge Management (PARK) section. If based in a country or multi-country office, the incumbent will report to either the Representative or Deputy Representative Programme, or in some cases Head of Sub-Office or Senior Operations Officer. In all cases, functional supervision and guidance, including technical functional clearance of candidates and technical oversight of economics products, is provided by DRS PARK. The Senior Economist will work closely with Programme and Protection colleagues, the Global Data Service and DIMAs, in addition to Senior Management, in the operation as well as Bureaux and technical unit key external stakeholders and development agencies, including the World Bank, government agencies, national statistical agencies, and other operational partners.

Duties

  • Strategy & coordination
  • Provide strategic vision and lead engagement with senior management, internal business units and external partners for the design and implementation of research and analytical products generated from comparable socio-economic data.
  • Provide guidance/recommendations on obstacles and possible improvements to UNHCR¿s programming, ensuring effective links and coordination with Field Operations and stakeholders at Headquarters through the preparation and use of available economic statistics, industrial surveys and other available data.
  • Provide strategic vision for UNHCR comparable socio-economic data agenda and lead the overall coordination with the relevant World Bank teams and Joint Data Center and associated workstream.
  • Provide guidance and input to the annual programme planning and review process to support the development and approval of sound operational plans and the effective allocation and use of resources for livelihoods, energy, environment, food security, solutions, health, shelter and water/sanitation.
  • Ensure good communication and coordination among members of the country team, Governments, researchers and partners, serving as a link between these parties.
  • Lead drafting and writing of presentations, analytical reports, research and policy briefs.
  • Data Collection and Analysis
  • Provide oversight, vision and guidance for the collection of raw primary and secondary datasets into final datasets to be used for analysis, as needed.
  • Supervise cleaning of all datasets and creation of necessary indicators for measuring livelihoods and other socio-economic indicators, impact and related. Work with the research team to design a thorough plan for data analysis including production of descriptive statistics and regression analysis for various outputs such as briefs, presentations and academic papers.
  • Project Management
  • Lead the design and implementation of assessments and other data-driven products related to the socio-economic welfare of refugees, forcibly displaced persons and host communities, wherever possible through coordination with the National Bureau of Statistics and World Bank Country Economist in inclusion of forcibly displaced into National Poverty Assessment.
  • Successfully manage all partnerships and activities in the collection of comparable socio-economic (poverty) data on forcibly displaced
  • Contribute to defining and promoting a vision for the use of socio-economic data, particularly in planning, programming and advocacy at the country, regional and headquarters levels.
  • Maintain a strong understanding of the state of literature on poverty analysis for forcibly displaced.
  • Manage data collection activities, as appropriate. This may take place at all stages of data collection (preparation, survey design, sampling, onsite data collection oversight and supervision and quality assurance, data analysis and report writing).
  • Conduct data analysis using econometric programs (R, Stata).
  • Guide colleagues and operations on factors influencing efficiency and effectiveness of programming

Minimum Qualifications

Years of Experience / Degree Level

For P4/NOD 9 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 8 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 7 years relevant experience with Doctorate degree

Field(s) of Education

*Economics or other relevant field.

(Field(s) of Education marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Certificates and/or Licenses

Not specified.

(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience

Essential

  • At least 7 years of relevant professional experience in economics, analysing data and conducting research.
  • Familiarity with processes of the World Bank, the African Development Bank or other international financial institutions, bilateral development agencies or research institutions.
  • Demonstrated skills and experience with measuring welfare through socio-economic profiling.
  • Excellent conceptual and analytical capability and track record in developing tools/methodologies to ensure informed and responsible decision making.
  • Ability to manage and supervise teams.
  • Ability to think creatively, and to explore, harness and translate innovative concepts into practice.
  • Capable of multi-tasking and managing several programmes/projects at the same time.

Language Requirements

For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.

Application

Interested candidates are requested to apply online at www.unhcr.org/careers by clicking on the “Vacancies” tab and entering the job title.
The UNHCR workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages and opinions. UNHCR seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. Applications are encouraged from all qualified candidates without distinction on grounds of race, colour, sex, national origin, age, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity.

Please note that UNHCR does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process (application, interview, meeting, travelling, processing, training or any other fees).

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