Programme Specialist, Population Development / M&E
Position Summary Expectations - Duties, Responsibilities
The Position:
The Programme Specialist, Population Development / M&E holds overall responsibility for UNFPA’s activities in the areas of population dynamics, data, and development. The position contributes to analyzing political, social, and economic trends, providing foresight analysis and technical input to country programme development, project formulation and evaluation, joint programming initiatives, and national development frameworks.
This role links internal and external data, monitoring, and evaluation systems, ensuring that programme results are tracked, reported, and evaluated in alignment with UNFPA standards. It is pivotal in connecting country-level planning, foresight, and evidence-based decision-making.
The Programme Specialist oversees the Cambodia Country Office’s programming on population development and provides leadership in planning, monitoring, and evaluation of the Country Programme. The role engages with inter-agency working groups for UNSDCF coordination and supports national partners through the UN Data Group and Data for Development platforms.
The post is part of the Strategic Development Team and reports directly to the Head of the Team / Representative.
- Programme Management
- Lead technical and programmatic support for population, development and data activities
- Analyze population trends, risks and data impacting ICPD agenda and SDGs
- Oversee development of methodologies and tools for censuses and data collection
- Build national capacity in census planning, data collection and analysis/processing and new technologies
- Coordinate CO's M&E activities for Country Programme implementation
- Facilitate inter-agency M&E coordination and UNSDCF work, ensuring quality reporting
- Ensure timely data collection and analysis in line with programme indicators and evidence-based results
- Provide technical advice for data analysis, RBM and M&E to staff, UN and implementing partners
- Work with regional advisors on population and development and programme evaluations
- Manage programmatic reporting to UNFPA APRO
- Quality Technical Support and Capacity Development
- Provide technical support for national census, DHS and surveys, incorporating new technologies including GIS and satellite imagery
- Integrate current population data into CO programme work, CCA and UNSDCF processes
- Deliver capacity building through training programs and materials for national partners, UN colleagues and staff
- Support South-South Cooperation and modernization of national statistical systems
- Coordinate information systems management and program monitoring
- Document and share M&E best practices and lessons learned
- Conduct field monitoring and collect programmatic evidence
- Support inter-agency UNSDCF monitoring and reporting ensuring and external evaluations
- Manage risk, donor reporting and corporate evaluation systems
- Evidence, Knowledge Management and Reporting
- Build coordinate, update and monitor country level knowledge on population data and promote dissemination, of knowledge, lessons learned, and success stories especially related to innovative practices for population data;
- Support the analysis of quality data from administrative systems such as Health Information Systems and others. Support in-depth analysis of data resulting from the Cambodia Demographic Health Survey and other surveys.
- Based on data analysis, review and provide input in the preparation of annual Country Office work plans from an PDD and M&E perspective and ensure that the monitoring and evaluation indicators are aligned to the CP and UNSDCF M&E Frameworks.
- Coordinate the development of semi-annual, annual and other project reports as may be required that shows progress in relation to the work plan and the results framework at country and regional level, with a focus on impact.
- Provide analysis of the data, its implications for programme implementation and initiate operational research activities that will inform and strengthen programme implementation.
- Oversee the design of the annual reviews, mid-term and end-of-programme evaluations as required in collaboration with the regional office and its implications for programme management.
- Ensure the UNFPA SP output indicator targets set by CO are monitored and reported in a timely manner in SIS/Quantum.
- Technical Representation, Strategic partnerships and positioning
- Act as a focal point for UNFPA Cambodia in regional and country level technical networks in population data;
- Lead and support the Data for Development Sub Technical Working Group and the Data Partners Group;
- Participate in and represent UNFPA at national fora including all meetings on data, population data and statistics and promote UNFPA’s regional and global perspectives on population and development issues in line with the ICPD PoA.
- Strengthen national and regional partnerships in population data and statistics and collaborate with UN agencies, academia, research and training institutions, think tanks, centers of excellence in Cambodia on population data and statistics.
- Support the development of resource mobilization concept notes in PDD and across all programmes ensuring that the latest data and analysis are included. Ensure all proposals have a sound logical framework and M&E plan.
- Support all mandatory donor reports preparation and compilation as per corporate and donor requirements ensuring that the latest data and analysis is incorporated into results reporting.
- Act as a bridge between PDD, programming and communications by providing high quality results information to the communications and partnership Specialist including provision of results stories and case studies, human interest stories, quotes from stakeholders, excerpts from interviews and other results relevant to partnerships, communications and advocacy needs.
- Perform any other duties commensurate with the complexity of the position, as required by the Representative.
- Education:
- Advanced university degree in either Statistics, Demography, Monitoring and Evaluation or Social Sciences including Gender, Development Studies, or Public Health.
- Knowledge and Experience:
- At least 5 years of increasingly responsible professional experience in the field of population, data and development, results-based management, monitoring and evaluation, statistics, and/or research methodologies; with additional years of experience desirable.
- Post graduate training in use of data, statistics, monitoring and evaluation and knowledge in the health sector is an added advantage;
- Data analysis skills and familiarity with statistical software (i.e. SPSS, Stata);
- Experience in documenting results in a variety of formats including in human interest stories and more qualitative research and reports
- Ability to write clear and comprehensive reports.
- Experience in capacity building on analysis and data use, and aspects of M&E an asset.
- Excellent computer skills especially Access, Excel, SPSS and GIS.
- Strong interest in development work, especially the mission of the United Nations Population Fund and dedication to the principles of the United Nations; Knowledge of the UN system would be an advantage
- Languages:
- Fluency in spoken and written English and Khmer.
- Required Competencies:
- Values:
- Exemplifying integrity,
- Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system,
- Embracing cultural diversity,
- Embracing change
- Core Competencies:
- Achieving results,
- Being accountable,
- Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen,
- Thinking analytically and strategically,
- Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships,
- Communicating for impact
- Functional Competencies:
- Advocacy/advancing a policy-oriented agenda
- Leveraging the resources of national governments and partners/ building strategic alliances and partnerships
- Delivering results-oriented programs
- Internal and external communication and advocacy for results mobilization
- Managerial Competencies (if applicable):
- Providing strategic focus
- Engaging internal/ external partners and stakeholders
- Leading, developing and empowering people, creating a culture of performance
- Making decisions and exercising judgment
- Compensation and Benefits:
- This position offers an attractive remuneration package including a competitive net salary plus health insurance and other benefits as applicable.
