Background
UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, is the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. UNFPA promotes gender equality and empowers women, girls, and young people to take control of their bodies and their futures.

UNFPA supports countries using population data for policies and programmes to reduce poverty and ensure that every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled. Active in Liberia since 1979, UNFPA helps to deliver better emergency obstetric and newborn care, prevent, and treat obstetric fistula, manage reliable supplies of modern contraceptives, and stop gender-based violence. Recovering from 14 years of conflict that ended in 2003, many people in Liberia still live in poverty. Young people face formidable challenges; early marriage and pregnancy are common among girls. 

UNFPA’s focus on youth includes supporting targeted sexual and reproductive health care services and comprehensive sexuality education. It also provides technical support for population data collection and analysis to inform policies on youth, gender equality, and sexual and reproductive health and rights. In Liberia, UNFPA also provides leadership in positioning the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) Programme of Action at the forefront of poverty reduction and development strategies and policies. 

UNFPA values data as a critical component of policy and programmatic decision-making. The availability and accessibility of disaggregated, reliable, timely, public, free, and high-quality data to design public policies, inform public opinion, and develop concrete actions is fundamental to UNFPA’s global and national strategies. This is also well recognized in international frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - in particular, Target 17.18, which advocates to “… increase significantly the availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data disaggregated by income, gender, age, race, ethnicity, migratory status…”

One of the most recognizable areas of UNFPA’s work is to help countries use population data to assess and anticipate needs, provide technical guidance, training, and support to empower its partners in the field, and helps to ensure that the reproductive health and rights of women and young people remain at the very center of development. The recruitment of a data and research internship at UNFPA Liberia aims to contribute to this important work.
 

Purpose of consultancy:

The Data and Research Intern will support the work of the UNFPA Country Office by actively contributing to the elaboration of information products that provide stakeholders with sources of population data in the country and high-level standardized indicators shedding insights on UNFPA’s thematic areas.

Scope of work:

S/He will specifically 

• Support new and innovative knowledge generation and management.
• Develop documentation such as concept and research notes and provide technical support toward coordinating and delivering new evidence products, such as the national population and housing census and the Drivers of Development Study.
• Develop policy briefs, slide decks, and other materials as required on national data collection, including census and surveys and other population and development studies.
• Conduct spatial data analysis and create maps for critical indicators of the UNFPA country programme.

Duration and working schedule:

The Internship is for 4 months, and the successful candidate will work according to the working schedule at UNFPA Liberia (Mondays to Fridays). 

Location:

The Intern will be based in Monrovia.

Required expertise, qualifications, and competencies, including language requirements:

The Intern should be below 25 years and must be a Liberian National or foreign resident in Liberia with the following qualifications:

Education 

• Currently enrolled in or have completed a bachelor’s or equivalent degree in Studies in demography, development, public administration, or a related field. 
• Good knowledge of statistics is required.
• Have excellent academic performance shown through university records.

Work experience: 
At least 6 months combined work experience, preferably in applied research activities, designing research questions, data collection instruments, data analysis, and report writing. 
Knowledge of applying multiple research methodologies in previous roles is an advantage.
Experience in GIS or similar fields is considered an asset.
Previous experience accessing and using a variety of data portals is advantageous.
Experience working with government or international organizations is an asset.

Skills and Competencies

• Skilled in data analysis and dissemination. 
• Conversant with data analysis software such as STATA, SPSS, etc. 
• Excellent writing and analytical skills. 
• Good communication and organizational skills.
• Ability to work well in a diverse team. 
• A good understanding of data and the research landscape is an asset. 

Key Competencies 

• Fluent in English communication skills, both written and verbal
• Time management. 
• Attention to detail. 
• Creativity and innovation.
   

HOW TO APPLY
Candidates should submit their applications indicating the post, attach an updated CV, and a completed United Nations Personnel History Form (From P.11) obtainable from the UNFPA website at  www.unfpa.org.
ALL APPLICATIONS, WITH RELEVANT ATTACHMENTS, SHOULD BE EMAILED TO: ewatkins@unfpa.org, with a copy to: gaye@unfpa.org,  hessou@unfpa.org   

The deadline for submission of the application is 22 August 2023. UNFPA will only respond to applicants who will meet the stated job requirements.
 

 *For more information, please consult the attached Terms of Reference