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UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child...innovate

UNICEF has a 70-year history of innovating for children. We believe that new approaches, partnerships and technologies that support realizing children’s rights are critical to improving their lives.

The Office of Innovation is a creative, interactive, and agile team in UNICEF. We sit at a unique intersection, where an organization that works on huge global issues meets the start-up thinking, the technology, and the partners that turn this energy into scalable solutions.

UNICEF's Office of Innovation creates opportunities for the world's children by focusing on where new markets can meet their vital needs. We do this by:

• Connecting youth communities (or more broadly -- anyone disconnected or under-served) to decision-makers, and to each other, to deliver informed, relevant and sustained programmes that build better, stronger futures for children.
• Provoking change for children through an entrepreneurial approach -- in a traditionally risk averse field -- to harness rapidly moving innovations and apply them to serve the needs of all children.
• Creating new models of partnership that leverage core business values across the public, private and academic sectors in order to deliver fast, and lasting results for children.

The Office of Innovation specifically looks to form partnerships around frontier technologies (like drones and UAVs, blockchain, 21st century skills, urban technologies, new banking tools, wearables and sensors, or 3D-Printing) that exist at the intersection of $100 billion business markets, and 1 billion person needs – and to identify how they can grow and scale profitably and inclusively. 

Our team

UNICEF’s Innovative Finance Hub, based in Helsinki, aims to catalyze global capital in support of children to fill the SDG gap and radically accelerate progress towards the SDGs. It sits at a unique vantage point where an organization working on global issues meets the startup thinking, new ideas, and partners to turn this energy into scalable solutions.

A leading product of the Hub has been the development of Child-Lens Investing, a field to guide investors incorporating child-related considerations in decision-making. Since the publication of the Child-Lens Investing Framework in September 2023, the nascent field has seen significant uptake and interest by the investment community. One important area of work is the applicability of CLIF to broad reference criteria for labelled debt instruments, such as bonds and loans. UNICEF is interested in exploring how such criteria and, consequently, guidelines could be developed both methodologically and practically. As seen with other thematic bonds and loans, the establishment of widely accepted reference standards would enable issuers to define what constitutes a credible child-lens debt instrument, while providing investors with greater confidence that their investments align with recognized market standards.

Beyond expanding into other asset classes, the Hub is also exploring advancing thematic integration, demonstrating how Child-Lens Investing can complement and strengthen established investment lenses and themes, starting with Gender-Lens Investing and climate finance, and with the aim to expand to other investment lenses over time. By ensuring interoperability between these frameworks, the Hub seeks to enable issuers and investors to assess, report and compare performance across multiple lenses, thereby strengthening both market credibility and impact delivery.

How can you make a difference?

Under the direct supervision of the Senior Impact Analyst, the consultant will support the Hub in its work around Child-Lens Investing and the Child-lens Investing Framework (CLIF). The consultant's responsibilities will be organized into three key areas: 1) supporting the development of guidelines for Child-Lens Investing in Debt Markets, 2) supporting the development of guidelines for the interoperability between Child-Lens Investing and Gender-Lens Investing and 3) supporting interoperability with climate finance. Specifically, the consultant will:

• Support the development of guidelines for Child-Lens Investing in Debt Markets:
  • Review and refine the guidelines’ scope and purpose, building on scoping work to be completed by a consultant contracted to develop the guidelines and peer-reviewed by the Hub’s partners from the labeled debt standard-setting space (e.g., LMA, ICMA). This includes critically reviewing and enhancing the initial joint work between the consultant and the Hub and revisiting the rationale, key research questions and methodology already developed.
  • Support the Hub and the consultant developing the guidelines in completing a desk review of existing frameworks and standards used in labeled debt markets. The report will identify commonalities, challenges, and opportunities in applying child-lens approaches to the selection, financing and impact measurement of child-related projects in social and sustainability-linked bonds and loans. This phase will also include an internal mapping of existing UNICEF knowledge and ongoing work related to loans and bonds. It will involve leading engagement with internal teams across divisions to identify relevant KPIs already developed, priority sectors aligned with UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, and any past or current initiatives connected to debt markets.
  • Collaborate with the consultant contracted to develop the guidelines as well as the Hub’s partners involved in peer-reviewing the guidelines’ different drafting stages to explore opportunities for strengthening child-related considerations within existing labeled debt reference principles and standards. Potential activities could include contributing to or reviewing child-lens-aligned elements such as eligible project categories, key performance indicators, and pre- and post-issuance guidance, with inputs validated through stakeholder engagement and consultative workshops.
• Support the development of guidelines for the interoperability between gender and child lenses:
  • Oversee the development of guidelines on gender and child-lens interoperability, managing and coordinating inputs from contracted consultant, UNICEF and external partners, and facilitating peer reviews. Review and validate all outputs to ensure alignment with UNICEF priorities, address dual-lens considerations, and provide sector-specific insights, ensuring the final guidelines are completed and published on schedule.
  • Support communication activities with the IF Hub Communications Specialist, including preparing briefs and executive summaries and assisting in planning a launch event with agenda design, speaker engagement, outreach and UNICEF branding.
• Support the development of guidelines for the interoperability between Child-Lens Investing and climate finance:
  • Collaborate with the Hub’s climate finance partners - including, but not limited to, multilateral climate finance mechanisms - to support piloting the integration of child-lens considerations into selected initiatives. This may include embedding child-focused approaches in areas such as climate adaptation and mitigation lending. The work will support both strategic and transaction-level adaptation of child-lens investing tools across the investment cycle, from pipeline generation and origination to screening, due diligence, supervision and monitoring. Liaise with UNICEF’s in-house country and climate change specialists to consolidate their technical input. Lessons learned and key issues emerging from this pilot will inform the development of guidelines.
  • Conduct an initial desk review to identify and map both the business case and the impact case for integrating a child lens alongside climate finance. This review should also build on findings generated through the partnership pilot.
  • Conduct a comprehensive desk review and stakeholder interviews to evaluate integration opportunities across asset classes, investment stages and sectors. This will involve conducting literature review, identifying gaps, determining where child-lens considerations add the most value, and outlining how and when they can be incorporated, building again on lessons learnt from past engagements with multilateral climate finance partners.
  • Develop a step-by-step guideline for investors on how to effectively and consistently integrate a child-lens into climate finance.

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  REVISED TEMPLATE Debt Markets Guidelines ToR.pdf

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (master’s or higher) in international development, finance, economics, public or business administration, or other relevant field.
   *A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.
• A minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience at national and international levels in international development, innovative finance, ESG/impact investing, project management, consulting, or other related fields. 
• Experience in sustainable finance, with a focus on the structuring, issuance and evaluation of debt instruments (such as social and sustainability-linked bonds and loans), including familiarity with relevant market standards, frameworks, and investor expectations. 
• Familiarity and foundational understanding of impact/investment lenses in finance, including gender and climate. 
• Demonstrated technical understanding of social issues in impact investing related to labeled debt instruments, including familiarity with ICMA Bond Principles and LMA Loan Principles. 
• Proven ability to analyze and synthesize information from a broad range of sources into a practical toolkit for implementation. 
• Experience in stakeholder engagement, particularly in facilitating consultations with capital market actors, development finance institutions, standard setters, and experts focused on social impact and vulnerable groups, including children, is an asset. 
• Good understanding of the rights-based programming environment for children is an asset. 
• Experience in working with international organizations or corporations, UNICEF and other UN agencies is an asset. 
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

Travel:

• Travel will be considered for participation in key stakeholder meetings where the consultant will support the Hub with technical expertise and participate in internal and external-facing relevant events during the duration of the consultancy contract. Travel arrangements for 2026 will be determined at a later stage.

Payment details and further considerations

• Payment of professional fees will be based on the submission of agreed deliverables. UNICEF reserves the right to withhold payment in case the deliverables submitted are not up to the required standard or in case of delays in submitting the deliverables on the part of the consultant. 

How to apply:

• Interest applicant is required to submit a financial proposal with all-inclusive fee.  Please see the financial proposal template.    Consultancy Financial Offer template.docx
• Financial proposal must include travel costs (economy class) and daily subsistence allowance, if travel is required as per TOR and any other estimated costs: visa, travel/health insurance
• Applications without a financial proposal will not be considered.

General Terms and Conditions:

Please review UNICEF's General Terms and Conditions for Consultants here for important information regarding contract obligations, including medical insurance, SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) vaccination, and income tax requirements.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF's values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS).

To view our competency framework, please visit here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for consultants/individual contractors with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the selection process and afterwards in your assignment.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

Remarks: 

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations and UNICEF’s policies and procedures and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultants and individual contractors are responsible for determining their tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws.

The selected candidate is solely responsible to ensure that the visa (applicable) and health insurance required to perform the duties of the contract are valid for the entire period of the contract. Selected candidates are subject to confirmation of fully vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the assignment. It does not apply to consultants who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their consultancy contracts.