Current vacancies

Working arrangement: Office based

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built. We offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

How can you make a difference?  

Sri Lanka currently lacks a unified, digital, and continuously updated information system to manage preschool data. Existing preschool data are fragmented, manually collected, and inconsistently updated across provinces, limiting their usefulness for planning, monitoring, and policy formulation. The Preschool Census is intended to establish a national baseline dataset covering all preschools and preschool units nationwide. This initiative will support the implementation of national education reforms and the National Pre‑Primary Policy by enabling evidence‑based planning, equitable resource allocation, and monitoring of preschool education services. To support this effort, the Ministry of Education, with support from UNICEF, seeks to engage an individual consultant/contractor to design, develop, deploy, and operationalize a National Preschool Census Information System, including mechanisms for annual updates of selected data fields, data quality assurance, and long‑term system sustainability. The consultant will work with the Ministry of Education's statistics branch to design, develop, deploy, and implement a secure, scalable, and user-friendly information system for collecting data on preschools in Sri Lanka, based on the Preschool Census framework, and to establish mechanisms for regular annual updates of key data elements. This system will provide the baseline information for all preschools across the country. And provide provisions to update selected fields annually.

The consultancy will include system design, development, deployment, training, data quality assurance, scaling, maintenance, data analysis, reporting, data archiving, and secure project closure. See TOR for details.

If you would like to know more about this consultancy's scope of work and expected deliverables, please review the complete Terms of Reference here:  ToR System Developer Consultant.pdf

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

Minimum requirements:

Education:

• Diploma or Higher National Diploma in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field from a recognized university / Diploma awarding institute. And five years of post-qualifying experience.
• A Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field from a recognized university, and two years of post-qualifying experience. Relevant professional certifications will be considered a significant advantage.

Work Experience:

• At least 5 years’ experience in designing and developing large-scale ICT systems in government and/or private sector environments.

•     Demonstrated experience in data collection systems, census systems, or enterprise data platforms.

•     Experience in web-based application development, system integration, and scalable architecture.

•     Experience working with education, social sector, or large user-based systems is preferred.

•     Prior experience with government or UN/UNICEF supported projects is an advantage.

Language Requirements:

•     Fluency in both Sinhala and English is required

•     Fluency in Tamil Language would be a significant advantage.

Knowledge/Expertise/Skills:

•     Basic proficiency in full-stack development (frontend and backend)

•     Knowledge of database management systems

•     Proven experience in developing web-based or enterprise-level information systems

•     Experience in data collection systems, databases, or MIS platforms

•     Experience in system design, development, and deployment

•     Understanding of data validation, security, and system workflows

•     Expertise in GIS integration, data analytics, and dashboards.

•     Strong knowledge of data security, compliance, and system scaling.

•     Compliance with Sri Lanka’s Data Protection Act, cyber security, and child data safeguarding.

•     Ability to assign intellectual property rights to Ministry of Education.

Desirables:

•     Experience in developing web-based data collection and management platforms, including frontend and backend development.

•     Demonstrated experience in integrating mobile or offline data collection tools (e.g., ODK, KoboToolbox, or similar platforms) with centralized databases.

• • •     Experience working with multi-stakeholder environments, including government agencies, private sector, development partners etc.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). 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 based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

Qualified candidates are invited to submit the following documents via the online recruitment portal, TMS (Talent Management System):

• An up-to-date TMS profile and curriculum vitae (CV)
• Cover letter
• A separate financial proposal:  Financial Proposal xxx2163.docx
• A detailed technical proposal

Remarks:  If the TOR or financial proposal documents are not visible on certain recruitment platforms, please visit our official page Vacancies | UNICEF Careers.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.