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, care

UNICEF, as one of the global leaders in public finance for children, seeks to influence and support the mobilisation, allocation, and utilisation of domestic public financial resources in partner countries for greater, more equitable, and sustainable results for children. UNICEF supports governments worldwide and in the region in prioritizing the implementation of child-friendly budget analyses as an integral component of their monitoring and review, fiscal planning, and policy-making processes.

Such analyses provide crucial insights into the allocation and utilisation of resources to address the needs and rights of children, ensuring that budgetary decisions are informed by a comprehensive understanding of their impact on the well-being and development of children and youth. By integrating child-friendly budget analyses into their governance frameworks, governments can enhance transparency, accountability, and effectiveness in resource allocation, ultimately fostering the realisation of children's rights and the achievement of sustainable development goals.

Child budgeting is also necessarily at the heart of the SDGs’ financing: countries have to maximise the effectiveness of existing budgetary allocations in achieving child‐specific objectives and, at the same time, substantially scale‐up investments in the existing policies and commitments towards SDGs.

In its recommendations for Azerbaijan, published in February 2023, the UN Children's Rights Committee mentions the need to establish a child-friendly budgeting process. Accordingly, Protocol No. 34 of the meeting of the Commission on the Affairs and Protection of the Rights of Minors under the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan, held on October 25, 2023, includes in Paragraph 13 of its Action Plan for 2024 the activity "Presentation of proposals on the formation of the children's budget, including child-friendly budget assessments and improved budget efficiency”.

How can you make a difference? 

Purpose:

The purpose of this assignment is to conduct Child-focused Public Expenditure Measurement (C-PEM) to identify direct and indirect allocations and spending on child policy objectives of the budget over time. Additionally, this assignment aims to support the measurement of public expenditures focused on children in Azerbaijan, aligning with current governmental policies to optimise budget contributions toward child-specific goals. Furthermore, the assignment aims to introduce child-friendly budgeting within the Mid-Term Expenditure Framework in partnership with the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The assignment aims to:

a) Enhance the connection between policy/programme planning and budget planning

b) Aid the government in evaluating the overall size and makeup of budget allocations for child-related programmes, as well as identifying gaps and obstacles in relation to existing policies;

c) Improve the quality (effectiveness, efficiency, and equity) of budgets in achieving child-specific goals;

d) Support Azerbaijan's state reporting on the implementation of the CRC (Convention on the Rights of the Child).

e) To inform a new UNICEF AZE country programming cycle by building an understanding of the composition of the budget and identifying areas for further analysis or advocacy.

Scope of Work, steps and key deliverables

Following the overall conceptual framework of C-PEM methodology, conduct Child-focused Public Expenditure Measurement (C-PEM) to identify direct and indirect allocations and spending on child-policy objectives across all sectors of the budget:

The major steps are as follows:

Inception phase:

·    Initial desk review to assess the availability of data/ information

·    Stakeholder identification and defining the assessment and response parameters.

·    Presentation of the conceptual framework and the tools to UNICEF and the Ministry of Finance to facilitate an in-depth common understanding of the framework

·   Presentation of an inception report, including finalised conceptual framework and methodology.

Data collection and analysis:

• The C-PEM methodology identifies and reports on child-focused expenditure across related sectors.
• National budget allocations and execution figures by ministry, sector, and policy outcome.
• A series of key information interviews
• Possible Roundtable with key stakeholders
• Analysis strategies and planning documents, policies, and budgets.

Expected Deliverables: 

• Inception report with elaborated C-PEM methodology and work plan (and schedule), stakeholder mapping– November 2024;
• Draft C-PEM report with key findings and possible round table with stakeholders December-February, 2024-2025
• Presentation and validation of findings with stakeholders (PowerPoint presentation). – December-February, 2024-2025
• C-PEM analysis and final report (max 30-50 pages) – March 2025;
• A policy brief with key findings and recommendations (max 4 pages) for advocacy purposes–March 2025

• Master’s degree in Economics, Public Finance, Public Policy, Social Sciences, or a related field or equivalent areas
• Minimum of 7 years of relevant professional experience in public finance management, budget analysis, and expenditure tracking
• Proven experience in conducting Child-focused Public Expenditure Measurement (C-PEM) or similar methodologies
• Experience in working with national and subnational governments on public finance and policy analysis.
• Demonstrated experience in conducting desk reviews, stakeholder consultations, and key informant interviews.
• Experience in presenting complex data and conceptual frameworks to diverse stakeholders, including government officials and international organisations.
• Familiarity with the policy and institutional landscape in Azerbaijan or similar contexts is highly desirable.
• Strong analytical and quantitative skills, with the ability to analyse and interpret budget data and financial reports.
• Report writing and presentation skills.
• Ability to develop and implement data collection tools and methodologies.
• Knowledge of gender and climate-sensitive approaches in public finance analysis.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage and collaborate effectively with diverse stakeholders.
• Understanding of UNICEF’s mandate and work in the area of child rights and welfare.
• Familiarity with international best practices in public expenditure tracking and analysis.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of Russian or Turkish language is an asset.

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:  

Candidates should submit technical and financial proposals.

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.