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.

For every child, the right to Future

In China, we promote policies and laws that better deliver on children's rights. We have over 100 staff members working with the Government of China and other partners to ensure that the benefits of the country's development reach the most impoverished children. And we share what we learn with others.

How can you make a difference? 

Traditional funding modalities alone cannot meet the financial demands of today’s complex global challenges. Exploring and leveraging new financing models can unlock untapped resources to fund both established and novel initiatives, driving faster progress toward achieving the SDGs.

UNICEF Innovative Financing for Children – IF4C Global Vision & Strategy sets out a clear vision, concrete goals, and comprehensive plan for using more innovative methods to tap into a diverse spectrum of capital. The Strategy aims to support innovative approaches that create synergies between public and private finance to increase resources for areas of work that can result in a major positive impact for children.

In line with global strategy, UNICEF China Office is seeking to enhance the function of alternative/innovative finance for children through financing approaches, tools and mechanisms that can (a) leverage additional resources for children in China and beyond through new financial instruments or apply existing instruments in a new way; (b) make resources work more effectively and efficiently in the interest of children; and/or (c) make resources more results-oriented to accelerate programmatic and operational solutions for children.

Under the supervision of Innovative Finance Specialist (NOC) of Partnerships and Innovation section, and working closely with Public Partnreship Section(PPS), the Innovative Finance Officer shall support the development of effective strategies and execute work plans to enable, drive, and accelerate innovative alternative financing and funding solutions for children by engaging China-based private sector partners,  and in coordination with PPS on the development/multi-lateral banks and other financial institutions, etc., through initiatives that attract investments for climate change, environment, disaster risk reduction and other areas.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:
By 2030, UNICEF China aims to unlock, leverage, and align capital from innovative financing transactions that directly and/or indirectly contribute to child outcomes.
• Support the initiation, design, and implementation of innovative financing solutions across the board, including sovereign debt, impact investing, and climate risk financing across a diverse spectrum of capital.
• Work closely with UNICEF global, regional, and country teams and IF Hub in Finland (PFP), to deliver initiatives on the adoption of the development of the child-lens impact investing framework for China.

Under the guidance of the Partnerships Specialist (Innovative Finance), the incumbent will be responsible for project execution and coordination, planning, research, and analysis, as well as knowledge management, administration, and budget monitoring.

The incumbent is expected to deliver the following tasks:

1. Support the development of overall strategy, modalities, engagement, and pipelines:
• Analyze UNICEF China’s portfolio and existing innovative finance mechanisms to identify potential innovative finance opportunities with the private sector partners, and in close coordination with PPS, on China-based MDBs/FIs and policy banks.
• Support the supervisor on the initiation, design, and implementation of innovative financing solutions across the board (including sovereign debt, impact investing, and climate risk financing), working closely with the Global IF4C team (PFP) and UNICEF Asia Pacific Regional Office (APRO).
• Conduct business analyses of financial markets and trends, including research on key internal and external risks and associated mitigation strategies, with a focus on how innovative financing modalities can be applied in the private sector arena.
• Conduct assessments and feasibility analyses of prospective innovative finance instruments to be deployed.
• Work closely with UNICEF global and regional teams as well as IF Hub in Finland (PFP) and APRO on the child-lens impact investing framework and its adoption.
• Document strategic decisions and operational processes to ensure transparency and facilitate future initiatives.

2. Project execution and multi-stakeholder coordination
• Project execution and coordination to ensure the work plan and key deliverables are met effectively and on time.
• Collaborate with UNICEF stakeholders to integrate planning, risk management, and governance aspects into the team’s work, ensuring compliance with the Innovative Finance Committee (IFC).
• Maintain robust tracking and reporting mechanisms to monitor progress against objectives and deliverables.

3. Partnerships and engagement
• Support the manager to enhance partnerships & resource mobilization efforts with the private sector partners and coordinate closely with PPS on China-based MDBs/FIs and policy banks. Advise on technical input, the development and management of partnerships with private sector entities, and other stakeholders to drive innovative financing initiatives.
• Support partnership events, meetings, and other high-level engagement: Prepare, distribute, and maintain event calendars, ensuring key organizational and partner events, priorities, and deadlines are reflected and updated as required. Contribute to the preparations of logistics for events involving senior management participation. By participating in such meetings, follow up on the implementation of recommendations and actions. Coordinate preparation of background documents, briefing notes, and post-event materials for these meetings.
• Work closely with other functions to produce high-quality, audience-specific knowledge products/publications/content for internal and external positioning, fundraising proposals, and promotional materials.

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

Minimum requirements:

Education: A university degree in one of the following fields is required: International development, finance, economics, public or business administration, law, or closely related fields.   

Work Experience:

• A minimum of three (3) years of professional work experience in development, innovative finance, ESG/impact investing, investment banking, risk, and market analysis is required.
• Experience working in innovative finance or related fields, including a solid understanding of the innovative finance landscape.
• Prior experience in structuring innovative finance products (such as sustainability-linked bonds, outcome-based financing, climate risk financing, and debt swaps).
• Experience in partnership building and capital resource mobilization.
• Experience producing investment cases, communication, and advocacy materials.

Language Requirements: Fluency in written and spoken Chinese and English is required.

Desirables:

• The ability to work across multiple projects, with multiple stakeholders, and meet moving deadlines is an asset.

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

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

• Nurtures, Leads, and Manages People (1)
• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness ()
• Works Collaboratively with others (1)
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships (1)
• Innovates and Embraces Change (1)
• Thinks and Acts Strategically (1)
• Drives to achieve impactful results (1)
• Manages ambiguity and complexity (1)

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

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 a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation 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.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

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.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.