UNICEF Pacific Consultancy: Information Management Expert for Climate Change and Emergencies, Suva, Fiji, 253 working days over 11.5 months Individual Consultant International Position Mid-level National Position Short term contract

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 innovation.

The UNICEF Pacific Multi-Country Office covers 14 countries and territories that are highly vulnerable to both climatic and non-climatic shocks, stresses, and disasters. These include cyclones, floods, droughts, and other severe weather events, which often overlap and compound vulnerabilities. Children are disproportionately affected by these hazards due to their physical and physiological vulnerability, increasing risks of mortality, deprivation, and inequality. Overlapping hazards can erode development progress, deepen poverty, and trigger humanitarian crises, making certain areas increasingly precarious for children. Amid these challenges, strong child rights governance remains critical: all 14 Pacific Island countries and territories have ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, though only a third are currently on track with reporting obligations. Explore the different areas of our work here: UNICEF Pacific Islands

Information Management (IM) is essential for ensuring timely and accurate analysis of often limited data to support evidence-based decision-making. In the Pacific, UNICEF plays a critical role in humanitarian coordination, serving as the WASH Cluster Lead and co-lead for multiple national clusters/sectors, including Education and Child Protection. To deliver on these mandates, UNICEF must provide rapid and effective IM support across sectors and clusters, both at the regional level and within national structures under National Disaster Management Offices (NDMOs).

The humanitarian landscape in the Pacific is further complicated by diverse coordination structures at regional and national levels, requiring strong contextual understanding and sustained engagement. Reliable, up-to-date data is therefore critical for preparedness, response, and recovery efforts, as well as for climate change adaptation and resilience programming.

UNICEF works across the Pacific with leading governmental organizations on climate change and with social sectors such as Education, WASH, Health & Nutrition, Child Protection, and Social Policy to improve access to services for the most vulnerable. Understanding the main impacts, identifying where vulnerable populations are located, and determining appropriate actions are essential. Part of this effort involves mapping interventions at household or community level and identifying gaps. To achieve this, UNICEF needs tools for assessments, monitoring, and tracking completed actions—tools that can be scaled up with government counterparts and implementing partners.

In 2024 and 2025, UNICEF, in collaboration with UNITAR and the governments of Fiji, Vanuatu, and Solomon Islands, developed the Children’s Climate Risk Index and Disaster Risk Model (CCRI-DRM). This tool improves access to subnational climate and disaster risk information, enabling evidence-based policies and programs to reduce vulnerabilities and strengthen resilience. CCRI-DRM provides a comprehensive view of children’s exposure and vulnerability to climate and non-climatic risks, supporting decision-making and planning through a public platform.

To enhance data accessibility, quality, visualization, and ownership of CCRI-DRM and other IM resources, UNICEF seeks to hire a consultant to work closely with UNICEF sections, governments, and humanitarian actors. The consultant will identify opportunities, strengthen information systems, and build capacity at community and sectoral levels. This work will inform UNICEF’s and partners’ preparedness and response activities, as well as climate change programming, ensuring that decisions are grounded in robust, child-focused evidence

How can you make a difference?

1. Information System Development

• Design, develop, and improve information systems to capture and manage data related to humanitarian actions, including preparedness, response, recovery, and climate change.
• Incorporate mapping of regular sectoral programmatic work supported by UNICEF across countries (including Who, What, Where, and By When).
• Ensure systems are user-friendly, scalable, and adaptable for use by government counterparts and implementing partners.

2. Stakeholder Engagement

• Identify and engage key stakeholders within UNICEF and external partners to foster collaboration and data sharing.
• Coordinate with clusters, sectors, and their working group information managers to ensure complementarity with existing IM systems.
• Facilitate cross-sectoral analysis of information related to disaster response and climate programming.

3. Data Visualization

• Develop simple, user-friendly data visualization tools and dashboards to improve understanding and utilization of data for strategic decision-making.
• Ensure visualizations support rapid analysis during emergencies and climate-related interventions.

4. Capacity Building

• Provide training and capacity-building sessions for partners and stakeholders on data collection, management, and utilization.
• Develop guidance materials and standard operating procedures for IM tools and systems.

5. Cross-Cutting Considerations

• Integrate gender, disability inclusion, and accountability to affected populations into all IM systems and processes.
• Ensure data collection and reporting frameworks reflect these considerations.

6. Documentation and Reporting

• Maintain comprehensive documentation of IM processes, tools, and methodologies.
• Provide regular progress reports to UNICEF and streamline information-sharing methods (e.g., online platforms, email groups, written reports, and verbal feedback during coordination meetings).

Please refer to the ToR ( TOR IM Expert – Climate Change and Emergencies.pdf) for further information on the deliverables and the timelines.

GUIDANCE FOR APPLICANTS:  

 Please submit a separate financial offer along with your application. The financial proposal should be a lump sum amount for all the deliverables and should show a breakdown for the following:

• Monthly / Daily fees – Based on the deliverables indicated in the Terms of Reference above
• Travel (economy air ticket to take up assignment in Fiji)
• Living allowance for relocation to Suva, Fiji for the entire contract duration
• Miscellaneous – to cover health insurance (including medical evacuation), travel, communications, and other costs.

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

Minimum requirements:

Education:

• An undergraduate bachelor’s degree or higher in Information Management, Geography, GIS, Data Science, or a related field

Work Experience:

• A minimum of 5 years of professional experience in information management, data collection, and data processing, particularly in humanitarian contexts.
• Demonstrated experience in the development and improvement of data collection and management systems, including the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
• Proven expertise in data visualization and the use of data for strategic decision-making.
• Experience working with government partners.
• Work experience serving in a developing country is required. Work experience in the Pacific Islands region is an asset.
• Experience working in UNICEF or a UN system agency is an asset

Skills:

• Exceptional interpersonal skills to effectively engage and collaborate with diverse stakeholders.
• Strong communication and training skills to convey complex technical information to non‑technical partners.
• Understanding of cross-cutting themes such as gender, disabilities, and accountability to affected populations in the context of information management.
• Ability to work independently and in a team, with a proactive and results‑oriented approach.
• Analysis skills and quantitative and qualitative synthesis of information

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in written and spoken English is required. Knowledge of a local language is an advantage.

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…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others

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.

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.

Remarks: 

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable candidates are encouraged to apply.

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.