Batch Internship -Budget Transparency, Social Accountability and Citizen Engagement - Nampula and Zambezia, Mozambique

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 Childhood

How can you make a difference?

UNICEF Mozambique is supporting efforts to strengthen public financial management and improve education service delivery in Nampula and Zambézia provinces. This includes promoting budget transparency, accountability, community participation, and evidence-based decision-making. To support these initiatives, UNICEF seeks two interns, one based in Nampula and one in Zambézia, to contribute to budget transparency, school accountability, public information, and project monitoring activities.

MAIN TASKS

Under the supervision of the Social Policy Officer and within the framework of UNICEF’s engagement, the intern will contribute to a structured learning assignment focused on budget transparency, school accountability and community engagement.

Responsibilities:

Budget Transparency and Public Information

• Assist in the development of citizen-friendly versions of planning and budgeting doc-uments to improve public understanding of PESOD and education financing.
• Support the design of simplified communication materials explaining resources allo-cated to schools and expected results.
• Contribute to the development of public information templates, school transparency boards and disclosure tools for use by schools and local authorities.
• Support documentation of good practices and lessons learned on budget transparency initiatives.

Social Accountability and Transparency Mechanisms at school level

• Support the development and testing of school-level accountability and transparency tools.
• Assist in assessing how schools communicate information related to resources re-ceived and activities implemented.
• Support collection and analysis of information on transparency practices adopted by schools and School Councils.
• Contribute to identifying opportunities to strengthen public disclosure and accounta-bility mechanisms at school level.

Community Engagement and Social Accountability

• Support engagement with School Councils, Parent Associations, and community rep-resentatives.
• Assist in documenting community perspectives regarding transparency and service delivery.
• Support awareness-raising activities aimed at strengthening community participation and oversight.
• Contribute to documenting examples of citizen engagement and accountability prac-tices within project districts.

Data Collection, Analysis and Knowledge Management

• Support collection, compilation and analysis of data related to education financing, transparency and service delivery.
• Assist in maintaining project monitoring databases and analytical tools.
• Contribute to the preparation of briefing notes, reports, presentations and knowledge products.
• Support field visits and monitoring missions in project districts.
• Contribute to the preparation of evidence products and donor reporting materials.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of the internship, the intern is expected to have gained practical experience in:

• Public Financial Management;
• Budget transparency and citizen-friendly budgeting approaches;
• Education sector planning and financing;
• Social accountability and community engagement methodologies;
• Monitoring and reporting of development programmes;
• Data analysis and evidence generation for policy and programme decision-making.

EXPECTED DELIVERABLES

• At least two citizen-friendly budget and planning products developed or updated.
• School transparency and public information templates developed and tested.
• Contributions to monitoring tools and databases related to SPSP PF4C Program imple-mentation.
• Documentation of good practices and lessons learned related to transparency and ac-countability initiatives.

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

Minimum requirements:

• Be enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate, degree programme or have graduated within the past two years.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years old.
• Academic background in Economics, Public Administration, Public Policy, Public Fi-nance, Development Studies, Governance, Statistics, Education Planning, Social Sci-ences, and/or related fields.
• Have excellent academic performance as demonstrated by recent university or institution records.

Additional Desirable Qualities

• Knowledge of public planning and budgeting processes.
• Understanding of governance, transparency, and accountability issues.
• Experience in data collection, research or analysis.
• Strong analytical, communication and interpersonal skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications.

• Experience working with schools, communities, youth groups or civil society organizations

Language Requirements:

•Be proficient in at least one of UNICEF's working languages: English. Fluency in the working language Portuguese is required.

•Have no immediate relatives (e.g. father, mother, brother, sister) working in any UNICEF office; and have no other relatives in the line of authority that the intern will Preport to.

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

[add the 8th competency (Nurtures, leads and manages people) for a supervisory role].

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.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

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.

[Do not remove the below paragraph]

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.