Social Policy Specialist – Public Finance for Children

About the role

UNICEF is seeking a Social Policy Specialist to lead its Public Finance for Children work. The specialist will strengthen UNICEF’s capacity to address fiscal and budgetary barriers that affect child well‑being across diverse contexts, including federal, decentralized, fragile and humanitarian settings.

Key responsibilities

• Provide high‑quality technical assistance and policy advice to UNICEF offices, governments and partners to make budgets and financial systems more child‑sensitive.
• Support capacity development in Public Finance for Children, Financing for Development, and climate‑green financing.
• Generate, analyse and share evidence to influence policy reforms and strengthen accountability.
• Build and maintain partnerships with governments, international financial institutions, UN agencies, civil society and academia.
• Advance equitable and sustainable public‑finance solutions and strengthen national systems and institutional capacity.
• Improve the use of fiscal evidence in decision‑making, advocacy and investment for children.

Required profile

• Proven experience in public finance, social policy or child‑poverty programmes.
• Ability to work in federal, decentralized, fragile or humanitarian environments.
• Strong analytical skills for fiscal and budgetary analysis.
• Experience in capacity development, evidence generation and policy advocacy.
• Excellent partnership‑building and communication skills.
• Commitment to UNICEF’s mission to promote children’s rights.

Required skills

What we offer

• Opportunity to influence global child‑focused public finance policies.
• Professional development within UNICEF’s Global Programme Division.
• Competitive compensation and benefits package.