The Position:
UNFPA is committed to leveraging innovation to tackle global challenges and achieve key outcomes, such as ending preventable maternal deaths, addressing unmet family planning needs, and eradicating gender-based violence and harmful practices. Through the Equalizer, UNFPA Accelerator Fund, UNFPA harnesses innovation, research, and technology to deliver the necessary scale and pace to achieve its transformative results by 2030.
In this context, UNFPA is establishing the WomenX Collective - a collective of hubs dedicated to advancing innovation, research, and investment in women’s health. This initiative aims to close the gap in women’s health solutions by enhancing partnerships and mobilizing resources for gender equity in science, technology, and finance. The WomenX Collective seeks to address women's unmet health needs in low- and middle-income countries by linking advanced solutions with local capabilities, ensuring sustainable impact. It emphasizes utilizing knowledge and expertise from UNFPA program countries to foster international collaborations focused on improving the health and well-being of women and girls.
UNFPA is seeking a qualified candidate to coordinate the operations of the WomenX Collective Hub in Nairobi and support the development of WomenX's growth strategy by designing and implementing new and existing innovative financial solutions and resource mobilization. The candidate will report to the Global Coordinator of WomenX Collective, and work under the overall leadership of the Chief of the Innovation Unit in the Office of the Executive Director.
How you can make a difference:
UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled. UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the ICPD and SDGs in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.
In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.
UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.
Job Purpose:
The Hub Management and Investment Portfolio Specialist for the WomenX Collective in Nairobi will oversee the Hub’s activities, supporting resource mobilization, innovative financial model development, and programme implementation. Working closely with the WomenX Collective Global Coordinator, the incumbent will ensure alignment with the strategic direction of programme operations, focusing on public and private financing, blended finance models, and public-private partnerships to build investment cases for the WomenX Collective scalable advanced solutions transforming health of women and girls in low and middle income countries. The incumbent will ensure cohesive operation, share best practices and coordinate efforts. The role requires leadership, technical expertise, and strategic thinking.
You would be responsible for:
- Responsible for overseeing and operationalizing the activities of the Nairobi Hub while coordinating with other hubs. This includes supporting the investment pipeline by leading the origination, design, and implementation of a portfolio supporting advanced solutions transforming women’s health. Additionally, developing new financing and partnership models, driving partner engagement, identifying partnership opportunities, and supporting resource mobilization and communication efforts.
- Work closely with UNFPA and external stakeholders to scale innovative solutions, develop financing mechanisms, and support donor communication, advocacy, and strategic collaborations. In addition, establish a platform for generating and sharing public goods, including knowledge, evidence, data, and publications.
- Develop a strategic vision for unlocking private and public capital to scale WomenX Collective operations. This includes exploring partnerships, developing financial instruments, and identifying effective models to support market development in high-risk environments for impactful investments, with a focus on WomenX Collective perimeter. The incumbent will also apply methodologies related to project finance, financial modeling, policy environments, and public-private partnerships, and will design projects that leverage public and private capital for women’s health using innovative and blended finance mechanisms.
- Collaboration with development partners, finance institutions, and governments will be essential to align investment pipelines, build synergies, and secure public and private partners through innovative financing. The role also involves designing and building capacity in financing instruments to unlock and scale resources, with a focus on sustainable development impacts.
- The incumbent will perform additional duties as required to ensure the effective functioning of the programme and organization.
Qualifications and Experience:
Education:
Advanced university degree in Economics, Business Management, Business Administration, Public Health, Health Economics, Health Financing, International Development, or a related field is required.
Knowledge and Experience:
- A minimum of seven (7) years of professional experience at the international level in public health, public and private financing, including innovative financing, investment management or related fields.
- A proven track record in relationship management, fundraising and resource mobilization, particularly with the private sector, foundations, and philanthropies, is strongly desired.
- Knowledge of and experience with financing mechanisms for health or related programs, including working within the context of blended finance approaches.
- Proven experience in designing, leading, and delivering advanced analyses to support investment decisions, including due diligence, business process, market, impact and financial analyses, as well as investment case development.
- Experience in UN Trust funds and/or other large-scale multi-stake partnership set-up, management and operations is preferable.
- Strong negotiation and influencing skills with diverse actors, preferably within the global health community, to reach consensus and foster productive working relationships.
- Familiarity with innovation pipelines and demonstrated experience in working with products pertinent to UNFPA's portfolio or with relevant global health and product organizations, industries or global supply chains is an asset.
- Proven ability to produce demonstrable results in a multicultural environment.
- Must be highly skilled in navigating complex organizational and stakeholder ecosystems and have demonstrated experience.
- Demonstrated strength in interpersonal skills, dealing with conflict, and experience in working in diverse, multi-cultural environments.
- Ability to prioritize competing priorities, be self-managing and be highly organized.
- Experience working in low and middle-income countries is highly desirable.
Languages:
Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.
Required Competencies:
Values:
- Exemplifying integrity,
- Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system,
- Embracing cultural diversity,
- Embracing change
Core Competencies:
- Achieving results,
- Being accountable,
- Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen,
- Thinking analytically and strategically,
- Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships,
- Communicating for impact
Functional Competencies:
- Exemplifying integrity,
- Conceptual innovation in the provision of technical expertise,
- Leveraging the resources of national government and partners and building strategic alliances and partnerships,
- Job knowledge / technical expertise/ expert knowledge
Compensation and Benefits:
This position offers an attractive remuneration package including a competitive net salary plus health insurance and other benefits as applicable.
UNFPA Work Environment:
UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Individuals from the LGBTQIA+ community, minority ethnic groups, indigenous populations, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA's workforce - click here to learn more.
Disclaimer:
Selection and appointment may be subject to background and reference checks, medical clearance, visa issuance and other administrative requirements.
UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process and does not concern itself with information on applicants' bank accounts.
Applicants for positions in the international Professional and higher categories, who hold permanent resident status in a country other than their country of nationality, may be required to renounce such status upon their appointment.
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