Overview
The Deputy Regional Director will support the Regional Director in managing the Regional Office, ensuring coordination and synergy across multiple functional areas to consolidate integrated approaches in support of the Regional Agenda for Children and the UNICEF Strategic Plan (2026-2029). The role leads the Virtual Regional Programme Delivery Platform to provide integrated programme, operations, partnerships, planning, innovation, communication, advocacy, emergency, and management support to country offices.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide effective leadership, managerial guidance, and coordination to ensure the achievement of programme goals, especially connected to the Regional Agenda for Children and its two flagship priorities: Child and Maternal Health/Nutrition and Access to Quality Education.
- Oversee the implementation of Country Programmes and their activities in line with national development priorities, the Strategic Plan (2026-2029), the Africa Strategy, and the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks.
- Lead the Virtual Regional Programme Delivery Platform as UNICEF's regional mechanism for integrated country support.
- Ensure every Country Office has access to the competencies, organizational arrangements and partnerships required to achieve results at scale.
- Mobilize multidisciplinary teams drawn from across UNICEF and external partners to address country priorities and implementation bottlenecks.
- Design and coordinate differentiated and multi-country support models that maximize efficiency, learning and economies of scale.
- Ensure Country Office readiness and results by identifying capability gaps and leveraging expertise and resources across the Regional Office, Centres of Excellence, and global networks to provide timely and effective support.
- Promote South-South cooperation, cross-country learning, innovation and rapid scaling of successful approaches.
- Monitor the quality, responsiveness and effectiveness of regional support to COs and continuously improve the delivery model.
- Provide effective programme management and advocacy for the survival, protection, development and participation of children and women in the region and effective contribution to and integration of UNICEF initiatives in broader UN activities.
- Oversee the timeliness and quality of technical assistance provided by the Centers of Excellence to country offices.
- Ensure the identification of annual Regional Office topline technical assistance requests to be provided by the Centers of Excellence.
- Ensure that effective support is provided for key milestones such as CPD development (including Strategic Moments of Reflection), TRT/PBR meetings, and RMTs, amongst others.
- Ensure that strategic communications and advocacy strategies are developed and implemented to support the Regional Agenda for Children.
- Ensure that effective partnership strategies are developed with regional economic entities and international financial institutions (ECOWAS, ECCAS, WADB, and AfDB amongst others) to effectively position the Regional Agenda for Children in their institutional priorities.
- Use of resources and management performance within the region and Regional Office regularly monitored with a view to improving country programme and RO performance.
- Ensure effective coordination of the Regional Programme Coordinating Committee, which will bring together senior Regional Office, country office, and Center of Excellence staff.
- Provide guidance and advice to the Deputy Representatives and Chiefs of Field Offices network in the areas of programme management, as well as the promotion of the Organization’s Duty of Care and in upholding the Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability.
Required Experience
A minimum of thirteen (13) years of professional work experience in the formulation of policy in international or national administration and translation of policies into practice; experience in external aid administration and senior level international development administration. Experience as a UNICEF Representative is extremely important and highly desirable, preferably at a commensurate level of the functions to be encumbered. Experience and proven track record in managing emergencies, humanitarian and development programmes, partnerships and advocacy as well as sensitive and complex situations and security-related issues. Effective people management and proven ability to guide, motivate and lead large multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams.
Qualifications
An advanced university degree in Social Sciences, International Relations, Government, Public Administration, Social Development, Development Planning, or other relevant discipline.
