Result of Service
The consultant should provide the required research support in areas 1–6 to be delivered in a timely manner. The consultant should also help in finalizing all comments provided and should provide all statistical-software codes and data sets and programs related to the projects by the end of the contract in an organized manner.
Duties and Responsibilities
1. Background Over the past three decades, the Arab region’s development landscape has undergone significant transformation. Persistent challenges, such as inequality and governance, have either remained unresolved or intensified, while new ones, like sustainability and global pandemics, have emerged or re-emerged. The region has experienced escalating environmental risks, including frequent extreme weather events, prolonged droughts, wildfires, and flooding. The traditional social contract, built on subsidies and rents, has facilitated basic development gains but has fallen short in delivering high-quality education, healthcare, and effective governance. Additionally, escalating geopolitical tensions, prolonged conflicts, and emerging fragility present formidable threats to the region’s development prospects, further complicating efforts to achieve sustainable and inclusive growth. Given this context, ESCWA aims to recruit a consultant to assist our Development Challenges Project with producing development indicators and indices and developing effective policy assessment and monitoring tools aimed at understanding and tackling the development challenges facing the Arab region today. Specifically, the consultant will assist with research and consultation work towards the drafting of the Arab Development Challenges Report which zooms in on the development challenges of the region using ESCWA’s Global Development Index and provides in-depth country level analyses and results. The report’s key findings will serve as the foundation for a development policy narrative that aims to interpret the stylized facts and results of applying these innovative measurement frameworks. 2. Duties and responsibilities: Reporting to the Development Challenges Project Coordinator, and under the overall supervision of the Cluster Leader, the consultant will collaborate with the Development Challenges Project team, providing expert advice and strategic support in the following areas: • Content Development: Provide expert guidance in drafting at least two chapters of the Arab Development Challenges Report (ADCR) with a focus on the Global Development Index and its components. • Analytical Support and Thought Leadership: Lead the preparation of regional analyses and contribute to the development of policy briefs and blog posts related to the ADCR, ensuring that insights are aligned with current regional trends and best practices. • Data Management and Analysis: Oversee the collection, synthesis, and analysis of data on development, inequalities, and economic resilience, and advise on updating the key messages portal with strategic insights. • Stakeholder Engagement: Facilitate the organization of a high-level expert group meeting aimed at discussing and refining the findings of the Arab Development Challenges Report (ADCR), ensuring the inclusion of diverse perspectives. • Capacity Building: Develop and deliver training materials for a regional seminar on the use and methodology of the Global Development Index tool, ensuring that the content is both practical and insightful. • Additional Advisory Support: Provide expert advice and support on other related tasks as requested by the supervisor, leveraging your consultancy expertise to enhance project outcomes.
Qualifications/special skills
A Master’s degree in economics, statistics or related area is required. All candidates must submit a copy of the required educational degree. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. A minimum of 5 years of experience in conducting quantitative analysis of data using statistical software, economic data analysis, presentation, drafting and visualization is required. 3 years of experience in human development and governance analysis is desirable.
Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat, and Arabic is a working language of ESCWA. For this position, fluency in Arabic and English is required. Note: “Fluency” equals a rating of ‘fluent’ in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand), and “Knowledge of” equals a rating of ‘confident’ in two of the four areas.
No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.