I. Position Information

 
Post Title: Programme Specialist (Poverty Monitoring)
Post Number: 13363
Organizational Unit: Governance
Duty Station: Maseru, Lesotho

Grade: L3

II. Organizational Context

Under the Overall guidance of the Deputy Resident Representative, and direct supervision of the Head of Governance Unit, the Programme Specialist (Poverty Monitoring) acts as advisor and manages all aspects of the country programme specifically on poverty reduction monitoring.

The position provides the opportunity to advice on key data processing and dissemination strategies required for monitoring development progress and policy formulation.

He/she interacts with government officials and UN Agencies and other development partners, private sector and civil society organization on the data production, dissemination and utilization strategies and identifies areas of strategic support for the monitoring of the PRS, MDGs and other national development agendas.

He/she consults with senior government officials on the planning and implementation of agreed projects and galvanizes human and material resources for collaborated and coordinated project support. He/she also consults on and design capacity building strategies and initiatives for statistical and planning units to promotes sustainable, quality and timely production of data and policy analytical reports.

The Programme Specialist (Poverty Monitoring) ensures that emergent issues are address in project planning and the priorities of UNDAF, CPD and CPAP are integrated in the project design and implementation.
 

III. Functions / Key Results Expected

SUMMARY OF KEY FUNCTIONS:

1.     Manage the nationally executed project Joint Support towards the Monitoring of Development Intervention and evidence based-policy making

2.     Support the mainstreaming and coordinating of monitoring and evaluation activities within development intervention programmes, specifically through policy advisory services

3.     Within nationally based institutional context, guide the work for the preparation of UN and Government advocacy tools and reports

4.     Conduct research into the longer-term effects of poverty reduction and other socio economic policies and programmes

5.     Provide technical input and presentations in meetings, seminars and workshops at national and international levels

1. Function / Expected Results:

Within the context of “The Strengthening of the Statistical System to Monitor Development Progress in Lesotho” build capacity of statistics officers, planners and policy makers in the country and promote the process of formulation of evidence-based policy. This includes:-

I.              setting up a national monitoring and evaluation system to

-          identify indicators and monitoring tools for national strategies such as the long term Vision, PRSP, National Development Plan;

-          Regular analysis of the effects of Government spending on the reduction of poverty (monitoring inputs);

-          Establishment of quantifiable indicators and systematic monitoring of sectoral policies and programmes  (monitoring of outputs and outcomes) within the Government of Lesotho, UNDP and other UN Agencies;

-          Preparation of surveys and research conducted by the Bureau of Statistics and other institutions that track changes in Human Development (monitoring of impacts);

-         Practice the innovative use of Information and Communications Technology for gathering, analyzing and disseminating data and research on developments database system;

2. Function / Expected Results

Enhanced and effective  use of Lesotho DevInfo database in the country to promote indicator harmonization and data sharing to monitor the MDGs, PRS, UNDAF and other national development agenda; ensure usage of the available statistics by civil society, business committee and other public- and private actor:

a.     maintaining the national monitoring and evaluation system and ensuring that relevant input, output, outcome and impact data are obtained from the various data producers;

b.     commissioning special studies and research to augment the available database;

c.      undertaking budget and expenditure tracking for poverty reduction;

d.     analysing poverty patterns and trends;

e.      establishing an oversight database for decision-making and policy formulation;

f.         using information and analysis to facilitate pro-growth and pro-poor policy advocacy;

3. Function / Expected Results

Established system to support the tracking of the Millennium Development Goals,  PRS , Vision 2020 and other national development theme Strengthen Statistical Governance through an appropriate institutional set-up.

a.      Producing routine and annual reports for dissemination of poverty-related information to stakeholders.

4. Function / Expected Results

Production of a National Strategy for Development Statistics for the Bureau of Statistics through the utilization of national, regional and international experts in relevant technical areas to reinforce the capacity of Government.  

5. Function / Expected Results

Established strategic capacity building efforts in the area of poverty monitoring and human development based on assessment and upon request from Government of Lesotho, partners at national and international levels.

IV. Impact of Results

As Government of Lesotho’s (GOL’s) committed development partners, UN agencies’ support to national development is geared towards helping the country achieve its overarching objectives of fighting poverty and promoting sustainable human development. The present focus of donors on reducing poverty, especially through the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP) and the Millennium Development Goals, represents a unique opportunity to further consolidate activities that are directed at addressing this challenge.

The MDGs campaign further provides an important long-term role for the UN Agencies and Development partners to play in the national processes of monitoring long term National Vision and the medium term Poverty Reduction Strategy (PRSP). These processes as well as those of UNDAF, NHDR and the individual UN Agency Country programmes collectively contribute to the achievement of the MDGs. 

Through this programme, UN Agencies  intend  to continue the support, which began in Phase I, to promote evidence-based policy making in Lesotho by strengthening national institutional capacities for monitoring Poverty and progress towards the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals targets

The programme intends to provide selective strategic support and facilitation for effective monitoring of national level processes including the Socio-economic Database. 

V. Competencies

Working experience in Southern Africa with exposure to environment in Lesotho will be an added advantage. Good organizational skills, initiative and sound judgment are a must as are strong communications and interpersonal skills, and ability to perform under a heavy workload and tight deadlines.

The incumbent must have a good knowledge in NEX procedure and ATLAS system and must also be willing to work in an environment, where focus is as much on individual performance as on the performance of the team. Full command of both written and spoken English and computer literacy and experience with statistical software packages such as SPSS, SAS, DBASE, DevInfo are essential.

VI. Recruitment Qualifications

Education:

The incumbent should be a Social Statistician with MSc in Social Statistics and at least 5- 7 years of working experience 

Experience:

Working experience in Southern Africa with exposure to environment in Lesotho will be an added advantage. Experience with quantitative and qualitative aspects of Poverty Monitoring and Analysis either in government, a central statistics office or the UN system is required. 

Language Requirements:

Fluency in English