Internship: Health Economics and Financing at UNICEF

Job description

UNICEF Vaccine Financing team is currently offering an internship position to support its ongoing work on Immunization Financing and Sustainability (IFS) globally. Specifically, this component of the IFS team work intends to complement other ongoing work on vaccine budgeting and planning in the selected countries.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

Background & Rationale

UNICEF works in 190 countries and territories to protect the rights of every child. UNICEF has spent 70 years working to improve the lives of children and their families. Defending children's rights throughout their lives requires a global presence, aiming to produce results and understand their effects. UNICEF believes all children have a right to survive, thrive and fulfil their potential – to the benefit of a better world.

The UNICEF Internship Programme offers qualified and eligible students at both Headquarters (HQ) and Country Offices (CO) the unique opportunity to acquire direct practical experience in UNICEF's work and the United Nations system under the direct supervision of experienced UNICEF staff.

For every child, hope.

How can you make a difference?

Most developing countries have relied and continue to rely on donors’ support to finance vaccines and provide immunization service. In the WHO/UNICEF Joint Reporting Form (JRF), countries are each year asked questions about their financing sources for vaccines and immunization delivery (Table 1). The large majority of countries report vaccines that are acquired through domestic budgets and those acquired through external support. They also largely report that they have a line item in the national budget for vaccines. Some countries may also have one or more line items for immunization delivery costs, such as printing of vaccination cards, vaccine transport and training. The reliability of the data collected from these questions is unknown.

Strong planning and budgeting for vaccines and immunization delivery is viewed as one of the most important foundations for ensuring financial sustainability especially in countries transitioning from GAVI and other donors’ support. One of the other important foundations is to ensure the provision of “traditional vaccines” through domestic (government) funding.

Ensuring that traditional vaccine is provided for in national budget is the initial and basic step on the road to financial sustainability for vaccines. Thus, monitoring this information is critical for the national, regional and global communities in their support to eligible countries. Beyond immunization expenditures, it is important to understand and monitor the share of such immunization and health expenditures as part of the total government expenditures, which reflect the level of priority for governments.

Purpose

UNICEF Vaccine Financing team is currently offering an internship position to support its ongoing work on Immunization Financing and Sustainability (IFS) globally. Specifically, this component of the IFS team work intends to complement other ongoing work on vaccine budgeting and planning in the selected countries. The results will enable an assessment of the reliability of JRF data, as well as identify scope for further work on funding and supply for vaccines and immunization services, with an emphasis on financial sustainability.

During the internship period, the main tasks include the following:

• Analytics of health and immunization data
• Support the analysis of the existing evidence available in the JRF and other potential sources on the funding for traditional vaccine in all GAVI-eligible countries across all UNICEF regions.
• Gather missing financing and economic data on the provision of traditional vaccines using the UNICEF regional and country immunization focal points.
• Build a database with the data gathered and analyse it gathered by region and by antigen
• Compare the data gathered with the data reported in the JRF and other sources.
• Summarize findings of this research
• Author a peer-reviewed publication on this topic
• Depending on time, the intern will also work on the following:
• Measles immunization
• Retrieve cost information of measles campaign documents from ESAR countries
• Assist in analysing cost per child immunized against measles
• Author a peer-reviewed publication on this topic

Qualifications

• University graduate: Completed at least 4 years of full-time studies at a university or equivalent institution with a major in economy, accountancy, public Financial Management (PFM)
  Training or Experience in immunization, health and budgeting
• Languages needed: English required, any other language is desired
  Excellent communication and writing skills and a strong team player.

Other

Candidate is based in Nairobi

Do you have?

• Respect for UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Inclusion, and Integrity
• A drive for results, setting high standards for the quality of work
• Strong interpersonal and team working skills and capacity to work in a multicultural environment

Conditions Of Internship

Interns with UNICEF may be remunerated with a living allowance, depending on the specific conditions. Preferably the costs associated to be borne by the nominating institution, related institution or government, which may provide the required financial assistance to its students; or by the student, who will have to obtain financing for subsistence and make his or her own arrangements to take on this assignment.

UNICEF’s core values of Commitment, Diversity and Integrity and core competencies in Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results.

The technical competencies required for this post are….

UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.

Remarks

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.