The Position:

The Technical Adviser position is located in the UNFPA Asia and the Pacific Regional Office (APRO), Bangkok, Thailand and is the principal adviser at the regional level for integrated technical, policy and programme advice on voluntary family planning and contraceptive service programmes. The Technical Adviser works in an integrated manner with the technical and programme staff of the regional office and with country teams across the region. They work under the overall leadership of the Regional Director and report directly to the Deputy Regional 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:

As a United Nations agency, UNFPA has a unique role and mandate to support countries to meet their family planning needs and, as part of the wider UN mandate, to help ensure that all women and men, girls and boys can achieve their potential and realize their rights. Through the family planning strategy and action plan, UNFPA will play a leadership role to accelerate global efforts on family planning, focusing on a range of interrelated technical priorities including standard setting, normative guidance and technical advice, the supply of quality-assured commodities, purposeful partnerships, data, and accountability. UNFPA Supplies Partnership – a multilateral, multi-donor, UNFPA-managed thematic fund – is a key vehicle for UNFPA to advance its family planning mandate.

The Family Planning Technical Adviser will lead the UNFPA family planning policy, financing and programming portfolio at the regional level. They will be responsible for the overall implementation of the family planning strategy and operationalization of the family planning acceleration/action plan to ensure delivery of sustainable, country-driven approaches to rights-based family planning in the context of comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health and Reproductive Rights. They will also support the UNFPA Supplies Partnership’s technical agenda on family planning with inputs from across the region.

Qualifications and Experience:

Education:

Advanced university degree or equivalent in public health, medicine, sociology, logistics management, or other related fields

Knowledge and Experience:

• At least 10 years of increasingly responsible professional experience and technical expertise in Family Planning policy and programming, Sexual and Reproductive Health, and Rights; ideally with direct experience relating to logistics systems.
• At least 5 years’ regional international experience advising other countries on RH commodities.
• Extensive knowledge of supply management: forecasting, warehousing, distribution, transportation and logistics information systems.
• General knowledge of the principles and operational aspects of integrated reproductive health care.
• Strong track record of technical leadership in family planning programming in country and proven ability to produce demonstrable results.
• Strong analytical, report-writing and communication skills.
• Familiarity with UN development programmes and working procedures especially UNFPA policies and programming procedures, would be an asset.
• Field experience is required.

Languages:

Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of other official UN languages is desirable.