Location: Tokyo, Japan
Department/ Office: Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

Org. Setting and Reporting

The mandate of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is to promote regional cooperation for inclusive economic and social development in the Asian and Pacific region. ESCAP’s role as a regional development arm of the United Nations Secretariat is to support its membership, through its analytical, normative and technical cooperation, to respond to the development priorities and changing needs of the Asian and Pacific region.

The Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP), located in Chiba, Japan, was established in May 1970 as a centre for statistical training in Asia and the Pacific. SIAP is a subsidiary body of ESCAP with a Governing Council which reviews the administration and financial status of the Institute and the implementation of its programme of work. SIAP’s mission is to strengthen, through practically oriented training of official statisticians, the capability of the developing members and associate members and economies in transition of the region to collect, analyze and disseminate statistics as well as to produce timely and high quality statistics that can be utilized for economic and social development planning, and to assist those developing members and associate members and economies in transition in establishing or strengthening their statistical training capability and other related activities. The Institute supports the overall work programme of the ESCAP Statistics subprogramme.

This position is located in the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific (SIAP), located in Chiba, Japan. The post reports directly to the Director of the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific.

Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Director of the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific, the incumbent is responsible for the following duties:

1. 1. Plans and directs the programme of work related to the Tokyo Metropolitan Area (TMA)-based training programmes providing both technical and managerial supervision of all activities.
2. 2. Supervises, develops and designs new or improved learning content and methods of instruction of training programmes, including e-learning, and the measurement of outcomes and impact of statistical training provided by SIAP.
3. 3. Undertakes training activities including preparation of training materials and delivery of lectures on selected topics in official statistics.
4. 4. Initiates, plans and directs preparation of publications, manuals and instructional materials, both print and web-based, in support of SIAP’s work and training activities.
5. 5. Prepares inputs for the programme of work of SIAP, determining priorities, ensuring alignment with the ESCAP statistics subprogramme and allocating resources for the completion of outputs and their timely delivery.
6. 6. Prepares and delivers reports and other technical documentation on budget/programme performance, programmatic/substantive issues for presentation to SIAP Governing Council, the Committee on Statistics, the Commission, technical meetings and expert groups.
7. 7. Develops and maintains relationships and collaborates with the ESCAP secretariat, SIAP Governing Council and with national, regional and international statistical training institutions to ensure full coordination and to avoid duplication of efforts.
8. 8. Liaises and coordinates with the host Government and other Member States in relation to resource mobilization and with ministries, statistical agencies and the academic community.
9. 9. Represents SIAP at international and regional meetings and inter-agency activities.
10. 10. Advises senior management on trends and developments in statistical training and capacity building, and recommends appropriate courses of action.
11. 11. Manages staff, including the planning of their work and managing their performance.
12. 12. Performs other related duties, as assigned.

Competencies

Core Competencies:

• • Professionalism: Ability to provide technical advice in the planning, development and implementation of statistical training programmes with a view to improving and strengthening statistical capabilities of members and associate members and economies in transition. Ability to produce reports on technical issues and to review and edit the work of others. Ability to apply UN rules, regulations, policies and guidelines in work situations. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.
• • Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
• • Planning & Organizing: Plans, organizes and delivers instructional programmes to a diverse target audience. Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Managerial Competencies:

• • Managing Performance: Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills; monitors progress against milestones and deadlines; regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff; encourages risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative; actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff; appraises performance fairly.
• • Judgement/Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in statistics, mathematics, economics, demography, sociology or related field. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in national or international statistical system, in planning and implementation of statistical programmes in core areas such as basic economic statistics, demographic and social statistics, and/or environmental statistics and statistics in other emerging areas. Of these, at least five years of experience, preferably in the Asia-Pacific region, in the design, organization and management of training in official statistics are required.

Work experience in application of results-based management principles is required. Work experience in the (a) development and management of e-learning courses and (b) impact evaluation of statistical training is desirable. Relevant IT skills, including familiarity with Microsoft Office and web-based applications, required.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this post, fluency in written and spoken English is required. Knowledge of other UN official languages and Japanese would be an asset.

Assessment Method

A competency-based interview and/or assessment is required for this Job Opening.

Special Notice

Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.

Staff of the United Nations Secretariat must fulfill the lateral move requirements to be eligible to apply for this vacancy and are requested to indicate all qualifying lateral moves in their Personal History Profile (PHP) and cover note.

This post is funded from extra budgetary resources. The initial appointment is for a period of one year. Extension of appointment is subject to availability of the funds and to a maximum of five years.

United Nations Considerations

The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. (Charter of the United Nations – Chapter 3, article 8). The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

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.

Filed: Government
tags: Japan, social development, Tokyo, Tokyo Japan, United Nations