Government Fellows – 8 Positions per year

Government Fellows (Consultant contract - CTC) – 8 positions per year – ROSTER

Organization: United Nations University (UNU)

Duty Station: Guimaraes, Braga, Portugal

Job description

About United Nations University

The United Nations University (UNU) is an international community of scholars engaged in policy-oriented research, capacity development and dissemination of knowledge in furthering the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations. The mission of UNU is to contribute, through research and capacity building, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems that are the concern of the United Nations and its Member States. For the past four decades, UNU has been a go-to think tank for impartial research on human survival, conflict prevention, sustainable development, and welfare. With more than 400 researchers in 12 countries, UNU's work spans the 17 Sustainable Development Goals' full breadth, generating policy-relevant knowledge to effect positive global change. UNU maintains more than 200 collaborations with UN agencies and leading universities and research institutions across the globe. For more information, please visit http://unu.edu.

About United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance (UNU-EGOV)

The United Nations University Operating Unit on Policy-Driven Electronic Governance (UNU-EGOV), based in the city of Guimarães, north of Portugal, is one of 14 research and training Institutes and Units that comprise the UNU system. The mission of UNU-EGOV is to support the Member States of the United Nations in transforming the mechanisms of governance and building effective governance capabilities through strategic applications of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to contribute to sustainable development, social inclusion and active citizenship. As a think tank and research unit, UNU-EGOV combines both classical research and consultancy projects.

In fulfilment of its purpose UNU-EGOV:

• carries out policy-relevant research;
• translates research findings into relevant policy instruments;
• builds capacity in localizing and applying such instruments within and among governments clients and partners within the UN system, academic and other relevant organizations;
• builds and maintains research and policy networks to share the lessons learnt, foster mutual learning, and bridge research and policy worlds; and
• monitors, evaluates and disseminates the latest developments in the area. For more information, please visit http://egov.unu.edu.

The UNU-EGOV Core Research Programme 2020-2024 is dedicated to the theme of “Governance and digital transformation for inclusive, resilient and sustainable societies”. It aims to consolidate and exploit the existing knowledge as well as to explore new learning to reach inclusion, development, sustainability and security worldwide.

Furthermore, it investigates the current and new digital governance challenges for a resilient society.

Research topics approached in the Core Research Programme include:

• Governance models and strategies for digital transformation of the public sector and society at large; 
• Smart and sustainable cities and communities;
• Standards and regulatory issues related to interoperability, usability, data and privacy protection;
• Technology-enabled innovation including models, capacities and specific emerging concepts and technologies; 
• Big data and AI including data capture, maintenance and data exchange;
• Technological service delivery, administrative burden reduction and anti-corruption, etc.

For more information, please visit http://egov.unu.edu.

Responsibilities

UNU-EGOV is recruiting eight (8) Government Fellows for a period of three months to contribute to its research, projects and activities. Two (2) Government Fellows will be recruited for every period starting on 1 January, 1 April, 1 July, and 1 October each year. The cut-off date and the selection will be made on 15 October each year. For example, for candidates that want to be fellows next year (2024), the application deadline is 15 October 2023.

Successful candidates will join international and multi-disciplinary project teams supervised by UNU-EGOV research staff.

The responsibilities will include:

• Developing real-life case studies, supported by experience of the applicant’s own organization and research developed at UNU-EGOV;

• Translating research results into relevant policy instruments;

• Applying and validating the instruments in the own organization/country;

• Developing and reviewing project deliverables;

• Disseminating project results in the own organization/country; and

• Contributing to further development of UNU-EGOV.

The candidate's research interests should be aligned with at least one of the research areas of the UNU-EGOV core research program.

Key Performance Indicators

• Quality of work produced.
• Level of engagement achieved between UNU-EGOV and their respective institutions.
• Timely and quality support on project development.

Competencies 

Values:

Inclusion — take action to create an environment of dignity and respect for all, regardless of age, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, gender expression, geography, grade, language, nationality, racial identity, religion, sex, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, social origin or any other aspect of identity

Integrity — act ethically, demonstrating the standards of conduct of the United Nations and taking prompt action in case of witnessing unprofessional or unethical behaviour, or any other breach of UN standards

Humility — demonstrate self-awareness and willingness to learn from others

Humanity — act according to the purposes of the United Nations: peace, dignity and equality on a healthy planet

Behaviours:

Connect and collaborate — build positive relationships with others to advance the work of the United Nations and work coherently as One UN

Analyse and plan — seek out and use data from a wide range of sources to understand problems, inform decision-making, propose evidence-based solutions and plan action

Deliver results with positive impact — hold oneself and others accountable for delivering results and making a positive difference to the people and causes that the United Nations serves

Learn and develop — pursue own learning and development and contribute to the learning and development of others

Adapt and innovate — demonstrate flexibility, agility and the ability to think and act in novel ways

Qualifications

Education and Certification:

At least to have completed bachelor’s degree in Informatics, Information Systems, Public Administration, Public Policy, Development Management, Economics, Communication Sciences, Sociology, Law or a related discipline;

Experience:

Required

• Civil servant or international civil servant status within public administration, government, or intergovernmental organization, holding executive or professional responsibility for public sector technology, modernization, and innovation.
• National or international-level policy and project experience.
• Knowledge of the public sector and public policy issues.

Desirable 

• Ability to work in a team and result orientation.
• Excellent organizational and communication skills.
• Ability to work in multi-cultural and multi-ethnic environments.

Language Requirements:

Fluency in spoken and written English is required.

Fluency in other UN languages is an advantage.

Remuneration and Duration of contract

The successful candidate shall work under a Consultant Contract (CTC) for a fixed period of three (3) months. The successful candidate will be based in Guimarães, Portugal and will not hold international civil servant status nor will he/she be a “staff member” as defined in the United Nations Staff Rules and Regulations.

A monthly payment of EUR 745 and free accommodation in Guimarães (except utility costs) will be provided, upon availability. However, it is expected that the applicant’s own organization will cover the costs related to travel between the home location and Guimarães as well as medical, life and travel insurance.

How to Apply:

To apply to UNU, you will not need an account. Instead, we ask that you to:

• use the "APPLY" link below.
• submit a UNU P11 Form. Applicants must indicate in section 28 how their experience matches the requirements of the position. Please avoid using similar forms provided by other United Nations organizations.
• submit a curriculum vitae.
• provide a supporting letter from the applicants’ own organization, pledging to support the application if successful and explicitly stating the interest of the organization in this fellowship and further collaboration with UNU-EGOV.

You may wish to refer to the UN Values and Behaviours Framework for more information.

Application Deadline: 15 October  

The cut-off date will be 15 October for each year (for example, for candidates that want to be fellows in 2024, the cut-off date to apply will be 15 October 2023).

Assessment

Applications will be evaluated by the Selection Committee against the required qualifications and experience. 

Candidates selected for the second phase will be required to submit:

• a 15-minute self-recorded video presenting his/her organization (objectives, structure, emblematic projects, role of the candidate within), some relevant projects in which the candidate has been involved, motivation and expectations for the fellowship.

Special Notice 

UNU 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 and become part of the organisation.

UNU has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNU, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination.

Information about UNU rosters

UNU reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for positions with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Scam warning

UNU does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

Apply Now