Health & Nutrition Specialist (Adolescent) – NOC – TA#135308 – Maputo, Mozambique

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

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For every child, the right to Health!

Mozambique continues to face high adolescent vulnerability: nearly one in three girls becomes pregnant before age 18, and adolescent HIV prevalence and incidence remains among the highest in southern Africa. In 2020, about 28,000 adolescent girls and young women were newly infected with HIV, while an estimated 210,000 children and adolescents live with HIV nationwide. Despite major PMTCT gains, gaps persist in adolescent HIV prevention, early diagnosis, and transition to adult care. Nutrition challenges are equally severe as anaemia among girls aged 15–19 years surpasses 50 % in some provinces. The 2019-2024 School Health, Adolescent and Young Strategy- Operational Plan prioritized scaling quality adolescent- and youth-friendly services (SAAJs), strengthening linkages with schools, and community systems, and ensuring that 70 % of districts have functional adolescent-friendly services by 2024. Aligned with UNICEF’s Strategic Plan 2026–2029, which targets 10 million child lives saved and 500 million well-nourished children, the Adolescent Health and Nutrition Specialist (NOC) advances multisectoral action on adolescent health, nutrition, HIV, SRHR, and mental wellbeing. Positioned within the Health and Nutrition Section, the role drives integration, systems strengthening, and cross-sector coordination to ensure adolescents’ health, rights, and dignity remain central to Mozambique’s human capital and equity agenda.

How can you make a difference? 

The Specialist reports to the Health Manager P4 and supports the design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of integrated adolescent health and nutrition work within the Child Health and Nutrition Programme. The role helps develop programmes for school age children and adolescents with Education, WASH, SBC, Protection and Social Policy, and supports delivery of age and gender responsive services across schools, health facilities and communities. The Specialist ensures technical alignment of CHN priorities within the adolescent strategy and provides guidance and operational support throughout the programme cycle to achieve clear and sustainable results aligned with national priorities and the UNICEF 2022–2026 CPD.

Summary of key functions/accountabilities:

1. Support to programme development and planning
2. Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results
3. Technical and operational support to programme implementation
4. Networking and partnership building
5. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here:  Adolescent Health and Nutrition NOC – TA – Maputo, Mozambique.doc

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

• Education: An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: public health/nutrition, pediatric health, family health, health research, global/international health, health policy and/or management, environmental health sciences, biostatistics, socio-medical, health education, epidemiology, or another relevant technical field.
• ork Experience:

  A minimum of five years of professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: public health/nutrition planning and management, maternal and neonatal health care, or health emergency/humanitarian preparedness.

• Language Requirements: Fluency in Portuguese and English is required. Knowledge of a local language is an asset.

Desirables:

• Experience working with adolescents and/or on adolescent programming is considered as an asset.
• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact

(4) Innovates and embraces change

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity

(6) Thinks and acts strategically

(7) Works collaboratively with others 

[add the 8^th competency (Nurtures, leads and manages people) for a supervisory role]. 

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility jobs-near-me.org UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable [Insert candidates from targeted underrepresented groups] are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF’s Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

UNICEF shall not facilitate the issuance of a visa and working authorization for candidates under consideration for positions at the national officer category.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.