[Hiring] Public Financing for Education Consultant @AGORA

Role Description

UNICEF India is strengthening its education financing agenda to promote adequate, equitable and efficient public financing for school education. The UNICEF India Education Financing Strategy identifies evidence-informed advocacy, public financial management, capacity strengthening, improved resource allocation and expenditure efficiency as key areas of engagement.

The consultant will provide technical support across four interconnected areas of Public Financing for Education:

• Provide technical inputs from a PFM & Education financing perspective and support finalization and operationalization of UNICEF India's Education Financing Strategy;
• Provide technical inputs to the adaptation and contextualization of the Financing for Children/Education Financing capacity-strengthening programme, including India-specific cases, practical applications and technical support to agreed training delivery;
• Provide independent technical review, quality assurance and advisory support to the agency undertaking the “Diagnosis of Efficiency and Equity in Budget Execution under the Samagra Shiksha Scheme in India”; and
• Undertake and support education financing analysis and translate evidence and study findings into policy, knowledge and stakeholder engagement products to inform UNICEF India's education financing agenda.

Qualifications

• Advanced university (Master's degree or above) degree in Economics / Public Finance / Development Economics / Education / Social Sciences or another relevant field.
• A minimum of 10 years of professional experience in public finance, public financial management (PFM), budget analysis, education financing, public expenditure analysis or related areas.
• Strong understanding of India's public finance and education financing architecture, including Union-State fiscal relations and financing arrangements, with demonstrated experience in analyzing government budgets, expenditure, fund flows, budget execution, equity and efficiency.
• Demonstrated experience in policy-oriented research, diagnostic studies, public expenditure reviews or similar assignments, including reviewing methodologies, analytical frameworks, data and findings and providing technical quality assurance.
• Strong ability to synthesize complex public finance evidence into clear, actionable policy recommendations, with demonstrated experience developing policy briefs, analytical reports, presentations and other knowledge products for policy audiences.
• Demonstrated experience in designing, adapting and/or delivering capacity-strengthening programmes on public finance, budgeting, PFM or education financing, including development of practical case studies, exercises or other learning materials.
• Demonstrated experience working with government, UN agencies and/or development partners, including engagement with research or consulting teams and facilitation of technical and policy discussions.
• Strong written and verbal communication in English.
• Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of Hindi is desirable.

Requirements

• Previous experience working on education financing or PFM reforms in India at Union and/or State level, including familiarity with major education financing mechanisms such as Samagra Shiksha, would be an asset.
• Prior experience working with UN, government agencies, or INGOs is an asset.

Benefits

• UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does.
• UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence.
• UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities throughout the recruitment process.