Meaningful Youth Participation Specialist

Volunteering Elections & Governance Communications & PR

Overview

Support youth engagement strategies and program development for UNICEF's YuWaah.

You have:

• Three years of relevant professional experience in the areas of program design and implementation with a focus on meaningful youth engagement or youth centrality.
• Experience designing participatory mechanisms for integration of enhanced and meaningful engagement of adolescents and youth across policies, priority setting and governance of organisations.
• Strong understanding of principles of inclusion, equity, and Sustainable Development Goals.
• Developing country work and/or field work experience is essential.
• Effective communication and leadership skills are required.

Contract

This is a UNV contract. More about UNV contracts.

In recent years, UNICEF’s work to support the unique needs of young people has gained momentum, as the challenges facing them have come more sharply into view. UNICEF is committed to deliver for all children and adolescents through its overall impact goal of ‘realizing the rights of every child, especially the most disadvantaged. Building on the current work with, and for, adolescents, in line with the United Nations Youth Strategy, UNICEF is developing a new global partnership, Generation Unlimited (GenU), which is dedicated to expanding opportunity for young people from ages 10 to 24 years. Maximising the potential of the United Nations system, governments, civil society organisations, and the private sector, and of young people themselves, GenU is focused on finding new ways to ensure that every young person is in school, undergoing formal or informal learning or training, or is employed by 2030. The India version of GenU has been named YuWaah! It signifies catalytic partnerships to unleash the potential of adolescents and young people. YuWaah has been designed to allow co-creation of solutions that are relevant and scalable for ensuring that young people in India have opportunity and choices for learning; have avenues and spaces for functional and vocational training, and can choose between employment and entrepreneurship which are accessible locally.

Young people represent a significant proportion of India’s population and therefore have the right to access and influence programmes, schemes and investments that impact their lives. A World Bank policy paper on Returns to Investment in Education 16% average ROI (lifetime earnings) gained from each additional year of secondary schooling Education and training, improving earnings, life expectancy, and well-being. Thus, the cost of not engaging young people in design, policies and services, is a direct decline in the progress of a nation’s human capital, whose lived realities are inconsistent with the investments made on their behalf. Therefore, it is essential to evolve corporate strategies related to talent, and company culture, given youth form the largest employee base for corporates. Similarly, it is essential to evolve government schemes and policies towards embedding youth participation right from the design and development stages to ensure that they are relevant, responsive, and consistent to the lived realities of these youth communities, and thereby more effective.

Role of UN Volunteer: The UN Volunteer will be placed with UNICEF in Delhi. The role of UNV Specialist will support YuWaah in the design, coordination, and operationalization of Yutopia: A Public-Private-Youth Collective, a pan-Indian Public–Private–Youth Partnership (PPYP) Alliance aimed at advancing the adoption of youth centrality across public and private sector systems. The UNV will be responsible for convening and enabling collaboration among Ministries, private sector partners, civil society organizations, and youth networks to facilitate cross-sharing and amplification of evidence-informed best practices, tools, and resources on youth-inclusive approaches. This will include seeking and integrating young people’s perspectives on policies and initiatives, supporting the generation, documentation, and dissemination of evidence on impact and learning, and translating insights into actionable guidance for partners. The role will also involve planning and delivering alliance convenings, partner meets, and knowledge-sharing forums, as well as developing high-quality documentation to strengthen youth-centric programmes and institutional practices across YuWaah’s public, private, and youth ecosystem. The UNV will also support the recruitment and engagement of the Young People’s Action Team, enabling young people to engage as partners across UNICEF’s programmes, decision-making processes, and the broader YuWaah ecosystem.

Under the overall guidance of the Chief of Youth & Adolescent Development and secondary supervision of the Adolescent and Youth Development Specialist of YuWaah Secretariat, the national UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: • Support the implementation of UNICEF-YuWaah’s youth engagement priorities and activities for FY 2026–2027 in coordination with programme teams. • Coordinate engagement activities for the 5th cohort of YuWaah’s Young People’s Action Team (YPAT), including supporting capacity-building sessions, team meetings, town halls, and interactions with leadership stakeholders. • Support mentorship engagement opportunities for young people through coordination with YuWaah’s Governing Board members and Leadership Council representatives. • Assist in drafting background notes, briefing materials, and stakeholder engagement plans for partnerships with CSOs, private sector, and government around youth-centric and youth-affirmative practices. • Support in setting standards and benchmarks setting for public, private and youth organizations who are interested in adopting principles of youth centrality. • Support amplification activities related to Yutopia alliance, partners and their commitments • Support ongoing communications and social media engagement efforts to amplify youth centrality and meaningful youth participation initiatives.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are encouraged to integrate the UN Volunteers programme mandate within their assignment and promote voluntary action through engagement with communities in the course of their work. As such, UN Volunteers should dedicate a part of their working time to some ofthe following suggested activities:

• Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant • UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Provide annual and end of assignment self-reports on UN Volunteer actions, results and opportunities. • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/ websites, newsletters, press releases, etc. • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Results/expected outputs: As an active team member, efficient, timely, responsive, client-friendly and high-quality support rendered to UNICEF and the YuWaah Secretariat in the accomplishment of her/his functions, including: • A youth engagement strategy note for YuWaah overall, and for 5th cohort of YPAT. • A strategy note on Campaign and action for International Youth Day 2026. • A social media strategy document for youth engagement in FY 2026–27. • Creative A/V media outputs that compile SMART commitments, strategies and insights from across stakeholder groups of the Yutopia Alliance. • A knowledge product consolidating benchmarks for youth-friendly workplaces based on consultations with employees and employers. • A report carrying consolidated voices and recommendations of youth perspectives around youth-centric workplaces.

Organisation’s competencies: Commitment, Drive for Results, Embracing Diversity, Integrity, Self-Awareness and Self-Regulation, Teamwork • Professionalism: demonstrated understanding of operations relevant to UNICEF; technical capabilities or knowledge relevant or transferrable to UNICEF procedures and rules; discretion, political sensitivity, diplomacy and tact to deal with clients; ability to apply good judgement; ability to liaise and coordinate with a range of different actors, especially in senior positions; where appropriate, high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; resourcefulness and willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented; • Integrity: demonstrate the values and ethical standards of the UN and UNICEF in daily activities and behaviours while acting without consideration of personal gains; resist undue political pressure in decision-making; stand by decisions that are in the organization’s interest even if they are unpopular; take prompt action in cases of unprofessional or unethical behaviour; does not abuse power or authority; • Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; excellent interpersonal skills; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, mixed-gender environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity; sensitivity and adaptability to culture, gender, religion, nationality and age; commitment to implementing the goal of gender equality by ensuring the equal participation and full involvement of women and men in all aspects of UN operations; ability to achieve common goals and provide guidance or training to colleagues; • Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment. • Planning and organizing: effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities; • Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups; • Flexibility: adaptability and ability to live and work in potentially hazardous and remote conditions, involving physical hardship and little comfort; to operate independently in austere environments for protracted periods; willingness to travel within the area of operations and to transfer to other duty stations within the area of operations as necessary;

(1) Three years of relevant professional experience in the areas of program design and implementation with a focus on meaningful youth engagement or youth centrality; (2) Experience designing participatory mechanisms for integration of enhanced and meaningful engagement of adolescents and youth across policies, priority setting and governance of organisations (4) Strong understanding of principles of inclusion, equity, and Sustainable Development Goals (5) Developing country work and/or field work is essential; (6) Effective communication and leadership skills;

Skills: • Program design, coordination and implementation with a focus on meaningful youth engagement or youth centrality • Designing and conducting participatory approaches to engage youth in all stages of programming • Analytical, negotiating, communication and advocacy skills, excellent writing skills. • Excellent oral and written skills; excellent drafting, formulation, reporting skills; • Excellent interpersonal skills; culturally and socially sensitive; ability to work inclusively and collaboratively with a range of partners, including grassroots community members, religious and youth organizations, and authorities at different levels; familiarity with tools and approaches of communications for development; • Ability to work and adapt professionally and effectively in a challenging environment; ability to work effectively in a multicultural team of international and national personnel; • Demonstrated understanding of gender and equity and how to engage with most marginalised adolescents and youth • Self-motivated, ability to work with minimum supervision; ability to work with tight deadlines;

The assignment will be based in New Delhi. New Delhi is the capital city of India, experiences a diverse climate and has distinct living conditions influenced by its weather, infrastructure, and culture. A melting pot of cultures, languages, and cuisines, reflecting the diverse nature of India. Overall, living in Delhi offers a mix of modern urban life with deep-rooted traditions and challenges typical of a large, bustling metropolis.

As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. This position is based in UNICEF’s office, New Delhi. National UN Volunteers are part of the malicious insurance plan. National UN Volunteers are expected to be culturally sensitive and adjust to the prevailing culture and traditions.

The contract lasts for the period indicated above with possibility of extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

The applicable Volunteer Living Allowance is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Life, health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents - except for UN Community Volunteers), as well as final repatriation (if applicable). You can check full entitlements at https://app.unv.org/calculator.

For information specific to your assignment, please see below: • Monthly Voluntary Living Allowance (VLA): INR 70,158.41 • Entry lump sum (one-time payment): USD 350 (equivalent in INR) • Relocation costs: $175 at the beginning and end of the assignment if the duty station is outside of commuting distance (as determined by UNV) • Exit allowance (paid on successful completion of the assignment): $120 for each month served, paid on completion of contract • Insurance: Comprehensive coverage for health, life, and malicious acts • Annual leave: 2.5 days per month • Learning: Access to UNV's learning and career development resources.

Apply now

Potential interview questions

Added 1 day ago - Updated 5 hours ago - Source: unv.org