Chief, Population and Social Statistics Section - P5

United Nations
Bangkok - Thailand
S: Competitive

Org. Setting and Reporting
The mandate of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is to promote inclusive economic, social and environmental development and support regional cooperation and integration 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.

This position is located in the Population and Social Statistics Section in the Statistics Division. The incumbent reports to the Director, Statistics Division.

Responsibilities
Under the overall guidance and direct supervision of the Director, Statistics Division, the incumbent is responsible for the following functions:

• Provides policy guidance to the Senior management, on conceptual strategy development and management of the implementation of overall strategies and intra and interdivisional/ departmental policies and procedures regarding the development of official statistics, especially population and social statistics, in alignment with requirements of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals.

• Plans and oversees the management of activities undertaken by the Section; ensures that substantive work programmes, including the regional coordination for the Regional Action Framework on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics in Asia and the Pacific, data disaggregation and gender statistics are carried out in a timely fashion, well-coordinated in the organization, and, in liaison with other organizations of the United Nations System, donors and agencies and through relevant regional expert mechanisms.

• Manages, supervises and carries out the work programme of the Section under his/her responsibility related population and social statistics, including technical cooperation, statistical analysis, and methodological development. Co-ordinates the work carried out by the Section; provides programmatic and substantive reviews of drafts prepared by others.

• Provides substantive input in the preparation of position papers and reports for presentation to intergovernmental bodies such as the ESCAP Commission and Committee on Statistics. Initiates, plans, and directs preparation of publications, working papers, statistics briefs, websites and manuals.

• Contributes to the reporting to intergovernmental bodies on budget/programme performance or on programmatic/ substantive issues, as appropriate, particularly those presented in biannual and/or annual reports.

• Ensures that the outputs produced by the Unit/Section maintain high-quality standards; that reports are clear, objective and based on comprehensive data. Ensures that all outputs
produced by the Section under his/her supervision meet required standards before completion to ensure they comply with the relevant mandates.

• Prepares inputs for the work programme of the Division and Section, determining priorities, and allocating resources for the completion of outputs and their timely delivery.

• Carries out programmatic/administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the Unit/Section, including preparation of budgets, assigning and monitoring of performance parameters and critical indicators, reporting on budget/programme performance, preparation of inputs for results-based budgeting, evaluation of staff performance (PAS), interviews of candidates for job openings and evaluation of candidates.

• Recruits staff for Section taking due account geographical and gender balance and other institutional values.

• Manages, guides, develops and trains staff under his/her supervision.

• Fosters teamwork and communication among staff in the Section and across organizational
boundaries.

• Represents the Organization at and participates in international, regional or national meetings and provides programmatic/substantive expertise on an issue, or hold
programmatic/substantive and organizational discussions with representatives of other institutions.

• Coordinates systematically with, and provides analytical support to the Statistical Institute for Asia and the Pacific in achieving the relevant expected accomplishments of ESCAP's
statistics subprogramme.

• Provides in-country support through United Nations Resident Coordinators (UNRCs)/United Nations country team (UNCT) for national follow-up and review of SDG
implementation including Voluntary National Review (VNR).

• Performs other duties as required.

Competencies

Core competencies

• Professionalism: Knowledge of the substantive field of work in general and of specific areas being supervised. Ability to produce analytical reports and papers 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; demonstrated 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. Provides leadership and 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.

• Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others' ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for
team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

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, economics demography or other related social science. Ph.D. degree in any of the above fields is desirable.

A relevant first-level university degree in the above fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience
A minimum of ten years of progressively responsible experience in statistics, economics demography or related social science field is required.

Experience in the collection, compilation, analysis and dissemination of statistical data from population and housing censuses, sample surveys, statistical registers and other administrative sources is required.

Working experience in a national statistical system or the international statistical system is required.

Experience in supervising a team of five or more individuals is required.

Experience with technical cooperation for developing statistical standards and for national statistical capacity development is highly desirable. Research and analysis in the above fields as demonstrated through authored publications is desirable. Working experience in the United Nations system or other international organization is desirable. Working experience in the Asia-Pacific region is desirable.

Languages
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage.

Job summary