Mission and objectivesSouth Africa's creative and entrepreneurial ecosystem is dynamic and rapidly evolving, driven by a vibrant youth demographic, digital connectivity, and growing recognition of the creative economyโs potential to generate employment, drive innovation, and foster cultural expression. While the country boasts a strong pool of talent and a burgeoning startup culture, youth continue to face systemic barriers to entry including limited access to infrastructure, seed capital, and structured innovation support. UNDP South Africa is working to address these gaps through targeted initiatives that promote inclusive innovation and local economic development. UNDP South Africa, through its Accelerator Lab Unit, is supporting the national rollout of the Timbuktoo Creatives Hub in Cape Town and the UniPod at the University of Johannesburg. Both initiatives form part of UNDP Africa's bold effort to catalyse youth-driven innovation ecosystems on the continent. The Creatives Hub will support the incubation and acceleration of youth-led startups in the cultural and creative industries (CCIs), while the UniPod will serve as a university-based makerspace that connects academic innovation to practical prototyping and entrepreneurship. To support coordination, knowledge exchange, and stakeholder engagement around these Timbuktoo initiatives in South Africa, UNDP seeks to recruit an International UN Volunteer to contribute to national-level reporting, knowledge management, and evidence-based communication. The assignment will strengthen the COโs capacity to track performance, draw out insights for adaptive programming, and demonstrate results to partners and stakeholders.
ContextThe assignment is situated within UNDP South Africaโs support to the national implementation of the Timbuktoo initiative, a pan-African movement to foster youth-led innovation and entrepreneurship. The UN Volunteer will support two flagship interventions: the Creatives Hub in Cape Town, which focuses on accelerating startups in the cultural and creative industries (CCIs), and the UniPod at the University of Johannesburg, a makerspace bridging academic innovation and early-stage enterprise development. The UN Volunteer will be embedded within the Accelerator Lab Unit and will contribute to the coordination, documentation, and communication of these projects. The primary focus will be on supporting national-level reporting, stakeholder knowledge capture, and communications that demonstrate the outcomes, lessons learned, and impact of the Timbuktoo interventions. This role will provide critical support to strengthen programme accountability, facilitate adaptive management, and enhance UNDP South Africaโs thought leadership in inclusive innovation ecosystems.
Task DescriptionUnder the direct supervision of Heads of Accelerator Lab Unit, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: Under the direct supervision of the Accelerator Lab Unit, the UN Volunteer will: โข Develop, coordinate and manage an integrated reporting framework for both the Timbuktoo Creatives Hub and UniPod, aligning with UNDP's corporate results-based management tools; โข Prepare timely and evidence-based reports, presentations, donor updates, knowledge briefs and other analytical products highlighting progress, achievements and lessons learned; โข Design and maintain a reporting calendar aligned to hub milestones (e.g. boot camps, grant disbursements, innovation challenges, etc.) and track all deliverables accordingly; โข Consolidate and synthesise data and insights from diverse stakeholders (private sector, academia, implementing partners, and youth-led startups); โข Support the development of internal dashboards or visual tools to track progress and promote learning; โข Provide technical inputs to support monitoring frameworks for activities under the Creatives Hub and UniPod, ensuring quality assurance in results reporting; โข Liaise with technical and communications colleagues to ensure alignment of messages and outputs; โข Contribute to the drafting of strategic communication products that position the Timbuktoo initiatives in South Africa as high-value, impact-driven platforms.
Competencies and valuesAccountability, Commitment and Motivation, Communication, Creativity, Ethics and Values, Judgement and Decision-making, Working in Teams
Living conditions and remarksThe security situation in South Africa is currently stable, though high crime rates exist in certain areas. The UNV is expected to adhere to security guidelines issued by UNDSS. Pretoria offers adequate infrastructure, including reliable healthcare, banking, and communication services. Load-shedding (electricity rationing) and water restrictions may occur. Accommodation options are available and can be supported through UNDSS recommendations. The cost of living is moderate and transport options are accessible.