Project Assistant (Technical Support) - Short term NPSA 5

Background

Aspire to Innovate (a2i), a whole-of-government ICT Division program supported by the Cabinet Division and UNDP, catalyzes citizen-friendly public service innovations, simplifying government and bringing it closer to people. The Aspire to Innovate (a2i) Program is the flagship digital transformation program of the government of Bangladesh, infusing massive reform in public service delivery for the last decade. The project's objective is to increase transparency, improve governance, and reduce the time, difficulty, and costs of obtaining government services for the underserved communities of Bangladesh. This is to be achieved by the following major three 

components of the project: 

Component 1: Institutionalizing Public Service Innovation and Improving Accountability.

Component 2: Catalyzing Digital Financial Services and Fin-tech Innovations.

Component 3: Incubating Private Sector-enabled Public Service Innovation.

The project is funded by the Government of Bangladesh, UNDP, and other development partners, and is implemented by ICT and Cabinet Division. 

Under the component Institutionalizing Public Service Innovation and Improving Accountability, a2i is implementing the Multi-Sectoral Data Integration (MSDI) project to strengthen routine vaccination system and accelerate digital health service integration. Estimating the target population for vaccination is challenging due to verification difficulties and a lack of valid birth records, especially among out-of-school children, marginalized communities, migrants etc. These gaps make it difficult to establish denominators for the target population, posing a risk of missing vulnerable groups in the vaccination effort. The project aims to improve accurate identification and enumeration of vaccine eligible population by triangulating multiple data sources to inform policymakers and program managers. To support the effective implementation and coordination of this project, a2i seeks to onboard a Project Assistant (Technical Support) to provide technical assistance to the Health Technology Specialist for implementing the data pipeline.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions

Under the direct supervision of the Project Manager, a2i, UNDP Bangladesh and in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, the incumbent will perform the following responsibilities:

S/he will have the following, but not limited to the following specific duties and responsibilities:

a) Software Development and Integration

b) Infrastructure and Database Management

c) Technical Support and Documentation

d) Coordination and Stakeholder Engagement

Institutional Arrangement

The incumbent will report directly to the Project Manager, a2i, UNDP Bangladesh and will work closely with relevant government bodies, development partners, NGOs, and private sector entities. The incumbent will be a part of the a2i Digital Health Accelerator team.

Competencies

Core Behavioral Competencies
Achieve Results:    LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
Think Innovatively:    LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements 
Learn Continuously:    LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
Adapt with Agility:    LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible 
Act with Determination:    LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
Engage and Partner:    LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
Enable Diversity and Inclusion:    LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination 
Achieve Results:    LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
Think Innovatively:    LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements 
Learn Continuously:    LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
Cross-Functional & Technical Competencies   
Thematic Area    Name    Definition
Cross-Functional competencies     Business Acumen    Ability to understand and deal with a business situation in a manner that is likely to lead to a good outcome Ability to make good judgments and quick decisions within such frameworks Knowledge and understanding of the operational frameworks in the organization  
Cross-Functional competencies    Effective Decision Making    Take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one's authority, area of expertise and resources and take into consideration potential wider implications.
Cross-Functional competencies    Risk Management    Identify and organize action around reducing, mitigating and proactively managing risks
Technical competencies    Digital ecosystems    Knowledge of how they work, understanding of the opportunities and challenges for governments and society
Technical competencies    Solutions mapping    Ability to engage and build rapport with vulnerable communities and get consent, facilitate participatory processes and navigate intricate power relations and cultural UNDP | People for 2030 – Competency Framework – Technical Competencies (2024) dynamics. Having the sensitivity and ability to identify grassroots solutions, capacities, assets, coping strategies that impacted communities have developed or used to address (emerging) development challenges. Being able to understand these solutions from a people's perspective and learn about the conditions that enable or prevent communities from developing such grassroots solutions or coping mechanisms. Understand how solutions and needs are paired, and how grassroots solutions can be used as an entry point to identify unaddressed or unmet development challenges and how to use these insights to inform policy design. Ability to reverse engineer solutions, understanding what aspects (artefactual, principles, conditions, configuration) can be scaled and how, being able to assess their potential to be transferred to other domains, regions or contexts and build a case for that. Ability to appreciate and integrate various sources of knowledge (academic, experiential, observational, traditional, indigenous) in problem solving processes. Set up structures and processes to collect ideas, solutions and facilitate matchmaking between supply and demand of solutions.
Technical competencies    Visualization & mapping    Ability to visualize and clarify ideas, processes or (complex) situations by making quick sketches, drawings or using diagrams, illustrations, photos, videos, animations, three dimensional mock-ups to support group dialogues, reflection, ideation, problem solving or decision making. Using abstraction, analogical and metaphorical thinking to create compelling visuals, maps, models or embodied thinking that provide new perspectives and help a group of disparate actors to find a common language and develop a shared mental model. Ability to quickly grasp the dynamics of a complex system, identify key elements, entities and their relations, create maps or models that help people inside the system, or outsiders, understand UNDP | People for 2030 – Competency Framework – Technical Competencies (2024) its dynamics; being able to swiftly make sense of an undifferentiated mass of information, extract its very essence, and turn that into key messages and visualizations.

Required Skills and Experience

Min. education requirements :

•     Secondary Education 
•     Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science / Information Technology/ Software Engineering, or a related technical field
 

Min. years of relevant work experience:

•     Minimum 5 years of relevant experience with Secondary Education in software development. 
•     Minimum 2 years of relevant experience in software development with a bachelor Degree or equivalent.
 

Required skills :

Experience in system integration.  
 

Desired skills in addition to the competencies covered in the Competencies section:

•     Minimum 1 year experience of working closely with MIS, DGHS
•     Minimum 1 year experience in system monitoring, process improvement, and backend management
Required Language(s)     Fluent in English and Bangla is required.
 

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.