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Background
UNFPA is the United Nations Sexual and Reproductive Health Agency committed to delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled. The East and Southern Africa Regional Office works as an extension of the organization to realize the mandate and goals in the region.
Megatrends such as population changes, migration, and ageing are reshaping the East and Southern Africa region as never before. These trends form societies and are a defining factor for the social and economic well-being and human health, including sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of everyone, now and in future.
While some perceive these trends as threats to societal development, societies can, with the right investments, proactively prepare for a more robust and sustainable future and harness the opportunities of their changing population. However, the need for action is urgent. Emerging issues of climate change and humanitarian disasters are increasingly impacting lives and livelihoods in East and Southern Africa, with the impacts most severely felt by those already left behind. For instance, climate-induced disasters exacerbate existing inequalities, vulnerabilities and unequal power relations and differentiate their effects on women and men due to socially constructed gender roles and responsibilities.
UNFPA in ESAR has adopted innovation and digitalisation as an accelerator of UNFPAs Transformative Results (TR), which includes ending preventable maternal death, ending unmet need for family planning and ending gender-based violence and harmful practices. This is reflected in the new UNFPA Strategic Plan, the Regional Action Plan, Nairobi Declaration, innovation and digitalization strategies, and assessment report on the iAccelerator Program 2019, among other Programme reports.
Young people the world over are championing social innovation as an accelerator of solutions to the current political, social, and economic challenges they face. With support from the UNFPA East and Southern Africa Region (ESAR) via the Innovation HackLabs project, young people are developing and scaling innovative solutions to support collective efforts to achieve transformative results, create jobs for themselves and others through their social impact projects. UNFPA in ESAR is committed to supporting the development of an enabling environment to grow innovation in the region.
There is need for youth-driven and innovative solutions to the Climate Change Adaptation and SRHR challenges that will ensure that the solutions are through cross-sectoral engagement, building on and scaling up successful models aimed at realising the sexual and reproductive health and rights of all, including contraceptive services, will be integrated and embedded in resilience building to climate change, and be part of local environmental sustainability plans.
UNFPA ESARO is seeking to appoint a Programme Analyst to support regional efforts to leverage innovation and digital transformation as a catalyst to empower women and young people in an effort to build community resilience via 1) support implementation of the ACCF and Zonta Funded Climate Innovation Projects and 2) Support in the development of guidelines and toolkits as well as communication initiatives to promote and encourage community leadership
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