Job Description
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Result of Service
1. By 30 July: o Concept note, including methodology, draft workplan, and engagement with inputs from STATIN and DESA (Output 1) 2. By 15 August o Assessment report including overview of existing data sources and systems, current infrastructure and gaps and summary of international models. (Output 2) 3. By 30 September o Draft conceptual and technical model for the address register, including the address data model, standardization rules, data integration and matching options, proposed governance and update mechanisms for sampling purposes, in line with the proposed conceptual design and model from the scoping study of the national address system (Output 3) o Operational PoC for testing in selected geographical areas (Output 4) 4. By 30 October o Final report including conclusions from the pilot on the coverage, accuracy, and suitability for sampling and recommendations for full-scale implementation, including governance structure, data-sharing agreements, maintenance workflows, data protection safeguards, and cost estimates for scaling nationally (Output 5)
Work Location
The consultant must be home-based. The consultancy is expected to have phone and web conference meetings with staff members of NSO, UNSD and other DATAS and Data4Now core partners and international and national stakeholders. The consultant is expected to maintain effective and fluent communication with STATIN throughout the consultancy. Travel or commute time to and from United Nations Headquarters, as well as related expenses, will not be covered as part of the consultancy.
Expected duration
1 JUL 26 - 30 OCT 26
Duties and Responsibilities
Data and statistics are essential in understanding, managing and mitigating the economic, environmental, and human and social impacts of external shocks and stressors and for designing appropriate responses and accelerated actions to put countries back on track to achieving the SDGs. Almost 10 years after the adoption of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, countries still rely on out-of-date and incomplete statistics to inform implementation and review progress. SIDS, in particular, are facing a unique set of challenges. These are well documented and are underlined in the recent “Antigua and Barbuda Agenda for Small Island Developing States (ABAS): A Renewed Declaration for Resilient Prosperity”, the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Addis Ababa Action Agenda (AAAA), the Paris Agreement and the 2018 OECD report “Making Development Co-operation Work for Small Island Developing States”, These documents all recognize that improved data collection and statistical analysis are required to enable SIDS to effectively plan, follow up on, evaluate the implementation of and track success in attaining the SDGs and other internationally agreed development goals. To support SIDS to address their data capacity challenges, DESA’s United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD) and the SIDS Unit of the Division for the Sustainable Development Goals (DSDG) have jointly developed the project Data for SIDS (DATAS) which follows the Data for Now approach. DATAS aims to strengthen the capacities of national statistical systems to produce and disseminate better and more timely data and statistics to inform decision making through four interconnected components; (i) national data governance and coordination; (ii) national data production and availability; (iii) national data dissemination and reporting and; (iv) SIDS to SIDS collaboration and experience exchange. This will accelerate the country’s progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) while pursuing national development objectives. DATAS aims to bridge data and information gaps in priority areas identified by the country by improving human and institutional capabilities for collecting, producing and integrating data from across the data ecosystem to publish more timely and granular indicators and statistics. It will also support national statistical offices (NSOs) in their efforts to collaborate with other government entities and partners to obtain and maintain access to non-traditional data sources to increase timeliness and granularity of statistical information. DESA launched DATAS in Jamaica with the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) as the project owner and lead for the initiative. STATIN is mandated under the Statistics Act to collect, compile, analyse, and disseminate official statistics. A robust, accurate, and continuously updated national address register is critical to STATIN’s core functions, including: • Population and Housing Census operations • Household and establishment surveys • Small area statistics and spatial analysis • Integration of administrative and geospatial data One of the identified priorities under this initiative in consultation with national partners is the development of a national address system (NAS) in Jamaica, which is critical for improving statistical infrastructure and supporting evidence-based decision-making across sectors. Jamaica has long lacked a consistent and authoritative address system. Address information is collected and maintained by multiple ministries, departments, and agencies (MDAs), municipal authorities, emergency services, and private entities with inconsistent standards and limited interoperability. This fragmentation creates significant challenges for statistical operations, service delivery, and national planning. Previous attempts fell short because they only supported postal sorting and did not provide parcel-level accuracy or integration with geospatial and statistical systems. As a result, many properties still rely on descriptive directions leaving informal settlements, rural communities, and new housing schemes without reliable location identifiers. While STATIN maintains address-related and geographic/geospatial datasets through census operations and related activities, the existing arrangements face challenges related to address completeness, standardization, update frequency, interoperability, and institutional sustainability. A complete address register serves as a critical foundation for Jamaica’s statistical system, enabling the creation of high-quality sampling frames, improving survey design, field operations, and data integration across censuses, household and business surveys. In the long term, it will enable the transition to register-based data collection. Through the DATAS project, a scoping study is being undertaken under the guidance of STATIN and National Spatial Data Management Branch (NSDMB) to determine institutional, technical, financial, legal, and operational viability prior to proceeding to a full feasibility study to develop a national address system (NAS) in Jamaica. Within this umbrella, this consultancy aims to understand the requirements to develop an address register for the creation of a high-quality sampling frame, aligned with the development of a national address system (NAS), develop a proof of concept (PoC) to meet the sampling frame needs, and provide recommendations for scaling nationally in Jamaica. The proposed conceptual design and model developed during the scoping study will serve as the foundation for guiding the PoC, ensuring national alignment and long-term sustainability.
Qualifications/special skills
Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in statistics, geographic information systems, or a related field with seven (7) years of experience. A bachelor’s degree in combination with nine (9) years of experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced degree. A minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in address registers, population registers, sampling frame development, record linkage and data integration, or related field is required. Experience of working with national statistical offices or national governments is required. Excellent communication, presentation, analytical, and interpersonal skills are required. Experience in developing or implementing address register for sampling purposes is preferred. Demonstrated experience in conducting feasibility studies is desirable. Knowledge of the Sustainable Development Goals and national efforts to implement them is desirable.
Languages
Fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another official UN Language is an advantage.
Additional Information
The consultant may be required to travel to carry out workshops and meetings. Travel Authorization will be granted to the consultant prior to the travel date. The travel itineraries will be determined in due course, and the related costs will be obligated separately. Airline tickets and Daily Subsistence Allowance will be covered by the project.
No Fee
THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.
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