Learning and Scaling Lead, Nigeria

ORGANIZATION AND PROGRAMME BACKGROUND

The United Nations Office for Project Services supports partners to deliver sustainable development, climate action and peacebuilding initiatives through project management, fund management, hosting services and operational support. This position is published for the Education Outcomes Fund, a global initiative working with governments, donors, investors and implementers to make education systems more effective, equitable and accountable.

LEAF NIGERIA PROGRAMME

The Education Outcomes Fund, Lagos State Government, Federal Ministry of Education, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan and UBS Optimus Foundation have launched the Learning and Education Access Fund Nigeria programme. LEAF is a major outcomes-based education initiative that aims to improve access to and quality of basic education for up to 200,000 children in Lagos State.

The programme will enrol and retain out-of-school children aged 6–14 through community outreach, school-readiness work, accelerated learning and sustained retention support. It will also improve learning environments through teaching quality, school leadership, safeguarding, inclusion, foundational literacy and numeracy, data-driven school improvement and community engagement. Payments to implementing partners are linked to independently verified results.

ROLE PURPOSE

The Learning and Scaling Lead will support the Country Lead to design and implement a learning, scaling and evidence-synthesis agenda that converts programme evidence into operational insights and practical policy recommendations.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

LEARNING, SCALING AND EVIDENCE AGENDA

• Support definition of learning priorities, research questions, decision cycles and validation mechanisms.
• Develop tools and systems to track learning and scaling milestones.
• Recommend and establish standardized reporting and data-collection tools that enable real-time evidence sharing among programme partners.
• Design and support the programme’s knowledge-management architecture, including repositories, reporting templates, documentation standards and evidence-sharing workflows.
• Ensure programme learning and evidence are systematically captured, stored and accessible to partners.

PROGRAMME LEARNING AND EVIDENCE GENERATION

• Collect data and generate evidence concerning effective approaches during programme delivery.
• Identify and document lessons learned.
• Facilitate peer-learning workshops and cross-partner knowledge exchange.
• Document emerging insights, implementation challenges and adaptive practices shared by implementing partners and pre-financers.
• Coordinate reports that consolidate cross-partner evidence into actionable recommendations for Education Outcomes Fund decision-making and government planning, financing strategies and policy.
• Lead dissemination of important evidence and learning through sector-wide dialogue.
• Identify coordination opportunities involving related education initiatives.
• Support collection and analysis of data concerning how outcomes-based contracts influence organizational practices and system collaboration.
• Lead development and quality assurance of learning briefs, policy notes, implementation insights, case studies, presentations, donor summaries and sector publications.
• Ensure knowledge products are clear, consistent and appropriate for different audiences.

SCALE-UP AND SUSTAINABILITY

• Contribute to policy briefs, learning notes and strategic recommendations.
• Support the Country Lead to interpret and apply evidence to planning and decision-making.
• Provide evidence inputs for national policy discussions and technical working groups.
• Support dissemination through national and regional platforms.
• Help identify pathways for programme scale-up and sustainability.

CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT

• Strengthen government counterparts’ understanding of outcomes-based financing.
• Build capacity concerning the use of data and evidence in routine decision-making and improvement of learning outcomes.
• Design and facilitate learning forums and peer-learning exchanges.
• Convene government, civil-society, donor, research and implementing-partner stakeholders.
• Capture and disseminate lessons from districts and implementation sites.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree in International Development, Public Policy, Education, Economics, Political Science or a related field.
• Master’s degree in International Development, Public Policy, Education or a related discipline is desirable and may substitute for part of the required experience.
• At least seven years of experience in education, skills-for-employment, development or policy programmes.
• Experience working with national or subnational government, preferably in education, skills-for-employment or wider development sectors.
• Experience in education or skills-for-employment policy and systems strengthening, including programme scale-up and sustainability pathways, or closely related work.
• Experience with innovative financing mechanisms, especially outcomes funds, performance-management frameworks or large donor-funded programmes is desirable.
• Experience in evidence generation, policy analysis, system reform or scaling innovative practices is desirable.
• Demonstrated record of producing high-quality analytical reports, policy briefs and evidence-based recommendations.
• Fluency in English is required.

SKILLS AND COMPETENCIES

• Analytical thinking and problem-solving.
• Project planning and risk management.
• Stakeholder engagement.
• Data-driven decision-making.
• Clear and effective communication.
• Knowledge management and evidence synthesis.
• Policy analysis and strategic recommendations.
• Learning-facilitation and capacity development.
• Quality assurance of reports and knowledge products.
• Government and multi-partner coordination.
• Outcomes-based financing and programme scale-up.

CONTRACT DETAILS

• Hosted entity: Education Outcomes Fund.
• Job category: Programme.
• Duty station: Lagos, Nigeria.
• Seniority level: Mid Level.
• ICS level: ICS 10.
• Contract type: ICA – LICA – Specialist – Regular.
• Contract level: LICA 10.
• Duration: Ongoing, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.
• Posting date: 7 August 2026.
• UNOPS job reference: 3983.
• Salary and benefits: Not specified.
• Number of positions: Not specified.

SAFEGUARDING AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

UNOPS is an equal-opportunity employer committed to diversity and an inclusive working environment. Women, indigenous and racialized communities, people of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations and persons with disabilities are encouraged to apply. Reasonable accommodation is available during assessments. UNOPS maintains zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, discrimination, abuse of authority and other abusive conduct. Final candidates undergo background checks. UNOPS does not charge recruitment fees.

APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS

Applicants must complete their application through UNOPS’s official careers portal before midnight Copenhagen time on 30 August 2026. Late applications will not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and may be invited to complete assessments. UNOPS does not accept unsolicited résumés.