Request from
UN/DESA/Population/Population Estimates and Projections Section
JOB DESCRIPTION
INT-112-4-P94-01-V (July 2009)
Title:
Associate Expert in Population Estimates and Projections
Duration:
1 year (with possible extension for another year)
Date Required:
As soon as possible
Duty Station:
New York
Title of the Supervisor:
Chief, Population Estimates and Projections Section
Content and methodology of the supervision:
Meetings with the Chief of Section to establish goals and tasks, discuss data and methods used,
and obtain guidance on research issues and the presentation of results.
Duties, responsibilities and output expectations:
Under the supervision of the Chief of the Population Estimates and Projections Section of the
Population Division, Department for Economic and Social Affairs, the Associate Expert is expected to
undertake the following activities:
1. Participate in the development of software necessary for the preparation of population
estimates and projections;
2. Assist in the maintenance and development of databases containing information used to
generate population projections;
3. Assist in the organization of technical meetings and participate in the preparation of
documentation for inter-governmental meetings, particularly the annual session of the
Commission on Population and Development;
4. Assist the Division in responding to requests for information and special tabulations from
users of the United Nations population estimates and projections.
Qualifications and experience:
Advanced university degree in computer science, demography or statistics. Proficiency in
VB.NET programming and SQL database development and programming is required. Experience in
object oriented programming as well as some experience in computer applications for demographic
analysis. Previous research experience in demographic analysis in national or international
organizations would be an asset.
English and French are the official working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this
post, fluency in oral and written English is required. Working knowledge of another official language
is desirable.
Learning Elements:
10/2008
After the two-year assignment, the JPO/Associate Expert/APO should have:
- gained experience in developing, documenting, maintaining and deploying software and
database applications for population estimates and projections in a production environment,
including experience in writing well documented object-oriented code for projections
software, database applications and user interfaces;
- gained greater ability to develop solutions to analytical and methodological problems specific
to demographic estimations and projections as well as general IT tasks.
Organizational information:
The Population Division is part of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United
Nations Secretariat. Within the overall framework of the Department, the Population Division is
responsible for analytical, normative and operational activities in the field of population. The Division
provides substantive support to the Commission on Population and Development and to other
intergovernmental bodies as appropriate. The Division is engaged in the organization of technical
meetings, and the preparation of technical documentation on a vast array of population subjects of
interest to member states. Specifically, the Estimates and Projections Section produces the official
United Nations demographic estimates and projections for all countries and areas of the world, as well
as urban and rural areas and major cities that serve as the standard and consistent set of population
figures for use throughout the United Nations system. The main two outputs of the Section – World
Population Prospects and World Urbanization Prospects – are prepared on a biennial basis and are
distributed both in printed and electronic form.
10/2008