Head of Policy Research; P-United Nations University; UNU

The United Nations University (UNU) is a global think tank and postgraduate teaching organization within the United Nations System. UNU engages in policy-relevant research, capacity development, and knowledge dissemination in furtherance of the purposes and principles of the United Nations. The work of UNU contributes to solving pressing global problems that are the concern of the United Nations and its Member States.

For the past five decades, UNU has been a source of impartial research on sustainability, human security, and economic development. With hundreds of researchers working at institutes in 12 countries, UNU’s expertise spans the full breadth of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, generating policy-relevant knowledge to effect positive global change. UNU collaborates closely with other UN entities and leading research institutions across the globe.

For more information, please visit

UNU-WIDER is one of 13 research and training Institutes that comprise the think tanks in the UNU system.

UNU-WIDER is a leading international development economics research institute. The Institute provides economic analysis and policy advice with the aim of promoting sustainable and equitable development for all. The Institute began operations in 1985 in Helsinki, Finland, as the first research centres of the United Nations University. Today, it is a unique blend of think tank, research institute, and UN agency — providing a range of services from policy advice to governments, as well as open-access original research.

More information on UNU-WIDER and its current work programme are available at .

UN-WIDER is implementing a large research, capacity development, and policy engagement programme in South Africa, called ‘Southern African – Towards Inclusive Economic Development (SA-TIED)’ in close collaboration with the National Treasury of South Africa and the South African Revenue Service. SA-TIED brings together world class researchers and policymakers to address socio-economic challenges in South Africa, and across the broader southern African region.

A key focus of SA‐TIED is its partnerships with the policy‑making community. The main aim of the programme is to generate robust empirical evidence and use it as a basis to encourage informed debate amongst people involved in policy processes across the participating organisations and civil society to bridge the gap between research and policy‑making. The programme played an important part in making anonymised administrative tax data available for research purposes at a Secure Data Facility at the National Treasury (NT-SDF), which is now a key asset in the programme.

The availability of administrative tax data for research has enabled groundbreaking avenues of research, has provided new perspectives on the South African economy and has dramatically improved the quality and breadth of evidence used to inform policy. For more information on SA-TIED, please visit

Under the overall supervision of the Director, the general responsibilities of the Head of Policy Research, SA-TIED are to:

1. Play a key role in the management and day-to-day implementation of the ‘Southern Africa – Towards Inclusive Economic Development (SA-TIED)’ programme

• Act as UNU‑WIDER’s senior representative in South Africa and in the SA‑TIED programme.
• Oversee the day-to-day implementation of the SA‑TIED programme, in close collaboration with the UNU‑WIDER personnel in South Africa, and UNU‑WIDER’s management in Finland, including acting as day-to-day team leader of the UNU‑WIDER team in South Africa and working alongside programme partners.
• Oversee and manage relations with local partners in academia and policy, including the two primary SA‑TIED partners in South Africa – the National Treasury of South Africa and South Africa Revenue Services (SARS) – in close collaboration with the UNU‑WIDER Partnerships and Programme Officer in South Africa and the UNU‑WIDER Head of Partnerships and Programme Unit.
• Contribute to programme reporting and the establishment of annual work plans, including the design of the research, capacity development, and…