Individual Contractor on Financing for Development (Econometrics)

Result of Service• Substantive contribution to the development of the GUARD tool for measuring IFF-Phantom FDI. • Results of the econometric analysis for incorporation in related outputs of the project (e.g. technical paper/policy brief). • The IC is responsible for updating and maintaining the files and data used in an electronic format. Work LocationBeirut Expected duration6 months Duties and Responsibilities1.Background Phantom FDI are typically routed through low-or no-tax jurisdictions for profit shifting and regulatory arbitrage, undermining fiscal revenues and diverting resources away from national development priorities. According to the IMF, phantom FDI accounts for up to 40 per cent of global FDI, while the OECD stresses how multinational corporations exploit such flows to disconnect financial activity from the real economy. Assessing phantom FDI risks is essential to protect the integrity of national statistics, reduce fiscal leakages, and improve the effectiveness of investment-led development strategies. It also explains why high FDI inflows may not translate into tangible development gains-highlighting the need to assess not only the volume, but the quality and authenticity of FDI. 2.Objective and methodology ESCWA is actively contributing to the DA15 project on Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) through pilot engagement with Egypt, one of the designated countries under the project framework. As part of this collaboration, ESCWA is developing a strategic policy tool designed to detect and mitigate FDI-related IFFs – specifically phantom FDI – through a pairwise risk assessment modeling framework. The approach leverages gravity modeling to develop a Gravity Utility for the Assessment and Reduction of Disguised Investments (GUARD) to estimate and assess IFFs using bilateral investment data. This tool aims to enhance Egypt’s capacity to identify, quantify, and reduce risks associated with phantom FDI, ultimately supporting the development of evidence-based investment and tax policies aligned with sustainable development objectives. 3.Tasks - duties and responsibilities The Individual Contractor (IC) will provide substantive support to the work of the Financing for Development Team in the areas of specialty for this assignment. Specific responsibilities include: • Monitor and apply evolutions in evidence-based techniques to support the design of modeling approaches to detect and quantify risks related illicit financial flows. • Extract, retrieve, compile and analyze technical data and relevant material from national sources, databases, libraries and develop various statistical exploratory analyses and compilations to support the preparation of reports and in-depth analysis. • Create comprehensive, lists, charts and produce graphs, figures and dashboards that illustrate key aspects of phantom FDI-IFFs. • Provide substantive support to the development process of the GUARD tool. • Assist in the development and implementation of quantitative empirical analysis related to phantom FDI-IFFs in Egypt, leveraging various statistical and econometric software (STATA, excel, python). • Assist in the preparation of literature reviews, research papers and presentations. • Collaborate and contribute closely to the work of team members in the field of Financing for Development. • Assist in the preparation of upcoming activities and meetings and other substantive tasks. Qualifications/special skillsA Masters degree in economics, finance, econometrics, business analytics or in a related field is required. All candidates must submit a copy of the required educational degree. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed. One year of previous work experience in research, data analytics, data analysis is required. Knowledge of STATA statistical package to process and analyze data is required. One year of experience in research, data extraction or using statistical tools is required. Knowledge of Python is required. Good knowledge of econometrics is desirable. LanguagesEnglish and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat; and Arabic is a working language of ESCWA. For this position, fluency in English and Arabic is required. Note: “Fluency” equals a rating of ‘fluent’ in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand) and “Knowledge of” equals a rating of ‘confident’ in two of the four areas. Additional InformationRecruitment for this position is on a local basis. The incumbent is required to have the legal right to live and work in the specified working location. No FeeTHE 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.