UNDP Jobs

The wave of public protests against the incumbent regime in Yemen during 2011 culminated in the signing of an agreement on transfer of power brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and facilitated by the United Nations. In accordance with the transition agreement, a Government of National Unity was sworn in on 10 December 2011 and the presidential election took place on 21 February 2012. The transition agreement puts the entire responsibility for implementation of the transition agreement on the Government. The agreement calls on the United Nations Secretary General, in cooperation with other agencies, to provide on-going assistance for the implementation of the agreement and to coordinate the assistance from the international community to implement the initiative and its mechanism.

The transition agreement identified a number of priority tasks and related benchmarks varying from the national dialogue and constitutional reform to socio-economic reforms, transitional justice, reform of the electoral system and parliamentary elections. Whereas the government as a whole will play an indispensable role in the transition process, with different government agencies contributing to various stages of the transition, the following core institutions (CI) stand out 1) the Presidency’s Office (PO); 2) Prime Minister’s Office (PMO),3) the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC), 4) the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and 5) the recently established National Committee for National Dialogue, as well as Ministry of Human Rights and Ministry of Industry and Trade. These institutions are particularly important for designing and maintaining a strategic focus on the transition by all national and international actors as well as for coordination of the delivery of basic services and immediate rehabilitation and reconstruction.

Therefore, UNDP in cooperation with other development partners and the Government of Yemen (GoY) set up an Emergency Capacity Development Facility (ECDF) to provide to the national leadership for the transition with immediate and catalytic support from a multi-partners perspective. The 2-year project aims at reinforcing the leadership capacities of the Core Institutions (CI) to successfully orient, lead and coordinate the achievement of key benchmarks stated in the GCC agenda as well in as the Government¡¦s Transitional Plan. The project is composed of four interrelated modules: 1. Organizational leadership. 2. Aid coordination and partnership. 3. Socioeconomic reforms. 4. National dialogue process.

Within this support effort, UNDP Yemen looks to hire an Aid Coordination Expert to lead the project’s efforts to assist the Yemeni CI in the designing and setting up effective aid coordination systems in support of the transition.

Working under the supervision of the ECDF Team Leader and in close cooperation with Policy/ Communication Department of the respective CI, the Aid Coordination Expert will deliver the results in the following areas:

• Support the effective functioning of aid coordination and mutual accountability in support of the transition;
• Support to improved aid effectiveness, transparency and mutual accountability;
• Capacity development in aid coordination;
• Contribute to the reporting and implementing requirements of the ECDF.

Support the effective functioning of aid coordination and mutual accountability in support of the transition:

• Assist the Government of Yemen in leading and organizing the Strategic Partnership Forum and dedicated structures as an effective donor coordination mechanism to ensure availability of adequate resources for achievement of the key objectives of the transition and mutual accountably on the achieved results; 
• Plan and elaborate a needs assessment for the CI to engage effectively  in the Strategic Partnership Forum in order to strengthen partnerships in support of the transition;
• Provide technical assistance to the Government-led Strategic Partnership Committee and thematic Strategic Partnership Working Groups to organize their work effectively;
• Assist the MOPIC in making functional the Development Assistance Database (DAD) of the Yemen Sustainable Development Platform to monitor the implementation of requirements and benchmarks of the transition;
• Assist in the preparation and facilitation of key partnership fora, such as the “Friends of Yemen” and Consultative Group meetings.

Support to improved aid effectiveness, transparency and mutual accountability:

• Review, develop and further customise the strategic and policy documents guiding aid coordination and effectiveness, focusing on the effective implementation of the transition’s objectives;
• Provide technical assistance for analytical briefs on aid effectiveness and aid flows in support of the transition to the government and national parliament, development partners of Yemen, including the Friends of Yemen, UNCT and INGO community;
• Provide technical advice to the MOPIC to consolidate and analyse information collected from donors and retained in the Development Assistance Database and incorporate this information in the annual Development Cooperation Report (DCR) to reflect ODA to Yemen and its geographic distribution;
• Assist the Government of Yemen in mainstreaming the principles of aid effectiveness into thematic and/or sector-specific strategies and work plans.

Capacity development for effective development cooperation:

• Based on the analysis of the strategic gaps on MoPIC and other relevant entities of the Government of Yemen, design a capacity development programme to improve the effectiveness of development cooperation;
• Suggest short-term and long-term external capacity development support on  effective development cooperation and develop the TOR for such support;
• Design and deliver focused capacity development through formal training, coaching and on-the-job training as appropriate;
• Analyse the opportunities for knowledge sharing, peer exchanges and South-South cooperation on effective cooperation in post-crisis and transitional environments and design relevant mechanisms and events.

Project implementation:

• Finalize and consolidate a Results Resources Framework (RRF) and detailed annual work plans for the Aid Co-ordination module in MOPIC;
• Support UNDP efforts of resources mobilization, including planning and costing project inputs; briefing donors, and preparing donor progress reports as required by UNDP reporting rules and as requested by specific donors;
• Draft regular activity reports, as well as other documents as requested by the CTA.
  

• Strategic vision: high level understanding of complex bureaucratic organizations and challenges they present for effective government action;
• Leadership: proven intellectual leadership and demonstrated understanding of aid coordination issues in post-conflict and transitional societies;
• Communication: clear and convincing communicator of ideas in writing and in person, and ability to defend and explain difficult and complex issues with respect to key decisions and positions; Strong interpersonal and diplomatic skills;
• Sound management: ability to develop the potential of individuals and teams through inspired, fair and respectful management; ability to structure a task in terms of the analytic/investigative process and to produce a well-structured output;
• Partnership: ability to build and maintain strategic networks and partnerships;
• Integrity: Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN's values and ethical standards;
• Ability to work in a team, also across the UN agencies;
• Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
• Ability to lead the formulation and implementation of projects;
• Knowledgeable on culture context in Yemen.

Education:

• Masters in a development-related field, e.g. Development Planning, Economics, Public Administration or a related field in social sciences.
  

Experience:

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible professional work experience in the area of aid coordination and management and in development planning, implementation and monitoring;
• Knowledge of aid information management systems, aid transparency initiatives and mutual accountability mechanisms
• Substantive knowledge of issues and international commitments to improve the effectiveness of development cooperation, in particular with regard to the Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation, the United Nations Development Cooperation Forum and the Financing for Development process;
• Experience in multi-stakeholder analysis and engagement and in partnership building.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in written and spoken English is essential, Arabic highly desirable.