UNDP Jobs - 48548- Parliamentary Strengthening Assistant

Parliamentary Strengthening Assistant

Location :

Tunis, TUNISIA

Type of Contract :

Service Contract

Starting Date :

01-Sep-2014

Application Deadline :

03-Aug-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

SC-5

Duration of Initial Contract :

06 months renewable

Languages Required :

Arabic English French

Expected Duration of Assignment :

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

Background

On October 23, 2011 the people of Tunisia elected a Constituent Assembly (CA). The CA is currently preparing Tunisia's new constitution and acting as its interim parliament. The CA works in an environment of considerable political sensitivity, uncertainty and rapid change.

The UNDP has received a request for three types of assistance from its national partners:

Constitutional Support: to assist the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) with the preparation of the constitution, with particular emphasis on improving its capacity to reach out to civil society;
Constitutional Dialogue: to assist civil society in developing its understanding of the constitution building process and its capacity to engage in constructive constitutional dialogue with the Constituent Assembly and with other stakeholders in the process;
Parliamentary Strengthening: to assist the Constituent Assembly in developing essential infrastructure and in developing the capacities of its members and the Secretariat in connection with their legislative, representational and oversight roles.

As part of its planned support, UNDP will set up Support to Constitution Building and National Dialogue in Tunisia, a project to design and deliver assistance in each of these areas. Best practices in constitution building emphasize the importance of community outreach and constructive dialogue as tools to improve mutual understanding between the CA and civil society.

After an intense dialogue process, the National Assembly approved a new Constitution on January the 27th. Particularly after this event expectations have grown and there is a greater interest from the multiple stakeholders, counterparts and donors to receive timely and accurate information on the assistance provided by the project. There is also a greater need to establish an increasingly effective liaison with the National Constituent Assembly and undertake greater efforts of coordination and communication to achieve the planed outcomes.

On this basis, the project is looking for a Parliamentary Strengthening Assistant to support the efforts of this new stage of collaboration.

Duties and Responsibilities

Mission

The Parliamentary Strengthening Assistant will have the following tasks:

Supporting the capacity strengthening of the CA, including both its members in its Secretariat, to exercise its legislative, representative and oversight roles;
Supporting the CA and UNDP in achieving program Outcomes and Outputs as stated in the AWP.

The Parliamentary Strengthening Assistant will be working under the direct supervision of the Expert Adviser for Parliamentary Strengthening, he/she will be responsible for:

Identify capacity strengthening opportunities between UNDP and the NCA through the follow up of the political and organizational evolution within the Assembly (composition, political groups, events…);
Supporting the management and the coordination of the training centres set up within the Assembly;
Coordinating the trainings events for the NCA Secretariat and for the deputies;
Coordinating missions of members of parliament (MPs), secretariat members and experts related to the project’s support;
Producing updates and news reports on political processes and events;
Developing communication/advocacy tools for the strengthening of the Assembly;
Supporting the production of publications that have the MPs or the Secretariat as target audience;
Translate (French – Arabic) parliamentary documents, when necessary;
Support the preparation of reports and other required documents, as necessary.

Competencies

Functional Competencies:

Strong interpersonal and communication skills;
Demonstrated negotiating, cultural sensitivity and diplomatic skills;
Ability to leverage information technology for optimal performance;
Excellent skills in data research;
Demonstrated skills in organizing meetings, preparing reports, keeping records, follow-up etc.;
Demonstrated skills in the use of Knowledge Management (KM) strategies and practices.

Managerial Competencies:

Strong team-building, diplomatic, and interpersonal skills;
Resourcefulness, initiative, and maturity of judgment;
Communication and advocacy skills;
Sound time management and organizational skills with the ability to handle multiple tasks;
Ability to build strong relationships with clients and external actors;
Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback.

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP;
Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Licence in political science, law, public administration, institutional/organisational development or related field.

Experience:

Minimum of 2 years working experience in an area relevant to parliamentary strengthening or democratic governance;
Thorough knowledge of the parliamentary or constitution building process (proven through experience in a related domain);
Proven familiarity with gender analysis and concepts;
Experience in constitution building is an asset;
Knowledge or experience from working with countries in transition is an asset;
NGO or UN experience an asset.

Language:

Excellent writing, editing and oral communication skills in Arabic and French is required;
English is an asset.

Note:

It is imperative that Applications submitted specify the starting date and end of each experience (dd / mm / yyyy), the exact position held, the names of the companies for which you worked and the university degree (institution, nature, level ).