UNDP Jobs - 49302- Senior Coordinator “UN Fit for Purpose” for the Po

Senior Coordinator “UN Fit for Purpose” for the Post-2015 Development Agenda

Location :

New York, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Type of Contract :

FTA International

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

15-Sep-14 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

D-2

Duration of Initial Contract :

Languages Required :

English

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

The Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS) has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan. BPPS’s staff provides technical advice to Country Offices; advocates for UNDP corporate messages, represents UNDP at multi-stakeholder fora including public-private dialogues, government and civil society dialogues, South-South and Triangular cooperation initiatives, and engages in UN inter-agency coordination in specific thematic areas. BPPS works closely with UNDP’s Crisis Response Unit (CRU) to support emergency and crisis response. BPPS ensures that issues of risk are fully integrated into UNDP’s development programmes. BPPS assists UNDP and partners to achieve higher quality development results through an integrated approach that links results based management and performance monitoring with more effective and new ways of working. BPPS supports UNDP and partners to be more innovative, knowledge and data driven including in its programme support efforts.

The UN is currently assessing its readiness to support Member States to meet the challenges and leverage the significant opportunities of the post-2015 period. These include the development of a new generation of universal Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which will replace the MDGs, as well as the rapidly changing development context and financing situation, the emergence of new actors, and the erosion of traditional boundaries between developed and developing countries.

The Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals and the Committee of Experts on Sustainable Development Financing are two key intergovernmental processes, and both their outcomes (available in July and August 2014 respectively) will inform the UN Secretary-General’s synthesis report. Intergovernmental negotiations will commence in late 2014, during which period a critical milestone will be the conference on financing for development in

July 2015, and will culminate in a high-level summit in September 2015 where the new development agenda will be adopted by Member States.

The post-2015 development framework offers a unique opportunity to shift from an agenda focused primarily on human progress in the poorest countries, towards one that is transformative, universal, inclusive, and consistent with the use and preservation of global public goods. Integral to the new agenda is also a reinforcement of linkages between humanitarian response and development efforts. A paradigm shift must take place that builds on the MDGs, integrates sustainable development in its three core dimensions as well as leaves no one behind through an equality-focused and rights-based approach across national, regional and global contexts. Underpinning this must be a strong accountability framework anchored by a data revolution.

A universal post-2015 sustainable development agenda also requires a UN that is “fit for purpose” to support Member States at the country level to deliver the next generation of SDGs. Becoming “fit for purpose” requires the UN to accelerate efforts to work more coherently and cohesively so as to help Member States respond effectively to increasingly interlinked and complex development challenges. This will require the system to address the skills gap and responsive structures needed to achieve this transformation at the country level. In this context, following the May 2014 meeting of the Chief Executives Board (CEB), the Secretary-General has written to all UN agencies to ask them what specific actions they will take in support of a coherent and coordinated system-wide approach to make the UN more “fit for purpose”; he has also requested the High- Level Committee on Programmes (HLCP), the High-Level Committee on Management (HLCM) and the UN Development Group (UNDG) to review these proposals so as to identify commonalities and possible areas for collective system-wide action.

Given the current challenges around the post-2015 development agenda, and building on the leadership provide by the CEB and the work undertaken by its three pillars (UNDG, HLCP and HLCM) , there is an urgent need to:

(i) support follow up across all three pillars of the CEB on the UN becoming more “fit for purpose”;
(ii) strengthen linkages between global discussions and national dialogue and coherence efforts at country level;
(iii) ensure that UNCTs are actively preparing to be more “fit for purpose” at country level by 1 January 2016; and
(iv) contribute to coherent UN support efforts to the intergovernmental process on the post-2015 sustainable development agenda.

Hosted by UNDP’s Bureau for Policy and Programme Support (BPPS), which has the responsibility for developing all relevant policy and guidance to support the results of UNDP’s Strategic Plan, a Senior Coordinator will be appointed to catalyze and guide this effort. The Senior Advisor will sit with the Post-2015 One Secretariat. All financial, administrative and reporting arrangement will be managed by the BPPS Director. Given the particular emphasis on country-level operations, the Senior Coordinator will work closely collaborate and consult with the Chair of the UNDG. The Senior Coordinator will also consult with the EOSG through the Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on the Post-2015 Development Agenda, as well as with the Secretary of the CEB. In the context of overall UN accountability for the post-2015 development agenda, the Senior Coordinator for “Fit for Purpose” will report to the Chair of the UNDG and secondarily to the SG’s Special Adviser on the Post-2015 Development Agenda (on behalf of the Secretary-General).

The Senior Coordinator works in close collaboration with the Chair of the UNDG and UNDOCO, and in consultation with the SG’s Special Adviser on the Post-2015 Development Agenda. S/he provides advice on key UN initiatives around the UN becoming more “fit for purpose” for the next development agenda, specifically as it pertains to relevant work emanating from the three pillars of the CEB, namely HLCP, UNDG and HLCM.

The Senior Coordinator will undertake the following key tasks:

Strategic Guidance and Policy Support;
Policy advice and positioning;
Partnerships, representation and advocacy;
Knowledge Management.

Duties and Responsibilities

Strategic Guidance and Policy Support:

Provide strategic advice and policy support to UN RCs and UNCTs to become more “fit for purpose” at the country level for implementation of the new development agenda.

This will be undertaken in close consultation with the UNDG Chair, both through the UNDG AG and in coordination with UN DOCO, and includes:

Support to UNDG Advisory Group’s strategic visioning exercise and forward-looking assessment on enhancing the UN development system’s ability to deliver effectively on the post-2015 agenda;
Targeted country visits and sub-regional retreats with RCs and UNCTs, to discuss progress to date on the overall post-2015 development agenda, and actions that need to be taken to ensure UNCTs are ready to support Governments and national partners to deliver the new agenda, including building on the opportunity offered by the roll-out of Standard Operating Procedures for the next generation of “Delivering as One” countries and lessons learned from the MDG Acceleration Framework;
In line with the work being undertaken through the UNDG Advisory Group, define possible areas of country-level focus (e.g. (a) coherent, coordinated policy support to governments and national partners, in particular on cross-cutting challenges that require a multi-sectoral and cross-Government approach, in line with normative standards and commitments; (b) better integration of the UN’s normative and development mandate including by strengthening rights-based approaches in policy and programming, drawing on the human rights system; and (c) more inclusive, regular and participatory outreach and consultation);
Undertake regional visits with Regional UNDG Teams to discuss coherence at the regional level, as well as the role of UNDG Regional Teams in supporting country-level coherence.

Policy Advice and Positioning on “UN Fit for Purpose”:

Advise on key UN initiatives around the UN becoming more “fit for purpose” for the next development agenda, specifically as it pertains to relevant work emanating from the three pillars of the CEB, namely HLCP, UNDG and HLCM, including:

Support, at appropriate stage, in the preparation of key reports, including inter alia the UN SG’s Synthesis Report on the Post-2015 Agenda, as well as support to preparations for the High-Level Summit in September 2015 as required, including providing support, as required, to further consultations with respect to developing and localizing an accountability framework for the post-2015 agenda;
Participate in the Informal Senior Coordination Group and the UNDG ASG Advisory Group and leading UN discussions on becoming more “fit for purpose”; and
In close coordination with UN DOCO, and in consultation with the SG’s Special Advisor on Post-2015, help oversee roll-out of UNITAR training on Sustainable Development to various country-level Government officials and UN Staff College capacity building training for UN Country Teams.

Partnerships, Representation and Advocacy:

Forge partnerships and lead on system-wide discussions on “fit for purpose” by the CEB itself, as well as the HLCP, HLCM and other relevant mechanisms emanating from the CEB, and related discussions among Member States (such as the QCPR, ECOSOC, HLPF and other Post-2015 follow-ups) on the strategic positioning of the UN development system, as required; and
Create synergies of collective action by mobilizing, fostering and strengthening strategic partnerships with the CEB and other key UN entities (e.g. UN DESA) as required, and provide substantive inputs to those partnerships; and
Represent the Post-2015 One Secretariat in relevant interagency coordination and in other fora to engage partners in advancing the SG’s post-2015 strategic policy agenda.

Knowledge Management:

Oversee and promote the advance of policy dialogue in support of UNDG Advisory Group’s strategic visioning on enhancing the UN development system’s ability to deliver effectively on the post-2015 agenda;
Help ensure country-level experiences, lessons learned and good practices are systematically fed into global discussions on “fit for purpose” and related guidance developed for UNCTs; and
Deliver high quality intellectual leadership on Post-2015 One Secretariat’s vision for UN development system’s ability to deliver effectively on the post-2015 agenda, including through knowledge products, strategic guidance and oversight.

Competencies

Core Competencies:

Innovation:

Ability to make new and useful ideas work.

Leadership:

Ability to persuade others to follow.

People Management:

Ability to improve performance and satisfaction.

Communication:

Ability to listen, adapt, persuade and transform.

Delivery:

Ability to get things done.

Functional Competencies:

UN system:

Knowledge of the UN System and ability to apply to strategic and/or practical situations.

Sustainable development goals (SDGs):

Knowledge of the Sustainable Development Goals and the ability to apply to strategic and/or practical situations.

Trends and emerging areas analytics:

Ability to scan the horizon and identify approaches and initiatives to bring into policy and programme design.

Substantive Networking:

Ability to substantively engage and foster networks with academia, research institutions, and think tanks.

Advocacy:

Ability to advocate a point of view and influence others.

Communication:

Strong written and oral skills including the ability to communicate complex issues and concepts.

Knowledge Management:

Ability to efficiently handle and share information and knowledge.

Representation:

Ability to productively share UNDP knowledge and activities (at UN and other venues).

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) Development Economics, Development Studies, Political Sciences, Public Administration, Social Sciences or related fields.

Experience:

More than 15 years of professional work experience providing policy advice and pioneering approaches on sustainable development issues, including extensive substantive and political engagement and leadership in both the MDG framework, and on the post-2015 development agenda;
Demonstrated extensive experience and achievement in driving UN system-wide coherence, including at the country level;
Demonstrated leadership within the UN and ability to represent the UN at the most senior level with various stakeholder groupings including media, civil society, Member States and the private sector;
Ideally exhibited outstanding performance as UN Resident Coordinator and deep expertise and understanding of overall development and human rights; and
Excellent diplomatic and leadership skills combined with a proven ability to succeed in very complex, multi-stakeholder environments.

Language:

Fluency in English, both written and oral;
Working knowledge of another UN language is desirable.