UN WOMEN Jobs - 49616- UN Women: Women, Peace and Security Programme Spec

UN Women: Women, Peace and Security Programme Specialist

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Buka, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Type of Contract :

TA International

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

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

Post Level :

P-4

Duration of Initial Contract :

364 days

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

364 days

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

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

The Autonomous Region of Bougainville is a post-conflict region of Papua New Guinea. A violent armed conflict was waged in Bougainville for nearly ten years from 1989-1998. A ceasefire was declared in 1998 and a peace agreement brokered by the New Zealand Government was signed in 2000. At present, the Autonomous Region of Bougainville remains an integral part of PNG. In 2015, a Referendum in the Region will decide its political future and possible independence from PNG.

Women were uniquely impacted by the crisis. There have been no rigorous, comprehensive investigations to determine the number of conflict-related fatalities, victims of sexual violence and other human rights violations. UNDP estimates that 10% of the population of approximately 240,000 were either killed or injured in the conflict with most of the population being made internal refugees for varying periods of time. However, accounts of thousands of cases of sexual assault, including more than 1,000 incidences of rape, were collected by a leading women’s civil society organization, and further estimations place that figure at a much higher rate. Despite calls for a national reconciliation process to be implemented, no such event has occurred.

Bougainvillean women were widely credited as initiating, demanding and securing lasting peace in Bougainville. However, despite this persistent and celebrated role, the majority of Bougainvillean women and their organizations have been largely marginalized in official, ongoing peace-building, development and decision-making processes over the past twelve years.

In 2010, the Minister responsible for Women’s Affairs, who serves within the Bougainville Executive Council, requested assistance from UN Women for support with the formulation of a Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan for the Government of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville. UN Women in PNG has started work on the development of this Action Plan and now requires a Women, Peace and Security Programme Specialist to oversee the finalization and implementation of the Action Plan. Currently, UN Women has two local staff located in the UNDP Buka office on the Island.

Under the supervision of the UN Women Representative based in the PNG Country Office in Port Moresby, the Women, Peace and Security Programme Specialist, who will be based in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, is expected to engage proactively with the Autonomous Bougainville Government, local women leaders, key stakeholders and development partners to ensure gender issues are addressed in efforts related to peace building and gender justice. The position requires experience and in-depth understanding of gender equality and peace and security issues, ideally at the country level, to translate UN Women's strategic plans in the area of Peace and Security into effective programmes and results. Ideally, the successful candidate will be placed within the Office of the Vice President.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

Analysis and monitoring of trends, opportunities and challenges;
Programme development and technical support;
Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships with the Government, women, groups and other key stakeholders and development partners;
Knowledge management and reporting.

Analysis and monitoring of trends, opportunities and challenges

Work closely with the Women, Peace and Security Technical Working Group (WPS TWG), providing guidance on implementation of Bougainville Women, Peace and Security Action Plan;
Maintain up-to-date knowledge of progress in Bougainville of peace agreement and security developments;
Prepare progress reports, briefing notes, summaries, talking points and others, as required by senior management;
Establish and maintain close working contacts with the WPS TWG and other key Government and Civil Society stakeholders, as well as other relevant international actors to strengthen strategic alliances and partnerships on Women, Peace and Security issues and initiatives on Bougainville Action Plan;
In conjunction with national counterpart, to represent UN Women at meetings on women, peace and security in Bougainville;
Work closely with national colleagues at Bougainville UN Women office and UNDP to identify strategic opportunities for addressing the implementation framework of the Bougainville Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security;
Work with the WPS TWG to monitor and evaluate budgetary allocation for Action Plan on resolution 1325 Women, Peace and Security;
Provide policy recommendations, strategic advice and proposed courses of action;
Maintain up-to-date knowledge of peace and security developments and events in Bougainville for analysis, outreach and advocacy;
Prepare analytical reports, briefing notes, background papers, summaries, talking points and others as required by the Country Office.

Programme development and technical support

Promote coordination and participation in WPS TWG activities with various stakeholders to work collaboratively in the area of peace and security;
Work closely with UN Women Country Office in the Port Moresby and the sub-national office in Bougainville to provide programme guidance and support to develop and implement programmes at the local level on the Bougainville Action Plan on Women, Peace and Ssecurity;
Review peace-building initiatives in Bougainville (particularly by women and how these have affected women and girls) and produce a paper mapping those initiatives with sufficient detail to provide a history of such engagements which will inform future interventions;
Draft concept notes for potential programming and develop such into a budgeted programme design upon consultation with UN Women Country Office;
Assess entry points for the participation of UN Women in the implementation of the Bougainville Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security;
Promote coordination and participation in joint activities with various stakeholders to work collaboratively in the area of peace and security in the region such as: UN agencies, relevant government stakeholders, civil society and women's networks;
Analyze peace and security trends in Bougainville, such as the drawdown of powers from the PNG Government, setup of the proposed Peace and Security Commission and Proposed Strategic Framework and Priorities under the Peace and Security Implementation plan, etc., to assess entry points for the participation of women and UN Women engagement.

Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships with key stakeholders, actors and development partners

In conjunction with UN Women national staff based in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, build a strong partnership with the WPS TWG providing support, guidance and capacity building to enable it to function effectively.
Maintain close liaison with relevant donors and other actors supporting efforts on Women, Peace and Security in Bougainville;
Maintain close contact with relevant staff in UN Women Country Office in Port Moresby;
Support the building of strategic alliances and partnerships to develop strategies and initiatives on implementing the Action Plan;
Maintain close liaison with the Autonomous Bougainville Government and other key actors supporting efforts on women, peace and security;
Support the Country Office’s mobilization of resources for the implementation of Women, Peace and Security initiatives.
Maintain close contact with UNDP and other relevant staff in the Bougainville Delivering as One Programme/Office.

Knowledge Management and Reporting

Collect information at the local level on progress of the Bougainville Action Plan;
Provide information for input into reports by the UN Women Country Office;
Manage the process of compiling reports and lessons learned on Women, Peace and Security issues in Bougainville and contribute to UN Women's knowledge management efforts;
Assist with input to the annual SG report on Women and Peace and Security (usually due by May of each year), as well as other relevant thematic SG reports such as Peacebuilding;
Provide strategic information for input into briefings as requested;
Provide inputs regarding the implementation of the SG’s Action Plan on Women’s Participation in Peacebuilding as required;
Manage the process of compiling reports and lessons learned on Women, Peace and Security issues and contribute to UN Women's knowledge management efforts including evidence base on women, peace and security to enrich its programme.

Impact of Results:

The measure of success of the Women, Peace and Security Programme Specialist will be the impact of the activities in the Women, Peace and Security outcome to alter the policy and institutional frameworks with a view to being more inclusive of women and their needs, including affirmation action provisions in favour of women to address current inequalities.

Competencies

Core Values/Guiding Principles

Integrity:

Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism:

Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity:

Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff;
Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies

Ethics and Values:

Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Development and Innovation:

Take charge of self-development and take initiative.

Work in teams:

Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi-ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Communicating and Information Sharing:

Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others.

Conflict Management:

Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing:

Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies

Substantive experience and record of accomplishment in the area of women, peace and security;
Demonstrated people management skills;
Familiarity with the Asia Pacific Region, women's rights organizations and networks in the region and globally.
Good knowledge of UN Women and the UN system;
Proven ability to advocate and provide policy advice;
Ability to lead strategic planning, programme development and implementation, results-based management and reporting;
Ability to develop and maintain strong partnerships and mobilize resources.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master's degree (or equivalent) in social sciences, international development or related field.

Experience:

A minimum of 7 years' progressively responsible experience in the area of Women, Peace and Security, preferably with field experience in the Asia-Pacific region.

Language:

Fluenccy in spoken and written English.

Important Application Information:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment;
Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment;
UN Women will only be able to respond to those applications in which there is further interest.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.