UN WOMEN Jobs - 51571- UN Women: Women’s Protection Specialist

UN Women: Women’s Protection Specialist

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Jerusalem, PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES

Type of Contract :

FTA International

Starting Date :

Application Deadline :

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

Post Level :

P-3

Duration of Initial Contract :

1 year

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

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. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women has played an innovative and catalytic role in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) since 1997. UN Women oPt focuses its activities on one overarching goal, namely to support the implementation at the national level of existing international commitments to advance gender equality in line with national priorities. In support of this goal and thoroughly taking into consideration the specificities of the oPt context, UN Women concentrates its efforts and interventions toward the realisation of the following strategic goals: engendering governance, peace and security; supporting women's economic security and rights; and promoting women’s rights and protection against violence.

The Women’s Human Rights Programme (WHRP) within the UN Women Palestine office coordinates and cooperates extensively with national stakeholders, civil society, UN sister agencies and international donors, and participates in coordination mechanisms in related fields. UN Women’s Women’s Human Rights Programme, as part of its approach and methodology within the unique political and social context and situation of the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), and in order to advance the recognition and enjoyment of women's rights, developed and implemented a programme aimed at creating and institutionalizing systems, policies, procedures and mechanisms related to the protection and empowerment of women victims of violence, as well as to women’s access to equitable justice. Building on that programme, UN Women’s Joint Programme with UNDP "Strengthening the Rule of Law in the oPt: Justice and Security for the Palestinian People" (2014-2017) supports the process of institutionalization and capacity development of the justice and security sectors in the oPt.

Within this context and within the framework of the Women’s Human Rights Programme, UN Women will recruit a Women’s Protection Specialist. Under the overall supervision of the UN Women Programme Coordinator and the direct supervision of the UN Women Project Specialist, the Women’s Protection Specialist will support implementation of the UN Women Joint Programme with UNDP "Strengthening the Rule of Law in the oPt: Justice and Security for the Palestinian People".

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of key functions:

Advisory and technical support;
Programme development and monitoring;
Advocacy and support to UN coordination, joint programming and reform;
Knowledge management and capacity building.

Advisory and technical support:

Support the development and implementation of programme action plans, identifying priorities and targets vis-à-vis national priorities and beneficiaries’ needs in the area of protection and ensuring respect of human rights and women’s empowerment principles in all actions, resources and materials produced;
Provide strategic and specialized technical advice on the development of systems, processes and mechanisms to support effective programme planning, implementation, monitoring and timely progress reporting;
Initiate coordination and maintain mechanisms with the main institutions in the protection sector, in particular with the Ministry of Social Affairs and Ministry of Women’s Affairs, and relevant civil society organizations;
Provide technical backstopping to national partners and nurture national development processes aimed at creating systems, policies, procedures, tools and services to facilitate protection and access to security and justice, while ensuring respect of women’s human rights and empowerment principles in all actions;
Liaise with UN Women Headquarters and the Regional Office on issues relating to ending violence against women, as well as women’s protection and access to security and justice with the objectives of sharing knowledge and channeling high level technical advice to Palestine programmes.

Programme development and monitoring:

Design and backstop programme initiatives relating to women’s rights and women’s protection, and support the development of women’s protection policies, systems and services;
Advise, support, guide and provide input to ensure the formulation of relevant, high quality, results-based and rights-based programmes and projects;
Review and evaluate proposals and oversee the preparation of donor proposals and reports;
Liaise with the Gender Expert Coordinator and with the Gender Experts working on protection issues in order to report on a regular basis to the Project Specialist on their work in the thematic area of protection and ensure proper flow of information;
Monitor the progress on mutually agreed results frameworks and performance indicators and timely take action/decisions;
Facilitate and monitor the timely allocation of funds. Monitor and support the appropriate utilization of resources approved;
Work closely with governmental and local partners to ensure ownership and delivery of project results;
Conduct and document regular and ad hoc assessments concerning priority/emerging protection issues in Palestine. Based on these assessments and partner feedback, and in line with international human rights treaties, provide recommendations regarding strategies and initiatives to enhance policies and services aimed at the protection of women;
Ensure high-quality, results-oriented reporting, for internal and external audiences (e.g. UN, donors), including providing guidance to ongoing programmes and projects in the submission of timely, quality reports and contributions, where necessary. Under delegated authority, manage and oversee programme budgets, as needed, in consultation with UN Women HQ, and in close collaboration with administrative and financial staff;
Provide technical feedback and evidence based inputs on women’s protection for internal and external reporting, including UN Women and other UN reports and national reports, assessments and strategy documents;
Assume the role of General User in Atlas;
Report on a regular basis to the UN Women Special Representative and the UN Women Programme Coordinator. Ensure effective information flow, communication and coordination between UN Women programmes, projects and activities;
Ensure timely and proper documentation of the programme implementation in accordance with the UN Women Rules and Regulations;
Contribute to shaping and implementing monitoring and evaluation mechanisms, using a women-centred approach, and based on human rights principles.

Advocacy and support to UN coordination, joint programming and reform:

Contribute to country annual work plans and prepare recommendations and conclusions to assist in future programme planning;
Undertake advocacy work, support to UN coordination, joint programming and reform as requested by the Project Specialist;
Provide evidence based inputs to inform advocacy and communication work for UN Women and the UN efforts in Palestine to enhance women’s protection and access to justice and security;
Act as the focal point for protection related UN coordination efforts for the development and humanitarian sectors;
Build partnerships and actively support resource mobilization for interventions in Palestine;
Draft, in consultation and coordination with the team, fact sheets, reports and other materials relating to protection issues highlighting good practices supported by UN Women in Palestine;
In line with guidance from the Project Specialist, establish and maintain effective consultations with governments, partners, stakeholders and donors to achieve active collaboration, cooperation and alliances on programme development and implementation, resource mobilization and sustained partnerships;
Actively participate in inter-agency processes such as the UN Country Team’s Protection Cluster and the Task Force sub-working group on Gender-based Violence to ensure that women’s protection issues are properly addressed.

Knowledge management and capacity building:

Collect and share lessons learned on a global and regional basis on women’s protection issues in order to build knowledge and capacity both within the UN Women/UNDP team and of partners and stakeholders;
Contribute to the development and maintenance of global and regional programme knowledge networks and practices, and development of knowledge product in the area of protection;
Identify areas that may require improvement and capture best practices/lessons learned, using corporate monitoring tools;
Support the capacity building efforts for partners and other key stakeholders, as well as key target groups and women beneficiaries in the field of women’s protection.

Impact of Results:

The support provided by the incumbent to the successful implementation of the Joint Programme with UNDP as well as projects undertaken by the Women’s Human Rights Programme will lead to increased visibility and impact of UN Women’s work in the field of women’s protection and rights in Palestine.

Competencies

Core Values:

Integrity:

Demonstrates the values of United Nations and UN Women, acts without consideration of personal gain, resists undue political pressure in decision-making, does not abuse power or authority, stands by decisions that are in the organization’s interest, and takes action in cases of unprofessional or unethical behavior.

Professionalism:

Shows pride in work and achievements, demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter, is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments and achieving results, is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns, shows persistence when faced with challenges, and remains calm in stressful situations.

Respect for Diversity:

Works effectively with people from all backgrounds, treats all people with dignity and respect, treats men and women equally, shows respect for and understanding of diverse points of view examines own biases and behaviors to avoid stereotypical responses, and does not discriminate against any individual or group.

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values:

Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness:

Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Developing, Coaching and Mentoring:

Be in charge of self-development and initiative-taking.

Working in Teams:

Act as a team player and facilitate team work.

Communicating Information and Ideas:

Facilitate and encourage open communication in the team, and communicate effectively.

Conflict Management, Negotiating and Resolving Disagreements:

Ability to managing conflict.

Knowledge Sharing and Continuous Learning:

Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making;
Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

Sound knowledge of international standards on human rights, women’s rights and related instruments;
Ability to lead formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects, and mobilize resources;
Excellent communication skills, oral and written;
Ability to build strong relationships with partners, focusing on impact and results;
Ability to work under pressure and with multi-disciplinary and multicultural teams and possess excellent inter-personal skills, and ability to monitor progress against milestones and deadlines.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Master’s Degree (or equivalent) in social sciences, political science, development.

Experience:

5 years of proven professional experience in the area of gender-based and sexual violence and victim protection;
At least 5 years of progressively increasing experience in an advisory role, including designing and backstopping programme initiatives relating to women’s rights and women’s protection, and supporting the development of women’s protection policies, systems and services;
Proven experience in developing quality knowledge products in the thematic area;
Knowledge and understanding of the Palestinian socio-cultural and political context is an asset;
Previous experience with a multilateral or international organization is an added advantage.

Languages:

Fluency in English;
Working knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

Application:

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.

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.