UN WOMEN Jobs - 3798- Human Rights Specialist

Human Rights Specialist

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Bangkok, THAILAND

Type of Contract :

200 Series

Starting Date :

15-Apr-2008

Application Deadline :

03-Mar-08 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

L-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

The CEDAW South East Asia Programme (CEDAW SEAP) is a programme of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), supported by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). The Programme goal is the realization of women's human rights through the more effective CEDAW implementation.

The Programme prioritizes strengthening capacities of rights-holders to claim their rights and duty-bearers to fulfill their obligations in accordance with commitments to CEDAW in seven participating countries: Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Philippines, Thailand, Timor Leste and Vietnam. The three inter-linked outcomes are

Increased awareness of women's human rights and deeper understanding of CEDAW by state organs and organised civil society groups including women's NGOs
Capacity of governments and organised civil society, including women's NGOs to promote women's human rights under CEDAW, are strengthened at the national and regional levels.
Stronger political will and commitment to CEDAW implementation generated/strengthened by popularising CEDAW and helping to develop women's knowledge and capacity to claim their rights

The Specialist will bring expertise in the areas of women's human rights and the situation in Southeast Asia, and in advocacy and capacity building for enhanced realization of human rights by duty bearers and rights holders. S/he will be well informed about the international human rights treaty monitoring system, and experienced in developing strategies and programmatic interventions to promote women's human rights, especially in the national development context such as One UN pilot, UNDAF and SWAPs as well as utilizing the regional approach to strengthen national results. The Specialist will have the primary responsibility for providing technical guidance and support for development and implementation of CEDAW SEA Programme activities, and quality assurance if the technical aspects of the programme. S/he will also engage in advocacy and capacity building beyond the immediate Programme activities to promote CEDAW and its application in advancing gender equality and development. Providing support for capacity development and development of knowledge products will also be a priority. Established credentials in these areas are required. The position involves interacting with government and civil society partners and other UN agencies as well as providing close technical support to country level programme staff. The Specialist will work under the overall guidance of the UNIFEM Regional Programme Director (RPD) and the direct supervision of the CEDAW SEA Programme Manager (PM).

Duties and Responsibilities

Technical Advice and Support

Keep abreast of new developments in the Southeast Asia region on CEDAW implementation and women's human rights realization and provide technical guidance for the development of country and regional workplans and project proposals.
Support the implementation of country and regional level projects by providing direct technical assistance to UNIFEM National Coordinators and project partners, and/or mobilizing technical expertise that can support the implementation.
Provide technical support for training and capacity building activities, and conduct trainings on women's human rights for partners and project staff
Provide feedback on policy documents, legislation drafts, reports, research papers, training modules and other tools being developed under the programme.
Conduct monitoring visits to programme countries for quality assurance of programme activities.
Provide technical advisory services to other UNIFEM programmes when required to ensure programme linkages and wider application of CEDAW.
Respond to requests for technical inputs into UN reports and documents
Prepare briefing and presentation materials and reports as required by the RPD or PM
Assist in the development of new programmes and project proposals for resource mobilization.

Knowledge, lessons and tools development

Lead the formulation of technical knowledge products, organize and undertake studies, production of technical papers and tools
Analyze and synthesize results and knowledge generated from the programme into papers, lessons, guidelines, methodologies, and other tools and new knowledge products.
Facilitate the exchange of strategies and experiences among National Coordinators and programme partners towards achievement of the programme objectives realization of women's human rights.

Monitoring and Reporting

Assist the PM and National Coordinators to link activities and results across countries to ensure that there is a regional impact and overview of results
Assist the PM in consolidating results and preparing periodic reports for UNIFEM and donors

Competencies

In-depth knowledge of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW)
Has thorough knowledge of UNIFEM and United Nations philosophy and programmes particularly with CEDAW and human rights-based approach
Familiarity with key government and non-government institutions in East and Southeast Asia working on women's human rights
Experience in designing and conducting capacity building and training programmes.
Excellent oral and written English communication skills
Demonstrated ability to work as part of a diverse team to achieve results

Required Skills and Experience

Master's degree in International Human Rights Law, Gender Studies or relevant social sciences with a focus on women's human rights.
At least 5 years of work experience involving the application of principles and concepts of gender and human rights in developing countries, particularly in the East and Southeast Asia Region