UNDP Jobs - 5237- Programme Specialist, Gender & Environment

Programme Specialist, Gender & Environment

Location :

New York, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Type of Contract :

200 Series

Starting Date :

18-Aug-2008

Application Deadline :

02-Jul-08 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

L-3

Duration of Initial Contract :

1 year

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

1 year

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 United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has a longstanding commitment to mainstreaming gender equality and promoting women’s empowerment in its work. As the UN’s lead development agency, with extensive field presence, UNDP has facilitated the integration of gender equality in the work of Country Offices through core and non-core fund investments and has initiated and implemented numerous innovative initiatives, some in partnership with UNIFEM, that support both government and civil society work on gender issues. Work on gender mainstreaming in UNDP is led and coordinated by the Gender Team, housed in the Bureau Development Policy (BDP), comprised of human resources located at HQ, in Sub-Regional Resource Facilities (SURFs) and Regional Centers.

In 2005 the Gender Thematic Trust Fund (GTTF) received a contribution of $ 5.5 million form the Government of the Netherlands in support of the Corporate Gender Strategy and Action Plan, which recognized the need to strengthen and reinforce UNDP’s internal capacity on gender mainstreaming as a critical component to institutionalizing gender mainstreaming through UNDP. Since then, UNDP has made great strides and has recently finalized a new corporate Gender Equality Strategy (GES) for the time period 2008-2011, which builds on the results achieved thus far. The new strategy coincides with the elaboration of the UNDP’s Strategic Plan and should ensure that the gender equality and women’s empowerment are fully anchored with the organization’s strategic vision and planning for the next four years.

In order for UNDP to sustain the momentum and to move forward to achieve measurable gender equality results, the organization has to continue restructuring itself and building its internal capacity to address the gender dimensions in all its work. Moreover, UNDP needs to ensure that gender equality is firmly anchored within its focus areas. One area where a particular effort is needed is in the area of Gender, Environment and Sustainable Development. For example, the annual review of UNDP’s Multi Year Funding Framework (MYFF) over the past years has shown that environment and energy (now sustainable development) is on of the focus areas where gender is insufficiently mainstreamed. Furthermore, results of the 2005-06 GTTF initiative have indicated environment and energy as an area where the gender dimensions are not well understood by both staff and counterparts.

To sustain the momentum there is also a clear need for partnership building and resource mobilization. The organization cannot move forward without sufficient resources and the partners both at global, regional and local level to support and implement the Strategy. At the global level the Executive Board members and donor countries are an important interface that requires dedicated attention to strengthen the relationship. This includes regular information sharing and advocacy but also includes delivering results and managing contributions. The Gender Thematic Trust Fund, as an important tool for UNDP to instigate gender mainstreaming across the organization’s work, is the primary non-core funding mechanism for such contribution.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide specialist advice and support to programme activities in the area of Gender, Environment and Sustainable Development. This includes

Strengthening cross-practice collaboration with the Environment and Energy practice group;
Providing substantive technical support to UNDP country offices, regional centers and bureaux and supporting the implementation of the Gender Equality Strategy;
Contributing to the development of new research, policy and UNDP knowledge products/tools on Gender, Environment and Sustainable development issues;
Building partnerships with key external organizations working in the field;
Leading advocacy efforts on the issues, including through organizing events at major conferences;
For the first year this will also include taking a lead role in the organization of the 2008 Global Gender Retreat, which has a special focus on gender, environment and sustainable development.

Coordinate the management and oversight of the Gender Thematic Trust Fund by:

Engaging advisors both in HQ and in the regions, Regional Bureaux, the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery, Country Offices and donors in the allocation and implementation processes;
Providing support and guidance to offices receiving funding;
Overseeing the day-to-day operations of the Fund, including the development of guidelines, the allocation of funds and reporting to donors.

Lead the Gender Team’s efforts on partnership building and resource mobilization through:

Coordinating meetings and follow-up with donors and Executive Board member and organizing missions to donor countries and strategic events;
Developing concept notes and other materials for communication purposes and preparing updates/briefs as necessary for internal and external use, and specifically support outreach and advocacy of the Director of the Team;
Analyze countries’ development assistance picture, donor policies and programmes and closely follow global trends in development assistance.
Engage on a regular basis with donors on issues related to the work of the Gender Team, in particular in relation to the GTTF.

Contribute to the work on gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Latin America and Caribbean region:

Providing technical advice and support to country offices in the region, the regional center and the regional bureau;
Promoting knowledge sharing between the region and different levels of the organization, including through contributing substantively to regional events;
Contribute to developing and strengthening linkages with the LAC Gender Community of Practice both inside and outside the UN system.

Competencies

Corporate Competencies:

Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN values;
Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of UNDP;
Knowledgeable of UN/UNDP corporate rules, regulations, policies, procedures and practices;
Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability; and,
Treats all people fairly without favoritism.

Functional/Technical Competencies:

Proven track record of policy development, design and implementation of
Knowledge and technical expertise in the area of gender equality and women’s empowerment;
Ability to identify creative and practical approaches to overcome challenges;
Familiarity with evaluation instruments, results based management, work planning, budgeting and reporting;
Ability to build and sustain effective partnerships, advocate effectively and communicate to various constituencies;
Excellent analytical skills of substantive as well as organizational issues;
Ability to establish priorities for self and others, and to work independently; and,
Ability to perform a variety of research and administrative support tasks in a fast-paced and highly pressured environment.

Behavioral Competencies:

Strong verbal and written communication and advocacy skills;
Ability to work in a complex environment requiring liaison and collaboration with multiple actors;
Ability to work under pressure and with a multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural team;
Excellent team-building, diplomatic and inter-personal skills;
Resourcefulness, initiative and mature judgment;
Ability to demonstrate sensitivity, tact and diplomacy; and,
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive and constructive attitude.

Required Skills and Experience

Masters degree in international relations, development, public administration and/or gender studies;
A minimum of 5 years of overall experience, including international development, partnership building, consultancy and analytical work in development issues;
Experience of working on partnership building and resource mobilization processes, and in partnership with a range of UN agencies and CSOs;
Knowledge of UNDP and UN system policies and programming in gender equality and women’s empowerment;
Knowledge about Environment and gender and familiarity with gender issues in Latin America and the Caribbean
Excellent communication and drafting skills in English. Working knowledge of other UN official languages would be an asset.