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 center 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.

Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs. It is essential that Afghan women and girls can continue to shape the development of their country, and that their gains are protected. UN Women remains fully committed to supporting Afghan women and girls and to putting them at the center of the global response to the crisis in Afghanistan.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has four key programme priorities: (1) Gender in Humanitarian Action, (2) Ending Violence Against Women, (3) Women’s Economic Empowerment, and (4) Women, Peace and Security.

Women’s fundamental rights and freedoms have been continually threatened since the Taliban takeover and the limited gains made over the past twenty years are now at risk of being erased. Moreover, women-led and women’s rights organizations in Afghanistan face a range of constraints that limit their operational effectiveness, including financial constraints, mobility restrictions, administrative barriers and an uncertain planning context.  Women’s civil society organizations are a driving force for ensuring availability of essential programming for women and girls and for advancing social cohesion, anchored in gender equality. However, in absence of a dedicated investment in strengthening the organizational resilience of women civil society organisations, through core flexible funding, these organizations risk being unable to adapt to the crisis. 

To respond to the urgent need of support for the women’s movement in Afghanistan, within the overall umbrella of the Women, Peace and Security portfolio, UN Women is launching a project to rebuild organizational resilience of women’s civil society organizations. The project “Re-Building the Women’s Movement in Afghanistan: Strengthening Organizational Resilience of Afghan Women’s CSOs” (hereafter: women’s civil society project) offers following key features: 

• Core grants and demand-driven grants that aim to strengthen the institutional and adaptive capacity of Women’s Rights Organization (WROs) and Women Led Organizations (WLOs) within the context of ongoing humanitarian crisis;
• Demand-driven and localized support to women civil society organizations for furthering women’s rights in Afghanistan, given the increasing focus of their operational engagement at subnational levels;
• Support for advocacy and coordinated learning, sharing, and networking.

The overall goal of the project is to contribute to the strengthening and rebuilding of Afghan women civil society organizations to advance their work across the full spectrum of women rights.

Reporting to the Women’s CSO Project Programme Manager, the Programme Analyst provides programme support to the effective management of UN Women programmes in the Afghanistan Country Office by contributing in the programme design, formulation, implementation and evaluation. The Programme Analyst supports the delivery of UN Women programmes by analyzing results achieved during implementation and supporting appropriate application of systems and procedures. The Programme Analyst works in close collaboration with the programme and operations team, UN Women HQ staff, Government officials, multi and bi-lateral donors and civil society ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation under portfolio.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Contribute technically to the development of programme strategies in the area of the Women’s CSO Project

• Provide technical inputs to the design and formulation of programme/ project proposals and initiatives related to the Women’s CSO Project

2. Provide technical support to the implementation and management of the Women’s CSO Project

• Provide inputs to the annual workplan and budget as required;
• Coordinate and monitor the implementation of programme activities;
• Coordinate the call/request for proposals, including the organization of technical review committees, and capacity assessment of partners;
• Review and coordinate the submission of implementing partner financial and narrative reports;
• Train partners on Results Based Management.

3. Provide technical assistance and capacity development support to project/programme partners

• Provide technical support to and technically oversee the implementation of programme activities with partners;
• Identify opportunities for capacity building of partners and coordinate and facilitate technical/ programming support and trainings to partners as needed.

4. Provide technical inputs to the monitoring and reporting of the programme/ project

• Monitor progress on programme activity, results and indicators;
• Monitor the implementation of proposals by responsible partners;
• Provide inputs to quarterly reports, donor reports and other reports on outputs, results outputs and outcomes.

5. Provide technical inputs to the management of people and finances of the Women’s CSO Project

• Monitor budget implementation and programme activity expenditures and perform budget revisions when required;
• Provide inputs to financial reports;
• Oversee the work of Programme Associates and Assistants as needed.

6. Contribute to building partnerships and resource mobilization strategies

• Provide inputs to resource mobilization strategies; analyze and maintain information and databases;
• Provide inputs to relevant documentation such as project summaries, conference papers, briefing notes, speeches, and donor profiles.

7. Provide technical inputs to inter-agency coordination on the Women’s CSO Project to achieve coherence and alignment of UN Women programmes with other partners in the country

• Provide technical support to the Programme Manager and Deputy Country Representative on inter-agency coordination related activities by providing inputs to background reports and briefs.

8. Provide inputs to advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts

• Provide technical inputs to background documents, briefs and presentations related to the Women’s CSO Project;
• Coordinate and support the organization of advocacy activities and campaigns events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products;
• Provide inputs to the development of knowledge management products on the Women’s CSO Project.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Timely and quality inputs to programme design
• Timely and quality inputs to workplans and budgets
• Adherence to UN Women standards and rules
• Timely monitoring and tracking of programme results and finances
• Timely organization of events
• Number of knowledge products developed

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies

• Programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to gather and interpret data, reach logical conclusions and present findings
• Good analytical skills
• Good knowledge of civil society, and women’s issues

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in social sciences, human rights, gender/ women’s studies, international development, or a related field is required
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A project/programme management certification (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 4 year of relevant work experience in development programme/project implementation, coordination, monitoring and evaluation, donor reporting and capacity building;
• Experience in civil society, and with women’s issues, is an asset;
• Experience coordinating and liaising with government agencies and/or donors is an asset.

Language requirements:

• Fluency in English and either Dari or Pashto is required;
• Knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset;
• Knowledge of both main languages of Afghanistan 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 Application and recruitment process | About us: Careers at UN Women | UN Women – Headquarters  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.

Inclusion Statement:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employ, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity, and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)