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 UN Women Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) addresses gender equality and women’s empowerment challenges in the Asia-Pacific region, including deeply embedded discriminatory social norms and practices that perpetuate inequalities based on gender and other intersectional identities (e.g. ethnicity, class, region, age, disability, migratory status, and sexual orientation and gender identity, among others). The Regional Office works across the following areas: Governance and Inter-governmental support (including on Gender Statistics); Women’s Economic Empowerment (including Migration, Ending Violence Against Women; Women, Peace and Security; Climate Change, Disaster Risk Reduction and Humanitarian Action. Covering 42 countries within Asia and the Pacific, it exercises its triple mandate and functions i.e. Normative, Coordination and high-quality programming at a regional level and in support of UN Women’s offices and UN Country Teams in 24 countries across the region. The UN Women Asia Pacific Regional Office also oversees and manages programming in programme presences.

In 2015, on 25 September, the United Nations General Assembly adopted unanimously the Resolution 70/1 Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Gender equality and women’s empowerment is at the heart of the agenda, as numerous goals and targets address structural barriers to achieve equal rights and opportunities between women and men, girls and boys.

One of the key areas of concern is the economic empowerment of women. It is expressed in targets and indicators of SDG 5 (Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls) and SDG 8 (Promote inclusive and sustainable development, decent work and employment for all). Progress toward it depends not only on the adoption of a set of public policies by governments, but also on the existence of an enabling environment and active engagement of the corporate sector. This is also relevant to the achievement of SDG 1 (Poverty Reduction), SDG 10 (Reduced inequalities) and SDG 17 (Revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development).

WE RISE Together – Advancing gender-responsive procurement in the Mekong sub-region is a three-year Mekong-Australia Partnership (MAP) project developed by UN Women. It sits under MAP’s Economic Resilience Fund (MAP-ERF) and addresses its four drivers of resilience (including macroeconomic, household, business, and government resilience). The project responds to the prioritisation of women’s economic empowerment by expanding market access for Women-owned Businesses1 (WOBs) and Gender Responsive Enterprises1 (GREs) through procurement opportunities.

WE RISE Together tackles the structural gender inequities that exist within the global procurement market in which WOBs secure only one per cent of spending worldwide.2 By introducing and advancing increased market access through gender-responsive procurement1 (GRP), WE RISE Together operates with the overall objective to empower more women to equally access, lead, and benefit from expanded market opportunities in the Mekong subregion.

The project works across the Mekong subregion, namely in Thailand and Viet Nam, where the concept of GRP is still in nascent stages of development. Despite regional and national initiatives prioritising financial inclusion of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), there is currently a limited amount of gender-sensitive data available to promote GRP practices and policies in the project’s geographical focus areas.

As such, WE RISE Together will introduce GRP as an opportunity to address and attempt to channel more procurement spend towards WOBs and GREs. The project will work towards four interlinked outcomes:   

Outcome 1: More public and private organisations are promoting and developing policies and practices that advance GRP (Normative Change in the Ecosystem) 

Outcome 2: WOBs/GREs have increased capacity to build more resilient and inclusive business models and utilise networking opportunities to better access markets. (Strengthening the Supply Side)  

Outcome 3: Larger public and private sector organisations have increased capacity to advocate, promote and implement GRP within their organisations and industries to enable market access for WOBs/GREs (Strengthening the Demand Side) 

Outcome 4: More equitable market opportunities are created through connecting WOBs/GREs to larger public and private buyers. (Connecting Demand Side and Connect to Supply Side  

Reporting to the Regional Programme Manager and Technical Advisor - Regional Women’s Economic Empowerment in Asia (P4) with matrix reporting line to  Thailand Programme Coordinator (NOC), the Regional Programme Coordinator, WE RISE Together (WRT) is responsible for coordinating activities among the regional, Thailand and Viet Nam WRT teams and UN Women’s Economic Empowerment Unit, managing WRT program in Thailand and serving as a donor contact person, in close collaboration/consultation with the UN Women’s Thailand Programme Coordinator to ensure programme coherent. S(he) is the focal person to build partnerships in the framework of this project and work in close coordination with various partners and stakeholders, including the DFAT delegations, which will guide and provide input for the performance of the programme at country level. The incumbent will also inform and update WEE unit and Un Women Thailand about programme implementation and opportunities to build synergies with other relevant initiatives implemented by UN Women and key relevant stakeholders at the country and regional level.

1.  Coordinate regional and country-level implementation of the Mekong-Australia Partnership (MAP) project, “WE RISE Together”  

• Coordinate Thailand and regional level consultations and engagements to elaborate the detailed formulation of project initiatives;
• Analyze development context and identify key opportunities and partners to advance the project planning and implementation in close collaboration with UN Women’s Thailand Programme Coordinator to ensure UN Women’s programme coherence;  
• Supervise work with partners/contractors to engage the private and public sector actors into WE Rise Together; 
• Ensure the translation of the UN Women’s and Mekong-Australia Partnership (MAP) project’s priorities into successful Thailand, Viet Nam and regional interventions that resonate with country and regional level priority to promote women’s economic empowerment (WEE) particularly on market access;   
• Develop further and implement existing a detailed country-level work plan in line with the approved programme document in close consultation with the WEE Regional Lead and the Thailand Program Coordinator to ensure it is aligned with the overall direction of WRT programme as well as UN Women’s strategic priorities on WEE at the country and regional level; 
• Manage WRT implementation based on the Results-based Management (RBM) principles and in accordance with the UN Women’s standard rules and regulations; 
• Connect the country level activities with regional level initiatives and cross-country learnings; 
• Provide inputs to country strategy documents, proposals, briefs, policy dialogue and other documents related to WE Rise Together; 
• Coordinate country-level needs assessment and development of training materials and workshops to avoid duplication of efforts and ensure coherence in the overall approach within UN Women and other partners at the country level;  
• Identify country-level capacity building needs and support partners through technical assistance, mentoring, training, cross partner learning and sharing;

2.  Coordinate monitoring and reporting activities between regional, Viet Nam and Thailand, and donor engagement

• Coordinate cross-country results, monitor and report progress of implementation of activities and finances using results-based management tools in close collaboration with the M&E personnel; 
• Lead the drafting and consolidating of the reports on monitoring missions, project programme results, outputs and outcomes;   
• Provide substantive inputs to the preparation of donor and UN Women reports, including quarterly and annual results reporting in RMS, narrative and financial reports; 
• Review, coordinate and monitor the submission of implementing partner financial and narrative reports; 
• Record and maintain documents on relevant programme activities, issues, risks and risk mitigation plans; 
• Track progress and share updates on WRT implementation among WRT teams, WEE Unit and UN Women Thailand to ensure coherent project implementation;
• Serve as a focal person for donor engagement and ensure the donor remains well-informed according to the agreed Governance Note.

3.  Support outreach and  support and knowledge management  

• Coordinate advocacy and knowledge building; 
• Manage advocacy strategies and supports relevant, high-impact advocacy activities and campaigns with key partners/contractors and their implementation; 
• Develop a stakeholder engagement strategy to advance WEE by expanding market access for WoBs and GREs;    
• Collect knowledge on current and emerging trends by gathering relevant information on projects, strategies, approaches and ongoing experience for lessons learned and best practices; 
• Contribute to accomplish an updated database of relevant WOBs, GREs and industry association and networks; 
• Contribute to knowledge networks and communities of practice, facilitating the knowledge exchange of companies to take up effective gender equitable business practices through gender-responsive procurement and guide development of incentives for companies to enjoy recognition of their advances; 
• Represent the project in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to WEE; 
• Coordinate exchange of information and knowledge products internally and externally; 
• Contribute to the advocacy and communication strategy for the WE Rise Together with particular attention to Thailand and Viet Nam and its linkages to the multi-country platform, including key opportunities for major advocacy campaigns, events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products; 
• Contribute for the elaboration and implementation of knowledge management strategy.  

4.  Build strategic partnership and support resource mobilization

• Develop and manage partnerships with the donor, relevant UN and multilateral agencies, government and civil society partners, key private sector players, and experts to ensure timely and efficient delivery of activities; 
• Support the engagement of WOBs, GREs, private sector companies, industry associations and relevant public agencies in close cooperation and coordination with the regional communications team to expand WEPs signatories and implementation of WEPs; 
• Develop strategy, build partnerships and networks to support WoBs and GREs; 
• Work with partners to build strategic partnerships with private companies and policy makers to identify possible areas of cooperation, especially contributions to gender-responsive procurement; 
• Identify key partners to co-finance and co-organize workshops, trainings and/or activities based on methodologies and tools developed by the regional programme;  
• Identify resource mobilization opportunities particularly through private sector engagement to leverage results of the regional WE Rise Together. 

5.  Manage financial resource and  supervise staff

• Supervise and manage a team of professional and administrative staff, review performance and mentor/ coach staff;
• Coordinate development and preparation of financial resources of the Programme including budgeting and budget revisions, and expenditure tracking and reporting;
• Oversee and monitor the allocation and disbursement of funds to participating partners.
• Monitor budget implementation and make budget re-alignments/ revisions, as necessary. 

Key Performance Indicators:

• Timely and quality implementation of Programme at country level against set workplans, timelines and budgets, in line with the programme document 
• Quality and timely reporting 
• Excellent relations with partners and stakeholders internally and externally 
• Regular and timely monitoring of activities   
• Enhanced best practices and lessons learned documented and circulated  
• Increase in resources mobilized to co-finance programme activities  
• Increase awareness of UN Women and DFAT at country level 
• Excellent relations and partnership with Governments and other stakeholders in the Gender-Equality and/or Business and Human Rights space 

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  

• Ability to support design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects. 
• Knowledge of Results Based Management principles and approaches.  
• Ability to maintain networks and partnerships with UN agencies and other international partners to promote partnership and build alliances to advance organizational interests and competencies.   
• Demonstrated good oral and written communication skills. 
• Strong knowledge of UN and/or other programme management systems 
• Strong knowledge in gender equality, women`s economic empowerment and private sector management, policies and environment

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in public administration, law, economics, human rights, gender equality, management, social sciences or other related areas is required.
• A project/programme management certification would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects.  
• Previous experience in the development sector including the UN system is a plus. 
• Experience in promoting gender equality and/or social development 
• Experience on women’s economic empowerment 
• Strong experience in advocacy and policy influencing and working with governments and/or other inter-governmental bodies  
• Experience in applying the Results-based Management (RBM) principles and approaches in programme planning, monitoring/reporting and implementation  
• Knowledge of working with the private sector and/or corporate social responsibility is a plus as well as knowledge on Women’s Empowerment Principles (WEPs) or Gender-equality in private sector is an advantage  
• Experience in private sector engagement for resource mobilisation is a plus

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in both English and Thai is required; 
• Excellent written and communication skills ?

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc. 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.  Only shortlisted candidates will be notified.

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

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