Background
Under the guidance and overall supervision of UN Women's Africa Section Chief, the Programme Specialist will provide the necessary support required to effectively manage current programme needs. The Programme Specialist analyzes political, social and economic trends and leads the formulation, management and evaluation of programme activities within his/her portfolio, providing policy advice services.
S/he works in close collaboration with the operations team, the programme staff in other UN Agencies, Government officials, technical advisors and experts, multi-lateral and bi-lateral donors and civil society, ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation.
Duties and Responsibilities
Key Functions:
- Analysis of ongoing trends in development
- Design, formulation and implementation of programme strategies
- Management of the Unit's programme activities and its operation
- Creation of strategic partnerships and implementation of the resource mobilization strategy
- Provision of top quality policy advice services to the counterparts and facilitation of knowledge building and management
Under the supervision of the Section Chief, the Programme Specialist analyzes overall trends in development and in policy making in the area of women's economic empowerment, together with constraints, opportunities, potential and challenges relevant to gender equality in programme countries and at the sub-regional/regional levels.
- In close collaboration with Country Offices and relevant HQ units, provides technical inputs to SROs on the formulation process of projects/programmes through a highly participatory process with RPD and thematic advisers, and increasingly in synergies with the UNCT and partners.
- Ensure the preparation and production of high quality documents and manages the development of new programmes concepts as well as their approval process through PAC presentation.
- Monitors programme performance and impact, ensuring compliance with UN Women programme goals and results-based indicators through systematic monitoring, consultations with counterparts and providing relevant and timely feedback to RPDs and/or programme team.
- Provides substantive technical inputs for global initiatives on gender issues in the various thematic areas, ensuring geog. section's perspectives are reflected and supports and guides the design and development of programmes/projects with Thematic Advisers, multilaterals and bilateral partners' technical units, governments and civil society,
Advises regional offices, project teams including executing agents such as NGOs and consultants on UN Women policies and management strategies, and relevant rules and regulations for achieving programme delivery and for increasing accountability. - Undertakes advocacy work and develops supportive networks.
- Participate in resource mobilization efforts.
- Manages the portfolio by monitoring programmes with financial operations, ensuring compliance with applicable standards, rules and procedures, by assisting executing agents, particularly NGOs and governments, to ensure adequate delivery, increased accountability and achievement of substantive objectives.
- Undertakes a region wide consultative process with rural women's networks and supporting institutions, relevant UN organisations, gender equality advocates, and CSOs to inform the 2012 CSW on "the empowerment of rural women and their role in poverty and hunger eradication, development and current challenges".
- Organizes the meeting of the international advisory committee of the UN Women programme on Women in Informal Cross Border Trade in Africa.
- Undertakes substantive research and provides operational inputs in corporate exercises, including for Consultative Committee, Executive Board & the GA; promotes team/networking, knowledge sharing; creates a synergy and fosters a learning environment. Acts as Section OIC.
- Liaise with counterparts, HQ, Thematic advisors and field offices to strengthen regional perspectives and Africa inputs, among other related tasks.
- Represents Africa section in internal corporate programme/ policy development - i.e., SPWs, programme management/decentralization task forces, etc. and in external meetings as required.
- Provide administrative support, as required, in processing regional projects, drafting and follow up of correspondence, support to reviewing and editing general correspondences and related tasks as requested.
Undertakes any other duties assigned from time to time by the section Chief.
Competencies
Core Values and Guiding Principles:
- Integrity: Demonstrating consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.
- Cultural Sensitivity/Valuing diversity: Demonstrating an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrating an international outlook, appreciating differences in values and learning from cultural diversity.
Core Competencies:
- Ethics and Values: Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity
- Organizational Awareness: Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment
- Developing and Empowering People/Coaching and Mentoring: Self-development, initiative-taking
- Working in Teams: Acting as a team player and facilitating team work
- Communicating Information and Ideas: Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively
- Self-management and Emotional intelligence: Creating synergies through self-control
- Knowledge Sharing/Continuous Learning: Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others
- Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making: Informed and transparent decision making.
Functional Competencies:
- In depth knowledge of development issues
- Ability to provide policy advise
- Ability to lead formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects and to mobilize resources
- Good knowledge of the Result Based Management Guide and toolkit
- Strong IT skills
- Well developed interpersonal and communication skills
- Initiative and dynamism
- Excellent writing skills (French/English)
Required Skills and Experience
- Masters degree (or equivalent) in social science, economics, international relations, law, human rights, gender/women's studies or a closely related discipline.
- Experience in Programme/ Project development and Management and design in/on Africa required.
- Knowledge of project development, gender analysis and mainstreaming
- Experience in gender and development project management and administration.
- Minimum of 7 years of combined national and international level experience in related areas with at least three years in Africa.
- Fluency in English.
- Knowledge of French is an asset.