UN WOMEN Jobs - 53506- Director- Africa Centre For Transformative and Inc

Director- Africa Centre For Transformative and Inclusive Leadership (ACTIL)

Advertised on behalf of

UN WOMEN

Location :

Nairobi, KENYA

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

01-Mar-2015

Application Deadline :

09-Feb-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

One 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 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.

Kenyatta University with the support of the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) has established the Africa Centre for Transformational and Inclusive leadership at Kenyatta University’s main campus. The Leadership Centre caters for Eastern, the Horn and Southern Africa.

The mission of the Centre is to build the capacity of current and future leaders and develop a critical mass of transformational leaders in Africa, especially women and youth in politics, business, government and civil society organisations that can transform the continent. The Governance structure of the Leadership Centre comprises of an Advisory Board, which provides high level policy guidance, a Technical Committee that provides technical guidance and quality assurance support, and a management team which is responsible for the day to day running of the Centre under the supervision of the Director.

ACTIL’s Objectives.

To realize its vision and mission, ACTIL seeks to achieve the following specific objectives:

Develop the capacities of aspiring and existing leaders particularly women and youth in public and private sectors;
Strengthens the network of Leadership Institutes in the region to create high standards, and eventually, accreditation in leadership development and facilitates country level follow up, coaching and support to the Centre’s graduates through country-based institutes;
Establishes and maintains links with Think Tanks, renowned leaders, role models and trend setters in transformative politics, development thinking and analysis to ensure that the Centre and its clients remain at the cutting edge of knowledge and solutions.

Duties and Responsibilities

This is a senior and strategic position with responsibility to establish and manage programme and operational systems the Africa Centre for Transformational and Inclusive Leadership.

Summary functions:

Lead and promote innovation and excellence in ACTIL’s programmes and activities;
Ensure the ACTIL attracts sufficient funding and recognition to secure its future viability;
Identify and secure strategic partnerships and linkages for ACTIL with organisations whose objectives are similar or complementary to ACTIL’s objectives.
To set a strategic vision for the Leadership Centre, working in close consultations with the Technical Committee;

Roles and Responsibilities:

To manage and ensure effective and efficient implementation of the training programmes of the Centre;
To ensure appropriate responsiveness of ACTIL to the needs of UN Women Country Offices and other partners for tailor-made training programmes;
To identify priorities for the development of transformational leadership, as part of the strategic vision for the Institute;
To identify and submit for review by the Technical Committee of proposed resource persons for scheduled courses;
To take a leadership role in the development of an international reputation for the ACTIL.
To attract research grant income, and other income, from a variety of sources, of a sufficient level that the Institute will become self-sustaining after the initial period;
To establish, as a core component of ACTIL facilities, a functioning gender and elections resource unit with the capabilities to respond to any relevant information needs from UN Women offices and partners within the region;
To develop and implement, in close consultations with the Technical Committee, a communication strategy for the ACTIL, and ensure visibility of the Centre, its programmes and results;
To ensure that the ACTIL has a presence at relevant high-profile regional and international forums, in order to disseminate good practices and lessons learned for the Centre’s programmes;
To establish links with external partners, and build upon existing relationships, in order to establish the ACTIL as a Centre of excellence in leadership development in Africa.

Competencies

Core Values:

Integrity

Demonstrate consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Professionalism

Demonstrate professional competence and expert knowledge of the pertinent substantive areas of work.

Cultural sensitivity and valuing diversity

Demonstrate an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrate an international outlook, appreciating difference in values and learning from cultural diversity.

Core Competencies:

Ethics and Values

Demonstrate and safeguard ethics and integrity.

Organizational Awareness

Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment.

Development and Innovation

Take charge of self-development and take initiative.

Work in teams

Demonstrate ability to work in a multicultural, multi ethnic environment and to maintain effective working relations with people of different national and cultural backgrounds.

Communicating and Information Sharing

Facilitate and encourage open communication and strive for effective communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence

Stay composed and positive even in difficult moments, handle tense situations with diplomacy and tact, and have a consistent behavior towards others

Conflict Management

Surface conflicts and address them proactively acknowledging different feelings and views and directing energy towards a mutually acceptable solution.

Continuous Learning and Knowledge Sharing

Encourage learning and sharing of knowledge.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making

Demonstrate informed and transparent decision making.

Functional Competencies:

Experience in working on gender and leadership issues;
Strong communication --spoken, written and presentation skills, including ability to produce a variety of written strategic papers, reports and documentation in a clear concise style;
Communicates sensitively and effectively across different constituencies;
Familiarity with partnership building, and relationships with a variety of donor organisations.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Advanced degree in strategic planning, Leadership, international relations, gender and development or related discipline;
A PhD in relevant field will be an added advantage.

Experience:

Minimum of 10 years of progressively responsible experience for work focused on, or strongly involving a focus on gender equality, leadership development at national, regional and international levels;
Experience in managing a dynamic regional/international organisations would be a definite advantage.

Language Requirement:

Excellent written and spoken English is required;
Working knowledge of Portuguese is desirable but not necessary.