UNDP Jobs - 55603- Project Coordinator (to be based in the OECS Commi

Project Coordinator (to be based in the OECS Commission, Saint Lucia)

Location :

Bridgetown, BARBADOS

Type of Contract :

Service Contract

Starting Date :

01-Jun-2015

Application Deadline :

30-Apr-15 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

SC-5

Duration of Initial Contract :

One Year

Languages Required :

English

Expected Duration of Assignment :

One 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

Background

2014 continued to be a challenging year for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Member States. Rather than experiencing a substantial economic rebound as hoped, the sub-region continued to grapple with low to negative economic growth, well below the projected global average of 3 % and the average of 2.75% in the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Region. The deterioration of fiscal resources and financial institutions, rising unemployment, high levels of youth unemployment and labour instability, high debt-to-GDP ratios (“ranging from 73% to 116% of GDP”) and other factors narrowed governments’ scope for managing the financial recovery and facilitating sustainable development.

Governments have been forced to adopt stringent fiscal measures they previously avoided and to produce austerity budgets with marked reductions in public expenditure. These national and sub-regional development challenges are all compounded by the increased incidences of natural hazards and the impacts of climate change that continue to threaten the development gains in these countries.

Recognizing policy-making and decision making is constrained by the lack of social data the UNDP, as a key regional development partner, convened statisticians and policy-makers from across the sub-region to remedy the paucity of data (and in turn engender data-driven, targeted initiatives) through localization of a multidimensional approach to poverty and closer monitoring of the MDGs. MDG Acceleration plans led to focused vocational training for the poorest communities in Dominica and to increased efforts to support young people's skills to enter the labour market in Grenada. Additionally, small scale activities were implemented in 2012 and 2013 aimed at building employability and entrepreneurial skills amongst youth, as well as implementing for the first time, a business accelerator programme.

These actions correspond directly to a long standing relationship between the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Secretariat and the UNDP Barbados and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States. This project serves to build on UNDP support for activities for a multidimensional approach to poverty measurement (MPM) for which OECS member states have agreed to pilot a short term annual measure, as well as a longer term 5 year measure, with a view towards sub-regional adoption and the development of the MPM in partnership with UN Agencies under the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF). The ultimate goal of this work is to support evidence based policy making for poverty eradication in the sub-region.

Project Background

This project will be implemented in Antigua, Commonwealth of Dominica, Saint Lucia and Grenada in its initial phase which is anticipated to be for a minimum of 24 months. It is expected that the project will be expanded to other OECS Member States should the results of phase I necessitate, inter alia, the broadening of the geographical scope to other countries in the OECS.

The project will also build on the consultative process and outcomes of the OECS Growth and Development Strategy (ODGS) and embraces the sub regional push to the complete attainment of the global Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). It will also aim to show the piloting countries to be in the forefront of several new and emerging global development objectives - as concretised post the Year 2015.

It also builds on an articulated platform of south- south cooperation as encapsulated within the UNDP Strategic Plan 2014-2017 and to this end is prefaced around the emerging partnership in the areas of poverty reduction and human development between the Government of Chile and the member countries of the OECS

Fundamentally, the objectives outlined within this project are underpinned by its programme of cooperation articulated in the OECS Growth and Development Strategy and UNDP’s Multi-Country Programme Action Plan between the Governments of Barbados and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) 2012-2016 and the OECS. A crucial aspect of addressing of social and economic inequality and ensuring good governance lies in the provision of an enabling environment for its achievement. Therefore, as partners OECS and UNDP have sought to engage in catalytic and strategic interventions which would directly impact access to opportunities to emerge out of poverty and thus reducing the number of persons dependent on either the state or the informal sector for the provision of income and/ or basic needs.

The above stated objectives are contextualized by the reality that access to relevant data for human rights based and gender responsive decision making is necessary for addressing structural inequalities which create the conditions under which people become marginalised and impoverished. Therefore multidimensional approaches to poverty reduction present opportunities to identify and articulate the extent of deprivations being faced by individuals and households.

Furthermore, community based ownership of poverty reduction programmes, training and capacity building initiatives are pivotal for ensuring the relevance and sustainability of programmes. For example, focusing on ‘green’ job or entrepreneurship enterprises related to renewable energy will not only provide access to emerging and growing markets, but will also increase access of communities to renewable/sustainable energy sources. As governance mechanisms in the Caribbean are centralised, and decision making capacity therefore limited and removed from lived experiences of individuals and communities, making community ownership pivotal to the success of any intervention.

This project builds on the OECS Growth and Development Strategy, United Nations Development Assistance Framework (2012 to 2016), the UNDP Multi-Country Programme Action Plan (MCPAP) 2012 to 2016 various National Development Plans and on-going engagement with the OECS Member States. It also encapsulates their requests for development assistance and takes lessons from project and programme monitoring exercises previously undertaken. The actions described in the project therefore are complementing existing and ongoing work in the region and have a high chance of success, particularly through the utilisation of already established country based infrastructure for its implementation.

Project Outputs

The Project will contribute to the Supporting of Multi-dimensional Approaches to Poverty Eradication in the Eastern Caribbean, focusing on the achievement of the following main objectives:

To support the development of relevant qualitative data collection tools which are fully compatible and/ or can inform sub-regional and country qualitative multidimensional poverty measures
To undertake targeted, poverty focused qualitative research exercises at the community level which will serve as the evidence for national and Sub-regional poverty reduction programmes and initiatives.
To support community based capacity building and training designed to increase the economic participation of marginalised groups including women, youth and persons with disabilities;
To support community based advocacy activities intended to promote inclusion of vulnerable groups in community, national and sub-regional decision making fora;

Duties and Responsibilities

Roles and Responsibilities of the Project Coordinator:

Under the Direction of the Project board and Project Director, and in close consultation with the UNDP SRO, the Project Coordinator will provide day to day management of the project.

Generally the Project Coordinator will

Manage, monitor and expedite project implementation through developing work-plans, monitoring and evaluation of plans
Manage the performance of technical and administrative support personnel including consultants and specialist advisors engaged to support the project;
Manage project implementation activities, including design of ToRs for consultants;
Provide a high quality of technical support on policy and research documentation from within the Poverty Reduction area, the UNDP SRO and from development and national partners as necessary
Provide technical support and prepare correspondence to the Project Board, the UNDP SRO, government authorities and other institutions that relate with the project
Provide technical and administrative support to countries as required in the implementation of project activities
Develop as needed, knowledge products for the promotion of programmes, sharing of results and for presentations and other public speaking activities
Quarterly and annual project reporting and coordination of country reports on a quarterly and annual basis
Work with government counterparts and other stakeholders to coordinate logistical and thematic aspects of meetings and workshops as necessary.
Monitor project progress against annual and quarterly work plans and budgets in coordination with the monitoring officer in within UNDP SRO
Ensure coordination among all partners involved in the project and with beneficiary countries
Monitor and evaluate activities implemented and manage the accurate and timely submission of the narrative and financial reporting obligations on the progress of the support project
Consolidate inputs from country programmes, as required and ensure reports are provided in a timely manner to accommodate donor reporting and the meeting of contractual obligations
Identify opportunities for enhancing resources, knowledge and experience for the Project;
Foster South-south cooperation;
Perform any other duties as may be assigned by the Project Board, Project Director or the UNDP SRO.

Competencies

Experience in programme management/project coordination with emphasis on poverty reduction, the human rights based approach, gender analysis, results based management, organizational skills, budgeting and financial management

Demonstrated knowledge and understanding of multi-dimensional poverty measurement; statistical analysis particularly of social statistics; human development; and the international development agenda

A minimum of six (6) years of relevant experience in the field of development, working with development planning processes at the regional and national level

Strong conceptual and analytical skills

Proven experience in development monitoring and measurement

Experience in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), including in the Caribbean.

Experience in working with governments, donors, non-governmental organisations and international development organisations

Ability to function at both an advisory and project implementation level.

Ability to work independently, manage competing priorities and perform well under pressure.

Excellent inter-personal skills to effectively liaise with key stakeholders

Demonstrated negotiation skills

Experience in participatory approaches to development/participatory action research

Strong oral and written communication skills with a proficiency in English

Demonstrated competencies in computer-based word processing and spreadsheet applications, workshop organization, public speaking and sensitivity to cultural differences

Required Skills and Experience

Post-graduate degree, at least a Master’s degree, or commensurate skills and experience in one of the following areas: economics, social policy, population/demography, development studies or related field with formal training in project management, as well as significant experience in developing action research projects and at least two years of relevant experience working on issues relevant to developing countries, preferably in advising UNDP management and high level Government officials.

Bachelor’s degree in the Social Sciences with formal training in project management and four years relevant working experience on issues relevant to developing countries, preferable in advising UNDP management and high level Government officials.

Note: The position is open to nationals of OECS citizens with permanent resident status or a valid work permit for Saint Lucia.

Deadline date for submission of Applications has been extended to 30 April 2015.

Please remember to also submit your completed Personal History Form (P11) along with your application. You can return to the previous page to obtain the P11 form or click here to download it for completion.