Background

During May, 2014 heavy rains fell over Bosnia and Herzegovina, causing massive flooding in northern, eastern and central parts of the country bordering Croatia and Serbia. The floods are the worst in 120 years and have brought enormous destruction in a country that is still recovering from the consequences of the 92-95 war and where significant groups of the population suffer from chronic poverty and unemployment. The natural disaster affected a quarter of the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina and approximately one million people, which is approximately 27% of the country’s population of 3.8 million. Nearly 50% of governments were hit by the floods, among them 46 suffered severe damage and destruction, where urban, industrial and rural areas were completely flooded with water, cut off and without electricity, water or communications for days. Consequently, houses, infrastructure, schools, hospitals, private facilities, farms and crops were wiped out, causing deterioration of public services, local economy and agriculture activities.

In cooperation with national and local governments, the UN, European Union and the World Bank conducted a thorough recovery needs assessment to identify medium and long-term recovery priorities in a variety of sectors. The results and findings of this assessment will inform the design of relevant interventions to address the consequences of the floods in an integrated and sustainable manner.

The UN/UNDP, together with other international organizations - the European Union, the World Bank, the USAID, the SDC, the Government of Norway, the Government of Sweden and others – is taking an important role in the post-flood recovery efforts in the most affected localities.
 
Host Agency/Host Institute: UNDP

Organizational Context: 

UN has identified the critical recovery demands and their financial projections, as follows:

• Rehabilitation and reconstruction of public buildings and services, including app. 90 health and education centres, delivery of temporary power, water, sanitation services, public administrative buildings and institutions;
• Shelter and Housing, including cleaning, rehabilitation and repair of a total of 25,000 priority dwellings (out of est. 75,000 damaged);
• Debris Management and demining, incl. mine clearance/marking and solid waste/debris removal;
• Community Infrastructure: small roads & bridges, including repair and replacement;
• Water, Sanitation and Sewage, including restoring technical and potable water supply and sewage systems where possible;
• Livelihoods and Agriculture, including urban quick income projects, assistance to restore farming supply networks and small-scale production, planting and soil decontamination.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of UN Recovery Progamme Manager the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

Summary of key functions:

• Assist in day-to-day activities related to UN Recovery Programme administration such as recruitment, procurement, accounting and reporting;
• Organize meetings including venues, facilities, document preparation, catering and security clearances;
• Organize travel for programme members, consultants and participants for consultancies, training and workshops;
• Assist in editing and finalizing of annual reports and correspondence;
• Ensure particularly that all procurement documents are appropriately filed with meticulous attention to administrative, technical and commercial procedures;
• Monitor personnel files for national and international consultants, following up on contract expiry and extension dates, recording travel and travel entitlements, checking on completion of TORs and payment;
• Keep contract files including progress monitoring, payment schedules, completion of TORs and acceptance and clearance of deliverables;
• Provide inputs for publication materials and collect information related to the programme activities;
• Perform other duties as determined by the Programme Manager.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to:

• Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day);
• Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country;
• Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities;
• Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.;
• Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers;
• Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Results/Expected Output:

Overall, it is is expected that the Administrative Assistant will assist in the day-to-day operations related to human resources, financial management, procurement & logistics and general administration.

Outputs:

• Implementation of UN Recovery Programmme internal operational procedures;
• Support to procurement processes;
• Support to recruitment processes;
• Support to provision of travel and logistical services;
• Support to knowledge building and knowledge sharing;
• A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed.

Competencies

Professionalism:

• Sound knowledge and understanding of concepts and approaches relevant to budgetary and financial management; demonstrable knowledge of database administration;
• Knowledge of the financial rules and regulations of the BiH as well as familiarity with BiH policies and procedures as they relate to budgeting and financial administration;
• Demonstrable commitment to the values of the United Nations, particularly integrity in daily activities and behaviors; demonstrated professional competence and mastery of administrative processes;
• Ability to perform a range of administrative functions, including event planning and organizing and human resources administration;
• Ability to map out potential risks and make contingencies, as required.
• Conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results;
• Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges.

Accountability:

• Takes ownership of responsibilities and honors commitments;
• Delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost, and quality standards;
• Operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules;
• Takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

Teamwork: 

• Proven interpersonal skills and the ability to establish and maintain effective working relations with people in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity;
• Is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda;
• Supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Planning & Organizing:

• Able to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor work while prioritizing competing demands; able to work on tight deadlines;
• Knowledge on how to develop clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies;
• Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning;
• Monitors and adjusts plans and projects as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Secondary education (university degree in social sciences, business administration or similar is an asset).

Experience:

• Minimum two years of progressively responsible professional experience in administrative assistance of project implementation and management preferably in a civil service, NGO, or international organisation environment. Computer literacy, specifically advanced skills in MS Office Suite. Work experience in the United Nations System or European Union -funded projects would be an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English and BiH languages (written and spoken).

Living Conditions:

The UN designated state of alert for Bosnia and Herzegovina is Security Level 1 which is minimal and lowest security level in the Security Level System for the entire country, including the capital of Sarajevo.

The situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is generally quiet; all international agencies consider threats to their staff to be low at this time. However, BiH has the same problems as much of Europe, from pickpockets to traffic accidents, so please make sure you exercise appropriate personal security awareness and common sense.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is a country with the largest mine contamination problem. Over 670.000 mines and 650.000 unexploded ordinances on 10.000 locations estimated. Contaminated area estimated is over 2.000 km2 which is more than 4 % of the total territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Staff is advised to stay on well-travelled routes while in the country.  See the http://www.bhmac.org.

Conditions of Service (National UNV COS_ENG )
A 4 (four) months contract, with subsequent contract extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

Travel to duty station (if applicable) and a Settling-In-Grant will be provided in the event duty station is not within commuting distance from the place of recruitment. A Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) of BAM 1,699.00 is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Life, health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents), as well as final repatriation (if applicable) and resettlement allowance for satisfactory service.