UNDP Jobs - 81712- Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus support

Humanitarian-Development-Peace (HDP) Nexus support (Generic Call for the ExpRes Roster)

Location :

Multiple

Type of Contract :

Individual Contract

Starting Date :

03-Dec-2018

Application Deadline :

20-Nov-18 (Midnight New York, USA)

Post Level :

International Consultant

Duration of Initial Contract :

3 months

Languages Required :

Arabic English French Spanish

Expected Duration of Assignment :

1 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

Over the past few years, the UN and the wider multilateral system have been undergoing various processes of review, reform, strategy- and goal-setting across the spectrum of their collective mandates, spanning the areas of peace and security, human rights, humanitarian assistance and development. These included, chiefly, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development adopted in September 2015, a comprehensive, strategic foundation that commits Member States and the Organization to an ambitious set of 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and that covers the parallel and often interrelated strands of multilateral engagement across the UN’s collective mandate. In April 2016, the Member States adopted the twin resolutions on Sustaining Peace.

In May 2016, the humanitarian community made high-level commitments in support of the Secretary-General’s Agenda for Humanity at the World Humanitarian Summit. Seven of these Core Commitments support working differently to end needs through the reinforcement of national and local systems, the anticipation of crises, and the delivery of collective outcomes by transcending the humanitarian-development divide. A Commitment to Action was signed by the Secretary-General and seven UN agencies (WHO, UNDP, WFP, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNFPA and OCHA) and endorsed by the World Bank and IOM to implement a “New Way of Working”. The objective is to enable activities that meets people’s immediate humanitarian needs while at the same time reducing risk and vulnerability by working together towards collective outcomes over multiple-year time frames and based on comparative advantage in each context. The New Way of Working falls within the Agenda 2030 commitment to “leave no one behind”.

It is critical that these commitments are operationalized at country level through concrete initiatives to work more coherently across humanitarian, development and peacebuilding efforts. The current generic call aims to build UNDP’s ExpRes roster capacity of consultants with relevant experience to support the strengthening of the humanitarian-development-peace nexus at field level. The Experts Roster for Rapid Response (ExpRes) is a recruitment and deployment mechanism which maintains pre-vetted consultants on a roster and contracts them quickly for country office support. The primary purpose of this roster has been to deploy Crisis Prevention and Recovery (CPR) technical experts to UNDP Country Offices on short notice.

The ExpRes roster provides pre-selected and technically vetted consultants across 21 profiles and 79 sub-profiles to support the work of UNDP Country Offices/units and other UNDP partner agencies in the area of crisis prevention and recovery.

Duties and Responsibilities

Consultants will provide advice and support to clients (UNDP offices, RC Offices, national project teams, and national stakeholders including governments, civil society organizations and affected communities). This is a generic HDP nexus profile and the range of tasks for the consultant depend on the demand in the field and differs according to the assignment. It may range from short-term support to help prepare and facilitate workshops e.g. on operationalizing the New Way of Working, on conducting joint analysis or supporting the development of collective outcomes, to longer-term support e.g. in the form of a 12-months deployment as an advisory capacity to support ongoing efforts in strengthening the coherence across humanitarian, development and – where relevant – peace efforts.

Requirements for specific competencies, qualifications, duties and responsibilities will be outlined in assignment TORs and specific reporting and working relationships will be specified at the time of contracting.

Personal Skills:

Strategic vision capabilities.
Good political judgment.
Planning, analysis and organization.
Accountability.
Client Orientation.
Judgment/Decision-making.
Risk management.

Technical Skills:

Specific knowledge in the field of humanitarian assistance in complex situations, emergency preparedness, early recovery, capacity building, disaster prevention;
Specific knowledge and/or experience in multi-stakeholder coordination and planning mechanisms (e.g. UNCT, HCT, Government planning, etc.)
In-depth knowledge of the complex relationship between humanitarian assistance and development issues including peace. Capacity for conceptual and strategic analysis, including ability to analyze and articulate the humanitarian dimension of complex issues that require a coordinated response from UN agencies and partners;
Demonstrated ability to work in all development and humanitarian settings and provide consistent responses.
Knowledge of institutional mandates, policies and guidelines related to humanitarian affairs and knowledge of the institutions of the United Nations system and the NGOs;
Strong coordination and technical advisory skills with national/local governments.
Ability to collaborate with colleagues to achieve organizational goals, and solicit contributions by valuing ideas and competence.
Ability to negotiate and influence other actors to reach consensus;
Knowledge of results-based management, monitoring and evaluation.
Knowledge of project and programme implementation.

Competencies

Corporate:

Demonstrate integrity by modeling the UN values and high ethical standards
Promotes the vision, mission and strategic goals of UNDP
Good understanding of UNDP programming modalities and processes, particularly in crises and post- conflict settings
Knowledge of UN system inter-agency collaboration

Professional

Ability to perform and deliver as part of a team
Ability to work under pressure, navigate challenging situations and meet strict deadlines
Ability to work in complex environments requiring liaison and collaboration with multiple actors
Ability to strategic planning, ensure result-based management and reporting

Managerial

Excellent negotiation and advocacy skills
Focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback
Builds strong relationships with clients and external actors
Schedule activities and ensure optimum use of time and resources

Behavior

Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
Self-reliant, well organized and able to work independently
Ability to demonstrate sensitivity, tact and diplomacy

Required Skills and Experience

Education

Master’s degree or higher in development studies, social sciences, public policy or other relevant fields.

Experience

7-10 years of experience in positions of increasing responsibility in developing recovery and peacebuilding plans or strategies, humanitarian coordination including in fragile countries by working with a variety of humanitarian, peacebuilding and development actors;
Experience as a UN Strategic Planner and/or UN coordination officer would be a strong asset;
Demonstrated ability to conduct in-depth written studies and formulate clear and practical recommendations. Ability to relate different issues and perspectives to concrete programs;
Knowledge of United Nations rules, policies, procedures and practices, as well as the programming mechanisms of the United Nations and its partners, particularly in crisis and post-conflict situations, as well as a functional understanding of the international development architecture;
Proven track record of integrating gender perspectives and ensuring equal participation of women and men in all areas of work, and accountability to affected populations.
Excellent communication and analytical skills (written, verbal, interpersonal and intercultural);

Language requirement:

Fluency in English with excellent written and oral communication skills. Knowledge of other UN languages would be an asset, we are specifically looking for candidates with excellent French, Spanish or Arabic language skills.