Background

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is the UN agency for human settlements. It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all.
The Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) was established in 1997 in Fukuoka, Japan. The Office serves countries in the Asia and Pacific region to implement the Habitat Agenda and to advocate for the New Urban Agenda 2016-2036. Currently UN-Habitat ROAP implements projects in 21 countries. Countries with UN-Habitat Offices include: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. UN-Habitat further has a country office for Pakistan located in Islamabad. 
UN-Habitat Pakistan Country Programme Pakistan, 2018-2022 lays down the roadmap for achieving the New Urban Agenda focusing on right to adequate housing, universal access to safe and affordable drinking water and sanitation and other basic services, sustainable economic growth, building resilience and protection and conservation of natural habitat as well as Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) particularly SDG11 aiming to make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable. The Country Programme is aligned with the Pakistan United Nations Sustainable Development Framework (UNSDF) One UN Programme (OP-III).
UN-Habitat provides a cross-cutting approach for reducing vulnerabilities and risks before and after the disasters. The organization’s approach to disaster risk management/disaster risk reduction, reconstruction and recovery is based on its long-standing experience in working closely with the communities, provincial and local authorities to meet their needs for land, shelter, basic services, secure tenure and infrastructure while simultaneously addressing the longer-term development needs and advocating on policy interventions.

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the direct supervision of the Habitat Programme Manager (HPM) and Technical Advisor (CTA) in Pakistan and overall supervision of the Human Settlements Officer (HSO) in the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP), the incumbent will have the following duties and responsibilities:

Duties

1. Providing technical input and research in support of project development/programming

2. Supporting the organisation of coordination meetings, technical and dialogue workshops, and capacity building activities in an effective and timely manner

3. Propose new initiatives and areas for support based on changing trends, priorities, political and economic conditions and prepare concept notes and/or programme documents for new funding

4. Liaising with relevant stakeholders within UN agencies as well as relevant external stakeholders

Responsibilities 

1. Contribution to UN-Habitat Programme Development (60%)

• Ensure project implementations and further develop country programmes in line with UN-Habitat’s strategic direction and long-term planning

• Actively participate and provide inputs in developing new concept notes/proposals and program strategies to maximize potential resources and synergies

• Act as focal point to the CTA, respective HPMs, and ROAP with regard to global urban development topics as well as to UN-Habitat’s human-rights-based approach; review project development and activities through the lens of human rights, children, youth & older persons, gender, and disability as well as cross-cutting thematic areas like resilience and safety

• Ensure effective knowledge management and transfer through clear communication, documentation, and results-oriented capacity building strategies and activities 

• Ensure linkage between the projects with other projects/programmes of UN-Habitat, UN agencies and other strategic development agencies as well as HQ/ROAP

• Build and maintain effective partnerships and networks with relevant technical groups, civil society groups, NGOs, and UN agencies for effective implementation and scalability of projects

• Regularly coordinate and collaborate with other sector/thematic teams to strengthen programmatic synergies and impact

• Assist the CTA, respective HPMs, and ROAP to ensure the effective coordination of policy dialogues and advocacy with stakeholders

2. Contribution to UN-Habitat Project Management (40%)

• Lead technical research in project activities and the coordination of global and local primary and secondary data collection

• Support drafting of reports and support drafting of project concept notes and other project-related documents

• Support the development of project implementation strategies and frameworks, TORs, and detailed action/work plans

• Support in organizing meetings and workshops 

Competencies

• Professionalism:  Knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts and approaches relevant to climate change, urban planning and housing. Strong analysis of urban form, urban systems, underlying social, legal and financial mechanisms and the political context. Ability to develop strong graphic materials as well as substantive reports. Knowledge of urban development issues. Ability to observe deadlines and achieve set goals. Ability to work and deliver under pressure. 

• Communication: Excellent written and oral presentation skills in English. Excellent capacity to produce and manipulate graphic documents and drawings. Good presentation skills. Ability to communicate complex interventions in a clear language and convincing narratives. Sketching capabilities to effectively communicate in workshop settings and teams. 

• Teamwork:  Ability to work collaboratively with colleagues to achieve agreed goals.

• Planning and Organizing: Ability to prioritize activities and assignments and to easily switch between different projects. 

• Creativity: Strong conceptual thinking. Is not bound by current thinking or traditional approaches, takes calculated risks on new and unusual ideas; thinks “outside the box”, and offers new and different options to solve problems or meet client needs. Can easily develop clear plans in contexts with limited information and datasets. Finds ways to extract and combine data and information to create base maps. Is both able to reduce complexity as well as sensitive to specific urban form and the landscape. 

• Management: Ability to manage smaller project teams, divide workload and sustain efficiency.

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

Minimum advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Urban Planning and Design, Social Science, or related field that is relevant for urban planning of climate change adaptation and mitigation in developing countries. A first-level university degree in combination with qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience:

Minimum 2 years of experience in project development and urban research projects, including in developing countries; in urban planning for climate change adaptation and mitigation; in participatory and community-based activities. A combination of academic, private, and public sector experience would be considered an asset.

Technical Knowledge:

• Knowledge about quantitative and qualitative research, especially urban ethnographic methodology

• Knowledge about Global Urban Development Issues and Global Climate Change Trends, i.e. urban planning for low emission development and climate change mitigation through an intersectional lens 

• Research and analytical skills combined with good communication skills, including drafting and writing skills, in English and possibly another UN language

• Profession in using Adobe’s Creative Suite (InDesign, PhotoShop, Illustrator) and mapping; experience in publishing (online and offline) is an asset

• Able to work both independently and as a team player and to deliver on time under pressure

Language Skills

For this consultancy, fluency in oral and written English is required. Although not a requirement, knowledge of French, Spanish, or Arabic will be an advantage.

Applicants are instructed to submit their Technical and Financial proposals (along with IC Returnable Forms) as per the details provided in the Procurement Notice  and IT Returnable Forms attached in this link: https://procurement-notices.undp.org/view_notice.cfm?notice_id=86469.

The system does not allow to upload more than one file. Applicants are threfore requested to kindly create one pdf file for your submission  and upload.