Background

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.  Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. UN Women provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women in South Sudan supports the government to implement and assess progress in implementing global normative and policy frameworks on gender equality and women’s human rights. The government of South Sudan is party to various international and regional human rights instruments that promotes the rights of women and girls, accelerates gender equality, and promote the empowerment of women. UN Women further supports the government on the implementation of the Revitalized agreement on the resolution of the conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS), 12th September 2018 – 21 February 2023, extended to February 2025, through an agreed road map towards the end of a peaceful and democratic transitional period. The R-ARCSS provides for the drafting of a permanent constitution -making process bill, which was enacted on 21 December 2022.  The R-ARCSS further provides important entry points for the inclusion of women’s experiences to form part of the reforms anticipated in the path to peace, including the provision of 35% Affirmative Action. Chapter V of the Agreement provided for the establishment of key transitional justice institutions/mechanisms.

About the Portfolio/Programme/Project

UN Women South Sudan Strategic Note (2023-2026), defining UN Women’s strategic engagement in South Sudan, is strongly aligned to the new UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for 2022-2026, which is aligned to the South Sudan National Development Strategy (NDS) 2022 – 2025).  These frameworks amplify UN Women’s role in supporting the government of South Sudan in the areas of strengthening governments capacities and stakeholders to implement and assess progress in implementing global normative and policy frameworks that addresses gender discrimination; access to justice and establishment of transitional justice mechanisms; and support the drafting of a gendered permanent constitution.  UN Women South Sudan Country Office, is therefore, seeking a Gender Justice Specialist to implement and oversee the constitution making processes and justice (access and transitional) portfolio.

Reporting to the Deputy Country Representative and working closely with the EVAW Specialist and Women’s Political Participation Specialist, the Programme Specialist exercises overall responsibility for planning, implementing, and managing UN Women interventions under their portfolio.  The Programme Specialist works in close collaboration with the programme and operations team, UN Women HQ staff, Government officials, multi and bi-lateral donors and civil society ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation under portfolio.  

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Design and develop programme strategies in Gender Justice.

• Design and formulate programme/ project proposals and initiatives;
• Draft inputs to country strategy documents, briefs, policy dialogue and other documents related to Gender Justice.

2. Manage the implementation and management of the Gender Justice programme.

• Finalize the annual workplan and budget and manage their implementation;
• Manage the technical implementation of the programme/project; ensure synergies with other teams;
• Manage the submission of implementing partner financial and narrative reports;
• Provide guidance to personnel and partners on Results Based Management tools and performance indicators;
• Organize Project Steering Committee, project review and/or evaluation meetings, as needed.

3. Manage technical assistance and capacity development to project/programme partners.

• Manage the implementation of technical advice and guidance. Develop and implement technical tools, and initiatives;
• Build and manage relationships with national partners to support implementation and expansion of the Gender Justice and Governance; respond to any potential problems;
• Identify capacity building needs of partners and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives to partners.

4. Manage the monitoring and reporting of the programme/ project.

• Manage the monitoring of programme/ project implementation and finances using results based management tools;
• Oversee field missions and review reports on monitoring missions;
• Write quarterly reports and donor reports, focusing on results, output and outcomes;
• Contribute to office donor and UN Women reports.

5. Manage the people and financial resources of the Gender Justice programme.

• Manage the programme budget and draft financial reports;

• Supervise Programme Analysts and Technical Specialists; Mentor and coach personnel and conduct performance assessments;
• Oversee recruitment processes, as necessary.

6. Build partnerships and support in developing resource mobilization strategies.

• Develop and implement partnerships and resource mobilization strategies;
• Finalize relevant documentation on donors and potential opportunities for resource mobilization;
• Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing.

7. Contribute to inter-agency coordination on Gender Justice and Governance to achieve coherence and alignment of UN Women programmes with other partners in the country.

• Provide technical support to the Representative and Deputy Representative on inter-agency coordination related activities by attending meetings, events, and participating in groups and committees as needed;
• Coordinate with other UN agencies, government departments, donors and NGOs to ensure the projects’ capacity development programme is harmonized and aligned with other in-country efforts.

8. Manage advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts.

• Develop and review background documents, briefs and presentations related to the Gender Justice and Governance;
• Represent UN Women in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to Gender Justice and Governance as necessary;
• Develop advocacy strategies and oversee their implementation;
• Identify best practices and lessons learned to guide programme improvement and strategy planning;
• Develop knowledge management strategies, products and methodologies on Gender Justice and Governance.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Timely and quality programme design and inputs to Strategic Note;
• Timely and quality of programme delivery in line with budget and workplans, and in line with all UN Women operational rules and regulations, including security;
• Timely and quality monitoring and evaluation of programmes;
• Relations with partners and stakeholders;
• Quality reports and timely submission;
• Regular communication with other agencies and partners;
• Quality of advocacy and communication initiatives.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity;
• Integrity;
• Professionalism.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Functional Competencies:

• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Strong knowledge of Results Based Management;
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Strong knowledge of Access to Justice and transitional justice, rule of law, constitution making;
• Strong analytical skills;
• Ability to identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising and develop strategies.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Law, human rights, or a related field is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A project/programme management certification would be an added advantage

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible professional legal and advisory experience in gender justice and governance as practicing lawyer, legal consultant, or advisor;
• Experience in providing technical expertise in development of constitutions, legal reform, and analysis (including gender) in transitional or post conflict settings;
• Experience in project/program management is desirable;
• Experience in capacity building and engagement with government, CSO’s and development partners;
• Experience coordinating and liaising with government agencies and/or donors is an asset;
• Experience working in the UN System is an asset;
• Experience in leading/managing a team is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset;
• Knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

Application:

All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc. Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality, and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW, and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Gender Sensitivity:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity, and organizational need.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks.