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.

Eliminating violence against women and girls is a key area of UN Women’s work. The focus of Outcome 4 of the UN Women Strategic Plan (2018-2021) is All women and girls live a life free from violence.

The European Union (EU) and the United Nations (UN) are embarking on a new multi-year programme, called the ‘Spotlight Initiative,’ which is focused on eliminating violence against women and girls (VAWG) and harmful practices (HP). In a focused set of countries, the Spotlight Initiative will deploy targeted, large-scale investments to improve the rights of women and girls, helping them to live lives free of violence. 

The Latin American regional programme of the Spotlight Initiative will focus on eliminating femicide. As stated by the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), on average, at least 12 women are killed daily in the region because they are women. Through a comprehensive approach, the Spotlight Initiative will focus its work on eliminating femicide through six key pillars: I) developing and implementing relevant legislation and policies, II) strengthening national and sub-national institutions, III) preventing violence through evidence-based programmes and campaigns, IV) ensuring the collection and use of prevalence and incidence data, V) establishing essential services for victims and survivors, and VI) partnering directly with women’s movements and civil society.

The  Spotlight Regional joint programme aims at adding value, maximizing investment, and contributing to the scale, sustainability, visibility, lessons learnt and replication of programming to prevent and address femicide throughout the Latin American region.  The regional programme is meant to address aspects of femicide that extend beyond borders and that cannot be solved entirely from a national perspective.  The regional component will encourage regional institutions to move forward policies to prevent femicide in a context where women’s human rights are being put into question and where some countries are rolling back previously agreed policies on gender equality.

UN Women is the Lead Agency to coordinate the implementation of the Regional Joint Programme.  UN Women, UNDP and UNFPA are recipient UN organizations (RUNOs) that will jointly implement resources and provide technical assistance and guidance to the implementation of the regional joint programme as well as to the Joint Programme Team.  ECLAC, PAHO, OHCHR and UNICEF will participate as Associate Agencies (AA) working closely with RUNOs and providing their technical assistance and work jointly in partnership.  Intergovernmental organizations, regional networks of CSOs and other regional partners will be engaged as well.

Reporting to the Regional Policy Specialist, Ending Violence against Women and Girls, the Programme Coordinator is responsible for coordinating the Spotlight Regional Joint Programme with inputs from Coordination and Technical Implementation Group of the three RUNOs.  He/she will  coordinate relationships with the RUNOs, AAs, EU, Spotlight Secretariat, Steering Committee, Regional Civil Society Reference Group, regional partners and stakeholders; supporting project implementation, monitoring and reporting, and the finances and personnel of the joint programme.   

 

Duties and Responsibilities

Coordinate the Spotlight Regional Joint Programme

  • Guide and coordinate the overall Regional Joint Programme work plan development and implementation according to the project document;
  • Liaise with the Regional Steering Committee, Regional Civil Society Reference Group, UN RUNOS and AAs, regional counterparts, Spotlight Secretariat, donors, and partners to ensure the Programme results are achieved and resources are managed;
  • Organize meetings, virtual and in person, of Spotlight Civil Society Consultative committee, UN Steering committee, Spotlight Technical Coordination, provide follow up and ensure the implementation of their workplans;  
  • Prepare and present consolidated workplan, periodic narrative progress reports and expenditures status reports to the Steering Committee, Regional Civil Society Reference Group, Spotlight Secretariat, EU, RUNOs, AAs;
  • Establish systems for project planning, implementation and monitoring, in collaboration with partners;
  • Record and maintain documents on relevant Joint Programme activities, issues, and risks.

Guide coordination with regional partners and other stakeholders

  • Provide guidance to ensure a comprehensive and coherent approach to implementation across the three pillars and also complementing the 5 Spotlight country programmes;
  • Coordinate and support RUNOs and AAs in liaising with regional partners to support implementation and expansion of the Spotlight Joint Programme/Portfolio, raise potential problems and provide solutions;
  • Provide guidance to RUNOs, AAs, and other partners on establishment of performance indicators, and monitoring achievement of results;
  • Identify capacity building needs and support RUNOs and Associate Agencies  through technical assistance, mentoring, training, cross-partner learning, and capacity development initiatives.

Coordinate the monitoring and reporting on the Spotlight Joint Programme

  • Gather and compile all information necessary for monitoring and reporting on the joint programme from the planning to the evaluation stages;
  • Monitor the implementation of activities and the expenditure of funds by RUNOs; conduct  monitoring visits as needed;
  • Compile annual and quarterly reports based upon inputs received from RUNOs and AAs who lead implementation of key pillars; review and coordinate the submission of  financial and narrative reports;
  • Provide inputs from Spotlight joint programme activities and results to RUNOs and Regional Office reporting.

Manage financial resources and supervise staff

  • Supervise and manage Spotlight joint programme team of professional and administrative staff, review performance and mentor/ coach staff;
  • Coordinate development and preparation of financial resources of the Joint Programme including budgeting and budget revisions, and expenditure tracking and reporting;
  • Oversee and monitor the allocation and disbursement of funds to participating RUNOs;
  • Approve and reviews procurement processes, including required support documents, and the procurement plan for Programme Management Costs and Spotlight Communications funds;
  • Ensure appropriate actions are taken to optimize use of programme funds.

Build partnerships and support in developing resource mobilization strategies

  • Provide technical support to the development of partnerships and resource mobilization strategies under the orientation of the Coordination and Technical Implementation Group to seek additional resources to complement the joint programme;
  • Identify potential programmatic areas of cooperation, based on Spotlight strategic goals, regional needs and donors’ priorities and develop the relevant partnerships.

Advocate and facilitate knowledge building and management and communication

  • Ensure documentation of the programme implementation process and products are in accordance with Spotlight Secretariat and UN Women guidelines;
  • Coordinate and oversee elaboration and implementation of knowledge management strategy, in close dialogue with UN RUNOS, AAs and regional counterparts;
  • Contribute to the exchange of information and knowledge products internally and externally of the programme;
  • Organize major advocacy campaigns, events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products.

 

Key Performance Indicators

 

  • Timely and quality implementation of Programme/Portfolio activities against set workplans, timelines and budgets, in line with the Strategic Note
  • Quality and timely reporting
  • Strong relations with partners and stakeholders
  • Regular and timely monitoring of activities 
  • Timely and quality implementation of advocacy events in line with work plan
  • Enhanced best practices and lessons learned documented and circulated

 

 

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 budget and finance skills
  • Strong knowledge of Results Based Management
  • Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and for strategic decision-making
  • Strong analytical skills
  • Good knowledge of UN programme management systems

Required Skills and Experience

 

Education and certification:

 

  • Master’s degree or equivalent in public administration, law, human rights, gender equality, management, social sciences or other related areas is required or a Bachelor’s degree with an additional two years of experience.
  • A project/programme management certification would be an added advantage

 

Experience:

 

  • At least 12 years of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in managing complex and multi-component programme interventions with national partners, preferably related to Eliminating Violence against Women and Girls;
  • At least 1 year of supervisory or leadership experience is required;
  • Experience in coordinating, implementing, monitoring and evaluating development programmes and projects;
  • Project management experience, including the financial, human resources and administration aspects of a project;
  • Previous experience working in the UN System is an asset.

 

 

Language Requirements:

 

  • Fluency in English and Spanish is required;
  • Knowledge of Portuguese is an asset;
  • Knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset.

 

Other requirements:

  • The person to be hired must be a Panamanian  citizen (natural or legal), or foreigner with legal residence and valid work permit  to remain and work in Panama for the duration of the contract.
  • Applicants cannot be a public servant from the State, Departmental Government, State Entity and Decentralized services, whatever the nature of the link (paid or not), or hired under any modality by said state public persons.

 

Application:

Applications consists of one attachment that include a completed and signed, UN Women Personal History Form (P11) together with an updated CV.  Applications without the completed P11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. Please combine all your documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows to upload maximum one document. The electronic version of the P11 can be downloaded from the following website: http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment.

UN Women 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.

If you are experiencing difficulties with online job applications, please contact jobs.help@undp.org.

Note:  Only short-listed qualified candidates will be contacted.