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.

UN Women Tajikistan is embarking on a new Joint Project “Empowerment of ‘Families left behind’ for improved Migration Outcomes in Khatlon, Tajikistan” (2 years; implementing UN Agencies: FAO, IOM, UNICEF, UN Women). 

In the joint project UN Women will embrace number of aspects:

  • To give women more control over their time and labor, UN Women will encourage Recognition of unpaid care work, Reduction of difficult care work and inefficient tasks and Redistribution of unpaid care work. A participatory gender assessment and mobilization process [will] support women to plan for livelihoods and dedicate more time to economic activity and community projects through implementation of an adapted Gender Action Learning System (GALS). Over 5,000 individuals will benefit from lessons and best practices shared during Community mobilization activities on the protection of rights.
  • In the framework of the project, partnering UN Agencies will ensure Government and NGO services have increased capacity to provide access to information and legal services on issues of family violence, access to land, civil status, migration and family tracing by supporting the Committee on women and family affairs under the Government of RT and district mechanisms on elimination of VAW and legal services with technical expertise in their areas of mandate and supporting 2000 individuals to access legal aid services.
  • Ensuring that evidence on 'Families left behind' is available to guide policy planning in the form of project data, coronavirus impacts research, research on factors contributing to abandonment, and implementation of Gender Responsive Budgeting, will be the basis for Ministry of Finance of RT, Ministry of Economic development and Trade of RT, Ministry of Migration, Labor and Employment to the Population of RT and national and district level actors to increase their capacity to implement gender responsive policies, district action plans and allocated budgets.
  • The project will facilitate policy and implementation planning at national and district levels by increasing awareness of families left behind amongst policy makers, through capacity building and technical support, consultation and study processes, and national events with senior officials. Finally, the project will ensure Policy guidance on families left behind is available through the development of a national Action plan on families left behind or the development of an 'families left behind' section of the National Plan through technical and drafting support.

The joint project engages UN Agencies in a carefully integrated approach to ensure coherence and a comprehensive response to COVID-19.  IOM will be the convening organization, utilizing migration research and implementation expertise[1], leadership in the UN Migration Network and co-chairing of the Working Group on Migration under the Development Coordination Council of Tajikistan, to ensure alignment with migration related and socio-economic responses in post-COVID recovery.

For this challenging project, UN Women in Tajikistan is seeking a Project Coordinator who will be responsible for the planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting of the project activities, as well as cooperation and coordination with state, civil society and UN partners. 

Current Terms of Reference is to hire the Project Coordinator to support the implementation of the activities under the joint project. Reporting to the Country Programme Manager, the post-holder will support the Coordinator in implementation of the planned activities under UN Women Tajikistan Annual Work Plan/ Joint Project “Empowerment of ‘Families left behind’ for improved Migration Outcomes in Khatlon, Tajikistan”. 

[1] IOM undertook research in 2009, entitled ‘Abandoned Wives of Tajik Labour Migrants’.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Coordinate the area of Migration Project  

  • Coordinate the overall Programme work plan development and implementation according to programme document;
  • Gather inputs and coordinate the preparation of work-plans, periodic narrative progress reports and expenditures status reports to the UN Women;
  • Establish systems for project planning, implementation and monitoring, in collaboration with partners;
  • Provide inputs to overall implementation of the planned activities under UN Women Tajikistan Annual Work Plan for enhancing capacity of partners to deliver efficient services to young people and women and girls living with HIV, improving access to essential services for women, gender responsive governance, support an joint work within Gender Theme Group on overcoming gender stereotypes and promotion of zero tolerance to prevention of violence extremism, violence against women and girls and raising public recognition on WHRs and universal commitments to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment. 
  • Record and maintain documents on relevant Project activities, issues, and risks.

2. Guide coordination with national partners and other stakeholders

  • Coordinate relationships with national partners to support implementation and expansion of the Youth and HIV Programmes, raise potential problems and suggest solutions;
  • Identify capacity building needs and support partners through technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives, as needed.
  • Organize periodic consultations with key stakeholders, women leaders, human rights experts and UN partners to gather inputs on programme design, as necessary;

3. Coordinate the monitoring and reporting on the Youth, HIV and SDG Programmes

  • Gather and compile all information necessary for monitoring and reporting on programmes and projects from the planning to the evaluation stages;
  • Monitor the implementation of activities and the expenditure of funds; conduct regular monitoring visits, as required;
  • Compile annual and quarterly reports based upon inputs received from partners who lead implementation of key activities; coordinate the submission of implementing partner financial and narrative reports;
  • Contribute technically to the development of programme strategies in the area of human rights of women and girls living with HIV (WLHIVs), young people and prevention of violence extremism (PVE), improving access to essential services for women, gender responsive governance;
  • Provide inputs from Youth, HIV and SDG projects activities and results to Programme Presence and Regional Office reporting.
  • Provide substantive inputs to the design and formulation of programme proposals and initiatives in the assigned areas, including UN joint programming;

4. Manage people and finances of the Youth, HIV and SDG projects

  • Coordinate development and preparation of financial resources of the projects, including budgeting and budget revisions, and expenditure tracking and reporting;
  • Oversee and monitor the allocation and disbursement of funds to participating partners;
  • Approve and reviews procurement processes, including required support documents, and the procurement plan for Programme Management Costs and donor funds
  •  Ensure appropriate actions are taken to optimize use of funds.

5. 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 projects to seek additional resources to complement current interventions;
  • Identify potential programmatic areas of cooperation, based on projects goals, regional needs and donors’ priorities and develop the relevant partnerships.

6. Advocate and facilitate knowledge building and management and communication

  • Document the implementation process and products;
  • Contribute to the exchange of information and provide inputs to the development of knowledge products internally and externally;
  • Coordinate the organization of major advocacy campaigns, events, trainings, workshops and knowledge products

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 in order to inform management and 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 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 (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage.

Experience:

  • At least 2 years (4 years for candidates with Bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible experience at the national or international level in managing complex and multi-component programme interventions with national partners, preferably related to thematic area;
  • 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:

  • Proficiency in oral and written English, Tajik and Russian is required;
  • Knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset

Applications:

  • All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment; Please group all documents into one (1) single PDF document as the system only allows one document to be uploaded.