Project Management Support - Senior Associate

The Asia Pacific Regional Office, based in Bangkok, Thailand, provides strategic leadership and oversight for UNOPS operations across 17 countries, ensuring high performance, operational excellence, and alignment with organizational goals. Operations currently span Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Pacific Islands. Across these countries, we work closely with key stakeholders to strengthen partnerships and maximize impact through five main operating units: Afghanistan (AFCO), Myanmar (MMCO), South Asia Multi-Country Office (SAMCO), East Asia and Pacific Multi-Country Office (EAPMCO), and the Asia Regional Health Cluster (ARHC). Through these entities, we provide agile, client-focused service delivery across diverse sectors - including infrastructure, health, procurement, and project management - supporting the implementation of sustainable development solutions across the region.

South East Asia Multi-Country Office (EAPMCO)

The South East Asia and Pacific Multi Country Office (EAPMCO) supports, develops and oversees the UNOPS portfolio of projects in South East Asia and the Pacific. EAPMCO was established in January 2023 following the merger of the Thailand Multi-Country Office, which covered 20 countries across North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific, and the Cambodia Multi-Country Office, which covered 4 countries South East Asia - 3 countries in the Mekong Sub-region (Cambodia, Lao PDR and Vietnam) and the Philippines. EAPMCO currently covers 24 countries across North East Asia, South East Asia and the Pacific. With its head office in Bangkok, the Multi-Country Office comprises nine business units: EAPMCO Thailand, EAPMCO Indonesia, EAPMCO Pacific Operations Cluster, EAPMCO Papua New Guinea, EAPMCO China, EAPMCO Vietnam, EAPMCO Mekong, and EAPMCO Philippines.

In 2024, the UNOPS EAPMCO implemented projects worth more than USD 80 million, in the areas of Energy Transition, Digital Transformations, Sustainable Environmental Management, Climate Change, Waste Management, Rule of Law and Access to Justice, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH), Post Conflict Reintegration, Emergency Relief, Post COVID19 Economic Transformations, and Health, through HR, procurement, construction, contract management, fund and program management services.

The Multi Country Office head office in Bangkok provides strategic direction, operational support, delivery oversight and assurance of the excellence of business processes and quality standards across all of the entire Multi Country Office locations. It is also responsible for developing, delivering and managing the portfolio of engagements in the country of the MCO location itself.

Background Information – Philippines

Established in 2016, UNOPS Philippines provides expert support to ensure sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure activities in projects. With funds from the European Union (EU), UNOPS supports the Supreme Court, the Department of Justice, and the Department of the Interior and Local Government under the Governance in Justice (GOJUST) Programme (GOJUST2) through procurement, logistics, and grants and project management to advance the justice reform agenda of the government of the Philippines through innovations and interventions; as well as providing grants to civil society organizations to improve access to justice of marginalized groups. With funding from the European Union, UNOPS also supports the Bangsamoro Transition (SUBATRA) Programme, working with the Government of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) to strengthen capacities of the executive, legislative and judicial branches to ensure a smooth transition. Supporting the Department of Health under a World Bank in the Philippine Multisectoral Nutrition Program, UNOPS has provided nutritional commodities and services for expecting mothers and young children from 2023 to 2025.

UNOPS Philippines is in the process of expanding its area of engagement in cooperation with its development partners, focusing mainly on a portfolio of projects and programs in the infrastructure, logistics management, procurement in health, rule of law,  and governance sectors.

Project Background – European Union Governance in Justice III (EU-GOJUST III)

Building on the gains of GOJUST I and II, the European Union, in partnership with UNOPS and the International Development Law Organization (IDLO), supports the third phase of the Enabling Justice and the Rule of Law Programme, otherwise known as the “EU-GOJUST III”. This new action seeks to strengthen the rule of law in the Philippines through more coordinated, efficient, and people-centred justice services, while enhancing access to justice for all, especially women and vulnerable populations.

EU-GOJUST III continues the momentum from previous EU-funded justice programmes, including GoJUST I, GOJUST II, and the EU-Philippines Justice Support Programme (EPJUST II). While GOJUST I focused on strengthening national-level institutions, and GOJUST II deepened engagement with civil society and local justice mechanisms, the EU-GOJUST III places greater emphasis on localized implementation and institutional sustainability. This new program will address access to justice by supporting legal aid services, enhancing the capacity of local governments as entry points into the justice system, increasing rights awareness, and building the capacity of justice actors to respond to the needs of women and people in vulnerable situations.

Despite notable achievements, challenges persist in scaling and sustaining reforms, ensuring equitable access to justice, and improving justice outcomes at the local level. EU-GOJUST III addresses these through a localization approach, strengthening the capacity of JZs and Local Government Units (LGUs) to deliver responsive, inclusive, and gender-sensitive justice services.

This action aligns with the Philippine Development Plan (PDP) 2023–2028 and supports critical justice sector coordination structures such as the Justice Sector Coordinating Council (JSCC) and the Justice Zones (JZs), which have proven instrumental in advancing cross-agency collaboration, data sharing, and innovation in justice delivery.  This action is also fully aligned with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, contributing to SDG 16: promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all, and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.

In collaboration with IDLO as Technical Lead, UNOPS will support the implementation of key components under the EU-GOJUST III. This includes coordination with Philippine justice institutions, civil society, and local actors, with a focus on improving legal aid services, rights awareness, and institutional capacity.

EU-GOJUST III will contribute to two Specific Objectives (SOs), as follows:

• Specific Objective 1 – Justice Coordination: To develop more coordinated, efficient, gender-sensitive, and people-centred justice services;

• Specific Objective 2 – Access to Justice for All: To enhance access to justice for all, especially for women and people living in vulnerable situations.
  
  

UNOPS, leveraging its experience as an implementing partner in GOJUST I and II, will continue to provide operational support, including training, procurement, grants management, and behavior change campaign in support of the justice sector reform in the Philippines.

Access to Justice Facility under EU-GOJUST III

The Access to Justice Grant Facility aims to enhance access to justice for all, especially for women and people living in vulnerable situations.  At the start of EU-GOJUST III, the Access to Justice Facility will undergo review and update based on justice needs assessments, consultations, and lessons from EU-GOJUST II.  This component aims to provide grant funds to eligible CSOs and academia that will contribute to achieving four key outputs:

• Improved access to legal aid services and, in particular, address cultural and social barriers that prevent women from accessing justice 

• Improved capacity of LGUs as right holders' first entry point in the justice system 

• Increased awareness of rights and available remedies for rights-holders, including women and people living in vulnerable situations 

• Enhanced capacities of actors of the justice system on the issues faced by women and other people living in vulnerable situations. 

UNOPS is responsible for fund administration, management, financial monitoring, and overall reporting of the grant facility. It will also manage and deploy local expertise as needed.  In addition, capacity building for grantees is also a key approach that will be integrated at the onset of the grant management. UNOPS will work with the EU GOJUST Technical Assistance Team (IDLO) on the overall design, implementation and monitoring.  The grants facility will adhere to principles of transparency, accountability, and value for money, thereby contributing to sustainable development.

The position is based in Manila, Philippines. Manila is a Family Duty Station.

The Project Management Support - Senior Associate (Grants Administration and Financial Monitoring) (PMS-Sr Associate-Retainer) will work under the supervision of the Project Management Support - Officer (Grants Management). They will be responsible for providing support to the day-to-day operational administration of the grants, contract management, and financial monitoring of the  Access to Justice Grant Facility.  They are expected to support the Programme Management Officer (Grants Management) in the internal UNOPS assurance procedures and compliance, due diligence, administration, and financial monitoring of the grantees. With guidance from the supervisor, they will collaborate and engage in activities with Technical Assistance Team members and work with retainers, when deemed necessary, during when surge capacities are needed.

The PMS-Senior Associate (Administration and Financial Monitoring) will be assigned a number of Grant Projects (at least 5 grant projects) to be the focal point and will be responsible for administering and managing this “portfolio” in accordance the UNOPS Grants policies and procedures. He/she will also be responsible for liaising with the grantees, ensuring that the procedures and terms of the grant support agreement are complied with all throughout the grant cycle.

Specific tasks will include:

1. Grant Administration:  

• In collaboration with the project sub-team in the grant process, provide administrative support in designing the grant facility, call for concept notes or proposals, orientation on budget proposal template for applicants, review of submission by applicants, conduct and report writing of due diligence assessments (especially in finance capacity), preparation of grant awards, agreements, and amendments.

• Ensure all the necessary and relevant grant-related documents for assigned grant projects are assembled and organized appropriately, collecting the required signatures, and filing them in the proper folder/s. Draft the schedule for financial monitoring and reporting deadlines for the grant management team, in collaboration with the technical monitoring team.

• Monitor the submission of financial reports and flag concerns to the supervisor and the Senior Project Manager on pending and delayed reports.

• Execute the Review of the financial reports, including asset and procurement reports of implementing partners and recommend improvements, and submit the same to the Grants Officer to finalize. 

• Generate and prepare monthly system financial reports and analyses from the OU, and provide other required data, with focus on the Access to Grant Facility component;

• Ensure, together with the PMSO-Grants, the processing and maintenance of Call for Proposal/Concept notes, including uploading documents, receiving and acknowledging receipt of proposals, assessing the completeness of submissions, and maintaining a database of submitted proposals.

• Initiate the process, in coordination with relevant project team members, for ongoing and upcoming payments, cash flow requirements, and other pertinent information regarding grantee's financial budget disbursement.  This includes ensuring payment schedules are aligned with the signed agreement, complete documentation for grant payments in accordance with agreed-upon payment schedule, and fund availability, creating POs, preparing relevant necessary communication, and submitting payment requests to Finance.

• Implement actions towards closure of assigned grant projects with appropriate actions (e.g. project audits, clearance of final reports, assets management) and ensure overall adherence to required procedures before the final payment is released.

• Maintain the archive and filing system of all required records for the grants both in hard copy and on the share drive.

• Work closely with the Grants management support  team, especially with the Monitoring and evaluation Associate, in developing  tracking tools for grants management, including performance/traffic light reports (dashboards), and maintaining the platform

• Conduct due diligence assessments (DDA), particularly financial capacity assessments, lead and/or participate in the DDA, and contribute to organizational and prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA) assessments.

• Prepare a summary of the assigned grantee applicants' evaluation documentation for GET and GSC, including the creation of the file.

• Working with the Supervisor, support the development and review of the Access to Justice Grant Facility's annual work plan and budget, including providing input on accomplishments, issues, risks and mitigation, and lessons learned.

• Working with the Supervisor, prepare periodic reports of the status of implementation of the grants projects for internal/external analysis and actions.

2. Administration and Logistics 

• Raise POs and payment requests/ disbursements to assigned grantee projects are executed timely.

• Ensures the effective and efficient provision of logistics and asset management support services for the EU GOJUST Access to Justice Grant Facility in compliance with UNOPS rules, regulations, policies, and strategies. 

• Collect and maintain records, both hard copies and electronic copies for easy reference and retrieval, related to contractual arrangements – on audits, inventories, utilization, and all such elements in the contracts.

• Keep the supervisor and management updated on progress and issues, and prepare briefing materials as requested for discussions on grant status.

3. Grants Monitoring and Capacity Building

• Provide input in designing and organizing training and workshops, grants subcom meetings, and documentation of the highlights of these events or meetings.

• Authoritatively interpret grants procedure as part of the guidance to the grantees in the areas finance and contracts, and coordinate with the Programme Management Officer (Grants Management) and the Technical Assistance Team to ensure Grantee’s understanding of, and compliance to  EU GoJUST Grant Facility/Programme’s Operational guidelines, terms and conditions of the grant support agreement, and UNOPS requirements;

• Coordinate and conduct field monitoring  and verification missions/spot checks  to assigned grantee projects; As focal point on financial monitoring, will serve as lead in spot checks/financial verification, monitoring and collaborate with the technical team in preparation of monitoring reports

• Actively compile and report lessons learned and best practices, and share knowledge and best practices within the GoJUST Project Teams and with Grantees, on financial and organizational management; and,

• Contribute to the overall knowledge sharing and collaboration within the Grants and Contracts team in UNOPS Grants Management “Community of Practice”.

• If required and delegated, provide training sessions to the financial officers of CSO grantees to ensure compliance with the grant agreement and increase the capacities of the assigned partner organizations.

4. Documentation: 

• Support in monitoring  information related to contractual arrangements – on audits, inventories, utilization, and all such elements in the contracts and grants;

• Maintain information of assigned grant projects that will feed towards the Grant Facility Dashboard, ensuring that financial and grant information are regularly updated. 

• Keep the organization, supervisor, and  the grants subcommittee updated on progress and issues, risks, and lessons, and prepare briefing materials, as requested for discussions on grant status; 

• Document meetings of the team and other bodies in the grant programme, as may be assigned by the supervisor.

Required

• Secondary school (or equivalent) with 7 years of relevant experience OR

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in any discipline with 3 years of relevant experience is required.

Desired

• Professional certification, such as Certified Public Accountant (CPA) or similar, is an advantage.

Required

• Relevant experience is work in grants and contracts management involving Civil Society Organizations, NGOs in national and/or international public, or corporate organizations,or related areas. 

Desired

• Field experience in the conduct of due diligence exercises or capacity assessments (including in finance management) for CSO/NGOs/POs or similar organizations is an advantage.

• Experience in conducting coaching and mentoring, as well as similar capacity-building initiatives, particularly in grants and financial management for NGOs, CSOs, and POs, is an advantage.

• Experience in conducting and/or managing audits for grant projects is an asset.

• Experience in working with a range of stakeholders in a social development context is an asset.

• Some experience in UN system organizations is an asset.

• Proficiency in the use of Google Docs, Google Sheets, and Google Slides or similar platforms is an asset .

• Experience with the advanced features of Google Sheets or similar applications is an asset.

• Experience in web-based grant trackers or dashboard setup and or maintenance is an asset.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here. 
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda. 
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.