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, 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. Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has five key program priorities: (1) Integrated Programming and Localization, (2) Women’s movement building through core grant making; 3) Policy and Research; 4) Economic Resilience & Empowerment and 5) Coordination, Access and Humanitarian Response. UN Women Afghanistan operates through its main office in Kabul and five suboffices located in the provinces of Balkh, Bamyan, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar.

Under the Policy & Research portfolio, UN Women focuses on supporting women-led/gender focused civil society organizations to promote social cohesion, document the situation, hold space for women’s rights, build movements, and protect women human rights defenders.

Reporting to the Programme Manager Policy & Research, the Programme Specialist exercises overall responsibility for planning, implementing, and managing UN Women interventions under their portfolio. The Programme Specialist leads strategic and sensitive partnerships with select civil-society organizations; designs and implement a comprehensive M&E system to track results and monitor risks across the women’s leadership portfolio; builds partner capacity and establish secure information-protection protocols (“firewalls”); and trains and mentors national Policy & Research staff and volunteers to ensure they can manage partnerships safely and effectively.

The Programme Specialist works in close collaboration with the programme and operations team, UN Women HQ staff, Government officials, multi and bilateral donors and civil society ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation under portfolio.

III. Scope of Work:

  1. Design and develop programme strategies in the area of Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement
  • Design and formulate programme/ project proposals and initiatives; and
  • Draft inputs to country strategy documents, briefs, policy dialogue and other documents related to Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement. 
  1. Manage the implementation and management of the Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement portfolio under the overarching Policy & Research unit
  • 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; and
  • Organize Project Steering Committee, project review and/or evaluation meetings, as needed.
  1. Manage technical assistance and capacity development to sensitive 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 Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement programme; respond to any potential problems; and
  • Identify capacity building needs of partners and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives to partners. 
  1. Manage the monitoring and reporting relating to Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement
  • 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; and
  • Contribute to office donor and UN Women reports. 
  1. Manage the people and financial resources of the Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement portfolio under the overarching Policy & Research unit
  • Manage the programme budget and draft financial reports;
  • Supervise Programme Analysts and Technical Specialists; Mentor and guide personnel and conduct performance  assessments; and Oversee recruitment processes, as necessary.    
  1. Build partnerships and support in developing resource mobilization strategies, with a particular focus on women’s human rights
  • Develop and implement partnerships and resource mobilization strategies;
  • Finalize relevant documentation on donors and potential opportunities for resource mobilization; and
  • Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing. 
  1. Contribute to inter-agency coordination on Women’s Leadership and Civic Engagement, including specific workstreams relating to Climate, Peace and Security, 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; and
  • 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. 
  1. Manage advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts
  • Develop and review background documents, briefs and presentations related to women’s leadership; women human rights defenders; WPS; and, climate, peace and security; 
  • Represent UN Women in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to women’s leadership; women human rights defenders; WPS; and, climate, peace and security as necessary;
  • Develop advocacy strategies and oversee their implementation;
  • Identify best practices and lessons learned to guide programme improvement and strategy planning; and
  • Develop knowledge management strategies, products and methodologies on women’s leadership; women human rights defenders; WPS; and, climate, peace and security

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: The incumbent will be expected to supervise a team of three personnel, including project associates (one G7, one NPSA-6 and one NUNV). Supervision of additional contractors may occur.

Competencies :

Core Values:

  • Integrity;
  • Professionalism;
  • Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

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

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

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 Women, Peace and Security; women’s human rights; and, climate, peace and security.
  • Strong analytical skills
  • Ability to identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising and develop strategies

V. Minimum Qualifications

Education and Certification:

  • Master’s degree or equivalent in social sciences, human rights, gender/women's studies, international development, 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 work experience at the national or international level in design, planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of development projects is required.
  • Experience working in the UN System is required.
  • Experience working with Women Human Rights Defenders, including strong knowledge of protection approaches, digital security and data management is required.
  • Technical experience in Women Peace and Security is required.
  • Experience on partnership-related work with women human rights defenders in Afghanistan is desirable.
  • Experience on gender-responsive approaches to Climate, Peace and Security is desirable.
  • Experience coordinating and liaising with international-bilateral and multilateral partners, and/or donors is desirable.
  • Experience in leading/managing a team is desirable

Languages:

  • Fluency in English is required.
  • Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).

Statements :

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.

Diversity and inclusion:

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.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

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. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.


 

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