Chief WASH, P-5, Juba, South Sudan

If you are a committed, creative professional and are passionate about making a lasting difference for children, the world's leading children's rights organization would like to hear from you. For 70 years, UNICEF has been working on the ground in 190 countries and territories to promote children's survival, protection and development. The world's largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

Purpose of the Position

The Chief WASH reports to the Representative or Deputy Representative for general guidance and direction. The Chief is responsible for managing and supervising all stages of WASH programme from strategic planning and formulation to the delivery of the WASH outcome and output results. The Chief is also responsible for leading and managing the Country Office (CO) WASH team. The Chief WASH is accountable for ensuring that the WASH outcome and output results are achieved according to plans, allocations, results based-management approaches and methodology, UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, standards of performance and accountability framework.

Key Expected Results

1. Managerial leadership

• Establish the annual work plan, determining priorities and performance measurements. Monitor workplan implementation, to ensure that WASH output results are achieved to schedule and performance standards.  Report critical issues to the (Deputy) Representative for timely action.
• Establish the annual workplan outputs, activities and developmental priorities of the WASH section staff.  Provide timely guidance to enable the WASH section staff to perform their duties responsibly and efficiently.
• Manage WASH team building and motivation.  Signal potential conflicts and take preventive action, in coordination with Human Resources staff.

2. Programme development and planning

• Oversee the preparation of the WASH inputs for the situation analysis.  Ensure that comprehensive and current data is used to inform WASH policy and programme development, planning, management and implementation. Keep abreast of global, regional and national WASH sector developments, for maximum efficiency and effectiveness in WASH programme design, management and implementation.
• Collaborate with internal and external colleagues and partners to discuss national WASH priorities, resources, strategies and methodologies to ensure the most strategic use of the collective resources of external support agencies.
• Lead the development of the WASH outcome and output results of the country programme, along with related background, strategic analysis and delivery strategies, ensuring alignment with the UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, UNICEF’s global WASH strategy and the country programme as well as government plans and priorities, and the role of other WASH external support agencies.  Lead the development of output-related indicators, baselines, targets and means of verification.  Lead the development of the WASH content of the Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP). 
• Ensure the development and management of a fund raising strategy for WASH, aligned with the WASH output results in the country programme, and lead interactions with senior staff of donor agencies.

3. Programme management, monitoring and quality control of results

• Prepare documentation for programme reviews and analytical statements on progress and constraints of WASH outcome and output results.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes for the achievement of the WASH output results.  Ensure effective collaboration with other UNICEF sectors, where needed.
• With other external support agencies, analyze national government WASH sector programmes and projects, with a focus on WASH outcomes (behaviors), using bottleneck analysis tools available in the sector (WASH Bottleneck Analysis Tool (WASH-BAT), Country Status Overview (CSOs), Service Delivery Assessment (SDAs)). 
• Manage monitoring and evaluation of the WASH programme and its components, programme reviews and annual sectoral reviews with government and other partners and prepare reports for CO management and WASH sector coordination bodies.
• Monitor, report and certify the use of sectoral programme resources (financial, administrative and other assets), verify compliance with approved allocations, organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity.
• Ensure timely donor reporting, negotiate any changes required to agreements with donor in a timely manner.  Ensure systems are in place for Harmonized Approach to Cash Transfers (HACT) compliance.

4. Advisory services and technical support

• Participate in strategic discussions to influence national WASH policies and strategies, including the reduction of inequalities, contributing global sector learning.
• Advise senior officials in government, NGOs, UN agencies and WASH sector donor agencies on WASH policies, strategies and best practices.
• Lead the preparation of policy papers, reports, briefing notes and other strategic materials for use by management, donors, UNICEF regional office and headquarters.
• Coordinate the use of technical experts from the Regional Office and HQ, as and where appropriate in the WASH programme, through remote support and on-site visits.

5. Advocacy, networking and partnership building

• Build and strengthen strategic partnerships with government counterparts, UN agencies, donor agencies, WASH institutions, NGOs, research institutes and the private sector to stimulate coordination and collaboration.
• Oversee the analysis of national budgets for WASH, cost analysis and value-for-money studies, to advocate for improvements in sector efficiency. 
• Produce materials for WASH programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships and support fund-raising.
• Represent UNICEF in inter-agency discussions, ensuring that UNICEF’s position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in planning and agenda setting.
• Interact with global and regional initiatives and partnerships for WASH.

6. Humanitarian WASH preparedness and response

• Ensure the annual preparation/revision of UNICEF’s preparedness for WASH in emergencies. 
• Ensure the coordination arrangements for humanitarian WASH are in place, for instant robust coordination in case of an emergency. 
• Ensure that all UNICEF WASH staff are familiar with UNICEF’s procedures for responding in an emergency.
• In case of an emergency, ensure that UNICEF meets its commitments for WASH in the response and early recovery. 
• Support government to strengthen WASH emergency preparedness.

7. Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Organize and lead the development, implementation, monitoring and documentation of WASH action research and innovation (technical or systems), ensuring rigorous monitoring and wide sharing of results.
• Determine priorities for learning/knowledge products, covering innovative approaches and good practices, to support overall WASH sector development.
• Systematically plan, support and monitor the professional development of UNICEF WASH staff, to ensure our sector capacity remains up-to-date with latest developments.
• Organize the systematic assessment of WASH sector capacity gap analysis, in collaboration with government and other stakeholders, and support the design of initiative to strengthen capacities systematically.

Qualifications of Successful Candidate

1. Education

• A Master’s Degree in public health, social sciences, behavior change communication, sanitary engineering or other specialist field related to WASH is required.

2. Work Experience

• A minimum of ten years of professional work experience in WASH-related programmes for developing countries, including one year deployment in a developing country.
• Proven ability to effectively lead a team to deliver results.   

3. Language

• Oral and written proficiency in English is required.
• Knowledge of another official UN language or a local language is an asset.

Competencies of Successful Candidate

1. Core Values

• Commitment
• Diversity and inclusion
• Integrity

2. Core Competencies

• Communication (III)
• Working with people (III)
• Drive for results (III)

3. Functional Competencies

• Formulating strategies and concepts (III)
• Analyzing (III)
• Leading and supervising (III)
• Relating and networking (III)
• Deciding and Initiating action (III)
• Persuading and influencing (II)

To view our competency framework, please click here.

Remarks

* The successful candidate for this emergency recruitment MUST be available to commence work within 31 days of receiving an offer.

* Please note that Juba is a non-family duty station.

Employment is conditional upon receipt of medical clearance, any clearance required, the grant of a visa, and completion of any other pre-employment criteria that UNICEF may establish. Candidates may not be further considered or offers of employment may be withdrawn if these conditions are unlikely to be met before the date for commencement of service.