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Senior Development Officer

Addis Ababa

  • Organization: UNHCR - United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
  • Location: Addis Ababa
  • Grade: Mid level - P-4, International Professional - Internationally recruited position
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Development Cooperation and Sustainable Development Goals
    • Legal - International Law
  • Closing Date: Closed

Before submitting an application, UNHCR staff members intending to apply to this Job Opening are requested to consult the Recruitment and Assignments Policy (RAP, UNHCR/HCP/2017/2 and the Recruitment and Assignments Administrative Instruction (RAAI), UNHCR/AI/2017/7 OF 15 August 2017.

Senior Development Officer

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
UNHCR's mandated responsibility for finding solutions to refugee situations has long required stronger cooperation with development partners and the inclusion of refugees within national development programmes. Notwithstanding the Office¿s efforts over many decades, the proportion of refugees and internally displaced persons in protracted displacement situations remains high. Moreover, the diminishing number of people who have found durable solutions constitutes a worrying trend that has persisted in recent years. In addition, the increasing scale of irregular migration, large scale refugee movements, and the costs of responding to humanitarian situations have also placed forced displacement high on the global agenda. These elements have further driven the realization that humanitarian support alone is insufficient to lift displaced populations out of poverty, enable solutions to their situations or assist them to realize their development potential.

Among the most significant humanitarian-development cooperation partnerships strengthened in recent years has been between the World Bank and UNHCR on forced displacement.  In the eighteenth replenishment (2017-2019) of the World Bank¿s International Development Association (IDA) financing programme for least developed countries, an amount of US$ 2 billion has been included for those states receiving large numbers of refugees. The IDA 18 allocation follows the operationalization of a global concessional financing facility for Middle Income Countries (MICs) affected by large numbers of refugees. In addition, UNHCR has enhanced cooperation with the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Within the context outlined above, the role of the Senior Development Officer is to steer and direct UNHCR's engagement and cooperation with development agencies implementing medium term programmes assisting local communities and refugees in countries with significant refugee populations. It is anticipated that these programmes will grow in significance in future years due to the greater importance attached to addressing protracted displacement situations by donor governments. The role will be pivotal to ensuring complementarity between UNHCR's protection work and the economic and social development objectives pursued by development partners and their government counterparts. It will therefore be important that the Senior Development Officer coordinates closely with UNHCR senior management within the local Country and Sub and Field Offices. For that reason, he/she will work under the overall supervision of the UNHCR Representative or his/her Deputy to ensure that (i) policy, operational and programme priorities are properly aligned between humanitarian and development agencies, and (ii) that reporting and information exchanges on key developments are established and maintained among all interested stakeholders.

FUNCTIONAL STATEMENT
Accountability
-  National/local partnerships with development cooperation agencies and their government counterparts established to ensure policy dialogue and programming for refugees and local communities is informed by protection concerns and objectives from the outset;
- Medium term economic and social development programmes addressing forced displacement incorporate protection and solutions perspectives for refugees during their planning, preparation and implementation;
- Agreed monitoring mechanism established with development partners to track the progress of medium-term development programmes addressing forced displacement towards improved economic and social outcomes for local communities and refugees.

Responsibility
- Provide technical leadership and support for relationship building with development co-operation agencies through the different stages of policy and programme identification, preparation, implementation and review.
- Develop partnerships and networks with development cooperation actors to influence the policy dialogue with governments on institutional arrangements sectors, locations and programme content of consequence to UNHCR and persons of concern. This would, in particular, focus on supporting the coordination of the in-country relationship with the World Bank and the implementation of the IDA 18 financing for the refugee and local communities sub-window.
- Cooperate with development partners to assist them in incorporating the concerns of refugees, returnees and others of concern to UNHCR into the design and implementation arrangements of projects and interventions in a manner that impacts positively on protection circumstances.
- Identify, commission and/or contribute to studies and analytical activities that build the conceptual framework and evidence base for comprehensive, development-oriented responses, including preparedness work, to forced displacement.
- Engage with governments, development partners (both multilateral and bilateral), and with the private sector and civil society (as appropriate) to identify opportunities for UNHCR to contribute to the design and implementation of monitoring systems to track progress towards agreed outcomes.
- Facilitate coordination and collaboration and the sharing of knowledge and experience sharing between UNHCR and development actors and across UNHCR operations globally by documenting and disseminating good practices.
- Support local training activities aimed at the capacity building of UNHCR and partner agency staff to achieve greater coordination, effectiveness and synergies between humanitarian and development interventions.

Authority
- Reflect UNHCR's positions on policy and programming issues as they relate to the protection and solutions of refugees with medium-term economic and social development programmes;
- Represent UNHCR in meetings and fora related to the functions of the post and present positions to development and government counterparts that incorporate the protection and solutions and perspectives of refugees;

ESSENTIAL MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
- Graduate degree (equivalent of Master's) in Law/International Law, Political Science, Social Science, Development, Economics, International Relations or related field;
- Minimum 8 years of relevant professional experience;
- At least six (6) years of direct working experience with an international agency/organisation implementing development programmes, of which at least two (2) years in field operations,  preferably with knowledge of, or experience in, local or area based economic development;
- Experience in primary data collection, quantitative research methods and results-based management;
- Proven coordination and or networking skills engaging both development and humanitarian actors, familiarity with development and humanitarian processes;
- Excellent policy and development programming skills and familiarity with results based management;
- Solid understanding of development context and related operational challenges as they relate to refugees, including institutional arrangements;
- Excellent communication skills including ability to communicate and disseminate information effectively to a broad background of stakeholders;
- Excellent analytical skills, and good research capabilities; 
- Excellent English language skills, including drafting.

(NB: In offices where the working language is not English, excellent knowledge of the UN working language of duty station and working knowledge of English.)

DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS & COMPETENCIES
- Strong and up-to-date knowledge of development, state-building and peace-building in fragile and conflict-affected situations.
- Solid understanding of humanitarian operations, principles and coordination structures.
- Good grasp of refugee protection.
- Fluency in second UN language. C001L3 - Accountability Level 3
C002L3 - Teamwork & Collaboration Level 3
C003L3 - Communication Level 3
C004L3 - Commitment to Continuous Learning Level 3
C005L3 - Client & Result Orientation Level 3
C006L3 - Organizational Awareness Level 3
M001L3 - Empowering and Building Trust Level 3
M005L3 - Leadership Level 3
M004L3 - Strategic Planning and Vision Level 3
M003L3 - Judgement and Decision Making Level 3
X007L3 - Political Awareness Level 3
X005L3 - Planning and Organizing Level 3
X001L3 - Analytical Thinking Level 3
X008L3 - Stakeholder Management Level 3

Before applying to this position, we strongly encourage colleagues to read the country specific FAQs information leaflets which can be found  on the Intranet under Staff Resources > Duty of Care. The information leaflets are specifically designed to answer some of the key questions potential applicants might have before deciding to apply. 

On 19 September 2016, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the New York Declaration on Refugees and Migrants, calling for greater burden sharing by the international community to support the world¿s largest refugee hosting states. The New York Declaration called on UNHCR to develop and initiate the application of the Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework (CRRF) in close coordination with relevant states and in collaboration with relevant UN agencies, applying a multi-stakeholder approach. The objectives of implementing the CRRF are to: (i) ease pressure on host countries, (ii) enhance refugee self-reliance, (iii) expand access to third-country solutions and (iv) support conditions in countries of origin for return in safety and dignity.

UNHCR, together with partners and with the lead of host country governments, is applying the CRRF in a number of roll-out countries in 2017. The aim is to measure initial progress and extract lessons learnt to inform preparations for the Global Compact for Refugees in the 1st half of 2018.
The roll-out of the CRRF requires intensive efforts throughout pilot countries, including consultations with a broad range of internal and external interlocutors at national, regional and district levels .
The Comprehensive Refugee Response (CRR) Officer will be critical in supporting the development and implementation of a comprehensive response at national, regional and district levels.  The incumbent will have extensive contacts with both internal and external counterparts and partners. Within UNHCR, the Officer will establish close working relations with the relevant staff working in the community services, protection, program and field sectors.

The incumbent normally works under the supervision of the Snr CRR Coordinator or the UNHCR (Regional) Representative or a senior Officer as delegated by the (Regional) Representative. As per 31 August 2017 fact sheet of Addis Ababa, the official number of urban refugee population in Addis Ababa city stands at 20162 in the reception canter. Addis Ababa is the capital of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.  The population is estimated at about 4 million or so.  It is located in the Ethiopian highlands at an altitude of 2,500-2,700 meters.  The climate is sunny and temperate, but it can be very cold at night, with freezing temperature at times.
Addis Ababa is the headquarters for the UN Economic Commission for Africa as well as the African Union (ex-OAU).  There is a very large community of expatriates from all over the world.  The local language is Amharic, and English is the working foreign language.  Housing is readily available and the rents are, on average, reasonable. Most foodstuffs, beverages, household goods, furniture and clothing, mostly imported from the Middle/Far East, South Africa and Europe, or local brands, can be found, although they can be expensive. 
There are a number of private schools, offering up to secondary education in French, English and other languages. The basic infrastructures ¿ roads, utilities, and telecommunications ¿ are not very good standard, as are medical facilities, which are still largely inadequate, although a few private clinics and hospitals provide reasonably good routine care.  There is a UN Clinic, but for major illnesses or surgery, United Nations staffs are normally evacuated to South Africa or Kenya. Vaccinations required are yellow fever, typhoid, meningitis, hepatitis A&B, diphtheria, tetanus, and polio.  Malaria prophylaxis is recommended for trips outside of Addis Ababa.
There are many tourist attractions to visit around the country, although the amenities are often poor to average.  Several restaurants around the city serve local or international cuisine and there are numerous social and cultural events. Sports facilities (fitness, tennis, swimming, riding, golf, etc.) exist in the major hotels or in different establishments around the city. Addis Ababa is classified as Level 2
Addis Ababa is generally stable and is one of the safe family duty stations. However similar precautions as in other metropolitan cities should be followed at all times.
UNHCR staff assigned to Addis Ababa are advised to contact Field Safety Advisor to receive periodic security updates.
United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) every Monday and Thursday from 9:00am ¿ 10:00am conduct security briefings regularly. Administration will arrange a booking to be attended by all arriving in Addis to take the briefing as per the UNDSS schedule. - Strong and up-to-date knowledge of development, state-building and peace-building in fragile and conflict-affected situations.
- Experience in the implementation of regional and national policy frameworks.
- Experience of working with national governments on development planning, development agencies and/or private sector.
- Experience in facilitating humanitarian and development actors¿ interactions.
- Experience in working in a Refugee Coordination Response context.
- Working knowledge of another UN language.

Please note that the closing date for all vacancies in the September 2017 Compendium is Monday 6 November 2017 (midnight Geneva time).

This vacancy is now closed.
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