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District Recovery associate

Manama

  • Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
  • Location: Manama
  • Grade: Volunteer - National Specialist - Locally recruited Volunteer
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Humanitarian Aid and Coordination
    • Disaster Management (Preparedness, Resilience, Response and Recovery)
    • Environment&Disaster Reduction
    • DISTRICT RECOVERY ASSOCIATE
  • Closing Date: Closed

Background

Living Conditions:

Matara is a major city in Sri Lanka situated in the southern coast of the Southern Province, 160 km from Colombo. It is a major commercial hub, and it is the administrative capital of Matara District. This city generally has a tropical climate with a significant amount of rainfall during the year and the average annual temperature is 26.8 °C.

Sri Lanka became a member of the United Nations on 14 December 1955.

Organizational Context & Project Description:

In response to the floods and landslides of May 2017, the Government of Sri Lanka has allocated a substantial amount of funds for recovery and reconstruction in a number of important sectors including housing and infrastructure. The post-disaster needs assessments carried out in 2016 and 2017 recommended that the recovery process should be disaster resilient and built to withstand the impacts of natural hazards in the future.

With this background, UNDP will support the Government of Sri Lanka to strengthen recovery and reconstruction related to the floods and landslides of 2017 and any other disaster risk in Sri Lanka. UNDP will assist the government to build back better and strengthen disaster risk reduction systems in the country. Recovery and reconstruction will provide national and local governments as well as the communities the possibility to plan, participate, implement, and monitor the recovery and reconstruction of houses and infrastructure using disaster-resilient technologies, thus affecting a permanent change in the way in which recovery and reconstruction are planned in the country. With access to safer housing, better community infrastructure, alternative livelihoods, and insurance coverage of businesses, there will be an overall improvement of the socio-economic conditions of communities.

The overall objective of the project is to support the Government of Sri Lanka to achieve the vision of resilient recovery by building back better and safer from the floods and landslides of 2017. The key areas of work are;

1. To facilitate the development of institutional arrangements and policy for recovery

2. To support the government to develop guidelines for integrating disaster risk reduction into recovery and reconstruction processes

3. To provide short-term technical expertise to the Ministry of Disaster Management, District Administration offices, and the Department of National Planning to implement and monitor recovery, and

4. To partner with private-sector associations to build resilience of the business enterprises through the development of business continuity plans and training to prepare and recover from disasters and support the small and micro enterprises with a focus on increasing eligibility of micro enterprises for insurance coverage.

For the successful implementation of the project, UNDP will work with three key ministries: Ministry of National Policies and Economic Affairs (NPEA), Ministry of Disaster Management (MoDM), and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce. The project will be implemented in the districts of Colombo and Gampaha, Galle, Matara, Kalutara, and Ratnapura over a two-year period.

Duties and Responsibilities

Task descriptions

Under the direct supervision of the Project Coordinator, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

·       Develop, strengthen, and maintain cooperative working relationships with the district administrative officers and other partners identified in the Theory of Change (TOC) to effectively execute and manage recovery efforts at district level.  

·      Mobilize community volunteers to implement project activities at district-level through coordination with the respective district and divisional officers.

·       Organize community groups to identify and prioritize beneficiaries that require support for recovery and reconstruction.

·      Organize and conduct training and awareness workshops on flood-resistant housing designs and disaster response to community groups.

·         Support district and divisional-level officers to implement other recovery activities employing the principles of Build Back Better at district-level and facilitate interface with NGOs and INGOs as communities on recovery and reconstruction.

·         Capture best practices and lessons learned in the respective district through the support of the Project Team.

·         Any other relevant tasks assigned by the supervisor.   

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to:

·             Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for instance in events that mark International Volunteer Day);

·             Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country;

·            Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities;

·          Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.;

·             Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers;

·            Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Results/Expected Outputs

·       Logistic support adequately provided at district-level.

·   Good relationship established with project stakeholders, including government counterparts, consultants, and the project team

·      Well-maintained documentation on the implementation at district-level.

·     Knowledge products capturing ‘success stories’ and ‘lessons learnt’ are developed in respective districts.

·     Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective is systematically applied, integrated and documented in all activities throughout the assignment

·     A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for peace and development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in and capacities developed.

Competencies

·     Integrity and professionalism: demonstrated expertise in area of specialty and ability to apply good judgment; high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures in a politically sensitive environment, while exercising discretion, impartiality and neutrality; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented.

·  Accountability: mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations.

·     Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment.

·   Planning and organizing: effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities.

·   Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender;

·    Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; ability to maintain composure and remain helpful towards the staff, but objective, without showing personal interest; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups;

·  Flexibility, adaptability, and ability and willingness to operate independently in austere, remote and potentially hazardous environments for protracted periods, involving physical hardship and little comfort, and including possible extensive travel within the area of operations; willingness to transfer to other duty stations within area of operations as may be necessary;

.  Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance; and commitment towards the UN core values.

Required Skills and Experience

Education

Required Degree Level: Bachelor's degree

Type of degree: Disaster management, environmental sciences or management, or relevant social sciences

Experience

Required Experience: minimum 2 years of experience

Experience Description:

•       Proven experience working in the field of disaster management and community mobilization.

•       Previous experience liaising with government officers and agencies, organizing training and consultative workshops, and conducting training programmes will be an advantage.

•       Excellent skills in interpersonal relations, networking, and communication

•       Willingness to contribute and work as part of a team

•       Organizing skills and ability to conduct training to large diverse groups

•     Proactive attitude with capacity to propose new initiatives and think “outside the box” High attention to detail

•       Flexible and open to learning and new experiences;

•       Proven competency and proficient knowledge and experience in social media, as well as full ability to use standard computer applications (i.e. Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Internet)

Language Skills: Strong spoken and written English skills. Sinhala and/or Tamil would be an advantage.

Disclaimer

Conditions of Service: A 06-month contract, with subsequent contract extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

Travel to duty station (if applicable) and a Settling-In-Grant will be provided in the event duty station is not within commuting distance from the place of recruitment. A Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) of LKR 73,666 is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Life, health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents), as well as final repatriation (if applicable) and a resettlement allowance. 

Disclaimer

The United Nations Volunteers programme (UNV) is an equal opportunity programme which welcomes applications from qualified professionals. We are committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture.  

This vacancy is now closed.
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