Head of Donor Relations and Projects Support Office

Vacancy Announcement

Head of Donor Relations and Projects Support Office, P-3

Beirut, Lebanon

Deadline for Applications

21 March 2018

(7 March 2018 for internal applicants)

Duration

1 year, renewable. Appointment subject to funding confirmation

Vacancy Announcement Number

18-FO-LB-10

UNRWA is committed to achieving gender parity at all levels of staffing under the current UN-wide gender agenda and strongly encourages applications from qualified women.

  UNRWA welcomes applications from qualified candidates with disabilities.

UNRWA, the largest United Nations operation in the Middle East with over 30,000 staff working across five areas of operation, is looking for highly committed professionals wishing to make a change.

Palestine refugees in Lebanon

Some 450,000 Palestine refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon with around 53 per cent living in the 12 recognized refugee camps, all of which suffer from serious problems, including poverty, overcrowding, unemployment, poor housing conditions and lack of infrastructure. Because they are not formally citizens of another state, Palestine refugees are unable to claim the same rights as other foreigners living and working in Lebanon. Among the UNRWA fields, Lebanon has the highest percentage of Palestine refugees living in extreme poverty. UNRWA’s services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance and emergency assistance.

Do you want to make a lasting difference? 

If you are passionate about making a lasting difference for Palestine refugees in Lebanon, this role will give you the opportunity to lead a small-sized Donor Relations and Projects team to contribute to the overall development of Lebanon-based fundraising strategy and management of donor relationships, including specific recommendations on Field resource mobilization and monitoring the implementation of the Field’s portfolio of projects funded by relevant donor countries and institutions.

The main responsibilities include:

Donor Relations:

•        Under the overall guidance of the Deputy Director of UNRWA Affairs (Programmes),Lebanon (P-5), leading a small-sized Donor Relations and Projects team to contribute to the overall development of Lebanon-based fundraising strategy and management of donor relationships including specific recommendations on Field resource mobilization; producing various fundraising documents and making significant contributions to policy documents; developing and maintaining relationships with key donors and organizing and participating in missions and meetings with donor countries as necessary; providing a consistently high level of responsiveness and service to key donors; actively pursuing innovative avenues of cooperation for funding opportunities by public and private donors; providing counsel to the Deputy Director and senior management accordingly;

•        Gathering research on target countries to assess their fundraising potential for UNRWA; actively pursuing innovative avenues of cooperation for funding opportunities; developing country strategy papers and associated work plans and working in close coordination with the Deputy Director and senior management to implement these plans;

•        When requested, preparing briefing documents for senior management including the Director of UNRWA Affairs, Lebanon and the Deputy Director of UNRWA Affairs, Lebanon Front Office;

•        Ensuring the dissemination of accurate information regarding the Agency’s functions among donor governments; analyzing, reviewing and editing project progress reports and drafting correspondence for the purpose of fundraising and advocacy;

•        Contributing to the promotion and implementation of the Agency’s Resource Mobilization Strategy with results-oriented concrete actions; supporting senior managers in policy-level bilateral discussions with Member State civil servants or at the political level; organizing and participating in donor field trips in the five Fields of operation;

•        Contributing to the development and strategic use of outreach materials for the purpose of fundraising.

Projects Administration:

•        Monitoring the implementation of an LFO portfolio of projects funded by various donor countries;

•        Negotiating bilateral agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with donors on behalf of the Field; negotiating and drafting project proposals with donors in coordination with implementing Departments; analyzing, reviewing and editing project proposals and progress reports;

•        Liaising with departments and donors for the preparation of proposals; reviewing final drafts of proposals for submission to donors and drafting correspondence relating to submission of reports, use of savings and interest and other related issues;

•        Liaising with the Finance Department and Programme Managers to verify information and clearances of proposals for submission to donors;

•        Providing guidance to Programme Directors and Project Managers to enhance the quality of proposals and report-writing;

•        Working with Finance Department, Programme Departments and External Relations and Communications Department to ensure timely submission of progress and final reports; consulting with donors on requests regarding extension or modification of projects, if any;

•        Ensuring proactive coordination with concerned Departments, Headquarters and Representative Offices on contributions, donor-funded projects and external relations activities and ensuring timely follow-up.

Conditions of service 

UNRWA offers an attractive compensation package including annual salary starting at $59,151 net tax free with post adjustment of 49.1% (subject to change without notice). All UNRWA duty stations (with the exception of Gaza and Syria) are family duty stations. Other benefits, subject to eligibility, include:

•  Dependency allowances

•  Rental subsidy

•  Education grant for children

•  Home leave travel

•  6 weeks (30 working days) annual leave

•  Pension fund entitlements under the

    UN Joint Staff Pension Fund

•  International health insurance; optional

    life insurance

•  Disability protection

Additional information

The incumbent will be required to travel regularly inside and outside the Agency's area of operations.

To qualify for this position, you will need:

Education

A university degree from an accredited educational institution in political science, international relations, business or public administration, law, economics, development studies or a similar discipline;

Work

experience

At least six years of experience in humanitarian programme or project management as well as resource mobilization, fundraising and donor relations, liaising with donors, UN agencies, NGOs, government counterparts and other stakeholders, including a minimum of two years at a management or coordination level and two years of relevant experience at international level outside your home country; Sound knowledge of results-based management of humanitarian and development assistance programmes, as well as monitoring and evaluation;

Language(s)

Excellent command of written and spoken English.

Desirable qualifications:

•        Proficiency in Arabic would be an asset;

•        Proficiency in another UN language would be an asset;

•        Experience of UNRWA and the wider UN system;

•        Advanced university degree in political science, international relations, business or public administration, law, economics, development or humanitarian studies or a related discipline.

You will also need to demonstrate the following competencies:

•        Deciding and Initiating Action;

•        Persuading and Influencing;

•        Applying Technical Expertise;

•        Relating and Networking;

•        Planning and Organizing.

For guidance on how to prepare for competency-based interviews:

https://careers.un.org/lbw/home.aspx?viewtype=AYI

How to apply

To start the application process, applicants are required to register at http://jobs.unrwa.org by creating a personal profile and completing UNRWA Personal History Form. Only applications received through http://jobs.unrwa.org will be considered. Due to the large number of applications received for UNRWA vacancies, only applicants short-listed for interview will be contacted. The United Nations does not charge fees at any stage of the recruitment process. The United Nations does not concern itself with information related to bank accounts.

General information

UNRWA staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of integrity, neutrality and impartiality at all times. This includes respect for and commitment to human rights, diversity, and non-violent means of dealing with all kinds of conflict. Only persons who fully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for UNRWA jobs. UNRWA is a non-smoking work environment.

The retirement age for staff entering or re-entering service in the UN Common System after 1 January 1990 is 62 and 65 after 1 January 2014. For external applicants, only those who are expected to complete a term of appointment will normally be considered.

The Agency reserves the right not to make an appointment, to make an appointment at a lower grade, or to make an appointment with a modified job description.

Date of issue: 22 February 2018/ CX