Community Liaison Associate , Multiple positions

UNOPS Sri Lanka

UNOPS office in Sri Lanka provides technical, operational and administrative support to 4 countries in the South Asia region: Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. UNOPS work in this region focuses on the construction and operation of high-quality sustainable infrastructure, sustainable procurement, project management for host governments, development partners and UN agencies.

UNOPS’ work in Sri Lanka focuses on the construction and operation of high-quality sustainable infrastructure and sustainable procurement, project management, timely provision of services, and the use of most relevant technologies. Such projects provide social and economic benefits to vulnerable populations across the country and contribute to poverty eradication. This includes construction of schools, hospitals, water networks, urban sewerage and drainage facilities, harbors and anchorages, waste management facilities, climate change mitigation, as well as a range of “soft” support in Capacity Building, operations and maintenance of public assets, local governance, etc.

The Community Liaison Associate will support the Project Manager in liaising with the local community and the local government to ensure the project can be implemented as per schedule and scope addressing the day to day concerns of the community, updating on project’s progress, project’s plans, etc. The responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Participate in designing the community awareness strategy and materials to be used for/by the Community and direct the communicating of information to affected communities identified by the project teams.
• Implement all aspects of the community awareness operations in the project areas.  
• Assist the project team for the identification of beneficiaries.
• Implement the awareness and information activities through close coordination with community liaison teams.
• Notify the Project Manager about anticipated delays or any project related community concerns.
• Operations management; transportation, security, internal communications, planning Checking land ownership/property documentation of selected beneficiaries or selected sites
• Draft and prepare press releases and other communication materials for onwards approval by the PM.
• Draft the briefs and talking points for discussions with partners in relation to the project.

Education

• Bachelor degree in relevant field e.g. Economic/ Development Studies /Social Science.
• A relevant Master’s degree may substitute some or all of the required years of experience

Experience

• Bachelor with 3 years or Masters with 1 year experience in the field of humanitarian and development sector.
• Other preferred experience includes:
  • Liaison and communication among community based organisation, beneficiaries and with government entities.
  • Capacity development / Training to Community based organization
  • Awareness on community participation

Language 

• Full working knowledge of English is essential.
• Fluency in Tamil is needed
• Knowledge of another local language is an asset

Contract type:ICA Contract level:Local ICA Support 7
Contract duration:Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  
• This post is open to Sri Lankan nationals only.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.