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Field Education Assistant

Gaziantep

  • Organization: UNDP - United Nations Development Programme
  • Location: Gaziantep
  • Grade: Volunteer - National Specialist - Locally recruited Volunteer
  • Occupational Groups:
    • Administrative support
    • Education, Learning and Training
    • Basic Social Service
  • Closing Date: Closed

Background

Living Conditions:

The UN Volunteer will be based in Gaziantep, Turkey. Gaziantep, previously and still informally called Antep, is located in South Eastern region of Turkey and is the sixth most populated city in Turkey. Gaziantep is an economic centre for South Eastern and Eastern Turkey. Due to the growing need for humanitarian assistance in the South Eastern region and near the Turkey-Syria border area, increasing number of UN organizations and NGOs are present in Gaziantep.

· Security: Gaziantep is classified as a security level 2. Gaziantep is generally a safe city, although precautions are necessary. The public transport is safe to use. There are no direct threats towards United Nations and its staff in Turkey.

· Medical Services: No special vaccinations are required for a travel to Gaziantep. Medical services available are of good quality, including “Medical Park” hospital (www.medicalparkinterna-tional.com/about-gaziantep).

• Housing: Apartments / flats are available and generally of good condition, with well-functioning services (gas, electricity, water). The cost of housing varies, depending on the location, size and fa-cilities. Housing in general is the largest monthly expense. The UNV within the UNV standard reloca-tion assistance, are to make their own residencial arrangements.

• Cost of living and services: Although housing cost may not be economical, daily essentials such as basic food and products are affordable. The provision of goods and services is generally accessi-ble. Local shopping centres include Prime Mall (www.primemallgaziantep.com.tr/) and Forum (www.forumgaziantep.com/).

• Weather: Gaziantep has a Mediterranean climate with influences of a continental climate during win-ter. It has dry hot summers and cold occasionally-snowy winters. (Climate information: http://en.climate-data.org/location/286/).

• Education: Please note that there is no International / English-speaking school (K-12) in Gaziantep.

• Language: Turkish is the only official language in Turkey. Arabic is increasingly spoken in Gaziantep due to the recent regional trends in cross-border population movements. English is widely spoken in touristic areas in Turkey, but it is less common in Gaziantep. In supermarkets and shops, a few Turk-ish words are useful. Good and safe English language Internet banking services are available, which makes up for the lack of English speaking staff in many of the bank branches. Turkish language schools and tutors are available in Gaziantep.

Organizational Context/Project:

UNICEF is a UN agency mandated to promote the protection of children’s rights, including a right to education. UNICEF in Turkey has been responding to the Syria Crisis that was started in 2011 and dispaced more than 3 million Syrian refugees into Turkey. At the end of 2017, the Government of Turkey estimated 3.4 million Syrians registered in the country, of which 976,200 were considered to be school-aged. According to the Ministry of National Education (MoNE), 610,278 school-aged Syrian children were enrolled in all forms of schools in host communities and camps as of June 2018.

In the Education Sector, UNICEF Turkey has been supporting rapid increase of educational access for Syrian and vulnerable Turkish children and youth. UNICEF has been the major partner of MoNE providing technical and programmatic assistance at both central and provincial levels, to scale up formal schooling opportunities for Syrian children. UNICEF also supports expanding other educational access, such as early childhood education (ECE) for young children and informal/non-formal education (I/NFE) for out-of-school children and youth.

This UNV assignment is to provide programmatic support at the field level to the UNICEF Turkey’s Syria Crisis Education Programme, focusing on assessing the education needs of Syrian refugees and facilitating the implementation of quality and timely education activities. 

UNICEF supports the scaling up of formal schooling for Syrian children and youth, through provision of container classrooms, Syrian Volunteer Education Personnel incentive support, school personal training, provision of school supplies, maintenance cost support, information management tools and others. For out-of-school children and youth, UNICEF supports informal/non-formal education programmes through MoNE’s Lifelong Learning Directorate, Municipalities and NGO/CSO partnerships. These field-level programme activities need to be closely monitored and followed up to successfully achieve programmatic results and maintain excellent partnerships with the local education stakeholders.

Duties and Responsibilities

Description of tasks:

Under the direct supervision of Education Officer – Gaziantep and with the overall guidance of the Education Specialist – Gaziantep, the national UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

  • Contribute to ensuring the availability of accurate, complete and up-to-date information required for effective Syrian crisis education programme design, implementation, management, monitoring and evaluation, including gender disaggregation.
  • Contribute to enhancing programme efficiency and effectiveness through close follow-up on activities with various partners, including monitoring UNICEF inputs, local conditions and resources, flow of supply and non-supply assistance and Syrian crisis education programme status.
  • Contribute to monitoring the implementation of the UNICEF-supported informal/non-formal education activities and early childhood education (ECE) programme through the collection of quantitative and/or qualitative data as agreed with the supervisor.
  • Track and report on specific aspects of the education needs of Syrian children as deemed feasible and agreed with the supervisor.
  • Undertake field visits and surveys and/or collect/share information with partners/stakeholders to assess progress.
  • Ensure proper visibility for UNICEF at the field level and support the organization of events, including donors’ site visits for UNICEF-supported activities.
  • Conduct outreach activities with partners and report on complaints.
  • Follow up on school supply distributions.
  • Support needs assessment and coordination at provincial levels.
  • Maintain close communication with local education authorities and other education partners.

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 Output:

  • Meeting/field visit reports, highlighting activities undertaken to assess, monitor and/or support education field activities
  • Inputs for drafting or updating Provincial Profiles
  • Compilation of needs assessment results
  • Supplies lists (delivered or needed) for the assigned geographical area
  • Monitoring forms and tables (filled as required)
  • A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for 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

Qualifications/Requirements:

  • University degree in Education, Social sciences or any related discipline
  • Excellent communication skills
  • Very good facilitation and report writing skills
  • Very good knowledge of Turkish and English
  • Knowledge of Arabic language is a plus
  • Very good organizational and time management skills
  • Citizenship: Turkish
  • Age: 22 and above in accordance with UN rules for National UNVs.
  • 1-2 years of experience would be an added value

Specific qualifications:

  • Good knowledge of the Turkish public education and government systems
  • Good knowledge and skills in data collection (quantitative and qualitative)
  • Gender and diversity awareness
  • Working experience in education related matters is highly desirable
  • Familiarity with UN and other international programmes and project is desirable
  • Working experience in disadvantaged settings on emergency related issues, preferably education is an asset
  • Computer skills: Good knowledge of MS Office programmes and Internet Applications

Disclaimer

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

United Nations Volunteers reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this opening for other openings with United Nations Volunteers with similar assignment description, experience and educational requirements.

Conditions of Service for national UN Volunteers

The contract lasts for the period indicated above with possibility of extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

Moving 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 TRY 2,729.92 (amount and currency of payment) is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Well-being Differential of 15% (WBD-A) or 30% (WBD-B) of the VLA will apply, paid on a monthly basis, depending on the ICSC classification of the duty station.

Life, health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents), as well as return travel of  (if applicable) and resettlement allowance for satisfactory service.

This vacancy is now closed.
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