Programme Assistant (Justice Zone)

Background Information - UNOPS

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. 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.

UNOPS Philippines was established in early 2016 to support, develop and oversee UNOPS' growing portfolio of programmes and projects in the Philippines. The office currently provides implementation services to a range of projects where we work very closely with development partners, the Government and the Supreme Court focusing on the Governance/Justice, health and infrastructure sector.

The office is based in Manila, Philippines with project sides in the Tacloban and Iloilo area.  

UNOPS Philippines is in the process of expanding its area of engagement in cooperation with its development partners and is looking for qualified and committed experts.

Background Information – Job Specific

The Government of the Republic of the Philippines with the support of the European Union is implementing the Justice Sector Reform Programme: Governance in Justice (GOJUST). GOJUST is funded by the European Union to the value of EUR 16,000,000 and with the support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (EUR 2,000,000). The overall objective of GOJUST is: To contribute to inclusive growth and poverty reduction through a strengthened justice system and its specific objective is: To increase the efficiency, effectiveness and accountability of the formal justice system. The programme is being implemented from April 2016 to September 2019.

GOJUST seeks to achieve four major result areas, as follows:

• Result 1: Sector-wide coordination of the justice system strengthened and long-term reform strategy developed;
• Result 2: Backlog curtailed in courts and prosecution services and case management system streamlined and computerised (with focus on 'justice zones');
• Result 3: Justice sector agencies’ administrative and financial management systems improved;
• Result 4: National/Regional Human Rights Institutions and CSO’s capacity to promote accountability and fight impunity for major human rights violations strengthened.

The support provided under this program will have a far reaching effect on the entire justice system, and will impact on three main agencies of government, namely the Judiciary, led by the Supreme Court at the apex, the Department of Justice, which includes the prosecution service, the correctional system, the public attorneys, the National Bureau of Investigation,  and the Department of Interior and Local Government, which includes the police, the local detention facilities and the barangay justice system. 

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Project Manager, the incumbent shall perform the following duties and responsibilities:

• Facilitate arranging regular meetings of the Justice Zone (JZ) coordinating committee as requested by the Chair to monitor and analyze the overall case management status;
• Prepare minutes and follow up on decisions made in JZ Coordinating Committee meetings
• Support the development of Rules of Business of the JZ including clarification of the roles and responsibilities of the member representatives;
• Facilitate the analysis and mapping of the causes for case backlogs and other difficulties so that informed decisions can be made to resolve them and qualitative justice can be ensured;
• Assist the JZ Coordinating Committee in the development of annual work plans that include expected activities needed for the improvement of the administration of justice at the local level;
• Collect, analyze and consolidate relevant case management data to facilitate monitoring of progress and the identification of common problems which cause delay;
• Support the JZ Coordinating Committee to develop recommendations for policy and procedural reforms and submit recommendations to the Secretariat of the JSCC;
• Report on visits to detention facilities using checklists to identify priority cases and joint actions;
• Identify and report on measures to improve the present record management system on case data for all related agencies and the flow of case files;
• Assess training needs at the local JZ level for criminal justice sector stakeholders and make recommendations to build capacity through the implementation of tailored capacity development initiatives;
• Set JZ targets and a monitoring plan;
• Function as a liaison between the JZ and the GOJUST Team to among other things ensure the completion of the documentary requirements for obtaining funding from GOJUST, and facilitate the work of GOJUST in meeting the required support of the JZ and the objectives of GOJUST, within approved budgets; and
• Perform such other tasks and responsibilities that the JZ Coordinating Committee and/or GOJUST Key Expert 1 may assign to him/her as the need would arise.

• Minimum of 5 years’ experience in the law and justice field is required for those who completed secondary school diploma. The candidate with bachelor degree, a minimum of 1 year of relevant experience is required.
• Experience working with Philippines Supreme Court is an advantage.
• Experience as attorney and general law practitioner is an asset.
• Experience in Law and Human Rights are desirable.
• In-depth understanding of court procedures and rules as well as the reasons for delays in cases is highly desirable.

• Practical knowledge of national justice sector agencies and local level justice partnerships is highly desirable.
• Excellent written and oral communication and presentation skills are desirable.
• Excellent research skills both for qualitative and quantitative research purposes are desirable.
• Willingness to undertake regular travel to build partnerships with local actors, monitor activities and report back to established structures with concise analysis and advice. 

Fluency in written and spoken English is required.

Contract type: Local Individual Contractor Agreement Contract level: LICA-5
Contract duration: Open ended contract. It is 6 month position with possible extension. The extension is subject to availability of funds and satisfactory performance.
Duty station: Davao City, Philippines. Davao city is a family duty station.

This is a local position therefore it is open to Philippine nationality only.

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx 

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.