Protocol/ Operations Associate

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.

According to UN OCHA, the humanitarian crisis in Yemen remains the worst in the world. Nearly five years of conflict and severe economic decline are driving the country to the brink of famine and exacerbating needs in all sectors. An estimated 80 per cent of the population – 24 million people – require some form of humanitarian or protection assistance, including 14.3 million who are in acute

need. Severity of needs is deepening, with the number of people in acute need a staggering 27 per cent higher than last year. Two-thirds of all districts in the country are already pre-famine, and one-third face a convergence of multiple acute vulnerabilities.1

In order to address the dire humanitarian situation in Yemen, the restoration of regular commercial cargo flows into the country is essential. UN Security Council resolution 2216 (2015) decided that “Member States shall take necessary measures to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer from or through their territories or by their nationals, or using their flag vessels or aircraft, of arms and related materiel of all types, including weapons and ammunition, military vehicles and equipment, paramilitary equipment, and spare parts for the aforementioned”. 2 In order to facilitate the unimpeded flow of essential commercial items to Yemen, the UN has been requested by the Government of Yemen to provide a monitoring and inspection service to inspect commercial cargo entering Yemen’s territorial waters in compliance with UNSCR 2216 (2015).

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) was requested to operationalize and manage a mechanism to oversee the monitoring and inspection services on behalf of the UN and the concerned Member States. UNVIM is an independent mechanism, executed by UNOPS and reporting to OCHA.

The United Nations Verification and Inspection Mechanism for Yemen (UNVIM) was established in Djibouti, Republic of Djibouti, in January 2016. As of November 2019, UNVIM has issued clearances to more than 1,100 vessels discharging over 21.1 million metric tonnes of commercial cargo to Yemen’s Red Sea ports of Hodeidah, Saleef and Ras Isa.

Under the direct supervision of Aministration Officer the Protocol/ Operations Associate will perform the following duties with effectiveness, transparency, and integrity:

• Support with protocol matters, registration of staff, coordination with local authorities, on space and other administrative matters;
• Assist UNOPS personnel in obtaining official visas for related official missions;
• Provide support to Officials who attend events with UNOPS in obtaining official visas for related official missions;
• Liaise with Procurement in any issues related to dealing with customs and customs clearance;
• Act as the local focal point, in coordination with the HR/Admin section, for all issues related to UN LP issuance and extensions in order to make sure that the residencies are extended in parallel as well;
• Oversight of the management of office space including acquisition and maintenance of office equipment and supplies; advice and recommendation on additional staffing, financial or administrative requirements;
• Arrange customs clearance of imported supplies, materials, and equipment;
• Check the correctness of shipping documentation in compliance with UNOPS requirements;
• Ensure the efficient, cost effective flow of shipments of goods from point of origin to point of delivery for the purpose of conforming to project requirements;
• Coordinate with shipping agencies and suppliers to ensure collection of goods and storage in line with INCOTERMS set in the purchase orders;
• Advise the project and procurement teams on the selection of optimum cargo routings in relation with risks, distance, and costing;
• Manage equipment write-offs for all items held by the project;
• Ensure all items held that have a limited shelf life are turned over (used or consumed) regularly;
• Ensure all stores and equipment held by the project are stored safely, correctly, and securely depending upon the item classification;
• Monitor all sub-equipment accounts to ensure that there is no waste, fraud or misuse of equipment or materials and that surplus or excessive stocks of equipment are not being held;
• Visit field locations on a regular basis with an aim to monitor and evaluate the provision of logistical inputs, identify actions to be taken, and immediately implement necessary improvements in the system;
• Liaise with the UNOPS Hub office in Amman on logistics issues if and when applicable;
• Ensure that the project’s office premises and equipment/furniture are maintained;
• Manage the project’s vehicle fleet, including movements, maintenance/repairs, fuel supply, accident reports, inclusion in UNOPS global third party insurance, etc., and manage rental of vehicles and ensure proper insurance coverage;
• Supervise the programme Drivers;

• Secondary education is required. Or, a first-level university (BA) degree in relevant field.
• Minimum of 3 years of progressive responsible administrative experience is required at the national or international level.
• Experience in usage of computers and office software packages (Word, Excel, Outlook), advance knowledge of automated procurement systems, and experience in handling of web based management systems.
• Clear understanding of logistics and shipping terms (INCOTERMS, demurrage, warehousing methods, pre-shipment inspection) as well as procurement and supply chain management is required.
• Knowledge of UN Rules and Regulations and UN Procurement procedures.
• CIP II Procurement Certification or Equivalent is desired.
• Fluency in both English and Arabic is required.

1. Contract type: ICA
2. Contract level: Local ICA Support, level 7
3. Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘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.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• 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 seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• 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.  

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.