National Project Manager-Urban Resilience

In 2009, Africa’s total population for the first time exceeded one billion, of which 395 million (or almost 40 per cent) lived in urban areas. Africa is expected to experience a total population increase of about 60 per cent between 2010 and 2050, with the urban population tripling to 1.23 billion during this period. Around 2030, Africa’s collective population will become 50 percent urban. In the early 2040s, African cities will collectively be home to one billion people, equivalent to the continent’s total population in 2009.

Urban areas are generally more vulnerable to risks than rural areas, due to denser populations, concentration of assets and variety of activities within comparatively smaller geographical areas. Urban risks are exacerbated by the increasing severity and unpredictability of disruptive events caused by climate change effects. These events impact a range of sectors from water supply to food and health systems, and disproportionately affect people living with low incomes- especially women and girls, youth, older persons, persons with disabilities, seasonal migrants and other marginalized and vulnerable groups.

In 2020, UN-Habitat is launching the multi-country project “Building urban climate resilience in south-eastern Africa.” The project will strengthen urban climate resilience by working with various levels of government and stakeholders and ensuring strong participation, in particular, of the most marginalized and vulnerable groups, in all its phases – from conception to evaluation. The main activities will take place in Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and the Union of Comoros – all located in a region highly vulnerable to common transboundary extreme climate-related events.

The project has two Objectives, namely:

1. To develop capacities and establish conditions to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change in vulnerable cities of Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique and the Union of Comoros.

2. To promote inter-country experience sharing and cross-fertilisation regarding the adaptation to transboundary climate-related natural hazards and disseminate lessons learned for progressively building urban climate resilience in south-eastern Africa.

The project is organized into three main components,the first two contributing to Objective 1 and the third one contributing to Objective 2:

1. Preparation, implementation and sustainable management of priority sub-projects at the city level (in the Union of Comoros this will be the city of Moroni)

2. Tools and guidelines development and training delivery at the national level

3. Inter-country experience sharing, cross-fertilisation and dissemination of lessons learned at the regional level

At the request of the four countries targeted by this project, UN-Habitat has facilitated since 2010 the establishment of the Technical Centre for Disaster Risk Management, Sustainability and Urban Resilience (DiMSUR), which was launched in June 2013 and is headquartered in Maputo, Mozambique. This project will be conducted within the auspices of DiMSUR.

The National Project Manager (NPM) will be part of the Project Supervision Team (PST), and will work under the overall supervision of the Senior Human Settlements Officer, Focal Point for Climate Change, Risk Reduction and Resilience within the UN-Habitat Regional Office for Africa, and under the direct oversight of the Project Manager (PM). The NPM will support the Project Steering Committee (PSC), which is the overall decision-making body in terms of project coordination and orientation. It meets once a year at the regional level. The NPM will also serve as the Secretariat for the National Project Coordination Team (NPCT) which will meet twice a year to discuss the status of project implementation at the national level and provide guidance and recommendations for the next 6 months, including adaptive management decisions for all project activities occurring within the country. The NPCTs reports to the PSC.

At both the national and local/city levels, the NPM will play a critical role during project implementation. In particular, they will:

1. Support the NPCT in preparing its annual work plans for project implementation at the country level, for review of the PM, which will then have to be submitted to the PSC for endorsement at least two weeks prior the annual PSC meeting;

2. Support the PM in drafting terms of reference for national or international consultancies to provide specific/punctual technical assistance and training & capacity building to facilitate project implementation, as needed;

3. Supervise the work of the different National Executing Entities at the country level, as per the signed contractual agreements with UN-Habitat, concerning project Components 1 and 2 ensure quality control of all outputs being produced at the national/local level;

4. Monitor the progress of all project activities at the national/local level, as per the requirements of the Environmental and Social Management Plan of the project, and provide timely advice and/or support to overcome any difficulties, including proposing strategies to recover from eventual delays in implementation;

5. Represent the UN-Habitat PST at the country level, hence ensuring the regular liaison with the concerned national/municipal governments, as well as coordination with other interested national/local partners/stakeholders, the United Nations, development partners, potential donors, and the academic sector, among others;

6. Prepare the 6-month progress reports at the country level to be submitted to the PM for review and integration in the overall 6-month project reports, and

7. Liaise by email, Skype or phone with the PM on a regular/weekly basis for updating on project progress and request for guidance, as needed.

Professionalism: Knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts and approaches relevant to urban resilience, disaster risk reduction, and climate change adaptation/ mitigation; Ability to identify issues, analyse and participate in the resolution of issues/problems; Ability to conduct data collection using various methods; Conceptual analytical and evaluative skills to conduct independent research and analysis, including familiarity with and experience in the use of various research sources, including electronic sources on the internet, intranet and other databases; Ability to apply judgment in the context of assignments given, plan own work and manage conflicting priorities

Planning & Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time effectively.

Communication:Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Teamwork:Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Education:

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in urban studies, sustainable development, international relations, public administration, or other related social sciences. A first-level university degree in similar fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience:

-A minimum of five years of progressively responsible professional experience in supporting the implementation of programmes/projects is required.

-Experience in programme and/or project development and implementation within urban resilience, disaster risk reduction and/ or climate change adaptation/ mitigation is an asset.

-Experience in monitoring and evaluation is an asset.

Language:

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat.For the position advertised, fluency in English and French with excellent drafting and communication skills, is required.

At equal Skills, female candidates will be privileged.