Associate Civil Affairs Officer

Eligibility criteria

Minimum age: 25 years old. Nationals of the country of assignment are not eligible, except the assignments in Headquarters duty stations.

Description of task

Under the direct supervision of the Civil Affairs Planning and Reporting Coordinator, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

Protection of Civilians

• Support existing protection mechanisms at the local level in their reporting and analysis of key challenges to the protection of civilians as well as of early warnings of potential threats against civilians and of community conflicts. Formulate actionable recommendations for the good offices of Mission Leadership to help address these challenges and threats;

• Contribute to the facilitation and support to dialogue between groups in conflict through the organisation of structured meetings, dialogue sessions and similar activities;

• Provide support to initiatives that build the capacity of local authorities and civil servants;

• Participate to Joint Assessment Missions and Joint Protection Teams, together with MONUSCO substantive sections, in support of protection of civilians and stabilisation activities.

Coordination with Government/Civil Society/NGOs

• Participate in the identification of new or emerging civil society issues and support the development of programs to address them;

• Establish and maintain contacts with local interlocutors, including representatives of local authorities and communities, civil society actors, non-governmental organisations as well as representatives of local interest groups on protection of civilians and stabilization matters, in line with the Mission’s political engagement strategy;

• Engage with and provide technical assistance and advice to civil society groups or institution that promotes a culture of peace and reconciliation, in support of the Mission’s protection priorities;

• Provide support to events or activities (e.g. public fora, town hall meetings) to foster the development of political space at the local level, and in particular, dialogue and cooperation between local authorities and relevant interest groups;

• Liaise, assist, coordinate and share information with local government and humanitarian/development actors active in the region to plan and coordinate peace consolidation and stabilisation development and assistance programmes.

Program Management and Reporting

• Contribute to the formulation of the Mission’s strategic provincial plan; identify emerging issues and analyse their implications;

• Gather information and prepare analytical reports on the impact of political, social and economic issues on conflict dynamics at the local level and how these relate to the developments at the national level (and conversely), and impact on Mission mandate implementation;

• Assess, implement and monitor Civil Affairs activities carried out in support to and coordinated with local authorities, civilian institutions and NGOs;

• Contribute to overall mission monitoring and planning as required;

• Prepare or contribute to the preparation of various written reports and communications, e.g. Security Council reports, draft sections of studies, background papers, policy guidelines, briefings, case studies, presentations;

• Contribute to the identification, design, approval, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of Quick Impact Projects to support the restoration of state authority or to prevent conflicts/reinforce conflict resolution activities in priority areas;

• Coordinate (across disciplines and components) with other civil and military team members, relevant regional headquarters and government officials to achieve consistency and synergy in the implementation of the Mission mandate;

• When working with national staff or (non-)governmental counterparts set aside dedicated time for capacity development through coaching, mentoring and formal and on-the-job training;

• Perform other related duties as may be required.

Qualifications/Requirements Required degree level: Bachelor degree or equivalent Education - Additional Comments:

Bachelor degree in sociology, political science, law, economics, international relations, other social science or related humanities field. A combination of education and relevant work experience may be considered in lieu of the advanced degree.

Required experience: 24 Months Experience remark:

2 years related professional experience, with experience in program planning and performance reporting for policy advice. Experience in areas such as community-level dialogue and reconciliation, protection of civilians, development of civil society, or support to state institutions/extension of state authority is a strong plus

Language skills:

• English(Mandatory), Level - Fluent
• French(Mandatory), Level - Working Knowledge

Area of expertise: Emergency response, immediate relief operations, and post-conflict humanitarian aid operations Area of expertise details:

Microsoft Office suite;

This position entails that the incumbent has good spoken and written communication skills in English and has basic French language skills. Further, s/he personally commits to take intensive French lessons from the beginning of his/her assignment. French classes are available at mission level through different means: at MONUSCO Training Centre (IMTC); online and through the UNV buddy scheme which is in place in DR Congo among UN Volunteers. A language test shall be conducted to assess progress and acquired competencies of French language during the course of the assignment (envisaged to take place 6 months into the assignment).

Driving license: Yes Competencies values:

Client Orientation, Communication, Creativity, Ethics and Values, Integrity, Planning and Organizing, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity, Working in Teams

Application procedure:

* Not yet registered in the UNV Talent Pool?

First register your profile at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/signup.

Important: After creating your account, complete all sections of your profile and submit it. Then go to ‘My Page’ at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/mypage and click on the ‘Special Calls’ hyperlink. Lastly, select the special call to which you would like to apply.

* Already registered in the UNV Talent Pool?

First update your profile at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/profile.

Then go to ‘My Page’ at https://vmam.unv.org/candidate/mypage and click on the ‘Special Calls’ hyperlink to select the special call to which you would like to apply.

Application deadline: 20 September 2020