Director, External Relations

Director, External Relations, D-2

UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions from UN member states, regional bodies, business foundations and individual contributions. The mission of UNRWA is to help Palestine refugees achieve their full potential in human development under the difficult circumstances in which they live.

Organization Setting and Reporting

The Director, External Relations would be joining a new leadership team and be part of future reforms. UNRWA enters the Decade of Action towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals with new momentum to fulfill its mission of helping Palestine refugees in achieving their full potential on human development pending a just solution to their plight.

At a historic juncture in the Agency’s life, at a time of deep political, social and economic upheavals around the world and in the region in particular, UNRWA is uniquely positioned to help the region overcome today’s turbulences.

Reliable and expanded support is critical to the Agency’s ability to deliver on its General Assembly mandate and contribute to the United Nations’ broader responsibilities of peace and socio-economic wellbeing for all under its Charter.

The Director, External Relations leads UNRWA’s external relations efforts with the aim of pro- actively securing, diversifying, increasing and sustaining UNRWA’s funding base. S/he drives innovative thinking and action to identify opportunities for robust partnerships with governments, public organizations, private sector and individuals in support of UNRWA’smission. To successfully carry out her/his functions, the Director, External Relations displays excellent communication and representation skills at the highest levels of government, and of public and private organizations; as well as strong politicalacumen, combining an acute understanding of the political and funding environment in which UNRWA operates with an ability to pro-actively design risk informed and evidence based strategies that translate such understanding into reliable and sustained sources of funding for the agency - including with regards to private sector and innovative financing opportunities as well as UN dynamics and reform agendas. She/he has strong analytical and critical thinking skills and is able to build effective partnerships within large organizations.

In carrying out her/his functions, the Director, External Relations reports to the Commissioner-General (CG). S/he works closely with the Deputy Commissioner-General, the Director of Finance, the Director of Communications Department, the Director of Strategic Communications, the Directors/Heads of Representative Offices and HQ and Field Directors, and is part of UNWRA’s senior management team.

The incumbent provides direct supervision and technical guidance to a number of professional staff and non-professional (General Services) staff.

Responsibilities:

• Provides strategic advice to the Commissioner-General and the Deputy Commissioner- General on all matters pertinent to securing, diversifying, increasing and sustaining UNRWA’s funding base, including: opportunities and risks related to diverse resource mobilization sources, innovative fundraising approaches, and other outreach strategies that will strengthen the Agency’s external positioning (including with the UN system);

• Develops, implements, monitors and updates as needed UNRWA’s resource mobilization strategy, with clear objectives, roles and responsibilities, and effective information sharing systems and related working arrangements both within ERD and across the Agency;

• Regularly develops high quality resource mobilization relevant analysis including, inter alia, through horizon scanning of funding trends and opportunities and “return on investment” assessments of different fundraising approaches as well as funding opportunities related to UN reform initiatives and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) agenda;

• Continuously seeks to identify and expand innovative sources of funding for the Agency, including by building on existing efforts in relations to the Waqf Fund, Islamic funding and the World Bank Trust Fund;

• Contributes, advises and supports the work of other Departments related to external relations, notably the Representative Offices, the Field Offices and the Communications Department;

• Leads the External Relations Department effectively and efficiently, in line with the Agency’s Human Resources policies, rules and regulations, with a view to promoting teamwork, empowering staff at all levels, and promoting opportunities for professional development and growth, for national and international staff, ensuring sustainable sources of support for the delivery of ERD’s mission, on the basis of the most optimal internal arrangements;

• Leads the National Committees, providing oversight and support to existing Committees while exploring opportunities for expansion;

• Represents the Agency, and notably the Commissioner-General and the Deputy- Commissioner General, as requested, in high level meetings with Member States and donors, as well as other outreach functions;

• Participates in UNRWA’s Executive Committee with a view to providing strategic inputs into all matters under consideration, with a particular focus on resource mobilization strategies, approaches or options.

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s or equivalent) from an accredited educational institution in international relations, political science, business or public administration, economics, or related field; a first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Work experience

Fifteen years of progressively responsible and relevant experience, experience including at least eight years in a senior supervisory capacity in a large international or governmental organization, with responsibility for partnership development and/or resource mobilization, including a minimum of 2 continuous years of relevant international experience outside UNRWA, and outside the country(s) of which the candidate is a national or holds citizenship, a passport or a national identity number

Language(s)

Excellent command of written and spoken English.

Competencies:

UN Core Values of Professionalism, Integrity and Respect for Diversity Default managerialcompetencies may apply.

• Professionalism
• Planning and Organizing
• Accountability
• Leadership
• Vision
• Managing Performance

For guidance on how to prepare for competency-based interviews:

https://careers.un.org/lbw/home.aspx?viewtype=AYI

Desirable qualifications:

• Knowledge of Middle East culture and environment;

• Knowledge of the United Nations;

• Knowledge of Arabic is highly desirable.

Other information

The incumbent will be required to travel extensively in the Agency’s area of operations (Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and West Bank) as well as to other regions (Gulf, Europe, Americas, Africa, Asia) to identify and develop partnerships for UNRWA.

How to apply

To start the application process, applicants are required to register at http://jobs.unrwa.org by

creating a personal profile and completing UNRWA Personal History Form. Only applications

received through http://jobs.unrwa.org will be considered. Due to the large number of

applications received, only short-listed applicants will be contacted via e-mail only. The United

Nations does not charge fees at any stage of the recruitment process. The United

Nations does not concern itself with information related to bank accounts.

General information

Staff members are subject to the authority of the Commissioner-General of UNRWA and to assignment by him or her.

UNRWA is committed to achieving gender parity at all levels of staffing under the current UN-wide gender agenda and strongly encourages applications from qualified applicants from under-represented groups.

At UNRWA, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. UNRWA is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application. .

UNRWA Considerations

UNRWA staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of efficiency, competence, neutrality, impartiality and integrity. This includes respect for and commitment to human rights, diversity and non-violent means of dealing with all kinds of conflict. Only persons whofully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for UNRWA jobs. Candidates will not be considered for employment with UNRWA if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. The Agency may disqualify applicants who have separated for reason of misconduct, who left a UN Agency while misconduct processes were pending, or who appear on the UN Sanctions List.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of UNRWA, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their

personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to beconsidered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

UNRWA is a non-smoking work environment.

Date of issue: 9 November 2020/CX