ECONOMIC AFFAIRS OFFICER (Temporary Job Opening, 2 posts) [Temporary]

The position is located in the Trade Negotiations and Commercial Diplomacy Branch, Division on International Trade and Commodities of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The Economics Affairs Officer reports to the Head of the Branch.

Within delegated authority, the Economic Affairs Officer will perform the following duties:

Economic or sector analysis
•Monitors, assesses and reports on persistent and emerging issues in international trade and trading systems and their implications for developing countries.
•Interprets, applies and, as necessary, adapts econometric models to determine trends, patterns and relationships and to analyse the effects of alternative policies and assumptions.
•Drafts specified inputs for technical papers and analytical studies on selected global, regional, national or sector aspects of international trade and economic development.
•Identifies and analyses policy proposals made elsewhere relating to trade policy and trade negotiations from the perspective of sustainable development.
•Attends international, regional, and national meetings to collect information and to hold discussions with colleagues in other institutions.
•Assists in the organization and servicing of expert group meetings and seminars.
•Prepares speeches and other inputs for presentations by senior staff.

Intergovernmental support
•Prepares inputs for reports to intergovernmental bodies such as General Assembly, Trade and Development Board, Trade and Development Commission and expert meetings.
•Follows intergovernmental meetings and prepares summary reports.
•Prepares inputs to statements by members of the Bureau and Secretariat staff to such meetings.
•Assists in the organization of panels and round tables for intergovernmental processes.

Technical cooperation
•Participates in technical cooperation activities and missions, usually as a member of a team, on trade policy making, trade negotiations and South-South trade cooperation on goods, services, and creative economy.
•Organizes training seminars for government officials and stakeholders.
•Prepares documentation for technical cooperation programmes and projects.
•Contributes to the preparation of material for the approval of regional, country or sector technical cooperation projects.
•Monitors, backstops and assesses the implementation of technical cooperation programmes and projects.

General
•Performs other related duties as required, including a variety of administrative tasks necessary for the final delivery of the Branch.
•Undertakes on-the-job and other training activities, both internally and externally.

•Professionalism: Ability to apply economic theories and concepts to the analysis of persistent and emerging issues of international trade, including the international trading system and trade negotiations. Good understanding of regional and multilateral trade agreements. Ability to conduct independent research, determine suitability, validity and accuracy of data provided by different sources. Shows skill in data collection and analysis. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

•Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

•Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in economics or related field is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

A minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in economic research and analysis, policy formulation, application of economic principles in development programmes or related area is required.
Experience in policy analysis on contribution of international trade to sustainable development is desirable.
Experience in providing advisory and capacity-building support to developing countries, especially LDCs and African countries, on trade and development policy formulation and implementation is desirable.

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this position, English is required; fluency in French is desirable. Knowledge of another UN official language is also desirable.

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which will be followed by a competency based interview.

The initial appointment upon selection will be for three months. Extension of the appointment is subject to the availability of the funds, extension of the mandate and satisfactory performance.

The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.

Candidates should have no expectation of any fixed-term appointment possibility after the end of this temporary assignment. If the selected candidate is an internal staff member of the UN Secretariat, the selection will be recorded as a temporary assignment.

Subsequent to the initial temporary appointment, new and successive temporary appointments may be granted for service in the same office or in a different office any number of times, for any duration, provided that the length of service does not exceed the period of 364 calendar days. Upon separation from service, including, but not limited to, expiration or termination of, or resignation from, a fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointment, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment on the basis of a temporary appointment for a period of 31 days following the separation. In the case of separation from service on retirement, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment for a period of three months following the separation. This equally applies, mutatis mutandis, with respect to a former or current staff member who has held or holds an appointment in another entity applying the United Nations Staff Regulations and Rules and who applies for a temporary position with the Secretariat.

A current staff member who holds a fixed-term, permanent or continuing appointment may apply for temporary positions no more than one level above his or her current grade.
However, a current staff member who holds an appointment at the G-6 or G-7 level may also apply to temporary positions in the Professional category up to and including the P-3 level, subject to meeting all eligibility and other requirements for the position.

A staff member holding a temporary appointment shall be regarded as an external candidate when applying for other positions, and may apply for other temporary positions at any level, subject to section 5.7 below and staff rule 4.16 (b) (ii). Therefore, a staff member holding a temporary appointment in the General Service or related categories may only apply to positions within those categories. For full information on eligibility requirements, please refer to section 5 of ST/AI/2010/4Rev.1 on Temporary Appointments. In its resolution 66/234, the General Assembly further "stressed that the Secretary-General should not recur to the practice of temporarily filling posts in the Professional and higher categories with General Service staff members who have not passed the General Service to Professional category examination other than on an exceptional basis, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that temporary occupation of such posts by the General Service staff shall not exceed a period of one year, effective 1 January 2013…" Consequently, eligible candidates in the General Service or related categories for temporary job openings in the Professional category that have not passed the competitive examination may be selected only on an exceptional basis endorsed by the Office of Human Resources Management where no other suitable candidate could be identified.

While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post. An external candidate selected for this position is bound by the prevailing condition of the staff selection system under ST/AI/2010/3, as amended, and ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. A staff member holding a temporary appointment who is recruited in the Professional and above categories on a temporary appointment, and placed on a position authorized for one year or longer may not apply for or be reappointed to his/her current position within six months of the end of his/her current service. This provision does not apply to staff members holding temporary appointments and placed on positions authorized for one year or more in duty stations authorized for peacekeeping operations or special political missions.

The expression "Internal candidates", shall mean staff members who have been recruited after a competitive examination under staff rule 4.16 or after the advice of a central review body under staff rule 4.15. For more details on the administration of temporary appointments please refer to ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. For information on special post allowance, please refer to ST/AI/1999/17. The Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and administrative issuances governing staff appointments can be viewed at: http://www.un.org/hr_handbook/English.

Please note that candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations 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. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

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 the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, 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 be considered 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.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.