Senior Donor Relations Officer

Org. Setting and Reporting

UNRWA, the largest United Nations operation in the Middle East with over 30,000 staff working across five areas of operation, is looking for highly committed personnel wishing to make a change.

If you are looking for a rewarding opportunity to make a tangible difference for one of the most vulnerable communities in the world, UNRWA would like to hear from you.

The Senior Donor Relations Officer reports to the Director of UNRWA Affairs, Jordan.

Responsibilities

- Works under the overall guidance of the Director of UNRWA Affairs in Jordan (DUA-J), and in coordination with External Relations Department (ERD), and leads a team dedicated to Jordan Field Office (JFO) partnerships and donor relations; assists the DUA-J in building and strengthening relationships with key partners, enhancing strategic partnerships and strengthening resource mobilization, including for humanitarian appeals and advocacy in support of UNRWA’s activities in Jordan; in coordination with UNRWA HQ Departments, in particular ERD, works on identifying new sources of partnerships, especially in the private sector, that can bring support to UNRWA.
- Develops, manages and maintains strategic relationships with current and prospective funders through appropriate strategies, with particular focus on sustainable partnerships and predictable funding, while also expanding the diversity of funding sources; maintains close linkage with government representatives, relevant UN organizations, foreign representations and non-governmental bodies in Jordan.
- Contributes to the overall development of Jordan-based business development and fundraising strategy and management of donor relationships, including specific recommendations on Field resource mobilization; in close coordination with Public Information colleagues, produces various fundraising documents including emergency appeals and makes significant contributions to policy documents; manages relationships with key donors; provides a consistently high level of responsiveness and service to key donors; gathers research on target countries to assess their fundraising potential for UNRWA; actively pursues innovative avenues of cooperation for funding opportunities by public and private donors; provides strategic advice to the DUA-J and senior management accordingly supporting the JFO outreach efforts.
- In coordination with the DUA and ERD contributes to build and maintain strategic partnerships with donors, UN agencies, NGOs and other stakeholders to strengthen the JFO donor base; promotes and implements the Field donor relations strategy with results-oriented concrete actions; organizes and participates in senior level missions in Jordan accompanying the Director and keeping her updated on donor relations; prepares donors briefings and strategic position papers, participates in major meetings and conference discussions with senior government civil servants; prepares briefing notes for the DUA, ERD and the Commissioner-General’s Office over Jordan projects, donor discussions and programmes/projects funding status; works closely with the JFO Finance Office and Finance at HQ to provide accurate and timely updates on both income and cash flow, and reviews project progress reports.
- Verifies adherence to donor stipulations including visibility requirements, grant agreement guidelines and deadlines; ensures the timely submission of quality donor reports, including the monitoring and reporting against the Jordan portion of the UNRWA emergency appeal, and submission of requests for reprogramming or extensions; advises on the implementation of Programme/unit when necessary to take corrective action; regularly informs the Front Office and Finance Department on projects’ status.
- Facilitates bilateral agreements and Memorandum of Understandings (MOUs) with local donors on behalf of the Field; negotiates and drafts emergency appeals and project proposals with donors in coordination with ERD and the Department of Planning; analyzes, reviews and edits project proposals and progress reports; drafts correspondence for the purpose of fundraising and advocacy and the smooth implementation of projects.
- Ensures the dissemination of accurate information regarding the Agency’s functions among donors, contributes to the development and strategic use of outreach materials for the purpose of fundraising and organizes and participates in donor field trips in the field.
- Ensures that Field departments proactively coordinate with concerned HQ Departments, Field Offices and Liaison Offices on contributions, donor-funded projects and external relations activities and ensures timely follow-up.
- Maintains close and regular contacts with ERD to ensure that JFO resource mobilization efforts are aligned and in support of Agency-wide resource mobilization efforts, that donor intelligence and information is regularly shared and updated and donor priorities for Jordan are considered vis-à-vis and in support of Agency donor resource mobilization priorities.
- Ensures, via ERD Private Partnerships Divisions, that for any outreach to private partners that relevant due diligence is performed and that engagement aligns with Agency objectives.

Competencies

UN Core Values of Integrity, Professionalism and Respect for Diversity, and Core Competencies of Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results apply by default. Default managerial competencies may apply.

- Creating and Maintaining Impact and Partnership
- Adapting and Responding to Change
- Persuading and Influencing
- Delivering Results
- Relating and Networking
- Planning and Organizing

For guidance on how to prepare for competency-based interviews: https://careers.un.org/lbw/home.aspx?viewtype=AYI

Education

Advanced university degree (Masters’ or equivalent) from an accredited educational institution in political science, international relations, programme management, business or public administration, law, economics, development studies or a related discipline.

Work Experience

At least eight years of progressively responsible relevant professional experience in a humanitarian programme in project management and resource mobilization, fundraising and donor relations (required).

A minimum of four years of international experience at a management or coordination level (required).

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 (required).

Sound knowledge of results-based management of humanitarian and development assistance programmes, as well as monitoring and evaluation (required).

Experience in external relations, fund-raising and project management (desirable).

Advanced university degree (Masters’ or equivalent) from an accredited educational institution is required in political science, international relations, programme management, business or public administration, law, economics, development studies or a related discipline.

Languages

Excellent command of written and spoken English.
Familiarity with Arabic is desirable.
Knowledge of a second United Nations language is desirable.

Assessment

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

Special Notice

Type of Contract and Duration: One year project funded with the possibility of further extension subject to availability of funds, need and performance.

Only applications that have been fully completed in UNRWA's online e-recruitment system inspira will be considered and no late applications will be accepted. The Personal History Profile (PHP) should be completed with full work experience under the experience tabs as per the requirements in the Job Opening.

A roster may be created from the selection exercise, and successful candidates may become eligible for a temporary appointment to the same post or a similar post.

Equivalency:
A first level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.
NB: Work experience alone or formal qualifications with no relevant work experience are not considered an acceptable combination.

UNRWA welcomes applications from qualified candidates with disabilities.

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.

For more details on UNRWA, please visit: https://www.unrwa.org/

United Nations Considerations

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 who fully 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.
UNRWA is a non-smoking work environment.

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.