Syria Country Coordinator - P4

Introduction

The UN has a large-scale humanitarian operation in Syria with an expanding early recovery and resilience part. This looks at providing livelihoods, jobs and income to vulnerable people. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs has requested ILO technical assistance on a range of issues. ILO’s current engagement is limited to technical support on occupational safety and health, some exploratory work on social protection and initial work with the employers’ organization.

The ILO plans to expand its work in Syria, working as part of the UN Country Team to implement the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF). While the precise areas of intervention remain to be identified with ILO constituents and UN partners, this is expected to involve work on social protection, employment, skills development, social dialogue, occupational safety and health, labour inspection and promotion of international labour standards. ILO’s constituents also expect further technical assistance for their capacity development. The UN has developed a new Joint Work Plan that would support the new Cooperation Framework. This includes a number of specific areas where ILO could either take the lead or be a collaborative agency.

The position of “Syria Country Coordinator” is established in order for ILO to have a bridge-head in Damascus with the capacity to engage with the Government and Social Partners, as well as with United Nations partners on developing an ILO programme of work. The Country Coordinator is expected to ensure a strong role for the ILO in the implementation of the Cooperation Framework with other UN Agencies and other

This position is based in Damascus, Syria, likely housed within the UN Resident Coordinator’s structure and reports to the Deputy Regional Director in Beirut. The incumbent coordinates work with relevant units at ILO headquarters, with the Decent Work Technical Support Team, the Regional Programme Unit and the Administrative and Finance Services of the ILO’s Regional Office for Arab States (ROAS) in Beirut, Lebanon.

Description of Duties

1. Serve as a primary point of contact in Syria for constituents and build their capacities in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).

2. Lead on the formulation of a series of ILO interventions under a programmatic framework to be defined.

3. Engage with development partners and donors to secure funding support for ILO’s work in Syria. Formulate and submit project proposals for funding

4. Coordinate ILO activities in Syria DWCP in line with ILO rules and regulations, report on successes and lessons learnt; and identify and tackle implementation bottlenecks.

5. Represent ILO in the UN Country Team.

6. Provide technical inputs on Syria to Office documents (sectoral meetings, technical committees, regional meetings and conference reports) and liaise with specialists from the Decent Work Technical Support Team in Beirut in their areas of expertise

7. Facilitate the implementation of a country strategy for the promotion of ILO fundamental principles and rights at work and the related ILO standards in Syria including child labour as a particular focus given previous ILO work. Advocate for the inclusion of these principles within relevant national development and planning frameworks, sector strategies, local development initiatives and poverty reduction strategies and policies.

8. Keep abreast of the security situation, in close collaboration with the United Nations Department for Safety and Security (UNDSS) for safety of ILO staff in Syria and provide prompt advice based on UNDSS directives.

9. Provide support, assistance and backstopping to all development cooperation projects and RB-funded activities in Syria, including contacts with the authorities concerned.

10. Establish and maintain contact with social partners involved in the preparation, implementation, and evaluation of ILO activities. Establish and ensure the dissemination of information covering various economic and social subjects of interest to departments at the ILO Regional Office for the Arab States and to missions to the region.

11. Perform other relevant duties as assigned.

Required qualifications

Education

Advanced university degree (Masters or equivalent) in Political Science or Social Science, Economics or other relevant field.

A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s or equivalent) in one of the afore-mentioned fields or other relevant field with an additional two years of relevant experience, in addition to the required experience stated below, will be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Experience

At least seven years of experience, including experience at the international level, related to ILO’s policy areas.

Languages

Excellent command of English. A working knowledge of Arabic will be considered an advantage.

Competencies

In addition to ILO core competencies, job-specific competencies include:

• Good knowledge of ILO wide activities and priorities;
• Ability to foster a positive working environment based on ILO core values and competencies;
• Ability to synthesize research and reach evidence-based conclusions for concrete short term and strategic policy and programme recommendations;
• Ability to provide seasoned advice on good practices to address broader issues outside the field of specialisation;
• Ability to contribute to or finalize reports that match ILO technical and programming standards;
• Ability to develop and maintain effective relations with constituents, UN agencies, international financial institutions, and bilateral donors, in order to foster consensus against identified policy priorities, and generate commitments and resources for the implementation of the decent work agenda.
• Ability to work in a multicultural environment and to demonstrate gender-sensitive and non- discriminatory behaviour and attitudes.

optional section (only if needed)

Candidates assessed by the Panel and considered to be eligible for appointment but who are not selected for this vacant post may be offered an assignment to another position at the same or lower grade provided that they meet the minimum qualifications required.