Project Associate - Ministry of Climate Change

POSITION SUMMARY 

The Project Associate will be based in Port Vila, Vanuatu within the Department of Energy/Water Resources. The Associate will work under the supervision of the Solar Water Project Manager and the Country Senior Officer (Project Manager) and reports to Country Representative.   The Associate is responsible for providing admin and operational support to the Solar Water Project and ensure alignment with other Vanuatu projects. The Associate will work closely with GGGI staff in Vanuatu, supporting Project Managers / Officers in maintaining and verifying project/output level budget execution and controls in line with GGGI policies and WPB. The Project Associate will ensure consistent quality across projects and outputs delivery. 

The Associate will support the Project Managers / Officers in maintaining effective program reporting and communication internally and externally with the Government of Vanuatu, Donors, development partners, civil society and private sectors in line with GGGI corporate policies, standards and protocols.  

Position is for two years with possibility of extension.  

 PURPOSE 

• Develop and manage detailed budget execution plans and schedules in line with funding agreements and projects implementation plans. 
• Support organizing and implementing projects activities including policy consultation and validation meetings & workshops, capacity building programs based on yearly/ biannual work programs and budget plans. 
• Assist in preparing annual budgets, providing monthly forecasts, and monitoring of all country projects expenditures subsequently ensuring that charges in the GL journals are charged to the correct codes.
• Place initial screening and controls on all Projects spending, procurement requests and contract issuance and manage projects expenses. 
• Complete corporate financial returns such as, monthly progress report (financial aspect, budget adjustment rounds during the year, year-end pack return etc.). 
• Administer and monitor procurement plans and requisition procedures in line with projects implementation plans and funding agreements. 
• Support the monitoring of projects budgets and track expenditures to ensure that program resources are optimally allocated and utilized. 
• Ensures adherence to GGGI policies across procurement, legal, HR and finance. 
• Supports country representative/projects managers / officers in monitoring the projects, when necessary, both, substantively and financially.
• Supports country representative in carrying out communications of activities and results, including donors and annual reporting.

ENGAGEMENT 

• Advise the country team on the procedures, policies, and tools of all operational transactions for projects/outputs delivery. 
• Identify issues and risks that will affect consistent program delivery and report to the managers. 
• Identify issues from across projects and workstreams and advise project staff on remedial measures in order to maintain integrity of delivery. 
• Communicate program needs to service providers/suppliers and ensure that services/products are delivered in line with established agreements. 
• Work closely with the Governments of Vanuatu and other project partners to process meetings, arrange workshops, and organize & prepare events. 

DELIVERY 

• Maintain program filing system and safeguard standards of reporting/documentary quality to support reporting to donors and program stakeholders. 
• Coordinate and support the logistics for meetings, seminars, workshops, conferences, trainings, etc. including but not limited to transport solutions, catering, procurement, and communications. 
• Coordinate and assist recruitment of projects staff and individual consultants. 
• Ensure that a functional system is in place to keep good control of office and IT inventories. 
• Support the smooth running of the office(s) in Vanuatu in close collaboration with Senior Country Officer. 
• Identifies projects delivery issues and ensures effective coordination of project activities and resources to ensure attainment of objectives against established timeframes. 
• Perform data collection and analyses to build and maintain country/project specific knowledgebase. 
• Anticipates donors requirements and projects requirements and ensures alignment of services to meet the needs. 
• Administer HR requests and onboarding procedures based on approved headcounts. 

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Relevant qualification preferred (minimum qualification of a bachelor's degree in any one of the following accounting, business administration, economics, management & public administration, development studies). 
• Experience in financial management and/or project budget management. 
• Experience of government and stakeholder systems (donor, multilateral, etc) 
• Experience in organising workshops and logistics, including travel of participants 
• Fluency in English and excellent writing skills are essential
• At least three years relevant experience  in administrative roles 
• Knowledge of green growth and climate change issues, with a focus on energy and water sectors, would be an advantage. 
• Experience in writing press releases, communicating professionally on social media would be an advantage. 

FUNCTIONAL  

• Self-motivated, teamwork and creative problem-solving abilities. 
• Excellent multi-cultural literacy and interest in being a part of an international team working in an evolving and entrepreneurial environment. 
• International experience across multiple country contexts. 
• Leadership, teamwork, and creative problem-solving abilities. 
• Excellent communication (both written and oral) and facilitation skills. 
• Problem solver, able to find and implement solutions. 
• Anticipate and provide necessary technical and content-based support. 
• Willingness and ability to travel. 

CORPORATE  

• Understand and actively supports GGGI’s mission, vision and values. 
• Promote the best use of public resources. 
• Promote an organizational culture of trust, transparency, respect and partnership. 
• Process and share information easily. 
• Manage emotions and stress positively, builds rapport and resolves conflict easily. 
• Promote creativity and innovation among staff.
• Be able to lead where needed and support the Country Representative to make sound   decisions.

ABOUT US

Based in Seoul, The Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) is an intergovernmental organization founded to support and promote a model of economic growth known as "green growth", which targets key aspects of economic performance such a poverty reduction, job creation, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. GGGI works with countries around the world, building their capacity and working collaboratively on green growth policies that can impact the lives of millions. The organization partners with countries, multilateral institutions, government bodies, and private sector to help build economies that grow strongly and are more efficient and sustainable in the use of natural resources, less carbon intensive, and more resilient to climate change.

GGGI has a diverse portfolio of programs in developing countries around the world. These in-country programs, together with global products and services, focus on delivering results through an integrated approach of evidence-based green growth planning and implementation aligned to countries’ development priorities. The organization also focuses on knowledge development and management activities which build a strong theoretical and empirical basis for green growth, while providing concrete options and guidance for policymakers; as well as building the conditions for public and private green infrastructure investments. 

GGGI has five Members in the Pacific Islands: Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea (PNG), Tonga and Vanuatu. GGGI’s work in the Pacific started with operations on the ground in Fiji and Vanuatu in 2015. Since then, offices have also been established in Kiribati, PNG and Tonga. In addition, through regional programs such as the Pacific NDC Hub, GGGI is carrying out project activities in Nauru, Tuvalu, Samoa, Solomon Islands and the Marshall Islands.  From the start of its operations until now, GGGI in the Pacific has built strong and deep collaboration with Member and partner countries, expanded membership and added new thematic areas of work. 

GGGI’s work in the Pacific is guided by the new Pacific Regional Strategy 2023-2027 and aligned with GGGI’s Strategy 2030 and Roadmap 2021-2025. GGGI work has focused on strengthening the enabling environment for climate action and green investments including policy development, technical assessments, capacity strengthening and climate finance and investment planning. From an initial focus in the energy sector, GGGI in the Pacific has grown and gained a reputation as a trusted and effective partner and is now responding to requests for technical support in 10 of GGGI’s 11 programmatic solutions including climate finance, NDC implementation, climate smart agriculture, sustainable mobility and green buildings.  In the new Pacific Regional Strategy the importance of climate change adaptation for the region is recognized and growing GGGI’s adaptation and resilience portfolio in the region will be a priority.

GGGI’s program in Vanuatu began in 2015 focusing on the energy sector and helping Vanuatu to ensure 100% access to electricity by 2030 and generate 100% of Vanuatu’s electricity with renewable resources by 2030.  In support of these goals, GGGI has supported Vanuatu to develop a new National Energy Roadmap (NERM) and a National Green Energy Fund (NGEF). GGGI has also supported Vanuatu develop its Low Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS), which includes an adaptation component in support of Vanuatu’s climate resilience priorities.   GGGI has also supported Vanuatu to increase access to climate finance through proposal development and accreditation assistance, including the delivery of multiple GCF Readiness Support projects.

Child protection – GGGI is committed to child protection, irrespective of whether any specific area of work involves direct contact with children. GGGI’s Child Protection Policy is written in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child.