Disability Inclusion Project Officer

Details

Mission and objectives

The mandate of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is to promote sustainable and inclusive development and regional connectivity in the Asian and Pacific region. ESCAP’s role as a regional development arm of the United Nations Secretariat is to support its membership with policy-oriented research and analysis, normative support and technical assistance and capacity building, to respond to the development priorities and changing needs of the Asian and Pacific region.

Context

The UNV will contribute to ESCAP’s continuous efforts to promote disability-inclusive development by supporting current projects that span from disability inclusion under the purview of Division of Administration, aligned with ESCAP’s Disability Inclusion Policy developed in 2020. The Policy, guided by the United Nations Disability Inclusion Strategy (UNDIS), sets out the key principles for programmes and projects to follow, with the vision for ESCAP to be a fully disability-inclusive organization. To operationalize ESCAP’s commitments, the Disability Inclusion Implementation Plan for 2020-2021 was rolled out and various disability-inclusive projects are currently in progress. As part of its role, the UNV will also serve as a catalyst to facilitate collaboration between ESCAP and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). The UNV is expected to support bridging the activities of both organizations and enhancing their impact on disability-inclusive development in the region.

Task description

Under the overall supervision of the Chief of the Facilities Management Unit in consultation with the Director of the Division of Administration, and under the direct supervision of the Facilities Management Officer, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: • Research best practices and provide professional and technical advice on disability inclusion, in the areas of o universal design and physical accessibility of office space/premises o inclusive Human Resources policies and procedures; • Prepare reports, plans, specifications and cost estimates for activities (such as design improvements of office facilities); • Research and present benchmarks on best practices of inclusive work environments; • Review technical reports, evaluate, and prioritize improvement initiatives; • Support the compliance review according to regional and/or local accessibility codes and best practices; • Contribute to awareness-raising and communications campaigns to share achieved progress in the area of disability inclusion; • Support and advise on activities on reasonable accommodation; • Provides substantive support for reviewing project documents, preparing presentations, and developing technical reports; • Assist in administrative and logistical activities, including organizing meetings, liaising with relevant parties, drafting meeting information notes, proposing agenda topics, and tracking follow-up actions; • Implement initiatives to promote cooperation with Japan and support the expansion of ESCAP’s projects with the Japanese Government, which may involve facilitating information sharing and coordination among ESCAP, JICA, and other relevant stakeholders. • Perform other tasks as assigned. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to: • Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for in-stance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities; • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.