Humanitarian Access Specialist

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.  

Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs. It is essential that Afghan women and girls can continue to shape the development of their country, and that their gains are protected. UN Women remains fully committed to supporting Afghan women and girls and to putting them at the center of the global response to the crisis in Afghanistan.  

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has four key programme priorities: (1) Gender in Humanitarian Action, (2) Ending Violence Against Women, (3) Women’s Economic Empowerment, and (4) Women, Peace and Security. UN Women Afghanistan operates through its main office in Kabul and five sub-offices located in the provinces Balkh, Bamyan, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar. 

Reporting to the Programme Manager- Gender in Humanitarian Action, the Humanitarian Access Specialist is responsible for gender responsive principled access coordination for all UN Women portfolios in Afghanistan, through monitoring trends and the access situation in country, as well as leading access negotiations with the De facto Authorities and other stakeholders in Afghanistan to enable UN Women programming in all regions of Afghanistan. While based in Kabul, the person will have a roving role and will work closely with sub offices and programmes to facilitate operational access.

 

 

Duties and Responsibilities

 

Design and implement access strategies across all of UN Women’s areas of work

• Develop and implement access strategies and initiatives, aligned to local contexts, for the expansion of UN Women’s access in provinces across Afghanistan
• Provide inputs into strategic and project related documents from an access perspective and mainstream access throughout all portfolios of work
• Ensure gender responsive humanitarian access approaches are responsive to local context and informed by women and women CSOs at community level

Monitor access trends across the country

• Monitor, analyze and report on humanitarian developments and emergency situations in Afghanistan

• Monitor access constraints faced by women and girls in need, including gap in assistance and lack of access to humanitarian assistance
• Track changes in the operational space including by mapping motivations and narratives of the de facto authorities which have an impact on principled access, including through issue of directives, decrees and authorizations in different provinces.
• Monitor access trends and incidents in UN Women programming through setting up monitoring and reporting mechanisms
• Prepare or contribute to various reports including background documents, presentations, case studies, with an access lens

Lead engagement to enable UN Women’s programming access in the field

• Provide technical support to UN Women management, programme leads, and heads of sub offices to negotiate access with the de-facto authorities and various authority bearers on behalf of UN Women, across all portfolios of work and in close coordination with heads of sub offices
• Ensure regular field missions and participate in meetings, and liaise with the de-facto authorities regularly on behalf of UN Women to enable programmes’ operational presence and access to the field
• Develop public and private advocacy to support principled programme access, including through key messages, advocacy strategies, etc to ensure that UN Women’s work is visible and accepted
• Provide strategic advice with background information and policy guidance to UN Women ACO’s management on access dynamics to enable high level decisions-making on access

Manage technical assistance and capacity development to UN Women partners

• Manage the implementation of technical advice and guidance. Develop and implement technical tools, and initiatives on principled gender responsive access
• Build and manage relationships with UN Women partners to support their access in the field and respond to any potential problems;
• Identify capacity building needs of partners including women-led and focused CSOs, and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives to partners with an access lens

Participate in humanitarian access coordination mechanisms

• Participate and represent UN Women in various OCHA-led humanitarian access coordination mechanisms
• Oversee the reporting of UN Women’s access constraints into existing IM and coordination systems
• Provide technical support to the Representative, Deputy Representative, heads of Sub offices  and GiHA programme manager on access related interagency coordination at Kabul and provincial level
• Coordinate with other UN agencies, donors and NGOs to ensure UN Women’s access initiatives are harmonized and aligned with other in-country efforts.
• Together with GiHA Specialist, provide capacity building support to other humanitarian actors and coordination mechanisms on access considerations with a gender lens

Key Performance Indicators:

• Timely and quality monitoring of access trends and humanitarian developents
• Timely and quality engagement with the authorities and duty bearer on access issues, in line with all UN Women operational rules and regulations, including security
• Timely and quality monitoring of access incidents pertaining to UN Women programming
• Relations with partners and stakeholders
• Quality reports and timely submission
• Regular communication with other agencies and partners
• Quality of advocacy and engagement initiatives

 

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies

• Strong strategy formulation and implementation

• Ability to synthesize data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making
• Strong knowledge of access with a gender lens
• Strong analytical skills
• Ability to identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to access and develop strategies

 

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in humanitarian affairs, social sciences, human rights, gender/women's studies, international development, or a 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.

Experiance:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible work experience at the national or international level in access or security
• Demonstrated humanitarian experience in the field is required
• Experience working on gender related issues in humanitarian access in a complex context is an asset
• Experience liaising with multiple stakeholders in humanitarian context including government agencies and /or nonstate armed groups, donors, NGOs and UN is required
• Experience working in the UN System is an asset;
• Experience in leading/managing a team is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset;
• Knowledge of Dari and/or Pashto is an asset 

Application:

• All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from Application and recruitment process | About us: Careers at UN Women | UN Women – Headquarters  Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Note:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality, and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW, and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Inclusion Statement:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits employ, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity, and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)