Background
 
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP:  we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.
 
UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

UNDP has been present in Sri Lanka for 55 years, supporting the nation to achieve sustainable human development on economic, social, and environmental fronts. As it embarks in the effective implementation of the new Country Programme Document (2023-2027) the country office envisages a programme portfolio that (i) responds to national priorities and related opportunities in the current socio-economic context; and (ii) adequately anticipates emerging development challenges and new opportunities for expanding the CO’s programme.  UNDP Sri Lanka continues to adapt to current and future needs of the country, underpinning its advisory and programmatic offer while at the same time delivering solid implementation support. It also promotes a more collaborative approach to work across the office and with external partners. 

Through its portfolio, the CO has tailored localized integral solutions to specific sustainable development issues and is crafting methodologies and toolboxes to deploy and escalate them across the country. This strategy requires excellent programme management and an organizational structure that reinforces the entire programming life cycle including planning, implementation, oversight, monitoring and evaluation, communications, and efficient operations.  This also entails engaging in the most pressing and transformational development challenges of the country.

Under the current Country Programme Document cycle, UNDP is committed to making gender equality, a basic human right and a necessity for a sustainable world, a reality. Women's empowerment and gender equality are vital to achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which envisions a world “of universal respect for human rights and human dignity” in which “every woman and girl enjoys full gender equality and all legal, social and economic barriers to their empowerment have been removed.” 

The UNDP Global Strategy 2022-2025, UNDP Gender Equality Strategy 2022 - 2025, and the Gender Action Plan of the UNDP Sri Lanka Country Office, provides a road map to integrate gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE) into all aspects of UNDP's work to elevate the GEWE while eliminating poverty, building resilience and achieving peace in communities and territories, and helping to accelerate progress towards the 2030 Agenda by leaving no one behind.

In particular, the strategy delineates the UNDP commitment to:

  • Strengthen UNDP interventions tackling structural changes that accelerate gender equality and women’s empowerment;
  • Strengthen the integration of gender equality into UNDP's work, by applying corporate tools and strategies
  • Strengthen the institutional GE mechanisms by effective gender mainstreaming, such as the Gender Equality Seal, and the Gender Marker.
     
Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance and direct supervision of the Resident Representative, the Gender Specialist will provide strategic direction and advice on gender across the work of the CO to ensure that gender equality is effectively mainstreamed within all projects and operational areas in line with UNDP standards and the criteria outlined in the UNDP Gender Seal Gold Certification criteria, and that thefocus on women’s empowerment in  the new CPD achieves maximum impact. She or he works closely with the Deputy RR to ensure seamless integration of ideas and approaches in all our programming areas. 

The Gender Specialist will also work closely with all relevant stakeholders within the UNDP system including  the Members of the Gender Focal Team, in the identification, design and implementation of critical gender interventions for UNDP in Sri Lanka, while maintaining a strong contribution to resource mobilization. 

Additionally, the position will also require extensive engagement, networking and partnership building with international and national partners, including other UN agencies through the UN’s 5 year programme strategy and its outcome group 6 on gender, government counterparts, civil society and non-governmental organizations, women's organizations and networks, bilateral and multilateral donors, and private sector actors. 

Substantive Support to Policy Research and Development

  • Coordinate and conduct gender analysis of data, case evidence and research findings to distill relevant lessons from projects and programmes to inform policy formulation and guidance for gender equality advocacy and programming;
  • Collaborate and develop guidance in the CO programme to ensure gender mainstreaming has been well integrated;
  • Contributes to the development of policy initiatives for different contexts on key emerging policy agendas from the lens of gender equality policy outomes, in collaboration with policy teams in the Regional Hub;
  • Guide the programme teams in applying gender analysis to make them relevant for specific situations;
  • Support the quality assurance of policy services and foster policy innovation in the specific thematic area of Gender equality and women’s empowerment by reviewing lessons learned and evaluations to enhance programme delivery; and;
  • Develop and lead implementation of gender equality programme strategy aligned with corporate GE strategy 2022-2025, Regional GE programme Strategy and support implementing the UNDP Gender Action Plan in Sri Lanka.

Technical Support

  • Coordinate internally with the CO Programme Teams on gender mainstreaming across the programme/project cycle.
  • Provide technical advice and support on project design and implementation.
  • Lead development of stand-alone projects, part of projects, and resource mobilization for women’s empowerment,
  • Support the Gender Focal Team, and build capacity of the Gender Focal Teams on Gender Analysis, Gender Marker, and Gender Seal implementation, including SHSEA prevention and response
  • Facilitate the implementation of gender action plan of UNDP Sri Lanka, including the SHSEA prevention with relevant unit lead and colleagues.
  • Support Gender Capacity Building for CO staff, Staff of Implementing partners, and ensure a systematic strategy in place on capacity development.
  • Technical support to ensure gender results are well integrated and documented; Portfolio-specific Gender Action Plan is developed for year ending ROAR reporting.
  • Co-develop project-specific annual gender action plans with Project Focal Point and Field Colleagues based on the best practices of UNDP in Asia Pacific Regions using the Corporate Gender Tools of UNDP.

Monitoring and Reporting

  • Develop and implement a monitoring and reporting framework jointly with the Integrated Risk Management Unit and Action project team for a coherent and effective gender-responsive monitoring and reporting of UNDP-Sri Lanka;
  • Monitor the gender situation, as such the gender development issues within Sri Lanka and the regions in close collaboration with CO and Field Offices;
  • Write reports as required;
  • Participate and contribute to the ROAR, and to the Integrated Workplan;
  • Track the Gender Marker ratings throughout the Annual Work Planning process with the assistance of the Program Associates.

Partnerships and Resource Mobilization

  • Collaborate and contribute to the Partnership and Resource Mobilization Activities of UNDP Sri Lanka Country Office jointly with programme and partnership and communication unit by ensuring effective gender lens;
  • Provide substantive inputs related to external partnerships, especially assessing gender policy and SHSEA policy of the partners maintain minimum standard;
  • Contribute to the development of implementation plan to foster strategic partnerships with UN and external partner institutions, Governments, private sector, academia, NGOs, and CSOs.
  • Lead with the communications team on gender advocacy campaigns and communication strategy and its activities for thought leadership, positioning and resource mobilization. 

Knowledge Management

  • Provide contributions and support to corporate Gender KM activities, Gender COP, whether at the global, cross-regional or region-specific level to help influence/advance policy dialogue in collaboration with policy teams in Sri Lanka and HQ and in Regional Hubs; and Coordinate and perform knowledge extraction, analysis, documentation, codification of results/lessons learned that is linked to gender equality results
  • Facilitate capacity building for gender-responsive communication Training for CO staff, field staff, including Partners jointly with communication team.
  • Develop and carry personal learning plan.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Competencies

Core competencies: 

  • Achieve Results: LEVEL 3: Set and align challenging, achievable objectives for multiple projects, have lasting impact 
  • Think Innovatively: LEVEL 3: Proactively mitigate potential risks, develop new ideas to solve complex problems 
  • Learn Continuously: LEVEL 3: Create and act on opportunities to expand horizons, diversify experiences
  • Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 3: Proactively initiate and champion change, manage multiple competing demands 
  • Act with Determination: LEVEL 3: Think beyond immediate task/barriers and take action to achieve greater results
  • Engage and Partner: LEVEL 3: Political savvy, navigate complex landscape, champion inter-agency collaboration
  • Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 3: Appreciate benefits of diverse workforce and champion inclusivity
People Management competencies: 
  • UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site.

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies:

Business Direction & Strategy     

  • System Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Business Development

  • Collective Intelligence Design: Ability to bring together diverse groups of people, data, information or ideas, and technology to design services or solutions

Business Management  

  • Project Management: Ability to plan, organize, prioritize, and control resources, procedures, and protocols to achieve specific goals. 
  • Risk management: Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks

Partnership Management

  • Resource Mobilization: Ability to identify funding sources, match funding needs (programmes/projects/initiatives) with funding opportunities, and establish a plan to meet funding requirements
  • Multi-stakeholder engagement and funding: Knowledge and ability to forge multi-stakeholder partnerships, and remove any obstacles to resource mobilization and multi-stakeholder funding platforms
  • Strategic Engagement: Ability to capture and sustain attention, interest and agreement of high-level, influential policy and decision makers and secure their buy-in of high-level vision and objectives

2030 Agenda: People 

  • Gender: Gender and Institutional Development & Gender Mainstreaming
Required Skills and Experience

Education 

  • Advanced university degree (master's degree or equivalent) in Gender Studies, Economics, Development studies, or field related to thematic area is required or 
  • A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience         

  • Minimum 5 years (with master’s degree) or 7 years (with bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible relevant experience at the national or international level in providing gender technical advice, conducting research, formulating policies, and/or developing and managing complex projects in relevant sectors.
  • Progressively responsible professional experience, with special focus on addressing the promotion of gender equality, women’s empowerment and human rights protection in crisis and post-conflict countries.
  • Advisory experience on gender and human rights  projects/programmes with similar scale, scope, and complexity.
  • Experience in fostering networks and partnerships and ability to provide coordination with the UN Agencies, international and other organizations present in the sector.
  • Experience in the use of computers, office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and web-based management systems, and advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages.
  • Knowledge and experience in women’s empowerment and gender equality.
  • Good communication, facilitation, and coordination skills. 
  • Consistently ensures timeliness and quality of portfolio work
  • Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability

Required Languages:

  • Fluency in English is required.
  • Fluency in Sinhal or Tamil is required 
Disclaimer

 

 
Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment. 

 
UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

 
Applicant information about UNDP rosters

 
Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

 
Non-discrimination

 
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.  

 
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status. 

 
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