Senior Urban Specialist

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Description

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The Cities Alliance is a global partnership promoting the role of cities in poverty reduction and sustainable development. Hosted by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and managed by a Secretariat based in Brussels, the Cities Alliance is a unique partnership with a diverse membership, which is committed to strengthen both developmental impacts through improved coherence in urban development. Cities Alliance is a global leader with a strong track record in grant making, that supports strategic city planning, slum upgrading strategies and national policies designed to make cities more inclusive and sustainable. Through UNOPS, the Cities Alliance operates a Multi-Donor Fund supported by an efficient, and flexible grant-making mechanism with a global reach.

• Cities Alliance activities are guided by its 2018-2021 Strategic Plan, with a recalibrated business model combining a Global window for normative work and a Country/City window for operations across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, and the MENA region. Through the Strategic Plan, Cities Alliance members have made clear commitments to ensuring that the Cities Alliance is a global leader in promoting gender policies that are institutionalized, and which improve the daily lives of ordinary citizens.
• Cities Alliance is seeking a highly motivated and dynamic Urban Specialist as the partnership’s Gender Focal Point. S/he will have responsibility for keeping the Cities Alliance at the forefront of international best practice, influence both members and partners, and act as an advocate for Cities Alliance policies.
• Under the guidance and supervision of the Head of Global Programmes, the incumbent will perform a broad range of analytical and operational functions to continually increase the gender mainstreaming capacity of the Cities Alliance in general, and particularly through its operational windows and at corporate level. This will require the continued revision and updating of the Gender Mainstreaming Strategy and its Action plan for the Secretariat, ensuring that grant procedures are gender-responsive. S/he will oversee the application of tools such as the Gender Marker System, the development of a Gender portfolio for both normative and operational activities, and provide cross-support to projects as needed to inform gender-responsive programming and monitoring. S/he will be required to represent the Cities Alliance internationally, contribute to effective and efficient team work, delivering results on time, within budget and to the highest quality
• The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations.
• Cities Alliance, which is hosted by UNOPS, is the global partnership promoting the role of cities in poverty reduction and sustainable development. Headquartered in Brussels and supported by a Secretariat, it is a unique partnership with a diverse membership which has come together to strengthen both impacts and coherence in urban development. Cities Alliance is a global leader, with a strong track record in grant-making to support strategic citywide planning, slum upgrading strategies and national policies designed to make cities more inclusive and sustainable. Through UNOPS, the Cities Alliance operates a Multi-Donor Fund supported by an efficient, flexible grant-making mechanism with global reach.

Functional Responsibilities

• The incumbent will be responsible for the below functional responsibilities:&nbs…

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education:

• PhD (Doctorate) in any of these fields would be an asset.
• Master’s degree preferably in Urban Studies, Business Administration, Development Studies, Economics, Finance, Social Sciences, Political Science or related fields required; 
• Bachelor’s degree preferably in Urban Studies, Business Administration, Development Studies, Economics, Finance, Social Sciences, Political Science or related fields with additional 2 years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of a Master’s degree.

Experience:

• At least seven (7) years of work experience in the international development sector on urbanisation issues is required. 
• Within the seven (7) years, at least two (2) years of work experience on Gender Mainstreaming Issues is required.
• Previous experience in developing countries and/or prior work experience with UNOPS or UN Agencies would be an asset.
• Previous experience in Monitoring & Evaluation activities would be an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required. 
• Intermediate level in French language is required.
• Working knowledge of Spanish and/or Arabic would be considered an asset.

Source: https://jobs.unops.org/Pages/ViewVacancy/VADetails.aspx?id=28665#2

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