Associate Cash-Based Interventions Officer

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

C

Family

UNOPS IICA1

2024-08-01

July 24, 2024

1. Overall context
As of May 31, 2024, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is home to 526,249 refugees, with the majority residing in the provinces of Ubangi, Ituri, and Kivu, and more than 7.3 million internally displaced persons (IDPs), primarily located in the provinces of Ituri, Kivu, and Tanganyika. Concerning IDPs, UNHCR takes the lead in the Protection, Shelter/NFIs, and CCCM clusters and, in collaboration with other partners, plays a crucial role in supporting the government to ensure the protection and assistance of IDPs, while implementing a strategy for durable solutions where feasible.
Regarding refugees, UNHCR spearheads the Refugee Coordination Model with a primary focus on ensuring protection, durable solutions, inclusion, empowerment, self-reliance, and ultimately the resilience of refugees and asylum seekers. Additionally, UNHCR addresses the reintegration needs of Congolese (ex-refugees) returning to the DRC after years of exile.
UNHCR’s overarching strategy is grounded in the imperative of ensuring sustainable programming, with the expanded and innovative use of efficient and effective Cash-Based Interventions (CBI) at its core. The majority of the beneficiaries reside in environments where they have access to markets and services similar to local communities. Providing cash assistance empowers them to make decisions regarding matters that impact them, facilitates meeting their essential needs in a dignified manner, and contributes to local economies. This enables them to address various needs such as food, water, healthcare, shelter, to develop and sustain livelihoods, and facilitate voluntary repatriation.
2. Description and scope of the mission
The Associate Programme CBI Officer plays an active role in overseeing the UNHCR cash assistance programs at both the Country and Sub Delegation levels within the operation. Their responsibilities include ensuring compliance with technical guidelines and administrative instructions on Cash-Based Interventions (CBI), collaborating with the Programme and multifunctional teams on the strategic use of CBIs in the DRC operation, and leveraging CBI coherently and strategically to advance the vision and strategic priorities of the DRC operation. Additionally, they are responsible for the implementation and monitoring of CBI activities in a timely and cost-effective manner.

While the position reports to the Senior Programme Officer, the incumbent maintains close collaboration with CBI staff at the Regional Bureau and HQ levels. They also engage closely with UNHCR field personnel, Implementing and Operational Partners, the Government of the DRC, other UN agencies, and may occasionally work with line ministries.

Cash-Based Interventions in the DRC follow a multifunctional team (MFT) approach outlined in the UNHCR Program Manual. This approach ensures the involvement of relevant stakeholders in all phases of the Program Management Cycle to enhance the effectiveness and coordination of CBI delivery.

Duties and Responsibilities
1. Strategic Support and Alignment:
– Support the strategic and coherent implementation of cash-based interventions (CBIs) in the operation.
– Ensure CBIs align with the DRC five-year plan, focusing on protection, durable solutions, inclusion, empowerment, self-reliance, and resilience.
2. SOP Review and Coordination: Assist in reviewing and coordinating the final clearance of CBI Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) with the Division of Finance and Administrative Management (DFAM).
3. Programme Development:
– Collaborate with Programme and Multifunctional Teams to develop cash assistance programmes.
– Ensure the integration of cash assistance programmes into the DRC five-year plan.
4. Emergency Preparedness and Response:
– Ensure compliance with the High Alert List for Emergency Preparedness (HALEP) for early warning and risk monitoring.
– Collaborate with the multifunctional team to utilize CBI as a first response mechanism in emergencies and return situations.
5. Procurement and Contracting Support: Support the effective and coordinated procurement and contracting of Financial Service Providers in collaboration with procurement/supply and finance teams.
6. Technical Support:
– Provide technical support during planning and assist in policy making on CBIs.
– Contribute to assessments, planning, budgeting, technical choices, legal and regulatory aspects, implementation modalities, and coordination.
7. Sector Collaboration: Support sectors to increase the use of CBI in education, shelter, livelihoods, and where applicable, in health and WASH programmes.
8. Inter-agency Coordination:
– Support inter-agency coordination mechanisms on CBIs.
– Assist in building and maintaining strong relations with partners and regional entities.
– Represent UNHCR in CBI coordination with senior management support.
9. Monitoring and Analysis:
– Support the establishment of sound monitoring processes for cash assistance.
– Collect, use, and monitor baselines, standards, and indicators to measure and analyze CBI performance.
– Analyze trends and target interventions including CBI expenditure, upstream, and downstream activities.
10. Technical Assessment: Assist in assessing the technical soundness of CBI within the DRC operations and generate data for evidence-based decision-making.
11. Reporting: Assist in fulfilling CBI-related reporting requirements.
12. Corporate Tools and Systems: Support the use of UNHCR corporate tools and systems.
13. Additional Duties: Perform other related duties as required.

Qualifications et Experience
 Years of Experience / Degree Level: 3 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 2 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 1-year relevant experience with Doctorate degree
 Field(s) of Education: Economics, Social or Political Science, Business Administration, Social Economics, or other relevant field.
 Relevant Job Experience: Experience in working in cash-based assistance programmes and/or humanitarian programming. Knowledge and technical skills in set up, design, implementation and monitoring of CBIs is essential.
 Functional Skills: PG-UNHCR’s Programmes and PG-Cash-based Programming/Managing/Planning.
 Language Requirements: Due to cross bureau interaction, proficiency in both French and English is required.
Key competencies and values
 Strong Inter-personal Skills in Collaboration and Coordination: Demonstrated ability to work effectively with diverse teams and stakeholders, fostering a cooperative and inclusive work environment. Show proficiency in mediating conflicts, facilitating discussions, and achieving consensus among team members and partners.
 Excellent Analytical Skills and Drafting Skills: Demonstrated capacity to critically analyze complex information and data, providing clear and concise reports and recommendations. Exhibit strong writing skills, ensuring documents are well-organized, precise, and tailored to the target audience.
 Strong Communications/Presentation Skills: Demonstrated ability to convey information clearly and persuasively in both written and oral forms. Show competence in preparing and delivering engaging presentations, adapting content and style to suit different audiences and contexts.
 Demonstrated Capacity to Work with Minimum Supervision: Demonstrated ability to manage tasks and projects independently, exhibiting strong organizational and time management skills. Show initiative and resourcefulness in addressing challenges and achieving goals without the need for constant oversight.
 Integrity and professionalism: demonstrated expertise in area of specialty and ability to apply good judgment; high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures in a politically sensitive environment, while exercising discretion, impartiality and neutrality; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client oriented.
 Accountability: mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations.
 Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment.
 Planning and organizing effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities.
 Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender.
 Communication: proven interpersonal skills; good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports; ability to conduct presentations, articulate options and positions concisely; ability to make and defend recommendations; ability to communicate and empathize with staff (including national staff), military personnel, volunteers, counterparts and local interlocutors coming from very diverse backgrounds; ability to maintain composure and remain helpful towards the staff, but objective, without showing personal interest; capacity to transfer information and knowledge to a wide range of different target groups;
 Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance, and commitment towards the UN core values.

Standard Job Description

Associate Programme CBI Officer

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Associate Programme CBI Officer is an active member of the bureau/field operation/division and is normally supervised by a professional member who manages and oversees the UNHCR cash assistance programmes. The incumbent supports to ensure that operations are compliant with the technical guidance and administrative instructions on CBI, use CBI coherently and strategically and are adequately monitored.

S/he normally receives guidance and direction from the Senior Programme CBI Officer – or Programme CBI Officer – or Programme Officer or other more senior staff. S/he may maintain close links with CBI staff in UNHCR HQ.
Internally the Associate Programme CBI Officer will also liaise with UNCHR field offices and country offices. Externally s/he will liaise with Implementing and Operational Partners, National Governments, line ministries and UN agencies.

The incumbent is expected to work in line with the multi-functional team (MFT) approach as defined within the Program Manual, ensuring the participation of relevant stakeholders in all phases of the Program Management Cycle.

All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR’s core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.

Duties
– Support the strategic and coherent use of CBI’s in the operations, assisting to ensure that CBI is maximised in assistance and service provision, strongly linking it to CRRF, MYMP and development, including linkages with Social Protection and Financial Inclusion.
– Support the review of and assist in coordinating the final clearance with DFAM of the CBI Standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the operations, with support from more senior staff.
– Support the development of cash assistance programmes and support the senior management to ensure that CBI is fully, effectively integrated into the country operations plan for protection and solutions and Annual Program Planning and COP.
– Assist in ensuring compliance to HALEP and that CBI is included in the preparedness and response planning and be a first responder to new emergencies/ and returns situations to ensure operations are using CBI as a modality, in collaboration with more senior staff.
– Support the effective and coordinated procurement and contracting of Financial Service Providers by procurement/supply and finance.
– Provide technical support on planning and assist in policy making on activities within the area of CBIs as an integral part of UNHCR programmes including assessments, planning and budgeting, technical choices, legal and regulatory aspects, implementation modalities and coordination.
– Support and collaborate with sectors to increase the use of CBI in education, shelter, livelihoods and where applicable in health and WASH programmes.
– Support the adequate inter-agency coordination mechanisms on CBIs and assist in building and maintaining strong relations with partners, regional entities and represent UNHCR in CBI coordination, with support from more senior staff.
– Support the establishment of a sound monitoring process for cash assistance, with proper collection, use and monitoring of baselines, standards and indicators needed to measure and analyse CBI’s performance. Analyse trends and target interventions including CBI expenditure, upstream and downstream activities.
– Assist in assessing the technical soundness of the operations and generate data for evidence-based decisions.
– Assist in fulfilling CBI related reporting requirements.
– Support the use of UNHCR corporate tools and systems.

– Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
– Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications

Years of Experience / Degree Level
For P2/NOB – 3 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 2 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 1 year relevant experience with Doctorate degree

Field(s) of Education
Economics;
Social or Political Science;
Business Administration;
Social Economics;
or other relevant field.

Certificates and/or Licenses
Not specified.

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Experience in working in cash based assistance programmes and/or humanitarian programming. Knowledge and technical skills in set up, design, implementation and monitoring of CBIs.

Desirable
Not specified.

Functional Skills
PG-UNHCR’s Programmes
CB-Cash-based Programming/Managing/Planning
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.

As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

Required Languages

,

,

Desired Languages

French

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

CB-Cash-based Programming/Managing/Planning, PG-UNHCR’s Programmes

Education

Bachelor of Arts (BA): Business Administration, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Economics, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Political Science, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Social Economics, Bachelor of Arts (BA): Social Science

Certifications

Other information

This position requires Functional Clearance

Home-Based

No