Emergency Specialist (Access Officer), NOC, Temporary Appointment (364 days) Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Under the guidance and supervision of the Emergency Specialist (Access Advisor), he/she supports and/or establishes and implements Country access and engagement strategies with non-state armed groups.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

UNICEF’s mission is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias, or favoritism. If any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic, and cultural dimensions — their rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens will give all children the opportunity to fulfil their potential and will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. The focus on equity is vital to accelerate progress towards realizing the human rights of all children. This is the universal mandate of UNICEF as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

For every child, Safety and Care

How can you make a difference?

Under the guidance and supervision of the Emergency Specialist (Access Advisor), supports and/or establishes and implements country office access and engagement strategies with non-state armed groups. The incumbent will support UNICEF Haiti’s ability to provide humanitarian support in hard-to-reach areas and those affected by armed group violence using an approach based on humanitarian principles and standards. The incumbent will provide analysis and mapping support, as well as conduct access field missions in coordination with relevant internal and external actors.

Summary of duties and responsibilities: 

1. Humanitarian Negotiation & Community Engagement (40%)

• Engage with armed actors to facilitate the deployment of assistance to the population and in particular to children.
• Support the access specialist in the development of tools, approaches and lessons learned in relation to engagement with armed actors.
• Support in developing a policy and methodology for improving acceptance strategy in violent and vulnerable communities.
• Support the access advisor in meeting with partners engaged with UNICEF in humanitarian assistance and discuss principles of engagement and access.

2. Coordination (20%)

• Support secretariat for the access focal point group, supporting on meeting minutes, follow up, trainings and ensure active engagement.
• Support UNICEF sections in the implementation of their missions, activities by ensuring coordination and follow up with the field actors for access.
• Participate in technical internal and external (inter-agency) meetings and follow up on action points and decisions taken with regular feedback.

3. Project Monitoring (25%)

• Follow up on ‘access specific’ projects (including for community acceptance, engagement and CVR) aimed at strengthening access in the communities concerned.
• Support the Access Specialist to follow up on the implementation of UNICEF guidelines on engagement with armed non-state actors.
• Support in monitoring the performance of the access strategy.
• Support on the development of response plans, proposals and follow up on grants and budgets for projects on access – quick impact.

 4. Reporting (15%)

• Support in the development of drafts reports (inc. mission reports and sitreps), concept notes for operations as well as presentation.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in social sciences, conflict analysis, sociology, anthropology,
  gender, political science, negotiation, strategic management, or disciplines relevant to negotiations in
  complex environments.
  • A first university degree (Bachelor’s) complemented with two (2) additional years of relevant work experience can be
    considered in lieu of advanced university degree.
• A minimum of five (5) years of relevant professional experience in areas related to humanitarian contexts, in emergency response and /or preparedness in settings with armed non state actors, community violence reduction (CVR), and/or peacebuilding is required.
• A minimum of 5 years of experience working in the violent prone communities with demonstrated experience in the area of conflict, violence and community engagement is required.
• Work experience in a developing country context and/or familiarity with emergencies is considered.
  highly desirable, notably on access negotiations with non-state actors
• Field experience in complex, high-risk and/or conflict affected environments is required.
• In-depth knowledge of Haiti’s gang history, dynamics and regions of comparable complexity is highly desirable.
• Fluency in French and Working knowledge of English are required; Fluency in local language (Creole) is highly desirable.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (3) Drive to achieve results for impact (4) Innovates and embraces change (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (6) Thinks and acts strategically (7) Works collaboratively with others (8) Nurtures, leads and manages people.

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.
We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements. UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children.  All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. 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.

Remarks:

UNICEF’s active commitment towards diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female are encouraged to apply.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.

The successful candidate for this emergency recruitment MUST be available to commence work within 31 days of receiving an offer.