UNITED NATIONS OFFICE ON DRUGS AND CRIME (UNODC)

JUNIOR PROFESSIONAL OFFICER (JPO) PROGRAMME

TERMS OF REFERENCE Chiffre Nr. 2024-1-18

I. General Information

Title: JPO in Terrorism Prevention

Sector of Assignment: Terrorism Prevention

Organization: United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)

Unit: Terrorism Prevention Branch (TPB), Division for Treaty Affairs (DTA)

Duty Station: Vienna, Austria

Duration: 2 years with possibility of extension for another year. The extension of appointment is subject to yearly review concerning priorities, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.

Please note that for participants of the JPO-Programme two years work experience are mandatory! Relevant work experience can be counted. In order to assess the eligibility of the candidates, we review the relevant experience acquired after obtaining the first university degree (usually bachelor’s degree).

II. Supervision

Title of Supervisor:

Chief of Section, Implementation Support Section II

Content and methodology of supervision:

Establishment of a Work Plan: During the first month of the assignment, the JPO will work jointly with his/her direct supervisor to finalize an agreed upon work plan. The final work plan will be discussed and mutually agreed to by the JPO and his/her supervisor.

Evaluation: The United Nations Performance Evaluation System (e-performance) will serve as a primary platform to evaluate of the JPO’s performance.

Under the overall guidance of the Chief of Terrorism Prevention Branch, the JPO will work under the direct supervision of the Chief of Section, Implementation Support Section II. Supervision will entail work assignment, discussion and approval of time-bound work plan, regular guidance on how to accomplish work goals, routine review of work progress, review of all products, and periodic informal and formal assessment of performance. The JPO is encouraged to take initiatives and have a pro-active conception of his/her duties.

III. Duties, Responsibilities and Output Expectations

Within the assigned authority, the JPO will provide substantive, coordination and organizational support with the implementation of project activities for countries in Africa, aimed at strengthening the capacities of criminal justice counterparts to prevent and counter terrorism. 

The incumbent is responsible for undertaking the following duties/tasks:

• Assist with conceptualizing, planning, organizing and implementing of technical and capacity building assistance activities for Africa, aimed at strengthening the capacities of criminal justice counterparts to prevent and counter terrorism.
• Contribute to overall programme coordination, implementation and management of capacity building projects through support for the organizational, logistics, administrative, and financial aspects, including recruitment of consultants, procurement and budgetary matters; identify problems and issues to be addressed and recommend corrective actions; liaise with relevant parties; identify and track follow-up actions.
• Coordinate the participation of counterparts in online and in-person technical assistance activities, and contribute to meetings and activities with the delivery of substantive presentations and technical briefings tailored to counterparts on issues relevant to terrorism prevention.
• Participate and assist in the development, organization, coordination and preparation of workshops, seminars, training courses and special events; participate in and make presentations on assigned topics.
• Support with the development of project proposals for the countries under his/her purview, including by organizing discussions with counterparts and ensuring that each proposal is based on the stated needs of the beneficiary countries, and contributing to the preparation of project proposal narratives and budgets.
• Contribute to the drafting of relevant project reports and support project monitoring and evaluation.
• Contribute to ensuring that the work programme and the activities are carried out in coordination with other relevant entities, including UNODC regional desk, country and regional offices and other global programmes, and in liaison with relevant organizations of the United Nations system and as well as with other international/regional organizations and Member States.
• Contribute to the preparation of various written outputs, including background papers, briefing material/notes, analytical notes, sections of reports and studies, inputs to publications and, as required, official correspondence of the Section/Branch. Make presentations, as needed, on assigned topics.
• Contribute to programmatic and administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the Section, such as coordination of the preparation of the Sections’ workplans, programme monitoring and programme reporting on the work of the Section.
• Undertake travel as it may be required.
• Perform other work-related duties as required.

The JPO is expected to provide good quality, timely and effective support to the supervisors and other staff.

IV. Qualifications and Experience

Education:

Master’s degree in political science, international relations, international or criminal law or a related field is required.

Work experience:

A minimum of two years of work experience in international relations, political analysis, criminal justice and/or terrorism prevention is required; some exposure/familiarity with the United Nations or another multilateral organization is highly desirable.

Languages:

Fluency in English, i.e oral and written proficiency is required. Knowledge of French is highly desirable. Knowledge of Portuguese is desirable.

Other skills:

Knowledge of crime prevention and criminal justice issues and of programme management is desirable. Knowledge of and exposure to issues in the area of terrorism prevention and knowledge of other related areas, such as organized crime and drugs, is highly desirable.

UN competencies:

PROFESSIONALISM: Shows pride in work and in achievements; Demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; Is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; Is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; Shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; Remains calm in stressful situations.

COMMUNICATION: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; Tailors language, tone, style and format to match the audience; Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

TEAMWORK: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; Solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; Places team agenda before personal agenda; Supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; Shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

CLIENT ORIENTATION: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients ” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; Establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; Identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; Monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; Keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; Meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

V. Learning Elements

The JPO will be involved in implementing specified aspects (i.e. counter-terrorism) of the work of UNODC and will receive guidance, supervision and on the job-training on a regular basis.  Additional training opportunities may become available through participation in specialized courses in the area of work and attendance at substantive events that focus on criminal justice matters, including the organization of field missions, seminars, workshops etc. Through the assignment, the JPO will: gain improved substantive knowledge in terrorism specifically and in global crime and justice matters in general; gain direct substantive work experience in these areas; gain exposure to the overall work of the United Nations in the area of terrorism prevention and in crime prevention and criminal justice; improve skills in research and analysis, as well as in the preparation of reports and projects; gain exposure to the overall work of the United Nations in the field of development cooperation and assistance; gain some experience in programme monitoring and management; improve skills in research and analysis, in preparing policy and programme documents and in carrying out technical assistance activities in response to requests made by countries; etc.

VI. Background Information

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) is established to implement the Organization’s action against the world drug problem, global criminal activity and terrorism in an integrated manner, addressing the interrelated issues of drug control, crime prevention and international terrorism in the context of sustainable development and human security.

Through the drug control component, UNODC serves as the central drug control entity with exclusive responsibility for coordinating and providing effective leadership for all United Nations drug control activities. It acts, on behalf of the Secretary-General, in fulfilling responsibilities under the terms of international treaties and resolutions of United Nations organs relating to international drug control.

UNODC is also responsible for activities in the field of international crime prevention and control, with special focus on strengthening regional and international cooperation in preventing and combating transnational crime, in particular organized and economic crime, money laundering, illicit trafficking in women and children, financial crimes and terrorism in all its forms.  It acts on behalf of the Secretary-General in fulfilling responsibilities under the terms of international instruments, standards, norms and resolutions in this field.  It provides substantive services to the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council and committees and conferences dealing with crime and terrorism prevention matters.

The Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, a subsidiary commission of the Economic and Social Council, is the intergovernmental body that guides and oversees the work of the crime prevention component of UNODC. The Office provides legal advisory services to Member States, especially for the ratification and implementation of conventions and other international instruments; implementation of Global Project against Terrorism, Corruption, Transnational Organized Crime, Trafficking in Human Beings and Money-Laundering, which seek to develop specialized expertise in these substantive areas and to provide operational assistance to Member States through field level projects;  substantive and technical services to intergovernmental bodies for policy development; and research, analysis, inter-agency coordination, resource mobilization and promotion of civil society participation.

The organizational structure of UNODC and its function

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime is organized into four Divisions:  The Division for Treaty Affairs, the Division for Operations, the Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs and the Division for Management. The Division for Treaty Affairs has the primary responsibility for three of the five thematic clusters of UNODC, namely Organized Crime and  Illicit Trafficking, Corruption and Economic Crime, and Terrorism Prevention. Each thematic cluster is responsible for both the normative and operational aspects of the work related to their particular theme.

The Terrorism Prevention Branch (TPB) of the Division for Treaty Affairs fulfills UNODC’s mandates in the field of terrorism prevention, which is one of the five thematic clusters of UNODC. UNODC has for many years been addressing issues pertaining to international terrorism and related international cooperation. In 2002, the General Assembly approved an expanded programme of activities for the Terrorism Prevention Branch of UNODC, which also contributes to the implementation of Security Council resolution 1373 (2001). The Branch’s main focus of work is the provision of assistance to States, upon request, in the legal and related aspects of counter-terrorism, especially for ratifying and implementing the universal legal instruments against terrorism and for strengthening the capacity of the national criminal justice systems to apply the provisions of these instruments in compliance with the principles of rule of law. In addition to its technical assistance activities, the Branch’s programme of work entails the provision of substantive input on related counter-terrorism issues to intergovernmental bodies, especially the Crime Commission, the Economic and Social Council, the General Assembly and the United Nations congresses on crime prevention and criminal justice. The Branch also actively participate in the work of the Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force (CTITF) and provides specialized input for facilitating the inclusion of counter-terrorism aspects in relevant activities of other Secretariat entities, UN system organizations and external entities. 

In the 2005 World Summit Outcome, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on September 16, 2005, Heads of State and Government urged the international community to assist States in building national and regional capacity to combat terrorism. In response, the Secretary-General issued recommendations for a Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy in April 2006.  On 8 September 2006, the General Assembly adopted the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy. The Strategy makes extensive reference to the work of UNODC, particularly TPB. It encourages UNODC to enhance its technical assistance, and it encourages Member States to resort to the technical assistance delivered by UNODC.  In response to the mandates contained in the Strategy, as well as subsequent General Assembly resolutions, TPB is further reinforcing its counter-terrorism technical assistance activities, focusing increasingly on deepening the counter-terrorism capacity of countries in the legal and related areas, including with regard to several emerging challenges.

UNODC’s Global Programme on Preventing and Countering Terrorism (2022-2027) supports Member States to prevent and counter terrorism through inclusive strategies, policies, and legal means, with a focus on the safety and protection of people. This Programme, grounded in lessons learned over the course of the last twenty years, is designed to promote crime prevention and criminal justice policies and practices that respect human rights norms, build resilience from the ground up, strengthen alliances between authorities and civil society, prevent radicalization to violence, ensure accountability for crimes and justice for victims. The Programme advances the UN Secretary General’s “Our Common Agenda”, by promoting a strengthened social contract between Governments and people that is anchored in human rights, and supports solidarity, accountability, and equality. The Programme applies these core principles through its commitment to leave no one behind, and by aiming to reduce inequalities that make people more vulnerable to terrorism and its effects. It integrates preventative measures as main change enablers and focuses on empowering individuals and communities to lead fulfilling lives through reduced risks associated with terrorism. This includes the active and equal participation of women and girls and youth engagement in preventing and countering terrorism.

This Programme succeeds UNODC’s Global Programme Strengthening the Legal Regime Against Terrorism (2003-2022), through which UNODC has assisted 70 Member States per year on average and trained more than 37,000 officials in total.

The Programme pursues three outcomes, based on UN­ODC‘s core mandates related to the international legal instruments against terrorism, crime prevention and cri­minal justice:

1. Increased Member States’ adherence to, and im­plementation of, the international legal framework against terrorism.

• Adherence to the international legal instruments against terrorism
• National counter-terrorism legislation

1. Increased development and implementation of terro­rism prevention measures that are partnership-based, gender-responsive and youth-empowering.

• Research and analysis
• Evidence-based policies and strategies
• Education and awareness-raising related to peace and terrorism prevention
• Resilience to extremist narratives online
• Youth-led, socially inclusive platforms and networks
• Collaborative approaches

1. Increased effectiveness of criminal justice instituti­ons to address issues related to preventing and coun­tering terrorism, in line with international human rights obligations, and through international cooperation in cri­minal matters.

• Human rights compliant counter-terrorism measures
• Tools to improve policy and practice
• Case management
• Measures to address the links between terrorism and organized crime
• Countering the financing of terrorism
• International cooperation
• Access to justice, legal aid, and representation
• Prison and detention management to prevent violent extremism and promote rehabilitation

Further background information on the work of the UNODC/TPB is available at the UNODC’s web site (www.unodc.org).

The United Nations seeks the participation of suitably qualified female and male candidates in the area of terrorism prevention. It is urged that every effort be made to locate and nominate suitable female and male candidates for the JPO position.

Bitte senden Sie Ihre JPO-Bewerbung direkt an das Büro Führungskräfte zu Internationalen Organisationen (BFIO) unter Angabe der Chiffre Nr. 2024-1-18 auf dem Bewerbungsbogen

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