Pacific Sub-Regional Office Director and UNFPA Representative – D1

The Position:

The Sub-Regional Office (SRO) Director and UNFPA Representative has overall responsibilities for UNFPA representation, policy, programme, finance, staff and office administration in their sub-region of assignment. The sub-region of assignment is categorized as a contiguous group of countries (the Pacific) supported by sub-regional and multi-country programmes. The SRO Director and UNFPA Representative leads the sub-regional office team in the design and implementation of a population and development and sexual and reproductive health programmes. Through alliances and partnerships with governments, UN and bilateral agencies, development partners, civil society, academia and the private sector, the programmes aim to realize the 2030 Agenda in order to make a positive difference in the lives of millions of people; especially those furthest behind.

 

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled.  UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the ICPD and SDGs in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.

 

Job Purpose:

Under the guidance of the Director of the Asia & the Pacific Regional Office, they play the leading role in projecting the priorities and mandate of the organization in the sub-region. Through compelling advocacy and thought leadership, the SRO Director and UNFPA Representative effectively positions UNFPA to be the visible centre of innovation and excellence on issues of population and development, universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights, including maternal health, family planning, gender, and adolescent and youth empowerment.  Placing the ICPD issues at the centre of the overall development agenda, the SRO Director and UNFPA Representative plays a significant part in ensuring a coordinated and comprehensive engagement across the UN system, with bilateral donors and civil society, with national counterparts and other partners at the national and sub-regional levels.  The SRO Director and UNFPA Representative provides leadership for the work of UNFPA in the countries of the sub-region and at the sub-regional level, and is accountable for the UNFPA programmes and operations in the sub-region. Your ultimate accountability is to the people that you serve; the most vulnerable, excluded, or marginalized and for the causes that you serve; human rights, sustainable development and humanitarian relief.

 

You would be responsible for:

A. Strategic direction, planning and management

• Lead the positioning of UNFPA on strategic and substantive issues in the sub-region on the basis of global and regional policies and strategies;
• Lead and direct the process of scanning the environment on country and sub-regional level issues and analyzing the implications for UNFPA work and the Sub-regional Office;
• Promote UNFPA’s comparative substantive role and specific contribution in the national and sub-regional development environment and agenda, and in the changing aid environment;
• Provide overall vision, direction and management for the work of UNFPA in the sub-region;
• Establish priorities for the work of the Sub-regional Office in line with UNFPA priorities and substantive global, regional and country level priorities;
• Establish processes to ensure that policies and procedures, programming tools and mechanisms, and sound business practices are incorporated into UNFPA country and sub- regional operations;
• Establish processes to ensure that state-of-the-art knowledge incorporated into the UNFPA knowledge sharing mechanism is available for use in country and sub-regional operations; and
• Build institutional relationships with government counterparts, civil society, the private sector, the UN community, other international/national organizations, academia and bilaterals that galvanize support for UNFPA’s mandate.

B. Management of resources

• Assume overall accountability for the management and work of the Sub-regional Office;
• Propose and secure annual allocations for the sub-regional programme, and ensure the efficient and effective use of such resources in compliance with UNFPA financial rules, regulations, and procedures;
• Direct the formulation and implementation of a resource mobilization strategy for the countries and sub-region, and mobilize, in coordination with HQ and the RO, additional financial resources for the countries and sub-region;
• Develop and guide an integrated and systems approach to the work of the Sub-regional Office;
• Manage international and national staff providing them with direction and motivation; fostering empowerment, learning and career management;
• Demonstrate performance appraisal and transparent leadership approaches that support a culture of growth and development, where good performance is incentivized and underperformers are held to account;
• Attract and retain the highest calibre of staff for the sub-regional office;
• Set standards of performance, and assign responsibilities for achieving results according to the Country Office Strategic Information System;
• Establish and maintain a harmonious working environment; seek to strengthen team building by encouraging active participation and interaction at all levels; foster staff motivation, development and empowerment; and lead by example;
• Ensure the safety, security and wellbeing of staff by driving compliance with Minimum Operating Security Standards (MOSS) and Minimum Operational Residential Security Standards (MORSS);
• Ensure an ethics-based approach to management of all human and financial resources.

 

C. Programme leadership and representation

• Advise on country and sub-regional level issues to the Regional Director and senior management of UNFPA;
• Act as senior advisor for the promotion of the organization’s capacity for effective delivery, including on the development of regional and global policies, positioning, strategies, and plans;
• Provide leadership in the substantive development and execution of the organization’s country and sub-regional level policy dialogue and country programme, assessing and addressing implications of national and sub-regional trends on UNFPA’s work in the countries and the sub-region;
• Direct the process of developing strategies and plans for the implementation of the Sub-regional Programme, including for the delivery of technical assistance for capacity development and for humanitarian and emergency situations, and guide the implementation of these strategies and plans; Represent UNFPA at the country level and provide its perspective in high level national, UN, and other initiatives and events;
• Act as a leading spokesperson within the United Nations Country Teams (UNCTs) in the sub-region, promoting effective coordination on development issues with integration of population and development, sexual and reproductive health, and gender issues in the larger development agenda;
• Advocate and engage in policy dialogue for concerted action by the international community, the UN and national counterparts on issues related to sexual and reproductive health, population and development, and gender, human rights and culture, and creates awareness of the critical role of ICPD issues in the overall development agenda and the achievement of the SDGs, including in the development of CCA, UNSDCF and other national and sub-regional development frameworks;
• Liaise with and represents UNFPA before regional multilateral institutions and mechanisms in the sub-region;
• Actively promote and support participation of civil society and private sector in development process at national and sub-national levels;
• Support the Resident Coordinator (RC) system and is an active member of the UNCTs promoting inter-agency coordination and consultative processes;
• Proactively contribute to and promote the UN reform process within the country UNCT context, and inter-agency collaboration at the sub-regional level; and
• Initiate opportunities for South-South collaboration, especially for programme and technical support to countries in the sub-region.

D. Programme oversight and coordination

• Lead formulation and oversee implementation of the sub-regional programme, ensuring that they reflect country and sub-regional priorities;
• Ensure the application of results-based management and quality assurance frameworks and procedures for the work of the Sub-regional Office, including in the delivery of technical assistance;
• Ensure the application of financial and substantive monitoring processes, and the evaluation of the sub-regional programme;
• Establish processes for the incorporation of evaluation results in the work of the Sub-regional Office;
• Promote and support national execution modalities through appropriate UN, sectoral or direct budget support modalities, based on a risk-based approach;
• Establish processes to ensure the Sub-regional Office complies with Audit recommendations;
• Ensure, and is accountable for, UNFPA contribution to joint UNSDCF results.

E. Carry out any other duties as may be required by the Regional Director to whom you will report.

 

Qualifications and Experience: 

Education:  

Advanced university degree in any of the following disciplines: Public Health, Medicine, Sociology, Demography, Gender, International Relations, International Development, Economics, Public Administration, Management or other related field.
 

Knowledge and Experience: 

• 15 years of increasingly responsible professional experience in public administration and international development of which at least 10 years in the field of population and development, sexual and reproductive health or humanitarian at the international level;
• Current knowledge of issues of population and development, sexual and reproductive health, and their place in the development and humanitarian agenda;
• Proven ability to lead teams to achieve demonstrable and high-quality results;
• Experience at national and international level in advocacy and policy dialogue;
• Experience in media/communication with partners, and public information;
• Excellent communication skills;
• Experience in international development, particularly in the mandate of UNFPA and dedication to the principles of the United Nations;
• Field experience is essential; experience from a developing, humanitarian or crisis context is an asset.

Languages: 

Fluency in English is required; knowledge of other official UN languages is desirable.

 

Required Competencies: 

Values:

• Exemplifying integrity,
• Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system,
• Embracing cultural diversity,
• Embracing change

 

Core Competencies: 

• Achieving results,
• Being accountable,
• Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen,
• Thinking analytically and strategically,
• Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships,
• Communicating for impact

 Managerial Competencies:

• Providing strategic focus,
• Engaging in internal/external partners and stakeholders,
• Leading, developing and empowering people, creating a culture of performance
• Making decisions and exercising judgment

 

UN Leadership Characteristics:

• Norm-based – grounded in UN norms and standards
• Principled – defends norms and standards without discrimination, fear or favour
• Inclusive of all personnel and stakeholders
• Accountable
• Multi-dimensional
• Transformational
• Collaborative
• Self-applied – modelled in our own behaviour

 

Compensation and Benefits:

 This position offers an attractive remuneration package including a competitive net salary plus health insurance and other benefits as applicable.

UNFPA Work Environment:

UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Individuals from the LGBTQIA+ community, minority ethnic groups, indigenous populations, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA’s workforce – click here to learn more.

 

Disclaimer:

Selection and appointment may be subject to background and reference checks, medical clearance, visa issuance and other administrative requirements. 

UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process and does not concern itself with information on applicants’ bank accounts. 

Applicants for positions in the international Professional and higher categories, who hold permanent resident status in a country other than their country of nationality, may be required to renounce such status upon their appointment.

 

This is how cinfo can support you in the application process for this specific position: 

• Application preparation: Before you apply for this position: Improve your application documents by registering for a Job Application Support. Our coaches are here to help tailor your application to the requirements of the job (service provided at your own cost). 

• Interview preparation: When invited to the interview: Prepare for the interview by registering for a Job Application Support. 

• Additional services for  Swiss nationals who get invited to  the selection process (written test, interview, assessment centre, etc.): 

  • Let us know by writing to recruitment@cinfo.ch. We flag matching applications to HR partners and SDC/SECO for visibility. 

  • Benefit from free interview/assessment preparation by registering here: Interview and Assessment Centre Preparation for Jobs in Multilateral Organisations. Our coaches stand ready to help prepare for upcoming interview/assessment centre.​