Programme Management Specialist, Gender and Security Sector

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

In East and Southern Africa Region (ESARO), UN Women works to advance the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, through cultivating an enabling policy environment conducive to the realization of UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 at both regional and national levels through providing comprehensive policy, programmatic, and coordination support to various stakeholders, including Regional Economic Commissions & Regional Mechanisms, Member States, security organs, women’s rights organizations, and other key actors.

In 2023, UN Women and UNODC formalized a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), that aims to promote gender equality and meeting the specific needs of women and girls when addressing the world drug problem; implementing the Women, Peace, and Security agenda; countering sexual and gender-based violence, organized crime, corruption and terrorism; strengthening crime prevention and building effective criminal justice systems, including in Eastern Africa. In response, UN Women ESARO is partnering with UNODC Regional Office in Eastern Africa under a project tiled: Empowering Every Badge to support the Eastern Africa Police Chiefs Cooperation Organization (EAPCCO) in achieving greater gender equality and empowerment of women in preventing and countering transnational organized crime, sexual and gender-based violence, terrorism, and violent extremism.

Reporting to the Policy Specialist on Women, Peace and Security, the Programme Management Specialist is responsible for planning, implementing, and managing UN Women interventions under this joint initiative between UN Women and UNODC. She/he works in close collaboration with the UN Women programme and operations team in the ESARO, and HQ (New York), Government officials of EAPPCO Member States, multi- and bi-lateral donors, and civil society, ensuring successful UN Women programme implementation under their portfolio.

Duties and Responsibilities

Manage project implementation for the Regional Office based on the Empowering Every Badge Project:

• Responsible for planning, implementing, and managing UN Women interventions under this joint initiative between UN Women and UNODC;
• Guide the development of the RO programme, specifically the joint UNODC and UN Women project and provide technical support to the design and formulation of project initiatives;
• Review and provide feedback to project strategies and documents, workplans, case studies and related knowledge products and publications, as needed;
• Provide technical advice on the development of systems, processes, and mechanisms to support project planning, implementation, monitoring and progress reporting;
• Review and oversee the preparation of donor/implementing partner reports;
• Draft policy documents, briefs and other strategic papers/ materials for the use in the development and presentation of policy and programmatic positions in relation to the aforementioned project.

Provide technical support to the implementation of the Empowering Every Badge Project:

• Review project annual work plans to ensure compliance with UN Women programme goals and results-based indicators;
• Analyze and ensure alignment of project budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans;
• Draft reports on activities, outputs, and outcomes; and compile information in preparations of country office donor and UN Women reports;
• Analyze and ensure alignment of project budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans;
• Manage programme quality control and identification of potential challenges;
• Align project activities with operations team in close liaison with Operations Managers;
• Build and manage relationships with national partners, as necessary.

Manage the monitoring and reporting for the Empowering Every Badge Project:

• Manage the monitoring of programme/ project implementation and finances using results-based management tools.
• Oversee field missions and review reports on monitoring missions;
• Write quarterly reports and donor reports, focusing on results, output, and outcomes;
• Contribute to office donor and UN Women reports on the joint UNODC and UN Women project;

Oversee and guide people and budget management for the programme team:

• Monitor and analyze financial situation on the project portfolio to ensure adherence to delivery rates and utilization of resources to meet agreed upon targets and results;
• Ensure effective information flow, communication, and coordination across the office, between programmes, projects, and operations, and with other UN Women offices and units.

Build partnerships and provide support in developing resource mobilization strategies:

• Develop and implement partnerships and resource mobilization strategies for the joint UNODC and UN Women initiatives;
• Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing;
• Determine programmatic areas of cooperation, based on strategic goals of UN Women Regional Office.

Manage knowledge building efforts:

• Develop and review background documents, briefs and presentations related to the project;
• Represent UN Women in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to Women, Peace and Security and as necessary;
• Develop advocacy strategies and oversee their implementation as part of the joint UNODC and UN Women project;
• Identify best practices and lessons learned to guide programme improvement and strategy planning;
• Develop knowledge management strategies, products, and methodologies on the joint UNODC and UN Women project;

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Women Peace and Security Programme.

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness on Women, Peace and Security Agenda
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies:  

Functional Competencies:

• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and reporting skills;
• Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them;
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Strong analytical skills;
• Strong knowledge of Results Based Management;
• Good knowledge of UN programme management Systems.

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Political Science, Development, Public Administration, Gender is required;
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Experience: 

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development projects;
• Technical experience in gender mainstreaming in criminal justice, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), violent extremism and terrorism and women, peace and security is required;
• Experience working with and coordinating regional cooperation mechanisms is required;
• Experience working with UN systems is desirable;
• Experience in leading teams effectively is desirable.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Knowlege of another official UN language is desireable (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, or Spanish).

All applications must include (as an attachment) a completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from 

Please note that the system will only allow one attachment and candidates are required to include in the P-11 form links for their previously published reports and articles completed within the last two years. Applications without the completed and signed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

Notes:

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (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.