Programme Manager at UN Women

United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) - 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.

More than ten years after the passage of UN Security Council resolution 1325, there is widespread concern that progress made at the normative and policy levels has not been translated into significant improvements in the lives of women and girls in conflict and post-conflict countries. Both the United Nations and the European Union have committed to closing this implementation gap. To address this, UN Women and UNICEF with funding support from the European Union, will partner in a joint programme that pilots a model for EU/UN collaboration on Women, Peace and Security matters in three states of Northern Nigeria.

UNDP is recruiting to fill the below position:

Job Title: Programme Manager

Location: Abuja

Job Description

• The Programme Manager will assume overall responsibility and prime accountability for this project. He or she reports to the Representative and is the focal point for communications and reporting to EU/UN and EU/FGN bodies through the UN.
• Under the guidance and the direct supervision of the UN Women Representative and in close collaboration with the Deputy Representative and other program and operation staff, the Program Manager is responsible for the technical management and implementation of the Programme aimed at promoting women’s participation in Peace and Security in Northern Nigeria.
• The Program Manager ensures smooth functions of the day-to-day management and oversight of the program, especially implementation and delivery of key results in timely manner and in compliance to UN Women rules and regulations.
• The Program Manager identifies new programmatic opportunities and resources for the country office and keeps the country office abreast of latest thinking, knowledge and developments in the field of gender peace and security issues at international, regional and national levels.

Duties and Responsibilities
Summary of Key Functions:

• Programme Management and Oversight;
• Technical Support and Advisory Role;
• Strategic Partnership and Representation;
• Knowledge Exchange and Information Management.

Description of Key Functions:
Day to day Program Management and Oversight:

• Manage delivery of the day to day programme activities to ensure prompt and adequate delivery of results.
• Lead the annual work plans and results framework in implementing for delivery of results for the program as well as necessary updates;
• Lead the establishment of effective monitoring system for delivery of the project results;
• Manage the timely preparation of quarterly and annual progress reports and organize monthly, quarterly and annual progress reviews, as necessary;
• Coordinate programme outputs ;
• Oversee the programe ensuring effective use of resources and compliance with UN Women rules and procedures as well as with donor or fund requirements;
• Guide, supervise and manage the performance of a team of support staff that assists the Program Manager with fulfilling these functions, including overseeing management of program files.

Technical Support and Advisory Role:

• Undertake interventions aimed at strengthening capacity of key institutions and mechanisms with the aim of promoting women’s participation in peace and security in Northern Nigeria;
• Contribute to strategic discussions on programme design, oversight and evaluation to support implementation and capture best practices and lessons learned for policy development and adjustment;
• Provide timely advice to senior management on the programmatic area of women, peace, and governance and their implications for achieving the government’s and UN Women’s gender commitments;
• Collaborate substantively with partners to ensure the integration of gender perspectives and attention to global commitments in all policies and programmes;
• Support and participate in various policy dialogues on the inclusion of women in peace building processes and their specific perspectives and needs including public policy;
• Lead the support to partners in government and civil society to conduct trainings and awareness raising efforts targeting police, traditional rulers, men and youth associations on gender and peace building;
• Review and oversee research and training materials produced in the scope of the programme;
• Identify strategic programme opportunities, approaches and modalities for strengthening gender and peace programme, in close collaboration with national development stakeholders and partners;
• Liaise with relevant UN Women thematic sections in the Regional Office and Headquarters, notably those in policy and program divisions for effective technical support, project management and quality assurance, to ensure adequate provision of services, flow of information and the project’s compliance with its obligations.

Strategic Partnership and Representation:

• Develop networks and build credible working relations with key partners in Government, UN, civil society organizations in support to peace and security programmes;
• Coordinate existing civil society platforms and networks in coordinating joint efforts and provide a space for dialogue on gender and security sector transformation initiatives;
• In coordination with senior management of the Representative, strengthen the programme’s donor relations by contributing to timely delivery of progress and annual reports;
• Develop proposals for resource mobilization towards the peace and security program portfolio in particular.
• Partner with UN system and agencies to enhance collaboration, resource mobilization and joint programming to influence agenda and priority setting on gender and peace issues;
• Ensure accurate and timely reporting to donors, working closely with the financial officer on all financial related issues and, with the support of the M&E Office and other project staff, on project activities;
• Provide secretariat services for the project’s Steering Committee, keeping up to date minutes and carrying out action plans;
• Facilitate donor participation in project activities and when necessary coordinates donor field visits to project sites.

Knowledge Exchange and Information Management:

• Develop policy briefs, analysis, knowledge generation to inform program direction and policy discussions.
• Provide regular updates and reports on progress of the programme;
• Lead the knowledge-building and knowledge sharing within the project and substantively contribute to the UN Women country office as well global and regional UN Women community of practice on peace and security;
• Ensure visibility to the programme results, through developing and contributing to knowledge products;
• Ensure that all information and knowledge regarding operational, administrative and finance issues is available as required.

Impact of Results

• The key results have an impact on the overall effectiveness of the Programme implementation and on the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of resources, knowledge management and best practices of UN Women. The key results also impact on the image of the organization and its ability to deliver on its mandate.

Competencies
Core values and Guiding principles:
Integrity:

• Demonstrating consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct.

Cultural Sensitivity/Valuing diversity:

• Demonstrating an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff.

Core Competencies
Ethics and Values:

• Promoting ethics and integrity / Creating organizational precedents.

Organizational Awareness:

• Building support and political acumen.

Developing and Empowering People / Coaching and Mentoring:

• Building staff competence, creating an environment of creativity and innovation.

Working in Teams:

• Building and promoting effective teams.

Communicating Information and Ideas:

• Creating and promoting enabling environment for open communication.

Self-management and Emotional Intelligence:

• Creating an emotionally intelligent organization.

Conflict Management / Negotiating and Resolving Disagreements:

• Leveraging conflict in the interests of the organization & setting standards.

Knowledge Sharing / Continuous Learning:

• Sharing knowledge across the organization and building a culture of knowledge sharing and learning.

Appropriate and Transparent Decision Making:

• Fair and transparent decision-making; calculated risk-taking.

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent organizational and planning skills;
• Ability to apply judgment in the context of assignments given, plan own work and manage conflicting priorities;
• Leadership, vision, ability to empower others and to manage their performance;
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in teams, delivering through and with others;
• Writing skills that include an attention to detail as well as a grasp of conceptual frameworks;
• Excellent communication, reporting and capacity building skills;
• Strong computer skills, including word processing, presentation packages (Power Point), Internet, etc.;
• Strong skills in the application of communication technologies.

Technical Competencies:

• Technical knowledge and expertise in gender, peace and security;
• Excellent level of conceptual and analytical capacity is essential;
• Excellent facilitation skills and strong technical knowledge on gender and security sector issues;
• Ability to conduct data collection and research using different methodologies;
• Sound knowledge of international standards of human rights, women’s rights and related UN resolutions on women, peace and security, including latest tools and best practices;
• Ability to explain complex issues in a simple way, to raise awareness in a participatory approach and in a consensual manner with respect for various levels of understanding, professional abilities and cultural differences.

Required Skills and Experience
Education:

• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in political sciences, international relations, human rights, legal studies or related field, with a strong expertise in gender and peace building.

Experience:

• Minimum of 10 years of relevant international experience in program management and in particular in gender, peace and security programming;
• International experience in facilitating and conducting trainings on gender mainstreaming to national security sector providers, commissions and other key peace and security institutions;
• Experience in mainstreaming gender and women’s rights into curriculum development, trainings, and in policy and program formulation of peace and security mechanisms and institutions;
• Previous work experience with international organizations, United Nations Agencies, Funds and Missions will be an asset.

Language:

• Written and oral proficiency in English is required;
• Knowledge of another UN working language is desirable .

Application Closing Date
25th November, 2014

Method of Application
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online

Click here to download the UN Women Personal History form (P-11)

Note: Candidates who previously applied need not re-apply.