VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT
Organization: UNDP
Position: Sustainable Peace and Development Advisor
Job ID: 30548
Duty Station: Kathmandu, Nepal
Grade: P5
Vacancy Type: FTA International
Posting Type: External
Bureau: Asia & the Pacific
Contract Duration: 1 Year with possibility for extension
Background
The Office of the UN Resident Coordinator (RCO) supports the Resident Coordinator (RC) and the UN Country Team (UNCT) in strategic efforts to further UN Reform in Nepal and to enhance inter-agency coordination. It also has a role in facilitating common policy making and providing advisory support on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as well political and development issues to actors in the larger development community. With current and forthcoming changes in the UN’s presence in Nepal, the role of the RCO will evolve and it will take on further responsibilities.
The Resident Coordinator’s Office provides the support, analysis and information to allow the RC to co-chair key coordination fora by identifying priorities and setting agendas. The RC can take the lead on common issues that require UNCT to speak with one voice and present a common position and/or view. On this basis, the RCO is also positioned to strengthen collaboration within and between UNCT and development partners and promote more comprehensive and multi-faceted programming and use of technical expertise. Partnerships are critical to leveraging all the interests, knowledge and resources necessary to achieve collective results.
The position of Sustainable Peace and Development Advisor (SPDA) will strengthen the capacity of UNCT and the RCO in the promotion of sustainable peace and development. Working together with UNCT, the SPDA will support an integrated programmatic approach across the UNCT in the context of SDG 16 – Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions and the overall UN Strategic Framework in Nepal.
PDAs are deployed through a partnership between the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA) and UNDP. While the RC is the main supervisor, the position retains a secondary reporting line to DPPA and the UNDP Resident Representative (RR).
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the direct supervision of the Resident Coordinator and in close collaboration with the UN Country Team, the SPDA will:
1. Provide strategic and operational support to the RC on sustainable approaches to peace and development and assist in his/her relations with high-level government officials, academia, civil society including women’s networks, and with the wider political and civic leadership.
• Build and maintain networks and relationships with stakeholders on behalf of RC and UNCT, effectively representing UN positions;
• Participate, on behalf of the RC, in relevant national fora and representing the UN system where necessary;
• Provide substantive leadership for strategic initiatives on sustaining peace, including convening on behalf of the RC dialogue processes; building skills for dialogue, negotiation and mediation for leadership at national level, especially political party leadership, including youth and women leadership within party structures, and for the relevant branches of government as deemed necessary; establishing and extending the capacities of networks of mediators and facilitators at the national and local levels; and undertaking confidence-building measures;
• Under the direction of the RC, engage with other national and international institutions and initiatives in order to promote a common approach towards supporting social cohesion, preventing violent extremism, enhancing good governance, conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and other relevant efforts, including on areas related to gendered dimensions of peacebuilding and SCR 1325. In some circumstances, these interactions may be on behalf of the RC with high-level officials;
• Provide continuous analysis and reporting on political developments and conflict dynamics to the RC, the UNCT and the regional offices and headquarters of UNDP and DPPA, with a view to identifying appropriate strategic responses for the UN system and produce monthly internal updates;
• Recommend appropriate strategic responses for the UN system, ensuring that gendered dimensions are reflected in both analysis and programming.
2. Identify areas of programmatic engagement with national stakeholders, and support to RC in the preparation of the UN response to government requests, related to building national capacity on consolidating and sustaining peace.
• Lead related peace-promoting activities such as: designing dialogue and consultation processes; building local capacity for dialogue, negotiation, mediation and reconciliation processes; support to capacities of networks of mediators and facilitators at national and local levels; strengthen women’s and youth initiatives and groups in peace processes; support confidence-building measures; organize and facilitate training and capacity-building workshops for national stakeholders at all levels;
• Lead the design and oversight of community and national-level initiatives to strengthen confidence in local development capacities, including through the promotion of local dialogue capacities for conflict resolution at local and/or national levels;
• Identify and engage civil society actors in the peace and development agenda supported by the UN.
3. Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships with key national stakeholders (at high-level, if necessary), regional and international actors and development partners.
• Liaise closely with relevant national, regional, and local stakeholders from Government and civil society and key international actors to identify entry points, foster dialogue and strengthen strategic alliances and partnerships on confidence-building initiatives;
• Maintain close liaison with relevant donors and other actors supporting UNCT’s peace consolidation efforts. In some circumstances, these interactions may be on behalf of the RC with high-level officials;
• Manage strategic partnerships and lead engagement on behalf of the RC with national stakeholders, international actors, and development partners, where applicable;
• Support efforts to mobilize resources for peace sustaining initiatives;
• Maintain close contact with relevant staff in UN Headquarters including relevant focal points at UNDP and UN/DPPA;
• Liaise closely with the Peacebuilding Support Office and the Peacebuilding Fund, particularly in countries where Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) activities are being implemented.
4. Provide strategic and technical support to UNCT members with regard to sustaining peace programming and work to strengthen their capacity to undertake context analysis, mainstream conflict sensitivity in regular programming.
• Define/implement a strategy for identifying entry points for mainstreaming of conflict prevention and conflict sensitivity in the UNCT, including within the framework of common country planning processes (UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework, Country Programme Documents, Strategic Response Plans (SRPs) etc.);
• Provide leadership and strategic guidance to UNDP’s programmatic portfolio pertaining to governance, peacebuilding, and conflict prevention;
• Support an integrated programmatic approach across the UNCT in the context of SDG 16 – Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions;
• Ensure delivery of high-value capacity development and training to UNCT staff and key national partners on conflict analysis, conflict prevention and/or conflict-sensitive development, ensuring that the gendered dimensions of conflict are adequately reflected through analysis produced and meaningfully addressed through programmatic efforts;
• Provide analytical, reporting, and strategic support to UNCT. Support the UNCT in making programmatic linkages with the analysis provided.
Competencies
Core Competencies:
Innovation
Ability to make new and useful ideas work
Level 6: Exercises stakeholder-centered design approaches for office / programme / division
Leadership
Ability to persuade others to follow
Level 6: Ensures teams are resourced for success and empowered to deliver
People Management
Ability to improve performance and satisfaction
Level 5: Models high professional standards and motivates excellence in others
Communication
Ability to listen, adapt, persuade and transform
Level 6: Creates confidence among stakeholders by delivering authoritative positions, compelling analysis, and contextual acumen
Delivery
Ability to get things done while exercising good judgement
Level 6: Accepts accountability for the outcomes of programme delivery and facilitates improvement and innovation in the delivery of products and services
Technical/Functional Competencies:
Social Cohesion
Knowledge of methods and experience of supporting communities to achieve greater inclusiveness, more civic participation and creating opportunities for upward mobility
Level 6: Integrate & Empower: Leads integral work of teams utilizing expertise, vision, problem-solving capability, and collaborative energy in professional area of expertise
Peacebuilding and Reconciliation
Ability to support peace processes to facilitate recovery and development
Level 6: Integrate & Empower: Leads integral work of teams utilizing expertise, vision, problem-solving capability, and collaborative energy in professional area of expertise
Conflict-Sensitive Programming
Ability to use methods and tools to monitor conflict triggers and determine impact of various dynamics in conflict-prone situations
Level 6: Integrate & Empower: Leads integral work of teams utilizing expertise, vision, problem-solving capability, and collaborative energy in professional area of expertise
Political Economy Analysis
Knowledge of the interaction of political and economic processes in a society; including distribution of power and wealth between groups and individuals, and the processes that create, sustain and transform these relationships over time, and how these dynamics both affect, and are affected by, UNDP’s development support
Level 6: Integrate & Empower: Leads integral work of teams utilizing expertise, vision, problem-solving capability, and collaborative energy in professional area of expertise
Knowledge Management
Ability to efficiently handle and share information and knowledge
Level 5: Originate: Catalyzes new ideas, methods, and applications to pave a path for innovation and continuous improvement in professional area of expertise
Relationship Management
Ability to engage with other parties and forge productive working relationships
Level 6: Integrate & Empower: Leads integral work of teams utilizing expertise, vision, problem-solving capability, and collaborative energy in professional area of expertise
Resource Mobilization
Ability to identify and organize programmes and projects to implement solutions and generate resources
Level 5: Originate: Catalyzes new ideas, methods, and applications to pave a path for innovation and continuous improvement in professional area of expertise
Required Skills and Experience
Education
• Advanced university degree (Master’s Degree) in political science, sociology, international relations, international economics, law, public administration, or other related social sciences
Experience
• At least 10 years of senior level experience in conflict analysis, policy, and strategy development, development and/or conflict prevention in a governmental, multilateral or civil society organization;
• Extensive experience in research and project development;
• A proven policy, advisory and advocacy experience and track record of engagement with senior levels of government, United Nations, and donors;
• Experience working within a UN agency or department and field experience would be a major asset;
• Proven experience in development programming, including good understanding of UN programming modalities, and rules and regulations;
• Experience in national and community-level conflict prevention and peacebuilding initiatives and programming;
• Excellent knowledge of and extensive experience in Asia is an advantage.
Language Requirements
• Fluent written and spoken English is required.
Last date to apply: 26 May 2020
