Archives Assistants - 4 Positions

Result of Service Appraised and processed UN-Habitat Archives to support knowledge reuse, and authorized disposal of records with no enduring value to free storage space.

Work Location Kenya

Expected duration 4 months

Duties and Responsibilities Background

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is the agency for human settlements. It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities with the goal of providing adequate shelter for all.

UN-Habitat’s institutional archives and historical audiovisual collections are a record of the Agency’s mission in promoting socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all. The collections contain evidence of over 45 years of work, and tell the story of the ideas and actions, the programs and projects, and the efforts undertaken to fulfil that mission. The Agency currently have an approximate 2,935 Archives boxes of legacy records stored and a further 4,947 Archives boxes stored in the Archives space of NOF 4 basement, making an overall 7,882 boxes and 62,951 Audio Visual material comprising of VHS, Video CDs, still photographs, U-Matic and Reel to Reel tapes stored in the basement of NOF 4 Archives. The records stored at the attic are mainly from UN-Habitat projects and due to their substantive nature may have long retention period based on the value. An assessment of the said records was made based on the categories, series and lists (see attached)

The proposed legacy records appraisal will go through phases of appraisal and processing followed by archival descriptions, applying International descriptive standards, (ISAD)G, indexing for easy retrieval and development of finding aids for easy access. The first phase was carried out in 2011 with the records currently in the Attic awaiting a second review appraisal and disposal action. This process will result in making the Archives from projects digitized and available for knowledge reuse.

The current staffing levels in Information Management is not adequate to undertake the appraisal and processing of the appraised records tasks due to the large quantity of records which still need to be physically assessed to determine their value, retention period and the recommended disposal action. The said files dates back to the inception of UN-HABITAT and were created when there was no Records Management programme in place.

Purpose: Assist with the appraisal of legacy records and other UN-HABITAT non - current records to establish their Archival or enduring value as guided by Information Management Staff Process the same according to the established records groups or series and carry out the recommended disposal action.

Responsibilities The post is located at the Knowledge and Innovation Branch of External Relations Knowledge and Innovation

Terms of Reference Archives Assistant G4 Post

Under the overall supervision of Head, IMU , and guidance of developed Appraisal guidelines the incumbent will perform the following duties.

1 Appraise the legacy records and other non - current UN-HABITAT records to determine their evidential value and/or informational value as guided by staff in the unit. 2 Process the appraised records according to the established criteria ie series/records group. 3 Arrange the archives according to the identified records series or established record groups. 4 List the records recommended for destruction and implement the records disposal action 5 Enter the information regarding the archived records

Qualifications/special skills Completed secondary education, high school, or equivalent diploma is required. Training in Archives and Records management/ Information Management course is required. Additional technical training is an added advantage. At least five years of practical experience in Archives Administration with emphasize on records appraisal.

Languages English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is an advantage.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.