Coordination and Inclusion Officer

Volunteering IT & Telecom Admin

Overview

Support disability inclusion initiatives in South Africa.

You have:

• Experience supporting disability inclusion at national and/or international level.
• Experience of 2 years or more working in the UN or other international development organization will be advantageous.
• Effective communication, networking and organizational skills and ability to work well in a team.
• Ability to work well under pressure and in response to rapidly changing needs.
• Fluency in one local language is desirable.

Contract

This is a UNV National Specialist contract. This kind of contract is known as National UN Volunteer. It is normally only for nationals. More about UNV National Specialist contracts.

At the heart of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the SDGs is the imperative to ensure no one is left and that all play their part in advancing sustainable development. In 2019, the UN Secretary-General launched the UN Disability Inclusion Strategy (UNDIS) to strengthen the system-wide inclusion of persons with disabilities. The UNDIS plays a crucial role in supporting Member States to achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, its central promise to leave no one behind, and implement the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The United Nations is driving disability inclusion through a Strategic Global Partnership to include persons with disability in the workforce. The Partnership's mission is to create a Public-Private Collaboration to train, hire, and advance persons with disabilities in the workforce across 131 countries where the UN has operations. The goals of the Partnership will be achieved by leveraging the capacity and infrastructure of the UN and creating supportive networks and platforms to generate systemic change both within the UN and more broadly with private and public sector partners. The Business Operations Strategy a common framework that brings together all UN agencies to collaborate across operations will enable and facilitate the scaling and impact of this Partnership. Key Objectives
1) The United Nations Country Team in South Africa, under the leadership of the Resident Coordinator, has been selected to participate in this initiative. Within this context, this UNV assignment will further strengthen the coordination efforts of the Resident Coordinator’s Office in developing, implementing and providing coordination support in the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework.
2) The appointed UNV will work with other staff members within the RCO under the operational guidance of the Head of the Resident Coordinator’s Office and overall leadership of the Resident Coordinator to deliver on the UN Country Team’s efforts to leave no one behind and include all in development interventions. 3) Create a collaborative partnership to advance the imperative to leave no one behind in development interventions and to include persons with disabilities in the workforce within the UN in South Africa and broadly to realise their rights in line with the goals in the 2030 Agenda and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 131 countries where the UN has operations.
4) Leverage the UN’s operations, institutional frameworks, infrastructure, and network to include persons with disabilities in the workforce and programming in South Africa.

The Disability Inclusion Officer will work within the RCO team and perform the following tasks within the delegated authority and under the supervision of the Resident Coordinator or her designated mandated representative(s);

• Support RCO in convening and coordinating meetings, as delegated; • Support coordination of various UN entities and national stakeholders to ensure they meaningfully participate in the project; • Work with Results Groups to support the mainstreaming of UN inclusive and leave no one behind programming principles into the Joint Work Plans; • Liaise with and support organizations of persons with disabilities in planning and achieving their advocacy targets in accordance with the Cooperation Framework and the National Development Plan (NDP); • Coordinate and support assessment of the inclusivity of the UN ICT, HR recruitment processes and physical accessibility of the UN house; • Facilitate capacity building of the UN staff on disability mainstreaming and targeting persons with disability in programming; • Facilitate awareness and training on how persons with disabilities could access ICT, procurement, employment opportunities within the UN system; • Ensure that the South Africa Global Partnership for persons with disabilities project plan is developed and routinely updated as required; • Support course correction and project improvement based on identified needs; • Support quality assurance of all performance and programme information received from UN agencies. • Support preparation of project quarterly reports outlining status of implementation of activities and monthly progress reports to UNCT; • Work with UN Communications Group to develop relevant and informative communications products; • Support secretariat functions of the RCO as delegated.

Results/expected outputs: • As an active RCO team member, efficient, timely, responsive, client-friendly and high-quality support rendered to RCO South Africa and its beneficiaries in the accomplishment of her/his functions, including:
o Programme Planning and Performance Reporting
o Partnership Building
o Policy Analysis o Coordination
• A final statement of achievements towards volunteerism for peace and development during the assignment, such as reporting on the number of volunteers mobilized, activities participated in, and capacities developed.

Professionalism; Integrity; Teamwork and respect for diversity; Commitment to continuous learning; Planning and organizing; Effective organizational and problem-solving; Ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; Ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; Ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities; Communication; Flexibility; Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity and self-reliance; and commitment towards [The RCO’s mission and vision, as well as to the UN Core Values;

• Experience supporting disability inclusion at national and/or international level. • Experience of 2 years or more working in the UN or other international development organization will be advantageous; • Experience in multi-stakeholder co-ordination and facilitation is highly desirable; • Effective communication, networking and organizational skills and ability to work well in a team; • Ability to work well under pressure and in response to rapidly changing needs;
• Excellent oral and written skills; excellent English drafting, formulation, reporting skills; • Accuracy and professionalism in document production and editing; • Excellent interpersonal skills; culturally and socially sensitive; ability to work inclusively and collaboratively with a range of partners, including grassroots community members, religious and youth organizations, and authorities at different levels; familiarity with tools and approaches of communications for development; • Ability to work and adapt professionally and effectively in a challenging environment; ability to work effectively in a multicultural team of international and national personnel; • Solid overall computer literacy, including proficiency in various MS Office applications (Excel, Word, etc.) and email/internet; familiarity with database management; and office technology equipment; • Self-motivated, ability to work with minimum supervision; • Ability to work with tight deadlines; • Fluency in one local language is desirable.

Bigger cities in South Africa can be highly cosmopolitan. In Johannesburg and Pretoria, you will find an abundance of world-class gyms, restaurants, bars, recreational classes, galleries, parks etc. The bigger shopping malls host a large selection of international brands. There is a plethora of international cuisine to be sampled and quirky independent cinemas to be discovered. OR Tambo International Airport is a world-class airport offering highly sophisticated facilities. It is located just outside of Johannesburg, in Kempton Park. Many international airlines fly to this airport. Crime rates in South Africa are ranked on the high end; petty theft and opportunistic crimes are common, and armed robberies, smash & grabs, and hijackings are also fairly frequent in certain areas. One needs to remain vigilant, especially at night and at road intersections. There are usually signposts that indicate such hot spots. Periodic security information updates are sent via email providing information at national level, with regards to circumstances such as incidents of civil unrest, transport security, computer and networking safety and trends in criminality. UNDSS sends weekly security updates via email. Updates from wardens are ad hoc following security-related events in your residential area. Updates from UNDSS are provided weekly. As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her housing and other living essentials.

UN Volunteers receive the below entitlements: • A Monthly Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA): R22,926.08 per month; • A once-off entry lump sum of $400 at the start of the assignment; • Medical insurance; Life cover, and annual leave; • Access to all learning platforms; • A once-off exit lump sum at the end of the assignment.

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Potential interview questions

Added 1 year ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: unv.org