Country Programme Manager

Overview

Oversee UN-Habitat programs and represent in Afghanistan.

You have:

• Advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in architecture, civil engineering, urban and regional planning, economics or physical sciences relevant to development and management of human settlements.
• A minimum of 10 years of experience in human settlements or urbanization issues at national level including at least seven years of similar experience at the international level especially in fragile countries is required.
• Proven experience in human settlements development fields, projects/programme design and implementation with the UN or other international agencies is desirable.
• Full proficiency in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, email and internet is required.
• Fluency in English (both oral and written) is required; knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage and knowledge of Dari or Pashto is an added advantage.

Contract

This is a P-5 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 10 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 152,334 USD and 190,909 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

Org. Setting and Reporting The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is the agency for the United Nations dedicated to promoting socially and environmentally sustainable development of human settlements in an urbanizing world, with the goal of providing safer human settlements.

UN-Habitat is serving the people of Afghanistan over two decades and is now revamping its interventions for seamless recovery of the current crisis. The country is facing multiple crises such as COVID-19, the Climatic Impact of drought and floods, and rapidly increasing poverty and food insecurity. Since August 2021 and given the increasing numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs), the operational and programmatic context for the UN system in Afghanistan has changed significantly. The level of programmatic and institutional risk is much higher. The provision of basic humanitarian needs and preserving livelihoods are critical for reducing the rapidly growing demand for humanitarian aid and emergency relief. The gradual progress that has been made over the last 20 years including gains in human rights, education, gender equality, health, social protection, and livelihoods are at risk of being lost, especially for women and other vulnerable groups. These factors not only impact the economy, human security, and social cohesion, but are also potential drivers of further conflict and violent extremism. Learning from the experience in the last 30 years, and recognizing the realities of the current context, the UN-Habitat in Afghanistan has outlined the need for an integrated, innovative and highly agile approach, one that puts people first, targets the most vulnerable and meets local needs by focusing on saving livelihoods in its roadmap to recovery. It is working closely with several partners, bilateral donor governments and with the support from two major UN initiatives, namely Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund (AHF), and the Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (STFA) under UN’s umbrella Transitional Engagement Framework (TEF) for Afghanistan.

In the past, international actors have supported the Afghanistan to build the hard and soft infrastructure of Afghan cities. This approach is no longer possible, given the geopolitical context associated with the power transition of August 2021. Hence, UN-Habitat is currently advocating a community-centered and a community driven approach, called as ‘People’s Process’. These concepts have been used as a basis when Afghanistan designed National Solidarity Programme in 2004 and Citizen Charter Programme in 2015 with support from the World Bank and they left excellent platforms like CDCs with capacity and delivery systems in place across Afghanistan.

Given the uncertain governance systems currently in place, building on these community platforms is more important than ever to deliver aid to at-risk Afghans- through cash-for-work programs, community infrastructure development and livelihoods support, UN-Habitat has developed recovery road map with three objectives a) promoting urgent humanitarian support for settlements that provide lifesaving b) protecting Peace and Security to sustain essential services; and preserve social investments and community level c) preserving development gains and systemic collapse.

To represent and oversee UN-Habitat program and projects, UN-Habitat is looking for a senior development professional as Country Programme Manager who will work under the direct supervision of the Senior Human Settlements Officer and with additional reporting to and Director of the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP) and with close consultation with UN-Habitat Emergency Director and UN Resident Coordinator, Afghanistan. He/she will be responsible for the following:

Responsibilities Representation of the Organization

• Represent UN-Habitat at UN country team meetings, UN coordinated meetings with De-facto authorities and at various other forums and ensure garnering of support to the mandate and to the programmes of UN-Habitat in Afghanistan.
• Serve as an effective spokesperson and establish collaboration and partnerships with other UN agencies for issue-based coalitions. Identify strategic areas of partnership with diverse stakeholders and find creative and innovative solutions to humanitarian and peace nexus challenges while appreciating political sensitivities.
• Lead UN-Habitat Afghanistan as Senior Programme Management Officer, Human Settlements in developing, implementing and evaluating programmes/projects, and
• Represent UN-Habitat in bilateral and joint meetings/consultations with donors and, UN agencies and joint programme partners for purposes of resource mobilization to advance UN-Habitat’s mandate in Afghanistan.

Programme Management

• Supervise and provide technical and management support to Settlements in Crisis analysis, needs assessments and other activities, participate in advisory missions to carry out high level consultations and other activities aimed at development of human settlements policies, strategies and programmes.
• Coordinate project development, review the assessments of issues and trends, prepare evaluations and studies and contribute to wider knowledge management initiatives within the organization (regional offices/excellence centres/HQ) and to external stakeholders.
• Ensure coherence amongst various projects and between programmes, by guiding respective programme/project managers and their teams to share common sets of strategic principles (some of which will be derived from UN-Habitat’s normative work) and performance standards.
• Review progress made, challenges encountered and concerns identified for four purposes: (i) to ensure that all projects are achieving their set targets, (ii) to promote synergy across the projects/programmes in terms of lessons learned (iii) maintaining coherence in implementation (especially where projects share a common geographical area), and (iv) to report periodically to ROAP.
• Ensure implementation of gender mainstreaming guidelines by assessing the implications for men, women, youth and children of any planned action, including legislation, policies or programmes, in all areas and at all levels.
• Supervise preparation of various written outputs, e.g. background papers, analysis, reports, studies and inputs to publications etc.
• Coordinate activities related to budget and funding (programme/project preparation and submissions, progress reports, financial statements, etc.) and ensure preparation of related documents/reports (pledging, work programme, programme budget, etc.).
• Develop and supervise the execution of priority projects and programs in a cost effective and efficient manner to meet the expectations of partner governments, UN SRSG office and the organization.

• Performing any other duties and responsibilities assign to him/her by the supervisor on behalf of the organization

  Competencies - Professionalism: Knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts and approaches relevant to all sectors, functional areas or other specialized fields. Ability to identify issues and then analyze and participate in their resolution. Ability to conduct data collection exercises using various methods. Conceptual, analytical and evaluative skills to conduct independent research and analysis, including familiarity with and experience in the use of various research sources, electronic sources on the internet, intranet and other databases. Ability to apply judgment in the context of assignments given, plan own work and manage conflicting priorities. Show pride in work and achievements, demonstrate professional competence and mastery of subject matter; be conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observe deadlines and achieve results, be motivated by professional rather than personal concerns, show persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges and remain calm in stressful situations.

• Teamwork: Work collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicit input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; be willing to learn from others; place team agenda before personal agenda; support and act in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; share credit for team accomplishments and accept joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

• Planning & Organizing: Develop clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identify priority activities and assignments; adjust priorities as required; allocate appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresee risks and allow for contingencies when planning; monitor and adjust plans and actions as necessary; use time efficiently.

• Leadership: Serve as a role model that other people want to follow: empower others to translate vision into results; be proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; establish and maintain relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipate and resolve conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; drive for change and improvements; not accept the status quo; show the courage to take unpopular stands. Provide leadership and take responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrate knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

• Managing Performance: Delegate the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; make sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; accurately judge the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and match task to skills; monitor progress against milestones and deadlines; regularly discuss performance and provide feedback and coaching to staff; encourage risk-taking and support creativity and initiative; actively support the development and career aspirations of staff; appraise performance fairly.

  Education Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in architecture, civil engineering, urban and regional planning, economics or physical sciences relevant to development and management of human settlements. A first level university degree in combination with 7 additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

  Work Experience A minimum of 10 years of experience in human settlements or urbanization issues at national level including at least seven years of similar experience at the international level especially in fragile countries is required.

  Proven experience in human settlements development fields, projects/programme design and implementation with the UN or other international agencies is desirable.

  Knowledge of technical cooperation and development issues is required. Full proficiency in Word, Excel, Power Point, email and internet is required. settlements?

  Experience with other relevant software and UN applications e.g. internal databases is desirable.

  The ability to think creatively, work in a team, and perform under challenging circumstances is crucial.

  Languages English and French are the working languages of the UN Secretariat. For this post fluency in English (both oral and written) is required; knowledge of another UN official language is an advantage and knowledge of Dari or Pashto is an added advantage.

  Assessment Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

  Special Notice - This position is temporarily available for 364 days. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment.

• While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post.

• Subject to the funding source of the position, the eligibility for this temporary job opening may be limited to candidates based at the duty station.

• This temporary job opening may be limited to “internal candidates,” who have been recruited through a competitive examination administered according to staff rule 4.16 or staff selection process including the review of a central review body established according to staff rule 4.15.

• Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply.Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.

• Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as "retirement." Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

  United Nations Considerations According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

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.

Potential interview questions