Country Programme Manager

Contract

This is a P-4 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 7 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 126,175 USD and 162,677 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.

Background

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.

In the 2030 Agenda and through the Decade of Action, member states recognized that Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women/girls would make a crucial contribution to progress across all the SDGs and that the systematic mainstreaming of a gender perspective into the implementation of the Agenda is crucial for success.

Women in Uzbekistan face a number of challenges in accessing education, employment, and health care. Gender inequality is particularly pronounced in rural areas, where traditional gender roles are stronger and women have less access to resources. Women are also disproportionately affected by poverty and the lack of economic opportunities in the country. In response to these challenges, the Government of Uzbekistan has taken a number of steps to improve the situation of women in an accelerated manner. The state has enacted laws to protect women’s rights, including the Law on the Prevention of Domestic Violence and the Law on Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women. In 2021, it adopted its Strategy for achieving gender equality in Uzbekistan until 2030 aimed at ensuring equal participation of men and women in the management of public and state affairs, provision of social and legal support to women, and protection of women from oppression and violence by promoting of legitimacy, democracy, openness, and transparency as the basic principles of gender equality. It has also launched number of practical and strategic initiatives to increase women’s access to education, health care, and economic opportunities, which also includes gender-sensitive budgeting approach, which allocates funds to projects that promote the economic and social empowerment of women. The Senate and Government took commitments to continue to invest in policies and programs that promote gender equality, such as increased access to education and employment opportunities and other areas. In addition, they prioritize increasing focus on ensuring that the legal framework is effective in protecting women and girls from violence and harassment. Finally, a special effort is placed on addressing the social and cultural barriers that prevent women from fully participating in society.

UN Women is working in partnership with the Government of Uzbekistan and the United Nations Country Team in Uzbekistan to support efforts to improve the situation of women in the country. The United Nations is providing technical assistance and support to the government on issues such as the protection of women’s rights, access to education and economic opportunities, access to health care and reproductive rights, and the elimination of gender-based violence. The United Nations is also working with civil society organizations to raise awareness about women’s rights and to provide support for the implementation of policies and programs to promote gender equality. These are provided in line with the nationally owned UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for 2021-2025 which articulates the strategic programmatic collaboration between the UN System and the Government of Uzbekistan through five Outcomes under three Strategic Priority Areas: Effective Governance and Justice for all; Inclusive Human Capital development Leading to Health, Well-being and Resilient Prosperity; and Sustainable, Climate Responsible and Resilient Development. The UNCT of Uzbekistan was entrusted to implement the Uzbekistan Vision 2030 Fund aimed at accelerating the Government of the Republic of Uzbekistan’s (the Government) national reform agenda and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in principled, transparent, and effective manner. The Fund will primarily target transformative interventions focusing on the strategic priorities identified and agreed between the Government and the UN within the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework 2021-2025 (UNSDCF) and its subsequent iterations, thus serving as an important vehicle for the UN and the Government to accelerate on the progress towards GEWE goals and commitments of Uzbekistan.

For increasing the effectiveness of the UN’s support in Uzbekistan, in 2022, the UNCT conducted the comprehensive UN System Wide Gender Equality Scorecard (UNCT-SWAP) assessment and identified the critical areas for urgent actions through systemic approach to GEWE mainstreaming, capacity building and tracking of results, including through using corporate tools and platforms as well as through more integrated systems approaches targeting behavior change among staff and partners towards GEWE.

UN Women will support the effective implementation of national and international legal frameworks on GEWE, mainstreaming gender equality into national and sectoral policies and UN-led processes and programmes and strengthening the national institutional mechanism for gender equality in line with international standards and best practices. It will provide support for enhancing coordination and monitoring of gender equality policies and measures in the short to longer-term, and securing implementation/application of gender equality legislation, policies and standards through policy dialogue, technical expertise and guidance, development and sharing of good practice, and strategic partnerships and cooperation. For this purpose, UN Women will replicate its programmatic approach being used in the region in the form of the Gender Equality Facility.

In response to the above challenge, and in line with the call for transformative agenda of Sustainable Development and based on the lessons learn from UN Women from ECA region and beyond, UN Women ECARO is considering establishing a GEWE Centre of Excellence co-hosted/hosted by Uzbekistan following other similar models established in the Republic of Korea (GEWE Training), Mexico (Gender Statistics) and Morocco (Gender Responsive Budgeting). The Center will be aimed at creating an enabling space for diverse stakeholders from government entities, academia, civil society organizations, and the private sector, UN and other international organizations to share, network and partner on transformative GEWE actions and results at the national level (further evolving as a sub-regional hub) using the concepts on leading for transformative change in a systems-thinking manner.

This will directly contribute to the fulfillment of the GA Resolution A/RES/72/279 which aims at changes in the way the UN Development System works as well as it will directly respond to the 2020 QCPR call to enhance and accelerate for GEWE, enable innovative partnership and investment for the SDGs.

Reporting to the UN Women Deputy Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, with strategic oversight from the Regional Director, the GEWE Country Programme Manager in Uzbekistan will be responsible for the strategic positioning of UN Women as a leader in Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE) in Uzbekistan, development of innovative initiatives and programs; and strengthening effective partnerships with government counterparts, UN system agencies and organizations, civil society organizations, including media, communication, cultural and private sectors and with bilateral and non-traditional donors in order to promote inter-agency partnerships, support for national GEWE priorities, mobilization of visibility and resources to advance GEWE.

Duties and Responsibilities

Functions:

Provide advisory and technical support on the UN Women strategic direction for Uzbekistan;

• Lead the design, planning, formulation, and implementation of UN Women’s country programming, in close consultation and collaboration with the government, civil society, donors, UN system partners and other national development stakeholders and partners, taking into account national priorities, the UNSDCF as well as UN Women mandate and expertise;
• Guide the UN Women Regional Director on strategic areas for GEWE related programmatic work in Uzbekistan and contribution for UN Women sub-regional strategy for Central Asia;
• Develop and implement the annual work plan;
• Provide specialized technical and strategic support in managing all aspects of the programme design and related activities ensuring compliance and accountability in programme monitoring, reporting and evaluation;
• Develop thematic initiatives, including sub-regional ones, in line with UN Women Strategic Note 2022 -2026, policy documents, briefs and other strategic papers/materials for use in the development and presentation of innovative and coherent policy and programmatic positions;
• Support UN Women RO to finalize its strategy for the engagement in Uzbekistan and programmatic work by finalizing consultations on GEWE Center of Excellence and other possible modalities for the engagement.

Represent UN Women in the UNCT an UN Gender Theme Group (GTG) and participate in other inter-agency and country coordination mechanisms

• Represent UN women in the UNCT, and other inter-agency and country level coordination mechanisms;
• Co-chair the UNGTG and extended GTG jointly with the other co-chair;
• Co-lead and co-manage the UNGTG Workplan, its implementation and regular reporting;
• Provide thought leadership and guidance to the United Nations Country Team (UNCT), UNSDCF Results Groups, GTG and other thematic groups in supporting enhanced response to national partners in advancing gender equality and women's empowerment in line with the normative agenda;
• Provide thought leadership and support to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and national authorities to promote gender equality and women empowerment activities in Uzbekistan;
• Contribute to the Common Country Assessment (CCA)/UNSDCF processes;
• Ensure that UN Women is strategically placed with the UN planning processes, joint programs and other inter-agency initiatives;
• Lead regular briefing for the international development partners/donors on GEWE priorities and opportunities for the joint work;
• Identify and support the development of UN joint programming opportunities and programmes, including specifically on GEWE;
• Provide progress reports on UN Women’s programme experiences in support of UN women inter-agency coordination role.

Lead the capacity development of the UN and Partners on GEWE

• Co-lead the elaboration, implementation, and monitoring of UNCT Gender Strategy and its action plans in collaboration with Results Groups, UNGTG and other Thematic Groups;
• Lead the development and implementation of UN capacity building strategy on GEWE;
• Provide substantive technical advice and capacity building support to the partners; develop policies, products and other technical documents as required;
• Oversee relationship building with national partners to support implementation and expansion of the work of UN Women in the country, and respond to any potential problems;
• Oversee and manage capacity building opportunities and initiatives of key institutions and mechanisms;
• Provide timely advice on programmatic areas;

Create and maintain strategic partnerships and manage resource mobilization strategies

• Establish and maintain partnerships with other UN agencies, governments, donors, civil society organizations and stakeholders;

• Build further cooperation with existing and new civil society platforms and networks in organizing joint efforts;

• Conceptualize, design and implement resource mobilization strategies;
• Plan and oversee the implementation of advocacy and awareness campaigns and fund raising events, as required.

Facilitate knowledge development and dissemination, communications and advocacy on GEWE national priorities

• Develop and facilitate a knowledge management strategy/plan
• Support to develop and implement communications/advocacy initiatives;
• Manage the process of identifying and synthesizing of best practices and lessons learned that are directly linked to the implementation of the programme and contribute to their global dissemination;
• Introduce innovation and best practices to enhance programme performance.

Key Performance Indicators

• Timely and quality implementation of country programme strategies and activities
• Timely and quality of results delivery in line with workplan
• Funds raised for new GEWE programmes/initiatives
• Partners and other stakeholder provide positive feedback on advisory and technical services
• Timely and quality of annual and donor reports
• Quality and level of engagement with UNCT, including joint planning joint programming, joint resource mobilization, joint advocacy, working groups
• Quality knowledge products
• Increased contribution and recognition of UN Women into GEWE work in Uzbekistan

Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Functional Competencies

• Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them
• Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making
• Excellent knowledge of gender equality and women's empowerment
• Strong knowledge of country and/or region
• Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation
• Ability to identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising
• Strong people management and leadership skills, ability to create a productive working environment

Required Skills and Experience

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in social sciences, human rights, gender/ women’s studies, international development, or a related field is required
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A project/programme management certification (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage
• Leading change, and innovation certification will be an asset

Experience:

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience at the national and/or international level in design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of GEWE development projects is required
• Experience in establishing inter-relationships among international organization and national governments is required
• Experience in the in the field of gender and human rights of women is required
• Experience in leading transformative and innovative development work is an asset
• Experience in administrative systems and UN system norms is an asset
• Experience in country and/or region is an asset
• Experience in leading a team is an asset

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required
• Fluency in Russian is preferred
• Knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, colour, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)