Director, Sub Regional Office - Southern Africa

Contract

This is a D-1 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 15 years of experience, depending on education. More about D-1 contracts and their salaries.

Org. Setting and Reporting ECA’s mission, objective and strategic directions.

ECA’s mission is to deliver ideas and actions for an empowered and transformed Africa; informed by the 2030 Agenda and Agenda 2063.

The mission will be guided by ECA’s five new strategic directions which are advancing ECA’s position as a premier knowledge institution that builds on its unique position and privilege to bring global solutions to the continent’s problems and take local solution to the continent; developing macroeconomic and structural policy options to accelerate economic diversification and job creation; designing and implementing innovative financing models for infrastructure, and for human, physical and social assets for a transforming Africa; contributing solutions to regional and transboundary challenges, with a focus on peace security and social inclusion as an important development nexus; advocating Africa’s position at the global level and developing regional responses as a contribution to global governance issues.

Core functions of the Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa:

The mandate of the Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa (SRO-SA) is to assist member States and regional economic communities in the subregion to promote and develop inclusive industrialization policies, national and regional plans and appropriate institutional frameworks in achieving economic development; Collaborate with regional economic communities in the subregion, namely, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) in promoting regional development agenda and priorities; Convene expert group meetings and policy dialogues and providing technical support and advisory services to member State and key stakeholders aimed at enhancing their capacity to design and implement key priority agreed initiatives relevant to the economic transformation of the subregion.

The Sub-Regional office for Southern Africa (SRO-SA) is located in Lusaka (Zambia). It is headed by a Director who reports to the Deputy Executive Secretary (Programme). Its core objective is to contribute to achieving structural transformation through inclusive industrialization aimed at sustainable economic growth and reducing poverty and inequality in the subregion.

The Sub-Regional Office for Southern Africa serves the following eleven countries: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Responsibilities Under the overall guidance and direct supervision of the Deputy Executive Secretary (Programme) and within delegated authority, the Director of the Sub-Regional Office will perform the following functions:

• Leads, supervises and carries out the work programme of the SRO under his/her responsibility, including management of the multiyear programme with relevant Regional Economic Commissions (RECs). Co-ordinates the work carried out by different work units under the SRO; provides programmatic/substantive reviews of the drafts prepared by others. •Co-ordinates and oversees the preparation of reports for presentation to intergovernmental bodies such as the inter-governmental committee of experts and the Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development and other policy-making organs, as appropriate. •Reports to intergovernmental bodies on budget/programme performance or on programmatic/ substantive issues, as appropriate, particularly those presented in biannual and/or annual reports. •Ensures that the research outputs produced by the SRO maintain high-quality standards; that reports are clear, objective and based on comprehensive data. Ensures that all outputs produced by the Sections under his/her supervision meet required standards before completion to ensure they comply with the relevant mandates and are disseminated to policy makers in the sub-region. •Prepares the work programme of the SRO, determining priorities, and allocating resources for the completion of outputs and their timely delivery. •Undertakes or oversees the programmatic/administrative tasks necessary for the functioning of the SRO, including mobilization of resources preparation of budgets, reporting on budget/programme performance, evaluation of staff performance (PAS), interviews of candidates for job openings, evaluation of candidates and preparation of inputs for results based budgeting. •Recruits staff, taking due account of geographical balance. •Manages, guides, develops and trains staff under his/her supervision. •Fosters teamwork and communication among staff in the SRO and across organizational boundaries. •Leads and supervises the organization of meetings, seminars, etc. on substantive issues. Manages the substantive preparation and organization of such meetings or seminars. •Participates in international, regional or national meetings and provides programmatic/substantive expertise on an issue, or holds programmatic/substantive and organizational discussions with representatives of other institutions. •Represents the SRO at international, regional or national meetings. •Perform other special assignments as directed by the Executive Secretary.

  Competencies Professionalism: Expert knowledge in the promotion of economic and social development, including regional integration and trade; ability to produce reports and papers on technical issues and to review and edit the work of others. Ability to apply UN rules, regulations, policies and guidelines in work situations. Demonstrated ability to provide successful delivery of economic, sectoral and social development programmes and proven networking skills in establishing collaborative working relationships with governments and relevant organizations. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations.

Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be "clients" and seeks to see things from clients' point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients' needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients' environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Leadership: Serves as a role model that other people want to follow: empowers others to translate vision into results; is proactive in developing strategies to accomplish objectives; establishes and maintains relationships with a broad range of people to understand needs and gain support; anticipates and resolves conflicts by pursuing mutually agreeable solutions; drives for change and improvements; does not accept the status quo; shows the courage to take unpopular stands. Provides leadership and takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work; demonstrates knowledge of strategies and commitment to the goal of gender balance in staffing.

Managing Performance: Delegates the appropriate responsibility, accountability and decision-making authority; Makes sure that roles, responsibilities and reporting lines are clear to each staff member; Accurately judges the amount of time and resources needed to accomplish a task and matches task to skills; Monitors progress against milestones and deadlines; Regularly discusses performance and provides feedback and coaching to staff; Encourages risk-taking and supports creativity and initiative; Actively supports the development and career aspirations of staff; Appraises performance fairly.

Education Advanced university degree (Master's degree or Doctorate) in economics, development management or related area is required. Doctorate in the specified fields is highly desirable. A first-level degree (Bachelor’s or equivalent) in the specified fields with two additional years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree. Specialization in economic sectoral development areas, such as agriculture, public administration, transport, trade and energy is desirable.

Work Experience A minimum of fifteen years of progressively responsible experience in research, design, development and implementation of economic and social development programmes is required. Experience in an international organization is required. Managerial experience is required. Experience of regional integration in the context of Africa is desirable.

Languages English and French are the working languages of the UN Secretariat. Fluency in one of the working languages of the UN Secretariat, English or French, (both oral and written) is required; knowledge of the other is desirable.

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 until the regular filling of the post. 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.

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.