Fixed Term: Programme Specialist (Executive Office), P-3, Islamabad, Pakistan

Contract

This is a P-3 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 5 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 108,017 USD and 141,440 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.

UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfill their potential.

Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone.

And we never give up.

For every child, Commitment!

Pakistan was the sixth country in the world to sign and ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, less than one year after it was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. However, children and adolescents living in Pakistan still face acute challenges.

UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan to accelerate progress for children, work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and help children realize their rights under the Convention on the Rights of Children. This will be made through, among other things, strong partnerships with provincial authorities, teachers and health professionals, frontline workers and social mobilisers, communities and families, and of course the children and adolescents themselves.

In particular, UNICEF will work so that:

• Every child survives and thrives -- being in good health, immunized, protected from polio and accessing nutritious food.
• Every child learns.
• Every child is protected from violence and exploitation and registered at birth.
• Every child lives in a safe and clean environment, with access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.

To learn more about UNICEF work in Pakistan, please visit the country website www.unicef.org/pakistan and videos on YouTube and Vimeo

Under the guidance of the supervisor, accountable for programme, planning, design, implementation and administration of specific projects within a major programme, in accordance with the Country Programme Recommendation and Country Programme Management Plan, focused on achievement of UNICEF's Priorities.

To make a difference, the incumbent shall be responsible for following key strategic functions, accountabilities and related duties/ tasks;

1. Planning, Monitoring and Coordination

• Maintain routine collaboration with the various levels of the County Office to facilitate key coordination endeavors between senior management of the CO, Regional Office, Headquarters, and other country offices to ensure effective and accelerated program delivery and support the Representative in the follow up and actions required for UNICEF led areas with expected actions and results.
• Follow-up on policies and instructions presented by the Representative. Keep the Representative aware of developments in UNICEF’s major world-wide operations and of policy issues related directly to UNICEF or to humanitarian issues under the broader UN system.
• Assist the Representative in drafting regular information notes to the Executive Director that provide briefings on areas of concern to UNICEF and that propose areas where action by the Executive Office would further the objectives of the Office and contribute to coordinating drafts of position papers and other documents relevant to the activities of the office.
• Support the Representative by ensuring and maintaining efficient and smooth liaison with the UN Country and Humanitarian Teams (UNCT & UNHCT), the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator’s Office and other UN agencies when needed and keep the Representative timely informed of issues under his/her responsibilities as UNICEF Representative and when acting in charge.
• Coordinate the Representative’s office in all critical aspects of work in close collaboration with the Deputy Representative, the Deputy Representative Operations and Chief of Polio Section.
• Support Country Office, in close coordination with the Operations Manager/Internal Controls, the follow ups on risk and control self-assessment, quality assurance on operational and programmatic issues with a structured and systematic process for the assessment of risks to the achievement of an office’s objectives and planned results, and the incorporation of actions to manage those risks into workplans and work processes;
• Develop, introduce, and maintain workflows and tools to streamline the high volume of work of the representative’s office and to enable proactive and strategic identification of priority actions. Priorities issues for the representative including planning, coordination, and quality assurance.
• Undertake special assignments (including coordination of high-level missions), as directed by the Representative in close collaboration with the Deputy Representatives Programme and Operations, Chief of Field Operations and Chief Communication.
• Support the contribution of the Representative to the regional coordination mechanisms established by the Regional Office. Act as focal point in the Office of the Representative for the interaction with the RC/HC Office and the OHCHR team.
• Support the Representative in the review, oversight and support towards the implementation of UNICEF overall programmes, advocacy and outreach.
• Support the Representative in ensuring within the office an immediate and effective follow-up of the Internal and External Audit recommendations.

2. High-level Advocacy and Resource Mobilization

• Working closely with the Partnership Team, support the high-level advocacy engagement of the Representative and translate his/her policy reform intents, direction, and actions on influencing the humanitarian space and fostering management priorities within the emergency-related benchmarks.
• Ensure that adequate and context-sensitive actions are taken into account to inform the advocacy strategy of the Representative (UNICEF’s core mandate, strengthening of humanitarian space, effective humanitarian diplomacy and resources mobilization)
• Contribute to the analysis of country level socio-political-economic trends (including fore sighting) and produce early warning briefs on program impacts
• Prepare, participate and report on the advocacy activities of the Representative
• In close collaboration with Resource Mobilization team, support Rep engagement with major donors, including reviewing briefing notes, talking points, presentations, and advocacy briefs, as well as supporting organization of donor field visits.
• As needed, assist the Resource Mobilization and Private Sector Partnership team in translating the strategic directions and reporting asks of the Representative in regular/or ad-hoc performance monitoring reports

3. Administrative and Management Support

• Establish and maintain effective procedures to manage and coordinate the Office of the Representative.
• Assist in the preparation, conduct and reporting of governance mechanisms of PCO (SMT, CMT, EMT)
• As needed, draft strategic correspondence, perform data analysis, and compile documentation and reference data as required by the strategic priorities set forth by the Representative
• Manage in consultation with the Executive Officer the schedule and calendar of the Representative. Arrange and prepare meetings and invitations involving the Representative with senior leadership of the UN, the Government, civil society, NGO partners, and public/private donors
• Undertake field visits with the Representative as needed and follow up on corrective or adjustment measures decided by the Representative.
• Contribute to CO compliance with internal policies and processes, including the preparation to audit exercise in close collaboration with Operations unit. Support the Annual Risk Assessment (ARA) exercise of the CO as per guideline, as well as the annual review process of the Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and Programme Criticality (PC).
• Carry out special assignments including networking initiatives, cluster management, oversight of special high-impact projects of the Representative and background research on selected topics
• Identify opportunities for strategic engagement that may enhance the core results of the Representative and PCO as a whole.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree (Master’s or higher) in An advanced university degree is required in International Relations, Political Science, Public Administration, or another relevant technical field. *A first University Degree in a relevant field combined with 2 additional years of professional experience may be accepted in lieu of an Advanced University Degree.
• A minimum of five years of relevant professional work experience in external relations, public affairs or international development cooperation, preferably within the UN, or in a government institution, NGO.
• Prior experience of working in coordination, planning, or in an executive office will be an asset as well as experience in the ROSA region and one of the core programmatic areas of UNICEF (Education, Child Protection, Health & Nutrition, WASH or Social Policy)
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships (2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (3) Drive to achieve results for impact (4) Innovates and embraces change (5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (6) Thinks and acts strategically (7) Works collaboratively with others.

During the recruitment process, we test candidates following the competency framework. Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels: competency framework here.

Life at UNICEF

Working at UNICEF is highly rewarding. With an attractive remuneration package encompassing competitive pay and benefits, a culture that helps staff thrive, and diverse opportunities for personal and professional development, we aim to help you maintain a fulfilling life both at and outside the office.

We make sure you and your loved ones receive the resources and care that you need to thrive. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. Our contracts, wellbeing policies, and initiatives ensure that you are well equipped to deliver for children such as effectively;

• Tax exemption, family allowances, hardship benefits, 10 UN holidays and annual leave allowance, maternity, paternity, adoption leave, medical and dental insurance, pension, etc.
• Career support, staff wellbeing program, breastfeeding policy, flexible work arrangements, childcare room, family support, policies & initiatives, security etc.
• UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF is here to serve the world's most disadvantaged children, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to including everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to including everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children.

Remarks:

• Verified educational Degrees are a pre-requisite for employment at UNICEF. During the recruitment process, candidates will be required to present verified degrees/ equivalence certificates.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process.
• UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments are also subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.
• Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.
• UNICEF's active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to delivering the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female candidates will be prioritized.