Junior Officer

Contract

This is a UNV International Youth contract. This kind of contract is known as International UN Volunteer. It is normally internationally recruited only. More about UNV International Youth contracts.

Supporting the Multi-Country Office’s (MCO) work plan and delivery, the UNV will get exposure to and support a range of rural development initiatives. This includes close collaboration with the borrowing governments and their line ministries, the project management teams in country implementing IFAD-supported projects and programmes, rural producers and their organizations, national and international partners and donor organizations, senior technical specialists and IFAD colleagues from several departments and their technical wings. The UNV will have the opportunity to closely work on a few projects and/or country strategic work, and in addition get wide exposure to the work of the MCO as a whole. The UNV will also be engaged in monitoring and evaluation work as well as knowledge management activities to support evidence-based decision-making in the Multi Country Office and the projects support from here, as well as contribute to knowledge generation and dissemination. The UNV will be able to participate in selected IFAD-internal events, such as the East and Southern Africa (ESA) regional workshop and potential workshops in other in-country offices or elsewhere.

The UNV will have the opportunity to travel to several countries in the region, participating in implementation support, supervision and project design mission. 1. Monitoring and Evaluation of IFAD-financed projects and programmes; 2. Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing.

Under the direct supervision of The Country Representative, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:

1. Monitoring and Evaluation • Review country programmes Annual Work Plan and Budgets (AWPBs) & Procurement Plans (PPs) and provide inputs to the Country Director (CD) and country teams; • Monitor execution of Country Programme implementation and compliance to key performance indicators/parameters; • Monitor the Country Programme Performance on their Log-frames and update the IFAD monitoring systems – Operational Results Management System (ORMS) accordingly; • Periodically review and monitor the performance of Country Programme Monitoring & Evaluation System in line with national and IFAD monitoring and evaluation requirements; • Contribute to country project/programme's design, and reviews including annual and midterm review; • Contribute to Country Strategic Opportunities Programme (COSOP) preparation and review and monitor performance; • Support compliance of projects and country programme's with IFAD corporate level policies in food security in ORMS, Annual reviews, COSOP Review, Mid Term Re-views (MTRs), etc.; • Monitor implementation status of project/programme's supervision recommendations; • Monitor programmes’ compliance to key deadlines, which may include meeting deadlines to recommendations of supervision missions, submission of key reports (annual and audit reports); • Support the documentation, packaging and dissemination of lessons learnt; • Periodically draft portfolio score cards and country performance sheet based on COSOP indicators.

2. Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing: • Support the development and implementation of the MCO’s knowledge management strategy; • Provide support to the Project Implementation Units in defining and implementing projects knowledge management plans; • Work closely with colleagues in the Strategy and Knowledge Department to organize learning events and technical exchanges within the MCO and the broader East and Southern Africa Division; • Coordinate and promote K&M activities and exchanges between the East and South-ern Africa Division, the SA Multi-country office and the in country Offices; • Identify opportunities for partnership development with centers of excellence and other development partners; • Help distil key information on lessons from implementation that will help improve IFAD’s future programming and designs; • Support the development and delivery of trainings for the operations/projects staff together with relevant IFAD’s departments and divisions; • Assist with the development of material on best practices in programme management; • Provide contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice.

3. Portfolio support: • Support the overall country portfolio of IFAD in South Africa, Lesotho, Eswatini, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Namibia and the countries pertaining to the MCO; • Follow-up on supervision/implementation of missions’ agreed actions, planning of review meetings and engage around mission preparation and other key deliverables; • Portfolio monitoring and reporting - Focus on monitoring and reporting by working closely with the projects and monitoring teams to ensure timely reporting, adequate quality of ME data, and promote the use of ME in knowledge and communication; • Communication and Knowledge – Support the IFAD country team in aspects of communication and knowledge sharing by working with IFAD in-house COM and Knowledge teams and assist projects with compiling high-quality knowledge products; • Mission preparation and participation – Assist the respective team leaders in preparing IFAD missions and lead on the monitoring and Knowledge aspects. • Product development /Branding support – Support project branding and product development and where appropriate, including webpages, advertising materials, social media presence but in close collaboration with IFAD COM where required.

Accountability; Adaptability and Flexibility; Building Trust; Client Orientation; Commitment and Motivation; Commitment to Continuous Learning; Communication; Creativity; Empowering Others; Ethics and Values; Integrity; Judgement and Decision-making; Knowledge Sharing; Leadership; Managing Performance; Planning and Organizing; Professionalism; Respect for Diversity; Self-Management; Technological Awareness; Vision; Working in Teams.

Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, Food security and nutrition, Knowledge Management, Partnership Development. Demonstrated interest in Project Management, Monitoring and Evaluation, Food security and nutrition, Knowledge Management, Partnership Development.

The southernmost country of the African continent, South Africa is bordered by Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Eswatini. South Africa entirely surrounds Lesotho in the east. A large plateau dominates the center of the country, with rolling hills falling to plains and the coast. South Africa is a stunning place of natural beauty and many expats come here looking to enjoy an outdoor, relaxed lifestyle. There is an abundance of outdoor attractions, including white sandy beaches, surf, wildlife, vast winelands and mountains and trails. South Africa is an extremely cosmopolitan area and people from all over the world live here. A high standard of living is on offer at a relatively low cost and expats in South Africa find that their money goes much further than it does in many western countries. Although it has some challenges, post-apartheid South Africa is an exciting place to live in. However, the glaring disparities in wealth are an initial shock for expats from Western countries. South Africans are also very security conscious – and the degree to which this impacts daily life can take some time getting used to. In some regards South Africa is still regarded as an unsafe area to visit and in some areas poverty and crime are still rife. However, provided you exercise due care and caution while living in South Africa, as you should anywhere else in the world, you will generally find that people are friendly and welcoming.