National Consultant- Programme Associate

Contract

This is a National Consultant contract. More about National Consultant contracts.

Background

In Sudan, more than 8.8 million people have fled their homes since fighting erupted between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in mid-April 2023. An estimated 6.8 million people have been displaced within the country and have taken refuge in 7,251 locations, according to the International Organization for Migration Displacement Tracking Matrix (IOM DTM), Sudan Monthly Displacement Overview (08). The highest proportion of IDPs are in South Darfur (11 per cent), River Nile (10 per cent), and East Darfur (10 per cent) states. IOM DTM field teams report that the IDPs were originally displaced from 12 states. About 53 per cent of them, 3.6 million, were displaced from Khartoum State, followed by South Darfur (14 per cent), Aj Jazirah (10 per cent), North Darfur (9 per cent), Central Darfur (4 per cent), and other states. More than 2 million people fled across the border, including 1.8 million who fled to neighbouring countries 660,000 people to South Sudan, 579,000 people to Chad, and 500,000 people to Egypt), according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

There are widespread allegations of rape, forced marriages, sexual slavery, and trafficking of women and girls. Indeed, On 25 April, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Pramila Patten, and Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Joyce Msuya, issued a joint statement calling for more international engagement to combat sexual violence against women and girls in Sudan. According to the statement, reports of sexual violence reveal the war's disproportionate impact on women and girls. Allegations of rape, forced marriages, sexual slavery, and trafficking of women and girls – especially in Khartoum, Darfur and Kordofan – continue to be recorded. Millions of civilians are especially at risk as they flee conflict areas in search of shelter, inside Sudan and in neighbouring countries. However, the true scale of this crisis remains unseen, a result of severe underreporting due to stigma, fear of reprisals, and a lack of confidence in national institutions.

Introduction

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. Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

In November 2021, UNWOMEN adopted a new humanitarian strategy (2022-2025). The aim of UN-Women’s engagement in humanitarian action is to ensure effectiveness in addressing gendered needs, working across the humanitarian-development-peace continuum, and embodying two approaches; (i) supporting the mainstreaming of gender in the coordination, planning, prioritization, and financing of humanitarian response in humanitarian crises; and (ii) protection of rights of women and girls.

UNWOMEN collaborates closely with UN system partners, national institutions, and civil society organizations to ensure accountability and coherence in addressing gender equality in humanitarian action. UN Women works with gender equality institutions and organizations, from grassroots to intergovernmental bodies, to strengthen their position and capacity as champions for gender equality in humanitarian action, recovery, and beyond.

Lack of access to vital medical care and insecurity caused by displacement have exacerbated women's security. Violence, particularly rape/violence against women, and instability have accentuated existing gender inequalities and exposed women to the risk of increased violence at home and in the community. Women are afraid to send their daughters to school, public places, or markets, for fear that they will be abducted and used as sex slaves by armed groups, and they live in a state of advanced trauma. The escalation of violence in the country raises the question of the protection of displaced people, vulnerable host populations, and refugees. Communities and individuals in the affected regions are resilient to shocks and have already withstood many crises of different kinds over the past decades. Vital humanitarian aid has been essential in helping them absorb the impact of these shocks and must continue.

Duties and Responsibilities

- Provide administrative support on budgetary/financial and operational activities:

• Provide administrative and coordination support in the recruitment of gender parity and equality-related consultants and processing contracts and timely payments for consultants, vendors, and other service providers;
• Review the Budget, Financial report, inception and final report and keep track of tailor-made documents management.
• Submit financial reports to the Humanitarian Specialist for management monitoring and/or action as needed;
• Review the humanitarian operating budget to monitor expenditures for timely use as allocated and ensure compliance, completeness, and accuracy of transactions according to rules, regulations, allocations and objectives;
• Coordinate review and clearance process of publications with editors, designers, translation services, printing, etc. on finalization and publication of reports, as requested;
• Prepare and/or recommend budget revisions to the humanitarian budget.

- Provide administrative and coordination support:

• Provide administrative and coordination support in the organization and implementation of meetings and webinars, as and when needed;
• Preparation of official letters and similar communications materials, as requested, according to appropriate protocol procedures;
• Liasing with Admin associate(s) and Finance associate(s) for the consultancy vacancy announcement, ToR approvals, contracts, payments etc.
• Review and verify completeness of required documentation and/or clearances before submission for the supervisor’s approval/signature, if necessary;
• Provide other support as requested by the supervisor.

- Expected deliverables:

• Timely payments for consultants, vendors and other service providers. Office budgets are monitored and maintained;
• Timely and quality procurement services provided;
• Administrative, HR, reporting, and finance processes coordinated and supported;
• Travel requests supported and processed;
• Online events logistics coordinated;
• Team’s generic mailbox and online databases monitored, actioned, and maintained;
• Timely and quality scheduling support to the Team provided.

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

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

- Functional Competencies:

• Excellent organizational skills. Ability to perform a broad range of specialized activities aimed at effective and efficient functioning of the Office, including schedule/calendar management, maintenance of protocol, information flow, and organization of events and webinars;
• Ability to process budgetary, travel, and procurement-related information and requested processes in a timely and accurate manner;
• Ability to organize a wide range of materials and information in a manner that is user-friendly and follows UN protocols; Ability to create, edit, and present information in clear and presentable formats, using appropriate IT functionality;
• Ability to organize and complete multiple tasks by establishing priorities and demonstrating flexibility, particularly in light of last-minute requests;
• Ability to handle a large volume of work under time constraints;
• Accuracy and attention to detail in the analysis and presentation of data, policies and other information;
• Ability to work well, proactively, and in a collaborative manner in a team;
• Ability to provide input to business process re-engineering, elaboration, and implementation of new data management systems;
• Accepts constructive feedback in a positive manner and can cope with setbacks and maintain a proactive and positive attitude;
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and discretion.

Required Skills and Experience

- Education:

• Completion of secondary education is required;
• Bachelor’s degree in Business or Public Administration is an asset.

- Experience:

• At least 6 years of progressively responsible experience in administration or programme management/support;
• Experience in budgetary and procurement processes; quantitative and qualitative analysis as well as proven written ability to draft reports and memoranda.
• Experience in working in a computer environment using multiple office software packages;
• Experience in the use of ATLAS is an asset;
• Experience in supporting a team.

- Language Requirements:

• Fluency in oral and written English and Arabic is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.

- Note:

Please note that applications without a completed and signed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. UN Women Personal History form (P-11) can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/en/about-us/employment

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 based on 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. At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employees, trains, compensate, 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 based on qualification, competence, integrity, and organizational needs.

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.)

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