Partnerships and Resource Mobilization Officer

Volunteering Communications & PR

Overview

Lead strategic donor engagement and resource mobilization for UN Women Afghanistan.

You have:

• 7 years of progressively responsible experience in resource mobilization, communications/advocacy, and/or business development is required.
• Experience in bilateral donor engagement, high-level external representation, and agreement negotiation is required.
• Experience in gender equality and women’s empowerment programming is required.
• Experience working with Member States, civil society organizations, international institutions, and donors is required.
• Experience working within the UN system or other international organizations is highly desirable.
• Experience providing functional leadership, coaching, or workflow oversight in international settings is desirable.
• Experience in the use of MS Office applications, spreadsheet and database tools, and web-based management systems is required.
• Experience in the use of a modern web-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, preferably Oracle Cloud/QANTUM, is desirable.

Contract

This is a UNV contract. More about UNV contracts.

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.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has five key programme priorities: (1) Integrated Programming and Localization, (2) Women’s movement building through core grant making; 3) Policy and Research; 4) Economic Resilience and Women’s Empowerment and 5) Coordination, Access and Humanitarian Response. UN Women Afghanistan operates through its main office in Kabul and five sub-offices located in the provinces of Balkh, Bamyan, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar.

Within this framework, the Partnerships & Resource Mobilization Officer leads strategic donor engagement, external positioning, and bilateral resource mobilization for the Afghanistan Country Office. The role ensures high-level relationship management with Member States and bilateral partners, drives strategic positioning aligned with the Strategic Note, and strengthens coherence across all partnership streams.

Under the supervision of the Partnerships & Resource Mobilization Specialist (P4), the Officer provides strategic leadership on donor engagement, fundraising, agreement oversight, visibility, and cross-office coordination.

1. Manage strategic Member State and bilateral donor engagement • Manage engagement with Member States, bilateral donors, and other strategic government partners. • Build, sustain, and manage high-level institutional relationships to advance UN Women’s strategic priorities. • Represent UN Women in external donor, diplomatic, and policy-facing spaces, as delegated. • Position UN Women strategically in donor dialogues, consultations, and policy engagement opportunities.

2. Manage strategic resource mobilization and donor positioning • Manage bilateral fundraising strategies and donor engagement plans aligned with the Strategic Note. • Guide proposal positioning, donor messaging, and strategic framing of partnership opportunities. • Align funding opportunities with office priorities, programmatic gaps, and long-term sustainability objectives. • Identify risks and opportunities to diversify and expand bilateral funding streams.

3. Provide strategic positioning, advocacy, and visibility support for partnerships • Develop donor narratives, strategic messaging, and advocacy positioning materials. • Coordinate high-level briefings, donor missions, visibility events, and strategic engagements. • Strengthen visibility of programme impact through targeted partner-facing communications products. • Advise senior management on positioning opportunities to maximize influence and resource mobilization outcomes.

4. Provide strategic oversight across partnership streams • Provide strategic direction and coherence across Member State, UN, multilateral, and private sector engagement streams. • Ensure consistent positioning, messaging, and relationship management approaches across the office. • Support strategic decision-making on engagement priorities and partnership investments.

5. Manage donor agreements, systems oversight, and compliance • Oversee drafting, negotiation, and quality assurance of Member State agreements and related partnership documents. • Maintain accountability for Member State data integrity in Donor Agreement Management System (DAMS) , LEADS, QUANTUM, and other corporate systems. • Validate and provide quality oversight for system inputs. • Ensure compliance with donor requirements, UN Women corporate standards, and agreement obligations. •

6. Coordinate internal workflows and provide functional guidance • Ensure alignment between strategy, systems, and execution. • Provide functional guidance on proposal development, donor engagement priorities, and workflows. • Coordinate collaboration across programme, operations, communications, and management teams for partnerships and resource mobilization. • Strengthen internal processes, quality standards, and team coordination mechanisms.

7. The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

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:

• Strong knowledge of strategic partnerships, bilateral donor engagement, and resource mobilization • Demonstrated ability to interact effectively with Member States, diplomatic missions, and senior donor representatives • Proven networking, negotiation, and external positioning skills • Strong ability to develop compelling donor narratives and strategic messaging • Knowledge and understanding of UN system partnership frameworks and inter-governmental processes • Strong analytical judgment and political acumen in donor-facing environments • Strong IT skills, including partnership databases, dashboards, and ERP systems • Ability to guide cross-functional teams and maintain coherence across multiple partnership streams

1. 7 years of progressively responsible experience in resource mobilization, communications/ advocacy, and/or business development is required.
2. Experience in bilateral donor engagement, high-level external representation, and agreement negotiation is required.
3. Experience in gender equality and women’s empowerment programming is required.
4. Experience working with Member States, civil society organizations, international institutions, and donors is required.
5. Experience working within the UN system or other international organizations is highly desirable.
6. Experience providing functional leadership, coaching, or workflow oversight in international settings is desirable.
7. Experience in the use of MS Office applications, spreadsheet and database tools, and web-based management systems is required.
8. Experience in the use of a modern web-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, preferably Oracle Cloud / QUANTUM, is desirable.

Afghanistan is a hardship duty station with a volatile security. Living and working conditions for UN volunteers in UN WOMEN are like the living conditions of all other internationally recruited staff members. UN volunteers are provided with safe accommodation in compounds in each region, with good infrastructure and amenities. Generally speaking, stringent security measures are in place throughout the country and UN volunteers as other UN staff, are limited in all Afghan duty stations when it comes to movement, walking is not allowed outside the compounds. The movement is done inside the “green box” (only) only in armored vehicles driven by national qualified UN drivers. UN Volunteers serving in Afghanistan must be prepared to endure the challenges associated with a crisis environment. Afghanistan is a non-family duty station and accommodation is limited to selected UN approved, MORSS+ compliant premises (MORSS = UN Minimum Operating Residential Security Standards). The UNDP Security section provides these guidelines during the initial security briefing upon arrival in the mission area. Volunteers will first arrive in Kabul, where they will stay a few days up to two weeks before transferring to the regional offices.

In Kabul, accommodation is provided in UNOCA which may be in containers. This accommodation is furnished with necessities. In the provinces, UN personnel may be confined to guess houses; in most of the regions, both electricity and water are readily available, although water can sometimes run low because of severe droughts in the last couple of years. Most guesthouses have secured water (e.g., through a well in the compound) and generators in the event of power failure. Some degree of medical service is provided in all UN duty stations in Afghanistan. Contact with and outreach to the local community is usually limited. Many places are off limits, and the choice of recreational facilities is very poor. For all these reasons, bringing a stock of books, DVDs/VCDs, computer games, etc., is highly recommended. Living allowances are paid in US$ at the end of each month, but bank transfers by UNDP to accounts abroad are possible. Afghanistan is a unique country. It requires more stamina, commitment, and flexibility than elsewhere to make life comfortable and affordable. Therefore, flexibility and the ability and willingness to live and work in hazardous and harsh conditions involving physical hardship and little comfort are essential. https://www.UN Volunteer.org/

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Potential interview questions

Added 19 days ago - Updated 5 days ago - Source: unv.org