Project Associate - Forest Rights Act

Contract

This is a UNV National Specialist contract. This kind of contract is known as National UN Volunteer. It is normally only for nationals. More about UNV National Specialist contracts.

Tribal Development Department, Government of Maharashtra is the nodal department for overall policy, planning and coordination of programmes for development of Scheduled Tribes (STs). The department has accorded high priority and adopted multifaceted development strategies to promote socio-economic growth of the STs. Specific interventions are being implemented including implementation of protective legislations such as the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act. The programmes and schemes for tribal people are intended to support and supplement the efforts, primarily of other state departments to fill critical gaps within institutions and programmes, taking into account the situation of STs. These schemes comprising of economic, educational, and social development through institutional building, are administered by the line departments. Notwithstanding numerous developmental interventions, the STs continue to face developmental deficits with respect to health, education, livelihood, development infrastructure as well as other socio-economic indices, many of which are well below the national average.

The Tribal Development Department is committed to providing equitable access to opportunity for the tribal communities, through participatory approach and adoption of innovative methods including e-governance and increasing use of technology to provide strategic inputs into the development process. To accelerate the implementation of the development agenda for the tribal communities and strengthen the institutional delivery systems at the State and district level, it is important to strengthen the capacity and effectiveness of the officials and stakeholders to deliver on the issues related to tribal empowerment and create robust systems for monitoring and implementation of the tribal development schemes of the Central and State government.

The Department is working in collaboration with UNDP to fast-track development in difficult geographies inhabited by tribal populations, enhancing capacities of government functionaries and expanding opportunities for better livelihoods, health and education to vulnerable tribal communities.

UNDP proposes to engage a Project Associate - FRA to support the PMU at Tribal Development Department, Govt. of Maharashtra to assist in preparation of action plan to fast track the implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006 in the low performing districts of the state.

The Project Associate -FRA will be part of the Project Management Unit and will work under the overall supervision of the PMU State Coordinator and in close collaboration with Programme Lead, Tribal Development, UNDP. S/He will ensure engagement of all direct stakeholders and delivery of project objectives with other team members.

• Assist in preparation of action plan to fast track the implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006 in the low performing districts. • Assist in compilation and preparation of state specific progress reports, guidelines, clarifications, etc. for effective implementation of Act. • Prepare policy briefs/status reports, including background notes, technical papers, presentations, knowledge products etc. for review meeting and policy advocacy for inclusion of tribal concerns in the developmental efforts of various government departments. • Assist in implementation of recommendations of various Committees, studies on effective implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006 • Support in trainings and management of portal for effective implementation of PESA and FRA; Assist in expansion of Diploma Course for CFR and convergence for schemes for IFR and CFR beneficiaries. • Assist in preparation of training resource materials and organization of capacity building workshops, etc.to expedite recognition and management of rights under Forest Rights Act • Identify and document case studies, good practices and innovative models on tribal empowerment with potential for replication/upscaling/learning. • Any other tasks provided by the supervisor.

Furthermore, UN Volunteers are encouraged to integrate the UN Volunteers programme mandate within their assignment and promote voluntary action through engagement with communities in the course of their work.

• Achieve Results: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline • Think Innovatively: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements • Adapt with Agility: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible • Act with Determination: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident Engage and Partner: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships • Enable Diversity and Inclusion: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination • Knowledge Generation: Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for content, or responsive to a stated need • Communication: Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience • Working with Evidence and Data: Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions and supporting decision-making • Multi stakeholder engagement and funding: Knowledge and ability to forge multi-stakeholder partnerships, and remove any obstacles to resource mobilization and multi-stakeholder funding platforms • Private sector engagement: Ability to identify, conduct outreach, and manage relationships with the private sector • Integrity and professionalism: demonstrated expertise in area of specialty and ability to apply good judgment; high degree of autonomy, personal initiative and ability to take ownership; willingness to accept wide responsibilities and ability to work independently under established procedures in a politically sensitive environment, while exercising discretion, impartiality and neutrality; ability to manage information objectively, accurately and confidentially; responsive and client-oriented. • Accountability: mature and responsible; ability to operate in compliance with organizational rules and regulations. • Commitment to continuous learning: initiative and willingness to learn new skills and stay abreast of new developments in area of expertise; ability to adapt to changes in work environment. • Planning and organizing effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner; ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work; ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities. • Teamwork and respect for diversity: ability to operate effectively across organizational boundaries; ability to establish and maintain effective partnerships and harmonious working relations in a multi-cultural, multi ethnic environment with sensitivity and respect for diversity and gender; • Genuine commitment towards the principles of voluntary engagement, which includes solidarity, compassion, reciprocity, and self-reliance; and commitment towards the UN core values.

policy analysis and planning related to tribal rights, natural resource governance and Forest Rights in governmental or non-governmental organization • Demonstrated experience of working on issues of Tribal development and protective legislations such as FRA, PESA etc. • Good understanding of tribal development related schemes and legislations • At least one year of experience of working in government/international agency funded projects is desirable. • Domain knowledge in areas like governance, convergence, tribal affairs, social justice and social inclusion • High-level of IT/computing skills (minimum: Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint) • Knowledge of and experience in gender mainstreaming is an asset. • Willingness to travel when required.

Mumbai – Maharashtra: Mumbai, is the most populous city in the Indian state of Maharashtra, offering a wide variety of jobs from conventional industries to IT services. It is also home to the Bollywood film industry. As India's capital of finance, Mumbai has the greatest number of fin-tech startups, and the cost of living and rental prices remains reasonably high.

As this is a national UN Volunteer assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. This position is based in Mumbai. National UN Volunteers are part of the malicious insurance plan. National UN Volunteers are expected to be culturally sensitive and adjust to the prevailing culture and traditions.

The contract lasts for the period indicated above with possibility of extensions subject to availability of funding, operational necessity and satisfactory performance. However, there is no expectation of renewal of the assignment.

This assignment is part of the special programme initiative ‘Strengthening Health Systems and Access to Services for Marginalized Communities’. As per the UN Volunteer Conditions of Service, Section XVIII, the Conditions for this assignment are amended as follows: - The Monthly Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) will be INR 90,000/- per month - The UN Volunteer is not eligible for entry lumpsum or travel costs - Health insurance will not be provided to dependents of the UN Volunteer - Access to UNV learning will be restricted to mandatory courses and free-of-charge learning resources provided by UNV.

• Leave entitlements: Annual leave : 2.5 days accrued per calendar month • Certified sick leave: 30 days • Uncertified sick leave: 7 days • Learning leave: 10 working days per consecutive 12 months • Maternity leave: 16 weeks • Paternity leaves: 10 days