Senior Consultant (Housing and Informal Settlements Policies)

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UN-HABITAT - United Nations Human Settlements Programme

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Application deadline 1 year ago: Friday 1 Apr 2022 at 23:59 UTC

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Result of Service The Senior Consultant (Housing and Informal Settlements Policies) will provide managerial support and technical advice on the urban planning proposal at Izidora.

The consultant will work in close collaboration with the operational and technical teams of UN-Habitat offices, staff of other UN Agencies, Government officials, media, multilateral and bilateral donors, and civil society.

The Consultant shall be paid with a monthly allowance, upon presentation and approval by the National Officer for Brazil of monthly activities’ report.

Work Location Belo Horizonte (initially, home based)

Expected duration The consultancy has an expected duration of six (6) months, with the possibility of renewal.

Duties and Responsibilities Background

The main mandate of the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is to promote sustainable development of human settlements and policies conducive to adequate housing for all. Within this framework, UN-Habitat supports central and state governments, as well as local authorities and other partners for the implementation of the Habitat Agenda, the 2030 Agenda with the Sustainable Development Goals and the New Urban Agenda.

UN-Habitat helps the urban poor by transforming cities into safer, more inclusive, compact, integrated, resilient and connected places with better opportunities where everyone can live with dignity. It works with organizations at every level, including all spheres of government, civil society and the private sector to help build, manage, plan and finance sustainable urban development.

The Regional Office for Latin American and the Caribbean – ROLAC – is based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The Agency puts emphasis in developing and managing activities in the host country. Indeed, for the past years, UN-Habitat has expanded its portfolio in Brazil by working with the three tiers of government in order to support the formulation and implementation of more effective, sustainable, participative and socially fairer urban economic, social and environmental policies.

Through a partnership with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) and the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, UN-Habitat is working as Implementing Agency to implement the project named “Urban Qualification in a Key Neighborhood of Belo Horizonte”. UN-Habitat will focus on the outcome "Improved Belo Horizonte Municipal infrastructure and tools to develop effective options for social housing and urban planning in Izidora”, which aims to enable Izidora´s population to have safe and sustainable access to community infrastructure and affordable housing.

The region of Izidora corresponds to an area of about 9.5 km², in the northern vector of the city, next to the southern border of the city of Santa Luzia. This area is located in the largest green area of the city, counting around 280 water sources and 64 creeks, including part of the watershed that is Belo Horizonte’s main source of water. Part of Izidora has been squatted and is divided into four urban informal settlements - Esperança, Vitória, Helena Greco and Rosa Leão – totalizing approximately 1.5 km² and hosting about 4,200 precarious homes (which could be up to 7,000 families, given that there are no precise numbers since 2010), with families in situations of extreme poverty and without any available public infrastructure and relative services, as many Brazilian cities.

During the Habitat III Conference in 2016, Izidora was highlighted as one of the most serious urban land conflicts in Latin America. Therefore, the new efforts of the municipality are a recognition of the issues, as well as the urgency of acting.

The interest of the Municipal Administration is to implement works and actions so that Izidora becomes a model under the principles of sustainability and resilience. This is a chance to promote an innovative experience in using the precepts of the New Urban Agenda (NUA) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at local level to reverse a situation of socioeconomic and territorial vulnerability.

In order to properly implement this project, a Senior Consultant (Housing and Informal Settlements Policies) is required to ensure a good execution of the work programme.

Report to UN-Habitat Manager

The Senior Consultant (Housing and Informal Settlements Policies) will report to the National Officer for Brazil, who will evaluate him/her.

Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the National Officer for Brazil, the Senior Consultant (Housing and Informal Settlements Policies) will: ¿ Define guidelines and monitoring tools to implement an Action Plan; ¿ Define a Work Plan considering the schedule of the Programme,; ¿ Hold individual and group meetings with the Programme Technical Team; ¿ Systematize and consolidate reports; ¿ Conduct dialogues with UN-Habitat, the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, when requested, and with the other consultants; ¿ Maintain an orderly and accessible information file system on the information and data produced; ¿ Be responsible for the delivery according to deadlines; ¿ Prepare all reports according to the Portuguese standard norms, following the norms of the Brazilian Association of Technical Norms (ABNT); ¿ The consultant will be responsible, within its competencies, to ensure that the technical activities are aligned with the quality expectations of UN-Habitat and the project counterparts; ¿ Attend to meetings and conferences promoted by UN-Habitat partners; ¿ Prepare reports to partners, internal reports, etc. at various stages of the projects; ¿ Attend to meetings and conferences promoted by UN-Habitat, as requested; ¿ Elaborate monthly activities reports regarding the consultancy; ¿ Be responsible for the delivery according to deadlines for each task; ¿ Perform other duties which may be requested by the supervisor

The consultant will be responsible for completing all courses and training activities that are indicated to him/her by his/her supervisor. The security course BSAFE is required to be accredited during the first month of employment.

The consultant will be responsible for his/her own security, so the person should get familiarized with United Nations security mechanisms and comply with them according to the Framework of Accountability for the United Nations Security Management System.

Outputs/Work Assignment

This consultancy aims to develop and monitor an Action Plan to qualify actions and public policies to direct investments in Izidora, and the target audience is the Izidora’s Programme’s Technical Team.

Qualifications/special skills Skills:

¿ Good computer skills in Windows, as Microsoft Office, Outlook, Microsoft Teams, and Web search engines is required; ¿ Good knowledge on project management methodologies is desirable.

Academic Qualifications:

¿ Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration, Architecture and Urbanism, Social Sciences, or related fields is required; ¿ Post-Graduation courses (Lato Sensu or Stricto Sensu) in Urban Studies, Architecture, International Relations, Political Sciences, Sociology, Geography, Economy, or related fields is required. A first-level university degree in combination with four additional years of relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;

Experience:

¿ A minimum of seven (7) years of progressively responsible experience in project/programme is required; ¿ Experience in public administration, specially related to housing policy is required; ¿ Experience in planning, design and/or work in informal settlements is required; ¿ Experience in planning and projects for remodeling vulnerable areas is required; ¿ Experience in local governance and development is required, international experience is an asset; ¿ Experience in housing finance programmes is desirable; ¿ Experience in community development policies is desirable; ¿ Previous experience within the UN System would be an asset.

Language:

¿ Fluency in Portuguese is required. ¿ English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat, and Spanish is the working language of the Regional Office. For the post advertised. ¿ Good command in oral and written Spanish and English will be considered as an added advantage.

Knowledge Management

¿ The person must know the processes, procedures and norms of UN-Habitat, in order to guarantee an adequate quality of the activities described above, following the standards of the organization. ¿ The person will propose formats and procedures that allow the efficient implementation of the activities related to the project development. ¿ The person must know the file of the Office, work with it and ensure its proper maintenance, accessibility for all staff and due updating. ¿ The person will prepare databases related to the project running. ¿ The person will make sure that all relevant technical information will be adequately shared with the correspondent staff. ¿ The person will ensure that all produced material will be fit-for-purpose and delivered, in an organized way, for posterior consultation and use of the Agency.

Competencies

¿ Professionalism: Experience working in an inter-institutional environment, project management, monitoring-evaluation; approaches and strategies with regard to good urban governance and local and regional development. ¿ Planning and organization: Professional approach to work, strong sense of responsibility, operate with minimal supervision; proven organizational skills and ability to manage a workload efficiently and within set deadlines. ¿ Communication: Ability to write clearly and effectively; listen to others, interpret messages correctly and respond appropriately; show openness in information sharing and keep everyone informed; solid abstract reasoning skills together with a proven capacity to write documents for diverse audiences. ¿ Teamwork: Ability to work with teams, demonstrate leadership, conflict management and consensus facilitation skills; ability to work in a multicultural and multi-ethnic environment, and to respect diversity; sensitivity to the main-streaming of vulnerability; willingness and ability to work in difficult environments.

Additional Information Remuneration

SB-4/4 (UNDP Brazil Salary Scale, Part-time, 30h/week): R$ 10.506,50

Travel details

The consultant must be available to travel to the places related to the activities in the country, if requested by the National Officer for Brazil and/or the International Officer. Travels will be coordinated and financed by UN-Habitat, according to the United Nations travel rules and guidelines. Note: During the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine, travel is not advised.

Appointment against this post is on local basis and only nationals from Brazil or external candidates who hold a permanent visa in Brazil may apply.

It is required for all the curricular information to be inserted in the system, which may take a few hours. Only complete applications in English will be considered.

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence. Due to the volume of applications received, receipt of applications cannot be acknowledged individually. Only short-listed applicants will be contacted.

Applications should be submitted through INSPIRA and must include all documents required at the system, please be ready to include the following information at the “Personal History Form” (PHP) at Inspira:

1. Cover memo (maximum 1 page) 2. Educational Background (incl. dates) 3. Professional Experience (assignments, tasks, achievements, duration by years/ months) 4. Expertise and preferences regarding location of potential assignments 5. Other Experience and Expertise (e.g. Internships/ voluntary work, etc.)* * Please note that Internships, self-employment and part-time count as 50%. In addition to it, note experience not relevant to the position will not be considered.

All applications should be submitted to: Inspira Deadline for applications: UN-HABITAT does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process. If you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of these offices and requesting the payment of a fee, please contact: [email protected]

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.

Added 2 years ago - Updated 1 year ago - Source: careers.un.org