Strengthening Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement at the 2023 United Nations Water Conference

Result of Service In fulfilling the above responsibilities, the individual contractor will deliver the following outputs:

• Monthly reports detailing activities carried in support to stakeholders’ participation in the lead up to the UN 2023 Water Conference including:
• Number and details of webinars, consultations, briefings and related outreach;
• Update on the stakeholders mailing list for the Conference, including number of registered stakeholders and communications shared;
• Update on special accreditation and registration process for stakeholders’ engagement at the Conference and preparatory events;
• Other outputs as required.

• For the last monthly report, the individual contractor should provide an analysis of lessons learned, including summary of key activities and recommendations to improve stakeholder engagement processes related to intergovernmental events.

  Work Location The individual contractor will work on/off UNHQ premises.

  Expected duration The contract will be for six months.

  Duties and Responsibilities On 20 December 2018 the General Assembly adopted the resolution on the “Midterm comprehensive review of the implementation of the International Decade for Action, ‘Water for Sustainable Development’ 2018-2028”. (A/RES/73/226).

The resolution calls for a Conference on the Midterm Comprehensive Review of the Implementation of the Objectives of the International Decade for Action to be convened in New York from 22 to 24 March 2023. The Conference shall be preceded by regional and global preparatory meetings, as appropriate, and informed by existing water-related meetings at the regional and global level.

On 21 December 2020, the UN General Assembly adopted the resolution A/RES/75/212 “United Nations Conference on the Midterm Comprehensive Review of the¿Implementation of the Objectives of the International Decade for Action, “Water for¿Sustainable Development”, 2018–2028”, which provides the modalities of the Conference. The Government of Tajikistan and the Kingdom of the Netherlands will co-host the Conference.

According to A/RES/75/212, 4 (f) the Conference should “involve all relevant stakeholders, bringing together Governments, the United Nations system, intergovernmental organizations, international financial institutions, other interested international bodies, non-governmental organizations, civil society organizations, academic institutions, the scientific community, the private sector, philanthropic organizations and other actors to assess challenges and opportunities relating to, as well as support further action to implement, the objectives of the Decade and the water-related goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”

The objective of the contract is to support the UNDESA Division for Sustainable Development Goals’ efforts to coordinate the engagement and participation of stakeholders in the preparatory process and during the 2023 UN Water Conference.

Work Assignment

In this context, the purpose of the assignment is to assist in the outreach, special accreditation, registration and stakeholder engagement processes (including representatives of non-governmental organizations, the private sector, academia, local and regional governments and relevant stakeholders) at preparatory processes, events and the Conference itself. The individual contractor’s main responsibilities will be as follows:

• Support the process of special accreditation for non-governmental organizations, the private sector, academia, local and regional governments and other relevant stakeholders to attend the preparatory meeting and the Conference itself;
• Support in setting up the process for the registration of representatives of non-governmental organizations, the private sector, academia, local and regional governments and relevant stakeholders to attend the preparatory meeting and the Conference itself;
• Support in galvanizing the participation of all key stakeholders in the 2023 UN Water Conference and its preparations including by disseminating timely information about the process including in collaboration with key partners;
• Prepare draft programmes including speaker lists and agendas for preparatory events targeting stakeholders in the lead up to the Conference, including webinars, consultations, briefings, etc;
• Prepare background materials, outreach materials (flyers, digital cards, etc), logistic notes and tools to support stakeholders’ participation at the preparatory process and at the Conference;
• Set up and manage webinars and online events, including by managing registration of participants, managing speakers, preparing presentations and follow up activities (feedback surveys, drafting summaries);
• Manage stakeholders’ mailing list for the Conference;
• Prepare regular messages to stakeholders with updates about engagement opportunities at the UN 2023 Water Conference;
• Prepare analysis and lessons learned from the events to serve to inform future similar national stakeholder engagement processes;
• Maintain proper records of activities organized in support to stakeholder participation at the UN 2023 Water Conference and preparatory processes;

• Perform other related duties as required.

  Qualifications/special skills Academic Qualifications:

• A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in administration, social, natural sciences, pertaining to international sustainable development issues or related field.

Experience: - A minimum of one (1) year of progressively responsible experience in relevant functions, including research, publishing, and liaison with stakeholders’ organizations, and workshop facilitation is required. - Experience managing virtual events and platforms (including WebEx, Zoom, MS Teams and others) will be an asset. - Strong interpersonal and communication skills, able to engage in complex discussions and presentations with staff of the U.N. and partner organizations. Keen knowledge of the UN system and its work at in the area of sustainable development and the intergovernmental processes related to the HLPF and the 2030 Agenda.

Language: - Languages: English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this job posting, fluency in oral and written English is required. Knowledge of another official UN Language is an advantage.

Additional Information The individual contractor will be paid in line with the fee range of a Level A individual contractor as per ST/AI/2013/4. The exact fee will be determined based on the expertise of the individual contractor as indicated in the Personal History Profile. Payment will be made on a monthly basis upon certification of successful completion of the respective assignments as per below performance indicators. Potential candidates will be contacted by hiring manager directly for further consideration.

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.