Type of Assignment: International UN Volunteer
Type of Assignment Place: Multiple (family and non-family duty stations)
Assignment Title: UN Volunteer Programme Officer (PO)
All POs are currently international UN Volunteers and as such are offered a UN Volunteer contract. While UNV POs are locally administered by the UNDP Country Office, their scope of work and support covers the entire UN system. It is therefore, advised that UNV POs are considered to sit at the UNCT meetings as full members or observers. POs have matrixed supervision; the Portfolio Manager at UNV headquarters is the substantive and technical supervisor while the UNDP Resident Representative, UNDP Country Director or respective Deputy is the administrative and operational supervisor. Due to the expansion of duties indicated above, the PO serves in many cases as the leader in the Field Unit, administering the UN Volunteers serving in humanitarian and development Agencies with overall responsibility for project management and developing programmes to promote and enable the contribution of volunteers to various development efforts. Depending on the structure and support available in each Field Unit, some smaller offices do not have Programme Assistants or Associates. In some countries that have been identified by the UN Secretary-General as integrated missions countries, UNV is considering piloting the concept of UNV Integrated Field Units, where the management of the volunteers across the UN system and the positioning of the UNV programme are no longer under the responsibilities of two separate teams.
Duty Station: Multiple Duty Stations worldwide.
Duration (in months): An initial two year contract, with possible one year extensions.
Expected Starting Date: To be determined
Host Agency/Host Institute: UNDP
Administrative & operational supervisor: UNDP Resident Representative, Country Director or respective Deputy.
Substantive & technical supervisor: Portfolio Manager, UNV HQ Bonn
Organizational Context/Project:
The background and main focus areas of the UNV programme in the country of assignment will be provided later based on the available vacant assignments and on the preferable duty station of candidates.
Description of tasks:
Reporting Lines:
The Programme Officer has a matrixed reporting line; while the UNDP Resident Representative, UNDP Country Director or respective Deputy is the administrative and operational supervisor, the Portfolio Manager at UNV headquarters is the substantive and technical supervisor. In close collaboration with the UNV Regional team, the Programme Officer is responsible for the following key functions:
Part I: Key Functions
Advocacy and Partnership Building
Programme Development and Management
Lead (and/or supervise staff) and monitor project implementation, including field missions, to ensure achievement of results for which UNV is responsible and the accountable use of UNV resources;
Volunteer Mobilization and Management
Part II: Competencies and Selection Criteria
Core competencies - Level 3: Apply & Adapt (Recognized contributor with demonstrated ability)
Innovation
Ability to make new and useful ideas work
Leadership
Ability to persuade others to follow
People Management
Ability to improve performance and satisfaction
Communication
Ability to listen, adapt, persuade and transform
Delivery
Ability to get things done
Technical competencies (Level 3: Apply & Adapt (Recognized contributor with demonstrated ability)
Project Management
Ability to plan, organize, and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals
Substantive positioning of UNV
Knowledge of global institutions (such as the UN, IFIs), processes (such as G20 and various UN initiatives), good grasp of UNV’s niche, and ability to engage and foster strong networks with those institutions
Partnerships
Ability to engage with other agencies, donors, and other development stakeholders and forge productive working relationships
Results-based Management
Ability to manage programmes and projects with a strategy aimed at improved performance and demonstrable results
Sustainable Development
Knowledge of sustainable development concepts, principles and issues and the ability to apply to strategic and/or practical situations
and/or
Peacebuilding and Reconciliation
Ability to support peace processes to facilitate recovery and development
Recruitment Qualifications
Education:
Master’s degree in social sciences, political science, public or business administration, economics or related fields.
Experience:
5 years of relevant professional experience and proven track record in managing and implementing development programmes or in the area of humanitarian relief or in crisis management. Work experience with the United Nations is an asset.
Language:
Fluency in English. Working knowledge of another UN language is highly desirable.
Living Conditions:
This is a multiple country description of assignment for different duty stations worldwide and specific living conditions and conditions of service will be provided later based on the available vacant assignments and on the preferable duty station of candidates.
Conditions of Service:
The duration of the assignment is 24 months with possibility of extension.
A volunteer receives a Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) which is composed of the Monthly Living Allowance (MLA) and a Family Allowance (FA) for those with dependents.
A Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) is paid at the end of each month to cover housing, utilities, transportation, communications and other basic needs. The VLA can be computed by applying the Post-Adjustment Multiplier (PAM) to the VLA base rate of US$ 1,571. The VLA base rate is a global rate, while the PAM is country-specific and fluctuates on a monthly basis according to the cost of living. This method ensures that international UN Volunteers have comparable purchasing power at all duty stations irrespective of varying costs of living. The PAM is established by the International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) and is published at the beginning of every month on the ICSC website (http://icsc.un.org). For example, if the PAM for the current month in the country of assignment is 54.6%, then the VLA for that month and for that country will be US$ 1,571 x 1.546 = US$ 2,429. Moreover, to complete the monthly VLA rate, a Family Allowance (FA) is added in function of the number of recognized dependents (or: in the amount of US$ 250 if the UN Volunteer has 1 recognized dependent, and US$ 450 if the UN Volunteer has 2 or more recognized dependents). In addition, in non-family duty stations that belong to hardship categories D or E, as classified by the ICSC, international UN Volunteers receive a Well-Being Differential (WBD) on a monthly basis. The VLA and WBD taken together form the net core entitlements.
Furthermore, UN Volunteers are provided a settling-in-grant (SIG) at the start of the assignment (if the volunteer did not reside in the duty station for at least 6 months prior to taking up the assignment) and, under strict conditions, also in the event of a permanent reassignment to another duty station (duty stations can change in the course of an assignment based on operational necessity; UN Volunteers may be required to work anywhere in the area of operations of the host organization, including in remote locations). Life, health, permanent disability and malicious acts insurances are included, as well as assignment travel, annual leave, full integration in the UN security framework (including residential security reimbursements as per the local MORSS), DSA payment for official travel, periodic home visit, final repatriation travel (except in the event of a resignation within the initial contract period), and resettlement allowance for satisfactory service.
UNV will provide, together with the offer of assignment, a copy of the Conditions of Service, including Code of conduct, to the successful candidate.
End of Assignment:
UNV Programme Officers are required to submit proper handover notes as part of their exit checklist according to the format prescribed in the Volunteer Toolkit ‘End-of-Assignment’ Handbook, section 2.11 ‘Handover Note Guidance’ to their respective PM.
Application process:
UNV is currently building up a Talent Pool, which includes qualified, pre-assessed and evaluated candidates earmarked to become the next generation of UNV Programme Officers. If you fulfill the requirements and are interested to apply, please follow the instructions:
If you have not yet registered in the UNV database, please apply by registering your profile at https://ereta.unv.org/html/index.php?module=myprofile Important: Once you have created your UNV account by validating your email address, please complete all sections of your profile. Go to ‘Special Recruitment’ section on the left, click on the ‘Edit’ button and select the advertisement code “16UNVPO_1” from the drop down list. Please do not forget to click the ‘Update’ button.
If you are registered in the UNV database of candidates, please update your profile at: http://MyProfile.unv.org. In the “Special Recruitment” section on the left, click on the “Edit” button and select the advertisement code “16UNVPO_1” from the drop-down list.
The application deadline is 29 February 2016. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
Selection process
The selection process for the Pool may include the following steps: telephone screening/video interviewing, technical assessments and competency based interviews. Since this process will be for a group of candidates, and not be limited to one assignment, we do expect the entire process to take up to two months.
Once the Pool has been established, the UNV Programme Officer placement exercise will be conducted at least twice per year to select candidates from the pre-assessed Pool to fill vacant UNV Programme Officer positions, without further interview/selection process.
UNV Programme Officers are, after two successful years of service, eligible to apply for the candidate pool for UNV staff positions, in line with the UNV personnel strategy.
United Nations Volunteers is an equal opportunity programme which welcomes applications from qualified professionals. We are committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture.
The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme is the UN organization that promotes volunteerism to support peace and development worldwide. Volunteerism can transform the pace and nature of development and it benefits both society at large and the individual volunteer. UNV contributes to peace and development by advocating for volunteerism globally, encouraging partners to integrate volunteerism into development programming, and mobilizing volunteers.
In most cultures volunteerism is deeply embedded in long-established, ancient traditions of sharing and support within the communities. In this context, UN Volunteers take part in various forms of volunteerism and play a role in development and peace together with co-workers, host agencies and local communities.
In all assignments, UN Volunteers promote volunteerism through their action and conduct. Engaging in volunteer activity can effectively and positively enrich their understanding of local and social realities, as well as create a bridge between themselves and the people in their host community. This will make the time they spend as UN Volunteers even more rewarding and productive.
