Country: Switzerland
Closing date: 02 Aug 2019
Organizational Setting
The Position:
The Technical Adviser, Cash-Based Interventions post is located in the Response and Technical Support Unit (RSTU), Humanitarian Office in Geneva and reports directly to the Team Lead, (RSTU). S/He is the principal technical adviser and expert in the Fund for the area of Cash-Based Interventions (CBI) in line with the ICPD Programme of Action, World Humanitarian Summit, including the Grand Bargain Commitments and the New Way of Working. The Technical Adviser works through an integrated, coordinated, and systems strengthening approach which is fundamental to UNFPA’s overall strategy.
How You Can Make a Difference:
UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young’s person potential is fulfilled. UNFPA’s new strategic plan 2018-2021, focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal death; to end unmet need for family planning; end gender-based violence and harmful practices.
In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction. UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results. We need staff who are transparent and exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.
Job Purpose:
The overall purpose of the Humanitarian Office is to facilitate the delivery of the UNFPA mandate by supporting humanitarian preparedness, response, and recovery actions in increasingly complex humanitarian situations, within globally agreed frameworks (2030 Agenda, Grand Bargain Commitments, Sendai Framework, etc.). The Humanitarian Office leads in leveraging and increasing effectiveness, efficiency and capacity of UNFPA staff and partners to scale up UNFPA’s role as a key global humanitarian actor. Through the Inter-Agency Standing Committee for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance (IASC) and other associated entities, the Humanitarian Office acts as a point of convergence on humanitarian activities, including policy, coordination, programming, advocacy, field capacity development, resource mobilization, innovation, partnerships, technical guidance and, crucially, thematic integration, ensuring complementarity between humanitarian and development action within the organization.
HO advocates among humanitarian agencies to include sexual and reproductive health and rights needs and sexual and gender-based violence prevention needs and humanitarian concerns of population into the overall humanitarian preparedness and response frameworks. The HO facilitates the development of UNFPA capacities to prepare and respond to the emergencies and to ensure the fund is well equipped to deal with the context of fragility and disaster risk reduction.
The Technical Adviser post provides strategic technical leadership to ensure that CBIs are firmly placed within UNFPA’s humanitarian response at all levels. S/he will provide technical assistance to develop the capacity of countries to mainstream CBI in humanitarian response and their budget frameworks and to enhance the use of knowledge and empirical evidence for policy design and evaluation.
The incumbent will influence the substantive knowledge agenda in the area of CBI and linkages with the Minimum Initial Service Package and UNFPA overall humanitarian response throughout the displacement cycles. S/He will advise on priorities for CBI programming, maintain technical partnerships on substantive issues with relevant institutions; and, provide leadership to ensure that technical knowledge of cash-based interventions is generated, collected, updated and disseminated for effective technical and policy dialogues.
Main Tasks & Responsibilities
You Would Be Responsible for:
A. Strategic Technical Support
- Lead and manage the development and implementation of practical strategies to institutionalize and scale up the use of CBIs in UNFPA’s humanitarian response efforts towards strengthening UNFPA’s role as a global reference agency for cash and voucher programming in sexual and reproductive health in humanitarian settings;
- Develop and disseminate policies, operational guidance, tools and analytical frameworks aimed at ensuring the technical integrity of cash-based programmes, building on existing guidance and tools wherever possible;
- Lead as UNFPA's principal technical focal point for all aspects of cash-based programming, working in consultation with all relevant divisions and regional and country offices;
- Represent UNFPA in selected interagency bodies, and with donors and partners, including negotiation of programmes;
- Coordinate the planning and quality assurance of UNFPA CBIs for feasibility, appropriateness, technical-soundness, cost-effectiveness, innovation, sustainability and complementarity to other forms of assistance;
- Coordinate strategic advisory for senior management on CBI and emergency response matters, including developing and providing quality assurance for briefing and background materials.
B. Results-Based Management
- Develop operational guidance with respect to the linkages between CBI and UNFPA's work in conflict, post-conflict and natural disaster situations, with a specific focus on addressing humanitarian, peace and development nexus and development of the disaster risk reduction programs;
- Coordinate the incorporation of evaluation results, lessons learned and new knowledge for updating CBI-related strategies, policies, tools, approaches and programmes;
- Coordinate technical support efforts across the Fund in the area of CBI to the field, including support for mobilizing additional resources.
- Lead and coordinate the analysis and synthesis of trends and research findings in the area of CBI in order to produce cutting-edge technical knowledge;
- Lead the analysis, synthesize and identification of state-of-the-art CBI-related technical knowledge and evidence and ensure its transfer to improve the effectiveness of UNFPA’s humanitarian response;
- Manage evidence-based and technical knowledge generation and analysis, including ensuring the dissemination, application and availability of lessons learned in UNFPA operations, working in collaboration with other relevant UNFPA business units.
C. Capacity Development
- Manage and foster substantive, intellectual global partnerships with most relevant constituencies in the technical area for advancing state-of-the-art knowledge;
- Develop and manage substantive partnerships and collaborations with other UN agencies, including in the context of the IASC and the Grand Bargain commitments;
- Coordinate institutional technical inputs to capacity development of relevant partner institutions;
- Coordinate the development and adaptation of training materials and manuals in the area of CBI in UNFPA programming and ensure availability for capacity development;
- Manage and validate a roster of international experts and institutions in the substantive area;
- Coordinate the UNFPA technical network in the substantive area, maintaining communication and feedback loops on all substantive work.
D. Technical Representation
- Coordinate the provision of technical support on CBI matters in collaboration with staff of relevant Divisions, regional and country offices;
- Represent UNFPA on substantive issues, elaborate UNFPA’s substantive global perspective, and advocate for the substantive issues in international, inter-governmental, UN, and other policy and technical meetings;
- Collaborate with UN agencies, research and training institutions, professional societies, and act as focal point for inter-agency working groups on CBI and;
- Carry out any other duties as may be required by the Director of the Humanitarian Office.
Qualifications and Experience
Knowledge and Experience:
- 10 years of progressively responsible national and international experience in cash-based programming, including at least four years working in international development;
- Proven leadership, management and implementation of cash-based strategies pertaining to conflict, post-conflict and natural disaster situations;
- Strong capacity development, coordination and research skills;
- Experience working on sexual and reproductive health, gender and population issues in in humanitarian setting;
- Excellent interpersonal communication and project implementation skills required;
- Experience working as an organization’s focal point for communication, information management, partnerships, preferably for a UN agency;
- Hands on field experience highly desirable, and and UN interagency expereince and asset.
Education:
Advanced degree in social sciences, development studies, economics, business administration or related field, with specific training in humanitarian and/or programming.
Languages:
- Proficiency in English and French is required;
- Knowledge of an additional UN language is an asset.
Required Competencies
Values:
- Exemplifying integrity
- Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system
- Embracing diversity in all its forms
- Embracing change.
Core Competencies:
- Achieving Results
- Being Accountable
- Developing and Applying Professional Expertise/Business Acumen
- Thinking analytically and Strategically
- Working in Teams/Managing Ourselves and our Relationships
- Communicating for Impact.
Functional Competencies:
- Advocacy/ Advancing a policy-oriented agenda;
- Leveraging resources of national governments and partners/ building strategic alliances and partnerships;
- Strengthening the capacity of country office;
- Providing technical/programmatic support; humanitarian response, resilience and recovery.
How to apply:
UNFPA has established an electronic application management system. This allows applicants to create a candidate profile, which can be updated regularly and submitted for more than one vacancy.
Download the Step by Step Guide to Applying in the E-Recruit System of UNFPA at:
https://www.unfpa.org/resources/step-step-guide-applying-jobs-unfpa
To apply directly to the this vacancy, please click on the link:
Please print out the Guide for your reference during the registration and application process.
Notice: There is no application, processing or other fee at any stage of the application process. UNFPA does not solicit or screen for information in respect of HIV or AIDS and does not discriminate on the basis of HIV/AIDS status.