UN WOMEN: PROGRAMME ASSOCIATE-FINANCE/OPERATIONS

Grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, UN Women works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women is expected to lead and coordinate United Nations System efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It will provide strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors. The Leadership and Governance Section in the Policy Division is responsible for supporting an enabling environment for gender equality and women's empowerment in governance systems and processes related to legal frameworks, political participation and public sector planning and budgeting. In response to calls from gender equality advocates for increased accountability for implementation of gender equality commitments in economic policies and financing decisions related to aid and domestic resources and building on the partnership with the European Commission (EC), UN Women will be implementing the Programme “Increasing Accountability in Financing for Gender Equality (FfGE)”. The programme aims at increasing the volume and effective use of aid and domestic resources to implement national commitments to gender equality and women’s empowerment. It will support strengthened accountability mechanisms in both national and donor processes in fifteen countries in partnership with ITC/ILO and will support policy advocacy at global and country levels. The programme will be managed by a Programme Management Unit (PMU) based within UN Women HQ. The PMU will consist of a Programme Manager, a Programme Specialist and a Programme Associate-Finance/Operations. The Programme Associate will work under the guidance and direct supervision of the Programme Manager. The Programme Associate will provide programme, financial and administrative support and guidance with regards to UN Women procedures and a collaborative, client-oriented approach consistent with UN Women rules and regulations.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of key functions: Budget management and finance; Operations support to the Programme Management Unit; Administrative Support to the Programme Management Unit. Key Functions: Budget Management and Finance: Monitors all the programmes budgets for the FfGE programme; Drafts project budgets & revisions, proposes routine changes to projects components to attain project objectives with guidance from the Programme Manager; Liaises with the Country Offices and provides backstopping on budget on re-phasing budgets; Drafts and submits to the Programme Manager, authorizations to field offices to undertake project-related activities, incur expenditures, monitors expenditures and advises offices and funding agencies on budget status, ensures funds allocation is not exceeded or additional funds are allocated when required; Assists in preparing financial reports to donors; Tracks contributions and maintains internal expenditure control system to ensure vouchers are matched and completed; Liaises with UN Women finance and operations. Operations support to the Programme Management Unit: Under the guidance of the Programme Manager, initiates recruitment actions of consultants, prepares draft terms of reference, requests HR to undertake recruitment and follows up with HR. Provides support for the shortlisting of consultants for selection by the Programme Manager; Assists in the preparation of subcontracts, reviews subcontract invoices and checks supporting documentation to ensure that services provided and claimed are in conformity with the terms of the contract/ reference; Organizes meetings and workshops and provides overall logistical support to the Section/ Thematic Group; Prepares all actions related to travel. Provides support to organizing trainings for the Programme Staff and for any other staff particularly working on EC projects. Provides the programme management team with guidance with regards to UN Women procedures and rules and regulations; Verifies accuracy of supporting documents for payments. Administrative Support to the Programme Management Unit: Organizes data and information, prepares and maintains records, documents and plans for monitoring of project/ programmes implementation; Drafts routine correspondence to all parties concerned; Collects briefing materials and drafts briefing notes for missions and for discussions in respect of projects under the responsibility of the Programme Management Unit; Verifies that all completed projects are closed in accordance with UN Women rules and that final reports are received; Sets up and oversees reference system and filing.

Competencies

Core Values/Guiding Principles Integrity: Demonstrating consistency in upholding and promoting the values of UN Women in actions and decisions, in line with the UN Code of Conduct; Cultural Sensitivity/Valuing diversity: Demonstrating an appreciation of the multicultural nature of the organization and the diversity of its staff. Demonstrating an international outlook, appreciating differences in values and learning from cultural diversity. Core Competencies: Ethics and Values : Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity; Organizational Awareness : Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment; Developing and Empowering People / Coaching and Mentoring: Self-development, initiative-taking; Working in Teams : Acting as a team player and facilitating team work; Communicating Information and Ideas : Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively; Self-management and Emotional intelligence : Creating synergies through self-control; Conflict Management / Negotiating and Resolving Disagreements; Knowledge Sharing / Continuous Learning : Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others. Functional Competencies: Ability to work excellently in teams; Ability to multi-task and prioritize in a fast-paced environment with a large volume of work; Ability to perform a broad range of administrative activities aimed at effective and efficient functioning of the Programme Management Unit, including data/schedule management, maintenance of protocol, information flow; Ability to maintain confidentiality and discretion; Ability to write, edit and present information in clear and presentable formats, using appropriate IT functionality; Establishes, builds and sustains effective relationships with clients, demonstrating understanding of client’s perspective; Ability to anticipate the needs of both clients and the Programme Management Unit and address these promptly.

Required Skills and Experience

Education: Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent certificate in Business Administration, Public Administration, Finance, Economics or related field. Experience: 6 years of relevant working experience, preferably in the UN; Competency in using Atlas; Knowledge of UN Women’s rules and procedures is an asset; Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access), Internet, and Outlook; Excellent organizational and time management skills and sound judgment; Ability to work efficiently under pressure and in a team environment. Language Requirements: Fluency in English; Working knowledge in another UN languages is an advantage. Note: In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment. All applications must include (as an attachment) the completed UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from http://www.unwomen.org/about-us/employment Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment.

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UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.