Org. Setting and Reporting

This position is located in the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) for Yemen, in Amman, Jordan with regular and extended missions to Yemen (50% of the time). The Humanitarian Affairs Officer reports to the OCHA Yemen Head of Office (HoO) or his/her designate. The Humanitarian Affairs Officer reports to the OCHA Yemen Head of Office (HoO) or his/her designate.

Responsibilities

Within delegated authority, the Humanitarian Affairs Officer/ Pooled Fund Manager, will be responsible for the following duties: 

I. Fund Management and Coordination: 

– Advise the HC and the HoO on the management of the Humanitarian Pooled Fund and the CERF allocations; 

– Manage and oversee fund allocation processes ensuring necessary coordination with relevant counterparts in line with the Terms of Reference and/or allocation guidelines (i.e. Review and/or Advisory Boards, cluster or sector leads; humanitarian organizations; and OCHA); 
– Manage the overall administration of the Fund and liaise as necessary with relevant OCHA HQ sections;

– Supervise the humanitarian financing unit; 

– Monitor the implementation of Fund strategies, promoting coherence between humanitarian needs and response; 

– Lead in policy development, including the review and analysis of humanitarian issues at the country level, ensuring proper coordination with FCS; • Advise the HC and the HoO on risk management and risk mitigation; 

– Ensure implementation and compliance with policies and standard guidelines in accordance with HC decisions and HQ guidance; 

– Oversee recipient organizations’ 
compliance with financial rules applicable to the Fund; 

– Ensure proper communication and support during the allocation process to all stakeholders; 

– Support recipient organisations throughout project life-cycle promoting compliance with applicable rules; 

– Liaise with contributing donors in and outside the country as necessary; Ensure coordination and information exchange with other donors aiming to promote coordinated and complementary use of funds (including CERF when appropriate); 

– Represent the Fund management unit before stakeholders (NGO, UN Agencies, donors) and external actors as required; 

– Undertake periodic field visits to promote the knowledge and appropriate use of the Fund in line with its Terms of Reference; field visits should focus on key actors (i.e. OCHA field colleagues, recipient organisations, local governments, communities). II. Monitoring, Reporting and Evaluation: 

– Ensure compliance with monitoring and reporting requirements in place for the Fund; 

– Oversee and ensure timely project reporting cycle, including the annual report of the Fund; 

– Systematically provide information on project status to the HC, the HoO, donors and relevant governing bodies of the Fund; 

– Support the preparation of evaluations, reviews and studies as requested by the HC and governing bodies ensuring due consultation with relevant HQ sections. 

III. Analysis, communications and public information: 

– Conduct and update periodic analyses of humanitarian financing information, funding trends and requirements, gathering data from all relevant sources; 

– Liaise with OCHA field offices aiming at the largest dissemination of information about the scope, the access and the allocation process of the Fund; 

– In collaboration with relevant OCHA, field offices and OCHA HQ sections ensure appropriate dissemination of information about the Fund through different communication products (i.e. bulletins, feature stories, photographs/videos, websites, CHF Annual Report etc.); 

– Perform other duties as assigned by the OCHA Head of Office.

Competencies

PROFESSIONALISM: Sound knowledge of and exposure to a range of humanitarian assistance, emergency relief and related humanitarian issues, to include approaches and techniques to address difficult problems; conceptual and strategic analytical capacity and in particular the ability to analyse and articulate the humanitarian and protection dimension of issues which require a coordinated UN response; ability to identify issues and to use sound judgment in applying technical expertise to resolve a wide range of problems; ability to evaluate and integrate information from a variety of sources and assess impact on the humanitarian rights and protection situation in assigned country/area; ability to work under extreme pressure, on occasion in a highly stressful environment (e.g. civil strife, natural disasters and human misery); ability to provide guidance to new/junior staff; take responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work. Proven drafting skills. Knowledge of institutional mandates, policies and guidelines pertaining humanitarian assistance. Knowledge of the UN common system and NGOs, and commonly used computer applications including MS Word and Excel. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work. 

PLANNING & ORGANIZING: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently. 

CLIENT ORIENTATION: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to client.

Education

An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in political science, social science, public administration, international studies, economics or a related field, is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible experience in humanitarian affairs, emergency preparedness, crisis/emergency relief management, rehabilitation, development, project management, budget management, or related area is required. Experience in humanitarian emergencies in the field is required. Direct project management or project supervision experience is required. Previous work experience in areas of project management, monitoring and evaluation, and administration, is strongly desirable. Experience in the design of policies and guidelines pertaining to humanitarian assistance is desirable. Experience in the UN common system is desirable. Experience working with Humanitarian Financing is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the UN Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in English (both written and oral) is required. Knowledge of Arabic desirable.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include a desk review of applicants, an assessment exercise and/or a competency-based interview.

Special Notice

-This Temporary Job Opening (TJO) is opened to internal, as well as, external candidates. The duration of the temporary appointment/assignment is for six (6) months, with the possibility of extension (subject to extension of the mandate and/or availability of funds), and the selected candidate is expected to be deployed as soon as possible. 

– A staff member holding a temporary appointment shall be regarded as an external candidate when applying for other positions, and may apply for other temporary positions at any level, subject to section 5.7 below and staff rule 4.16 (b) (ii). Therefore, a staff member holding a temporary appointment in the General Service or related categories may only apply to positions within those categories. For full information on eligibility requirements, please refer to section 5 of ST/AI/2010/4Rev.1 on Temporary Appointments. In its resolution 66/234, the General Assembly further “stressed that the Secretary-General should not recur to the practice of temporarily filling posts in the Professional and higher categories with General Service staff members who have not passed the General Service to Professional category examination other than on an exceptional basis, and requests the Secretary-General to ensure that temporary occupation of such posts by the General Service staff shall not exceed a period of one year, effective 1 January 2013…” Consequently, eligible candidates in the General Service or related categories for temporary job openings in the Professional category that have not passed the competitive examination may be selected only on an exceptional basis endorsed by the Office of Human Resources Management where no other suitable candidate could be identified. 

– Upon separation from service, including, but not limited to, expiration or termination of, or resignation from, a fixed-term, continuing or permanent appointment, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment on the basis of a temporary appointment for a period of 31 days following the separation. In the case of separation from service on retirement, a former staff member will be ineligible for re-employment for a period of three months following the separation. This equally applies, mutatis mutandis, with respect to a former or current staff member who has held or holds an appointment in another entity applying the United Nations Staff Regulations and Rules and who applies for a temporary position with the Secretariat. 

– While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post. An external candidate selected for this position is bound by the prevailing condition of the staff selection system under ST/AI/2010/3, as amended, and T/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. A staff member holding a temporary appointment who is recruited in the Professional and above categories on a temporary appointment, and placed on a position authorized for one year or longer may not apply for or be reappointed to his/her current position within six months of the end of his/her current service. This provision does not apply to staff members holding temporary appointments and placed on positions authorized for one year or more in duty stations authorized for peacekeeping operations or special political missions. 

– The expression “Internal candidates”, shall mean staff members who have been recruited after a competitive examination under staff rule 4.16 or after the advice of a central review body under staff rule 4.15. 

– Please note that candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law. 

– For information on special post allowance, please refer to ST/AI/1999/17. For more details on the administration of temporary appointments please refer to ST/AI/2010/4/Rev.1. 

– The Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and administrative issuance governing staff appointments can be viewed at: http://www.un.org/hr_handbook/English. 

– Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, Inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the At-a-Glance on “The Application Process” and the Instructional Manual for the Applicants, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of Inspira account-holder homepage. 

– Applications are pre-screened by the system according to the published requirements of the job opening on the basis of the information provided in the application. In relation to the requirements of the job opening, applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their qualifications, including their education, work experience, and language skills. Each applicant must bear in mind that submission of incomplete or inaccurate applications may render that applicant ineligible for consideration for the job opening. Initial screening and evaluation of applications will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted. Applications cannot be amended following submission. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to a reference-checking process to verify the information provided in the application. 

– Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at midnight (New York time) on the deadline date.

United Nations Considerations

The United Nations shall place no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. (Charter of the United Nations – Chapter 3, article 8). The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Candidates will be required to meet the requirements of Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter as well as the requirements of the position. The United Nations is committed to the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity for all its human resources, including but not limited to respect for international human rights and humanitarian law. Candidates may be subject to screening against these standards, including but not limited to whether they have committed, or are alleged to have committed criminal offences and/or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.

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.