Org. Setting and Reporting

This positions is in the External Relations and Communications (ERC) section of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA – unescwa.org). Under the leadership of the Secretary of the Commission, the ERC section is responsible for the overall coordination of consensus-building with and delivery of advisory services to ESCWA member States. The Associate Programme Management Officer will report to the Secretary of the Commission.

Responsibilities

The Associate Programme Management Officer will be responsible for the following duties in the Regular Programme for Technical Cooperation (RPTC) of ESCWA:

1-Assists member States in formulating national technical cooperation (TC) frameworks and monitors their implementation.
2-Strengthens ESCWA’s role in providing substantive support through delivery of high-quality technical assistance to the government of Lebanon and other national counterparts.
3-Coordinates with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lebanon on technical cooperation activities.
4Establishes and maintains excellent relations and networks with host country counterparts to facilitate ESCWA’s delivery of technical cooperation activities.
5-Liaises with UN offices, members of the UN Country Team (UNCT) for Lebanon to ensure coherence in support, as appropriate.
6-Acts as the focal point for the ESCWA TC Network.
7-Participates in field missions, including assistance in the provision of guidance to external consultants, government officials and other parties.
8-Provides substantive support to consultative and other meetings, conferences, etc., including proposing agenda topics, preparation of documents and presentations, drafting meeting reports, etc.
9-Drafts inputs for a wide range of documents/reports, briefings/debriefings, correspondence, drafts RPTC mission reports, as needed.
10-Prepares monitoring checklists, identifies stages of RPTC requests implementation, liaising with member States as needed, and follows up as required.
11-Reviews various RPTC substantive outputs, e.g. reviews background papers, consultancy reports, advisory mission reports, etc.;
12-Reviews, appraises and revises, as necessary, all submissions for RPTC requests, ensuring compliance with mandates; identifies problems/issues and liaises with member States to solve them, assesses replies, and prepares a summary for the Secretary of the Commission with suggestions for further action.
13-Tracks resolutions and other legislative mandates that affect the RPTC content and oversees the preparation of the relevant database(s) to ensure the incorporation of legislative and other changes enacted by legislation;
14-Performs other duties as required.

Competencies

•Professionalism: Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.
•Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.
•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.
•Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; supports subordinates, provides oversight and takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable

Education

Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in management, public administration, business administration, social sciences or humanities or a related field is required. A first-level university degree (Bachelor’s or equivalent) in combination with two additional years of qualifying work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

1. At least two years of progressively responsible experience in Programme Management, Administration or related area is required.
2. Experience in research is desirable.
3. Work experience in dealing with senior representatives of member States is desirable.
4. Experience in liaising and coordinating technical cooperation activities with external counterparts is desirable.
5. Experience in servicing meetings of large bodies of international organizations is desirable.
6. Strong drafting skills in English, Arabic and French is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. In addition, Arabic is a working language at ESCWA. For this position, fluency in English is required. Fluency in Arabic is required. Fluency in French is required.

Note: “Fluency” equals a rating of ‘fluent’ in all four areas (speak, read, write, and understand) and “Knowledge of” equals a rating of ‘confident’ in two of the four areas.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates will include assessment(s) and a competency-based interview.

Special Notice

•This is a National Professional Officer (NPO/NO) position and is located in Lebanon. Only candidates with Lebanese nationality are eligible.
•This position is available for one year. Extension of appointment is subject to availability of funds, extension of the mandate, continued need for services, and satisfactory performance of the incumbent.
•This position is subject to local recruitment pursuant to staff rule 4.4 of the United Nations Staff Rules. A staff member subject to local recruitment shall not be eligible for the allowances or benefits exclusively applicable to international recruitment.
•The candidate is responsible for any expenses incurred in order to attend assessments and interviews and, in the event of an employment offer, any costs related to travel and relocation to the duty station.
•Staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and to assignment by him or her. In this context, all staff are expected to move periodically to new functions in their careers in accordance with established rules and procedures.
•The United Nations Secretariat is committed to achieving 50/50 gender balance in its staff. Female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for this position.

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places 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. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

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.