We require suitable qualified candidates to fill the position below:
Position: Project Coordinator
Post Level: SC
Duty Station: Abuja
Type of Contract: Services Contract
Background:
With the bilateral support of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA),
UN Women is implementing a two-year programme, Action to Promote the Legal Empowermen in the Context of HIV/AIDS, to reduce the vulnerability and mitigate the impact of HIV and AIDS on women in Sub-Saharan Africa through improved access to property and inheritance rights.
Ample research and evidence suggest that women who own properly or otherwise control economic assets tend to have higher incomes, a secure place to live and greater bargaining and decision-making power within their households. These factors enable women to better protect themselves from risks of HIV transmission and infection, to negotiate safer sex and to avoid the need to engage in transactional sex. At the same time, increasing economic assets and ensuring women’s rights through access and recourse to legal mechanisms empowers women living with or affected by HIV/AIDS to cope with the impact of AIDS on their families and communities, particularly after the loss of the main breadwinner.
To catalyze strategic action, UN Women established a small grants mechanism, the Fund for Women’s Property and Inheritance Rights in the Context of HIV/AIDS, targeting community-based and grassroots organizations and networks working at the intersection of women’s property and inheritance rights. A Call for Proposals was launched in 2010 attracting nearly 650 applications. Of these, twenty grantees in nine countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have been selected.
UN Women is seeking a project Coordinator to coordinate and support the day-to-day management of the Fund at regional and country levels. S/he will report directly to the Fund Programme Manager. The Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section at HQ will provide programme oversight and technical guidance to the Fund Secretariat.
Responsibilities:
Fund Management
- Ensure and coordinate the provision of technical guidance to grantees with UN Women’s Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section and Africa Region as requested.
- Establish a roster of regional technical experts and consultants in the area of WPIR and HIV to support grantees’ programme implementation.
- Coordinate closely with sub-regional HIV/AIDS focal points, operations managers and finance officers to ensure efficient disbursement and to track funds for all grantees
- Create and maintain complete set of files for each grantee, including proposal, grant agreement, performance monitoring frameworks, monitoring reports, progress and financial reports, as well as key communications.
- Liaise with and coordinate communications with Sub-Regional Offices (SROs) and Country Offices (COs) on other requests for assistance and follow up.
Monitoring and Evaluation
- Coordinate with sub-regional M and E officers and Country the provision of technical assistance to grantees for the development of project-level performance monitoring frameworks
- Review grantees’ project-level performance monitoring frameworks to ensure alignment with guidelines and programme-level framework
- Coordinate with relevant Country Office local persons to monitor progress and to ensure grantee activities and outputs are in line with agreed workplans and programme. Ensure at least one monitoring visit to each grantee and timely submission of monitoring reports by Country Offices.
- Review reports and identify appropriate and timely follow up support
Provide relevant research, coordination and logistical support to evaluation team
Knowledge management and Communications
- Work closely with UN Women’s Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section to strengthen information information-sharing and organizational learning among and between grantees, SROS, Cos, UN Women and external partners
- In collaboration with Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section, explore and identify appropriate and relevant platforms of knowledge exchange as an opportunity for grantees to share project achievements, challenges and lessons learned with each other and to enable UN Women to provide substantive technical support
- Take the lead in initiating and facilitating lessons learning among grantees
- Contribute to the development of knowledge products. Provide and analyze qualitative evidence to demonstrate impact of grantee projects to UN Women’s various stakeholders and to stimulate learning about effective strategies for advancing women’s legal empowerment in the context of HIV/AIDS policy and programmes.
- Coordinate project visibility initiatives, including identifying appropriate forums for UN Women and/or grantees, providing support for their substantive participation, and conducting publicity and media outreach at national, regional giobal levels in conjunction with Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section, Africa Region and HQ Communications.
Donor Reporting
- Develop results-based reporting template and guidelines and disseminate to grantees via UN Women Country Offices.
- Work closely with country offices to ensure timely submission of grantees’ progress and financial mid-term and final reports
- Aggregale grantees’ results and draft comprehensive mid-term and final narrative donor reports for submission to Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Section, liaising as necessary with country offices and/or grantees.
Competencies:
Corporate Competencies:
- Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN values and ethical standards
- Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNIFEM
- Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability
- Treats all people fairly without favoritism
Functional Competencies:
- Strong planning, goal setting and prioritization skills
- Results based management and quality delivery of outputs in accordance with time and budget
- Ability to lead and mobilize staff and partners towards shared goals
- Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with partners at all levels
- Strong interpersonal and diplomatic skills
- Proven analytical and problem-solving skills and capacity to write clearly and concisely
- Solid IT skills
- Familiarity with UN Women and broad knowledge and understanding of the UN system
Qualifications:
- Advanced university degree in Political Science, International Development Studies, Law and/or Gender/Women’s Studies
Experience:
- Minimum of 2 years of professional experience, including experience in formulation, management and evaluation of programmes in developing countries with a gender approach.
- Experience in coordinating donor projects and working with multiple implementing partners
- In-depth knowledge of programming on gender equality and HIV
- Familiarity with bilateral and multilateral donor organizations and civil society organizations
- Excellent organizational, process management, and coordination skills
- Proven experience in financial and administrative management functions
- Superior writing and communication skills.
Languages:
Fluency in English required
Proficiency French preferred
Duration
The consultancy will cover a period of 12 months, commencing June 2011
How to Apply:
Interested candidates should forward their updated CV and a short covering letter to
unwomen.ng@unwomen.org (with subject line titled “WPIR-HIV Coordinator”)
on or before 17th May 2011. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
