The Resident Coordinator’s Office (RCO) is a small team of international and national coordination specialists. It supports the Resident Coordinator and UN Country Team (UNCT) to increase the effectiveness of the UN’s programmes in Somalia by encouraging greater coherence, strategic analysis and planning. The RCO, which is headed by a senior strategic planner, has two full time field offices, one in Hargeisa and one in Garowe and works closely with UN colleagues in Mogadishu. This position is a new, donor funded post. It will support the emergence of new aid frameworks for Somalia. It will learn from the past experiences of the UN and World Bank’s past work with the Somali-owned Reconstruction and Development Programme and from the implementation of the UN Somali Assistance Strategy. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist (AES) will be supervised by the Head of the Resident Coordinator’s Office. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist will work very closely with Somali authorities and other partners, in particular the TFG Ministry of Planning and parallel technical units within the ministries in Puntland and Somaliland and elsewhere in Somalia. Close working relationships with Somali partners will be essential and will allow the Aid Effectiveness Specialist to successfully promote a Somali voice at international events. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist will spend approximately half his/her time inside Somalia and the other half in Nairobi and other locations as appropriate. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist will work closely with the international partners, including donors, UN Agencies, NGOs and the World Bank so as to maximize synergies and reduce the risk of overlap between the various actors involved in pushing forward the agenda of reconstruction and development in Somalia. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist will work closely with the United Nations Development Programme’s Somalia Institutional Development Programme (UNDP SIDP) to maximise the impact and use of the Development Assistance Database which the UN and donors have invested in. The Aid Effectiveness Specialist will work closely with the RCO Results Adviser and the RCO Risk Management Unit to maximize the impact of good practice advice and to ensure it is well disseminated and understood. Mogadishu is considered non-family for the purposes of entitlement setting; SOA applies for reassignments purposes with Nairobi as APA.
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Duties and Responsibilities |
Summary of key functions: - Improves the effectiveness and targeting of aid for the benefit of the Somali people
- Enhances Somalia ownership and promotes Somali perspectives
- Increases accountability and transparency of the UN and partners
- Increases the use of data and best practices in recovery and development programming in Somalia
- Supports the emergence of a coherent approach to development work across Somalia
1. Improves the effectiveness and targeting of aid for the benefit of the Somali people focusing on the achievement of the following results: - Consults Somalis on their perspectives and needs for regarding a new development framework for Somalia.
- Provides advice on the development and implementation of a development framework that meets the diverse contextual needs across Somalia.
- Revises and updates the new development framework for Somalia that allows for effective prioritization and targeting of aid.
- Undertakes perception surveys undertaken that support the generation of policy advice to improve aid effectiveness and efficiency.
- Advises the RC and donors on how to adapt their development aid in line with Somali needs.
2. Enhances Somali ownership and promotes Somali perspectives, focusing on the achievement of the following results: - Facilitates increased Somali ownership of the aid agenda.
- Enhances partner alignment (donors, UN, IFIs etc.) with national planning processes.
- Amplifies and communicates Somali perspectives and messages on aid and development.
- Produces reports that drive agendas and plans which can be communicated and heard at international levels and events.
- Undertakes / oversees perception surveys and provide the UN with information on Somali views of international assistance.
3. Increases accountability and transparency of the UN and partners, focusing on the achievement of the following results: - Identifies approaches and methods which will result in increased participation and buy-in to the Aid Information. Management System for Somalia, including the Development Assistance Database (DAD).
- Drafts and publishes an annual aid effectiveness report using data from the Development Assistance Database (DAD).
- Develops and provides support to other initiatives to improve transparency and accountability.
- Facilitates the development of a joint UN programme on accountability, transparency and integrity (ATI).
- Reports regularly to the UNCT on progress.
4. Increases the understanding and use of data and best practices in recovery and development programming in Somalia, focusing on the achievement of the following results: - Manages and promotes use of a common website containing Somalia-related information.
- Produces concise, targeted bespoke products e.g. newsletters and written briefs, policy papers etc.
- Disseminates information on best practices.
- Supports the Somali-led implementation of the recommendations from the Busan Forum on aid effectiveness and the Fragile State Principles report on Somalia.
- Engages with the G7+ group to ensure that best practices are shared in a timely way with Somali counterparts.
5. Supports the emergence of a coherent approach to development work across Somalia, focusing on the achievement of the following results: - Supports the Coordination of International Support to Somalis Executive Committee (CISS ExCom) and its link to sectoral coordination initiatives.
- Horizontal harmonization: Promotes the development of sectoral policies for sectors which are an agreed priority. (Approaches in some sectors should be the same wherever it is in Somalia and not determined by politics e.g. health systems.)
- Vertical harmonization: Encourage the emergence of a harmonized approach by international actors to Somali development frameworks.
Impact of Results: Somali authorities and other national and international partners establish a mutually agreed aid framework for Somalia which supports the delivery of efficient, focused aid.
UN and other international partners adopt a more transparent approach to their programming and decision making that allows Somali people to better understand how, where and why aid money is spent. |
Competencies |
| Functional Competencies: Advocacy/Advancing a Policy-Oriented Agenda
- Creates effective advocacy strategies
- Contributes to the elaboration of advocacy strategies by identifying and prioritizing audiences and communication means
- Performs analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses
- Excellent proven skills in analysis, problem solving, communication, negotiations, diplomacy and leadership
Results-Based Programme Development and Management
- Identifies country needs and strategies using a fact-based approach
- Sets performance standards, monitors progress and intervenes at an early stage to ensure results are in accordance with agreed-upon quality and timeframes and reports on it
- Makes use of a variety of resources based on UN/UNCT priorities to achieve results, such as cross-functional teams, secondments and developmental assignments, and collaborative funding approaches
- Oversees and documents the process of strategy formulation for programmes at country level
Building Strategic Partnerships
- Ability to work effectively in a multi-stakeholder environment and to help create value and build consensus
- Effectively networks with partners seizing opportunities to build strategic alliances relevant to UN/UNCT’s strategic agenda
- Sensitizes UN Partners, donors and other international organizations to the UN/UNCT’s strategic agenda, identifying areas for joint efforts
- Develops positive ties with civil society to build/strengthen UN/UNCT’s mandate
- Identifies needs and interventions for capacity building of counterparts, clients and potential partners
- Effectively attentive to programmatic synergies in inter-agency meetings
Innovation and Marketing New Approaches - Seeks a broad range of perspectives in developing project proposals
- Generates for regional and innovative ideas and effective solutions to problems
- Looks at experience critically, drawing lessons, and building them into the design of new approaches
- Identifies new approaches and promotes their use in other situations
- Documents successes and uses them to project a positive image
Resource Mobilization - Develops detailed knowledge and understanding of key donors, their priorities and areas of interest and adapts content and approach of resource mobilization activities to their requirements
- Builds and maintains relationships with donors demonstrating professionalism in providing advice and information on UN activities and sensitivity to donor concerns
Promoting Organizational Learning and Knowledge Sharing - Makes the case for innovative ideas documenting successes and building them into the design of new approaches
- Identifies new approaches and strategies that promote the use of tools and mechanisms
Job Knowledge/Technical Expertise - Understands more advanced aspects of primary area of specialization as well as the fundamental concepts of related disciplines
- Serves as internal consultant in the area of expertise and shares knowledge with staff
- Continues to seeks new and improved methods and systems for accomplishing the work of the unit
- Keeps abreast of new developments in area of professional discipline and job knowledge and seeks to develop him/herself professionally
- Demonstrates comprehensive knowledge of information technology and applies it in work assignments
- Demonstrates comprehensive understanding and knowledge of the current guidelines and project management tools and utilizes these regularly in work assignments
Global Leadership and Advocacy for the UN’s Goals - Performed analysis of political situations and scenarios, and contributes to the formulation of institutional responses
- Uses the opportunity to bring forward and disseminate materials for global advocacy work and adapts it for use at country level
Client Orientation - Anticipates client needs
- Works towards creating an enabling environment for a smooth relationship between the clients and service provider
- Demonstrates understanding of client’s perspective
Core Competencies - Promoting ethics and integrity, creating organizational precedents
- Building support and political acumen
- Building staff competence, creating an environment of creativity and innovation
- Building and promoting effective teams
- Creating and promoting enabling environment for open communication
- Creating an emotionally intelligent organization
- Leveraging conflict in the interests of the UN & setting standards
- Sharing knowledge across the organization and building a culture of knowledge sharing and learning. Promoting learning and knowledge management/sharing is the responsibility of each staff member.
- Fair and transparent decision making; calculated risk-taking
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Required Skills and Experience |
Education: - Advanced University degree in political science, sociology, law, international relations, public administration, or other relevant field with 7 years of experience; or
- First level university degree in political science, sociology, law, international relations, public administration, or other relevant field with 9 years of experience.
Experience: - Minimum of 7 years of progressively responsible professional experience with a master degree in humanitarian affairs and/or development or a minimum of 9 years of progressively responsible professional experience with a first level university degree.
- Experience working within at least one Post-Conflict Needs Assessment process and/or post-conflict reconstruction framework is highly desirable.
- Demonstrated experience in coordination and in working with NGOs and donors.
- Familiarity UN systems, tools and procedures required.
- Knowledge of donor, NGO, World Bank systems is an advantage.
- Experience of writing accurate and concise reports and public presentation skills.
- Computer literacy, including familiarity with spreadsheets, power point presentations and databases.
Language Requirements: - Fluency in written and spoken English.
- Knowledge of Arabic is desirable.
Other: |
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