Project Specialist United Nations Development Programme Experience: 5 to 10 Years New York, United States of America Apply By: 29-11-2024

UNDP is the knowledge frontier organization for sustainable development in the UN Development System and serves as the integrator for action to realize the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UNDP’s policy work carried out at HQ, Regional and Country Office levels, forms a contiguous spectrum of deep local knowledge to cutting-edge global perspectives and advocacy. In this context, UNDP invests in the Global Policy Network (GPN), a network of field-based and global technical expertise across a wide range of knowledge domains and in support of the signature solutions and organizational capabilities envisioned in the Strategic Plan. Within the GPN, the Crisis Bureau guides UNDP’s corporate crisis-related strategies and vision for crisis prevention, response and recovery and other thematic which it anchors for the whole of UNDP (e.g. Human rights).

Within the Crisis Bureau, the Rule of Law, Security and Human Rights Team (RoLSHR) team is responsible for practice/policy development in the areas of rule of law, security, and human rights as they relate to crisis prevention and recovery in conflict and disaster settings as well as the implementation of the Global Programme on Strengthening the Rule of Law and Human Rights for Sustaining Peace and Fostering Development. The Global Programme is the main operational and financial instrument for UNDP globally to engage in justice, security and human rights in crisis-affected contexts and special development situations. It draws on some of UNDP’s most innovative rule of law programmes in these contexts, to assist UNDP Country Offices in developing multi-year, comprehensive rule of law programmes that respond rapidly and effectively to the needs on the ground. The Global Programme supports rule of law programmes in approximately 40 crisis-affected situations, with a total programming value of over USD 220 million. The RoLSHR team also leads UNDP’s engagement on the rule of law with the UN system through the Global Focal Point for Rule of Law, which was established in 2012 and has been increasingly operational in recent years.

The Justice Action Coalition (JAC) with a Secretariat co-hosted by UNDP and Pathfinders for Peace and Justice, is a multi-stakeholder, high-ambition coalition of countries and organizations championing equal access to justice for all. The guiding ambition of the Justice Action Coalition is to close the global justice gap and the goal is to achieve measurable progress in justice outcomes for people and communities. The coalition calls for bold action to transform justice systems. It urges countries to pivot to people-centred justice. As a co-host of the JAC Secretariat, UNDP is implementing a workstream focusing on supporting strategic and innovative people centred justice initiatives at country level. UNDP is anchoring this workstream based on its comparative advantage and niche of in-country presence and strong rule of law and access to justice programmes in different development settings. This workstream focuses on the management of Catalytic Funds to deliver quality country level programming which is co-designed and implemented with national stakeholders. UNDP provides technical expertise at both policy and programming levels to support quality programming. The Catalytic Fund is being implemented with an initial inception period of two years aimed at demonstrating results and lessons on focused interventions on people centred justice.

Scope of Work 

The Rule of Law, Security and Human Rights Team () Project Specialist will be responsible for the overall project management of the Catalytic Fund people centered justice initiatives at country level and provision to expert technical support and advice on people centered justice. The project Specialist will be directing key activities which include support towards country selections for Catalytic Fund investments, coordination with key stakeholders, and particularly JAC partners, facilitate continuous learning processes throughout implementation of country projects including putting in place a robust monitoring learning and evaluation tools, supporting conducting research and analysis to support of the team’s efforts to provide policy and programme advisory, advocacy, relationship building, and knowledge to the thematic area of Rule of Law, Justice and Security within the Crisis Bureau and UNDP as a whole across a range of development settings, particularly in conflict, crisis and fragile settings. 

Working under the direction and support of the Senior Advisor, Justice & Security and with matrix reporting to Programme Manager -Global Programme for Rule of law Security and Human Rights, the Project Specialist collaborates with teams across UNDP’s Regional Hubs, Country Offices and Global Policy Centers, to provide quality project and policy services and deliver technical advice which advances UNDP’s credibility and coherence in the area of people centered justice, human rights and gender justice. S/he collaborates with the UN system and other JAC members to ensure the execution of quality and coherent policy and programme advisory services at the country level, as well as to ensure alignment with the UNDP Strategic Plan.

More specifically, the ROLSHR Project Specialist will undertake the following tasks:

Lead Project Management and Coordination

• Facilitates the development and implementation of Country selection process for the Catalytic Fund on people centered justice.
• Leads Catalytic Fund project management work including activities related to work planning, implementation and reporting.
• Leads monitoring and reporting of overall implementation based on programmatic indicators, as well as corporate reporting and evaluation/lessons learnt requirements.
• Ensures coordination and coherence with the other JAC workstreams on Data & Evidence’, Communication, Narrative and Connection to the SDGs and Financing
• Contribute to the development of coherence in the implementation of guidance on people centered justice related tools for the implementation of global policy standards, including testing and rolling out of tools and methodologies.
• Provide inputs to support the quality assurance of policy services and foster policy innovation to promote partnerships for people centered security through reviewing lessons learned and evaluations to enhance programme delivery.
• Lead in the process of drafting reports including review of issues and trends
• Lead in the coordination and conducting of analysis of data, case evidence and research findings on people centered justice to distill relevant lessons from projects and programmes to inform policy formulation and guidance;
• Lead in the process of drafting reports including review of issues and trends

Build Strategic Partnerships and Resource mobilization.

• In synchronization with the Global Programme Manager and Senior Advisor on Justice and Security, will coordinate engagement with current and prospective partners, including Member States, Private Sector organizations, CSOs/NGOs and others to make available capacities for supporting Catalytic Fund programmatic efforts in the field and at HQ;
• Implement partnership building and resource mobilization strategies, in line with Crisis Bureau’s and ROLSHR resource mobilization strategy in coordination with the ROLSHR Team Leader and Global Programme Manager.
• Guide and support team-wide efforts in strengthening strategic partnerships with JAC members, UN entities and other relevant bodies and provide inputs to those partnerships in support of UNDP initiatives:
• Support partnerships at field level for the implementation of JAC catalytic initiatives and provide advice and guidance to Country Offices on partnership strengthening.

Lead Policy Research and Development: 

• Contribute to the development/implementation of guidance on people centered justice and related tools for the implementation of global policy standards, including testing and roll out of tools and methodologies.
• Support the development of multi-stakeholder policy and programme initiatives for different contexts on key emerging policy issues on people centered justice, in collaboration with policy teams in the Regional Hubs, and bringing in perspectives and knowledge from Country Offices and the regions.
• Contribute towards coordination and conducting of analysis of data, case evidence and research findings to distill relevant lessons from projects and programmes to inform policy formulation and guidance.
• Contribute to the development of relevant analysis and guidance, in close collaboration across the GPN, on emerging trends, analysis and partnership issues of global significance, as well as contribute to new research, including through working with the Global Policy Centers.
• Support team’s engagement in UN interagency and other coordination in relevant policy areas by providing research insight in specific thematic area.

Facilitate Knowledge Management 

• Keep an up-to-date library of knowledge related to the thematic area, whether at the global, cross-regional or region-specific level to and proactively share documents with team members and respond to their specific requests for information and learning.
• Participate in knowledge sharing processes and events within UNDP and with external partners and in particular JAC members and national counterparts at field level.
• Contribute to the development and review of knowledge products in close coordination with HQ, Regional Hub and country teams by analyzing and sharing lessons learnt and programme evaluation results.
• Support to communication products such as blogs, stories, reports, social media in close coordination with the MEL and Innovation Team, the Programme Manager and the Senior Advisor on Justice and Security.

Minimum Qualifications of the Successful IPSA

Min. Academic Education           

• Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Development eEconomics, Law, Governance, Human Rights, Development Studies, Political Science, Business Administration, Social Sciences or related disciplines is required. OR
• A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas stated above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Min. years of relevant Work experience              

• A minimum of 7 years (with master’s degree) or 9 years (with bachelor’s degree) of professional work experience in providing policy advice and programme support in the area of justice, human rights, rule of law in development and/or crisis contexts is required.

Required and Desired additional skills and competencies           

• At least 5 years of experience working in developing country settings is required.
• Experience in working with a wide range of partners on justice, human rights and rule of law (public, private, academic, civil society, business community leaders) is required.
• Proven track record and experience in the UN System related to working on justice, rule of law and human rights in crisis and/or developments contexts is desirable.
• Proven track record of project management or project coordination is an asset.
• Experience in crisis contexts is an asset.

Required Language(s) (at working level)              

• Fluency in English, both written and oral, is required.
• Fluency in another UN language is an asset.

Source: https://estm.fa.em2.oraclecloud.com/hcmUI/CandidateExperience/en/sites/CX_1/requisitions/job/22180