The United Nation Secretariat maintains rosters of qualified and available candidates to fill anticipated job openings in peacekeeping operations, special political missions, and other field operations.
The purpose of this job opening is to deepen the roster of qualified P3 Civil Affairs candidates who speak both English and Arabic in anticipation of vacancies in Arabic-speaking mission locations. Please note that Civil Affairs positions are typically in conflict and post-conflict locations outside the capital city in non-family and/or hardship duty stations. Civil Affairs staff may also be housed in camp environments. An updated list of missions and additional information on working in the field can be found at http://www.un.org/en/peacekeeping/about/dfs/.
Fluency in English and a working knowledge of Arabic is required for these positions. For the purposes of this roster vacancy, working knowledge of Arabic is described as a functional use of spoken Modern Standard Arabic plus a spoken Arabic dialect, enabling candidates to communicate with Arabic speaking interlocutors at the community level. It would be an additional asset to be able to read in Arabic and paraphrase into English short general Arabic texts such as simple news items, correspondence, memos, etc.
All applicants will be notified in writing of the outcome of their application (whether successful or unsuccessful) within 14 days of the conclusion of the process. Successful candidates will be placed on the roster and subsequently will be invited to apply for field mission vacancies open only to roster members. Roster membership does not guarantee selection.
These positions are located in the United Nations field Peace Operations and Special Political missions. Typically Civil Affairs Officers are deployed at the sub-national level (outside the capital) in regional field offices and report to the Head of Office and/or Chief of Civil Affairs.
In order to be rostered, P3 Civil Affairs Officer candidates are required to clearly demonstrate competencies and experience in one (or more) of three specialized areas, in addition to a core profile. The specializations are: Conflict Management, Support to State Institutions, and Programme Management. (These duties are generic, and may not all be performed by all P3 Civil Affairs Officers.)
CORE PROFILE:
•Provides information and analysis for the Mission and other actors where applicable, on political, social and economic issues affecting conflict dynamics at the local and regional level, including analysis on how these relate to the national level and vice versa. Ensures that the concerns and perceptions of the local population are effectively communicated to the Mission, as well as other actors where appropriate.
•Represents the mission at the local level as required.
•Contributes to a shared understanding of the Mission environment, mandate and operations amongst Mission actors at the local level, in particular uniformed components, to support consistency and coherence of approach. Fosters effective working relations with United Nations Country Team (UNCT).
•Contributes to the formulation of recommendations concerning Mission actions and approaches required at the local level, assists in mobilising a response from other actors where appropriate.
•Manages individual Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) intended for confidence building purposes at the local level, in line with DPKO/DFS Policy Directive on QIPs and mission specific priorities.
•Supervises, monitors and encourages the work of officers under his/her responsibility in undertaking the full range of their duties.
•Identifies and researches good practice and lessons learned in Civil Affairs work and shares these with colleagues, including through active participation in the online Civil Affairs Network.
•Contributes to overall mission monitoring and planning as required.
•Performs other duties as required, in line with the DPKO/DFS Policy Directive on Civil Affairs.
CONFLICT MANAGEMENT:
•Supports dialogue between groups in conflict in the area of responsibility by convening structured meetings and similar activities.
•Promotes and protects the interest of excluded and/or threatened groups through advocacy in full respect of humanitarian and international law.
•Supports civil society groups and/or institutions at the local level that promote a culture of peace and reconciliation. Assists them, including, where appropriate, in becoming effective implementing partners for Quick Impact Projects.
SUPPORT TO STATE INSTITUTIONS:
•Assists local institutions to assess capacity building and support needs, working with partners including the UNCT and in particular UNDP. Helps to design a coordinated response to these needs from relevant actors.
•Assists in the design and implementation of appropriate and practical Civil Affairs support to local authorities, including mentoring and support to policy and decision-making processes where appropriate.
•Supports dialogue and cooperation between authorities and relevant interest groups with the aim of creating political space and accountability, and provides support to the development of structures of accountability and transparency.
•Supports events such as public fora or town-hall meetings to foster development of political space at the local level. Supports civic education programmes at the local level on a range of issues, including elections, policy issues, and good governance principles, in coordination with local authorities and/or civil society actors.
PROGRAMME MANAGEMENT:
•Manages a local field office or team, undertaking or overseeing the programmatic and administrative tasks necessary for its functioning.
•Manages a small Mission QIPs programme in accordance with Mission priorities and the DPKO/DFS policy on QIPs. Includes, inter alia: acting as Secretariat to a decision-making body on QIPs, ensuring the effective and timely running of the project design, approval and implementation process, the keeping of accurate records, assistance with determining mission specific priorities, assessment of impact of the overall programme, and drafting of QIPs submission for the Mission budget.
•Contributes to the development and ensures distribution of high-quality mission-specific induction materials. Assists with the design, implementation and evaluation of tailored in-mission skills training for Civil Affairs components in accordance with global Civil Affairs skills training methodologies.
•Serves as focal point on gender for the Civil Affairs component, identifying and communicating ways to ensure that a gender perspective is taken into account in all aspects of Civil Affairs work.
•Serves as focal point for researching, identifying and sharing good practices and lessons learned with the Civil Affairs component and the global Civil Affairs community.
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.
TEAMWORK – Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.
Advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in social sciences, political science, international relations, public administration, anthropology, law, economics or related area. A first-level university degree with in combination two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
A minimum of five years of progressively responsible professional experience in civil affairs-related work with UN Peace Operations, UN Funds or Programmes, national or international NGOs, or community based organizations, research institutions, etc. Of these five years, at least two must be in a conflict affected environment working on conflict analysis, conflict management, community reconciliation, protection of civilians, social cohesion or support to the effective functioning of local authorities and institutions. Conflict or post-conflict field experience in the Middle-East and/or Arabic-speaking countries in Africa is desirable. Work experience in a field office operating at the sub-national level is desirable.
English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the position advertised, fluency in oral and written English is required. Working knowledge of spoken Arabic is required (see special notice).
Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise followed by a competency-based interview conducted in English and Arabic.
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, 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 or violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law.
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 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 the inspira account-holder homepage.
The screening and 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, including but not limited to, their education, work experience, and language skills, according to the instructions provided on inspira. Applicants will be disqualified from consideration if they do not demonstrate in their application that they meet the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations. Applicants are solely responsible for providing complete and accurate information at the time of application: 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 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.
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.