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UNDP works in about 170 countries and territories, helping to achieve the eradication of poverty, and the reduction of inequalities and exclusion. We help countries to develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities and build resilience in order to sustain development results.
JOB SUMMARY
Background
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP: we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions.
Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply.
Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.
UNDP does not tolerate sexual exploitation and abuse, any kind of harassment, including sexual harassment, and discrimination. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks.
The Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), a multi-ethnic hilly area is one of the remotest regions of Bangladesh with rich bio-diversity and is particularly vulnerable to climate change.
Reduced forest coverage, excessive soil erosion, erratic rainfall, flash floods, landslides, and water scarcity in the dry season are perpetuating poverty in rural areas and exhausting the traditional coping mechanisms of vulnerable communities.
Freshwater scarcity is acute because natural springs are drying up. The poverty rate in CHT is much higher than the national average.
More than two decades of conflict, ending with the Peace Accord signed in 1997, has opened the regular development activities I the region.
Apart from the politically unstable situation, degradation of natural resources such as forests, soils and water bodies are further exacerbating the vulnerable situation of women who are dependent on natural resources.
Climate change and declining land fertility are taking their toll on women who engage in agricultural activities including managing water for the households and homestead vegetable cultivation.
In addition, the acceleration of the privatization of communal land-based resources, including forests and waters, is resulting in exclusion of the Indigenous population with particularly adverse effects on the livelihoods.
According to a World Bank study in 2018, by 2050, climate change will cause a decline in living standards by 18.4% in Bandarban, 15.8% in Rangamati, and 12.6% in Khagrachari.
These rates of decline are significantly higher compared to the national decline of 6.7% by 2050.
The impacts of climate change are largely gendered, with women facing higher risks and greater burdens from the effects of climate change in situations of poverty.
A recent study identified climatic events, both sudden and slow-onset, as drivers for increased conflict over resources, which will fuel long-standing social and political crises.
Considering the above mentioned situation, the UNDP Bangladesh has signed a funding agreement with the Global Affairs Canada (GAC) to address the challenges in CHT related the climate change.
The project will be implemented through the partnership with the Hill District Councils and other local stakeholders.
Duties and Responsibilities
This Project will engage the women in leadership roles.
It will promote locally led inclusive adaptation to climate change through 180 women-led climate resilience committees (WCRC) covering 540 communities in the three Hill Districts of CHT. The WCRCs will be capacitated on nature-based solutions (NbS) to climate change adaptation, climate resilient agriculture and livelihoods practices, climate change vulnerability assessments (CCVAs), local resilience plans (LRPs) and the development and implementation of prioritized actions stemming from the LRPs.
The LRPs will be supported through community grants whereas the 13,500 vulnerable households (women only) will be given livelihood grants to implement climate-adaptive livelihood options (CALO).
Local Union Parishads and local leaders will be capacitated on climate change, CCVAs, LRPs, NbS and monitoring so they can play key role in monitoring, planning and implementation.
The project will strengthen collaboration and partnerships between national government institutions and civil society organizations, leading to the implementation of locally led approaches in a wider range of regions and communities.
The incumbent will work under direct supervision of Livelihoods and NRM Specialist while the Gender and Community Cohesion Analyst will be secondary supervisor.
S/he will also closely work with bio-diversity, ecosystem restoration and livelihoods improvement teams. The peron will also be a core member of the team for mobilizing resources.
Functions:
Considering the above mentioned scope the incumbent will be responsible for the below functions:
- Lead Climate Change Assessments, Planning, Budgeting, Implementation of Planned activities and Coordination.
- Climate Change Analyses, Evaluation and managing relevant studies.
- Develop relevant training materials, different guidelines, conduct training and capacity building activities.
- Budget management and monitoring
- Monitor field activities, results, writing periodical qualitative and quantitative reports for the management and donor.
- Managing partners’ agreements and contracts, monitor the progress and processing the payments following the corporate guidelines.
- Preparing procurement plans and implement them in collaboration with the procurement unit.
Lead Climate Change Assessments, Planning, Budgeting, Implementation of Planned Activities and Coordination.
- Lead in preparing annual work plans related to climate change activities and closely work with other team members.
- Develop necessary field implementation guidelines and achieve results with respect to climate change issues.
- Design and develop climate change vulnerability assessments and plans, activity implementation with necessary guidelines and budgets.
- Coordinate with Hill District Councils (HDCs), partners, local and national level stakeholders, donors to ensure proper supports in implementing the project activities.
- Develop and implement effective assessments and planning tools / formats relevant to climate change issues and indicators.
- Monitor the progress of planned activities and budget.
- Conduct field visits for understanding progress, impacts and results of the project.
- Provide technical guidance to the partners and field teams.
Climate Change Analyses, Evaluation and managing relevant studies.
- Conducting assessment on the climate changes in the CHT region and regularly collect secondary reports on the subject matters.
- Provide strategic briefs to the supervisor and management on a regular basis.
Develop relevant training materials, different guidelines, conduct training and capacity building activities.
- Develop training materials on CCVA (Community Climate Vulnerability Assessment), LRP (Local Resilience Plans), NbS (Nature-based Solutions), climate-adaptive livelihood options (CALO), guidelines for beneficiary selection and formation of women-led climate change committees etc.
- Develop livelihoods grant management guidelines and provide trainings to the field teams.
- Organise and manage trainings for the partners, project teams and stakeholders as required for the implementation of the project activities.
- Organise workshops, seminars as required.
Budget management and monitoring
- Preparing quarterly and annual budget for the relevant activities.
- Maintain budget tracking tools and provide feedback on the budget management to the supervisor for strategic decisions.
- Organise budget review meeting with partners and field teams to understand the budget delivery progress on regular basis.
Monitor field activities, results, produce periodical qualitative and quantitative reports
- Monitor the increased practice of climate-smart resilience-building practices, and development of livelihoods by vulnerable households – especially women in the project areas.
- Monitor increased women’s role in decision-making, developing, promoting, and implementing inclusive local resilience plans with local government institutions and civil society organizations.
- Monitor increased support from national government institutions and civil society organisations to upscale locally-led adaptation.
- Monitor proper utilization of livelihood and climate change adaptation grants.
- Monitoring progress of the planned activities, collect monthly and quarterly monitoring reports from partners and field teams, analyse them and prepare progress reports.
- Organize periodical result/impact assessments and producing reports for the management and donor to understand the achievements of the results and targets.
- Prepare high quality narrative reports, quarterly and annual, for external use.
Managing partners’ agreements and contracts, monitor the progress and processing the payments following the corporate guidelines.
- Preparing relevant documents to be signed with the partners and contractors/consultants/NGOs etc.
- Manage the agreements and contracts and process timely payment to the partners and contractors.
- Provide necessary capacity building supports to the partners on managing the budgets.
Preparing procurement plans and implement them in collaboration with the procurement unit.
- Following the annual work plans, prepare procurement plan in collaboration with procurement team and initiate procurement process.
- Monitoring the progress of the procurement process and update management on a regular basis.
Competencies
Core Competencies:
- Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
- Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
- Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
- Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
- Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
- Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
- Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination
Cross-Functional & Technical competencies:
Business Direction & Strategy
- Strategic Thinking: Ability to develop effective strategies and prioritized plans in line with UNDP’s objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, potential risks and opportunities, linking the vision to reality on the ground and creating tangible solutions; Ability to leverage learning from a variety of sources to anticipate and respond to future trends, to demonstrate foresight in order to made what future developments and possible ways forward look like for UNDP.
Business Direction & Strategy
- Effective and Decision Making: Ability to take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one’s authority, area of expertise and resources.
Business Development
- Knowledge Generation: Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need.
- Human Centered Design: Ability to develop solutions to problems by involving the human perspective in all steps of the problem-solving process.
Business Management
- Project Management: Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
2030 Agenda:
- People Gender: Climate Change and Risk Management of Disaster with Gender Perspective.
- Planet Nature, Climate and Energy: Climate Change Adaptation, agriculture/food security.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Advanced university degree (Master´s degree or equivalent) in Climate Change, Environmental Management/Studies/Science, Agriculture, Development Studies, Disaster/Natural Resource Management or any other relevant field is required, or
- A first-level university degree (Bachelor´s degree) in the areas mentioned above in combination with additional 2 years of qualifying experience, will be given due consideration in lieu of Master´s degree.
Experience:
- Up to 2 years (with Master´s degree) or minimum 2 years (with Batchelor’s degree) of relevant experience in handling/managing climate change related project.
- Sound knowledge, experience and understanding on climate change, agriculture and livelihoods.
- Proven knowledge on gender and women empowerment issues.
- Hands on experiences on managing project and budget.
- Relevant experiences in quality report writing and analytical skills.
- Experience of Working with multi-disciplinary teams.
- Experience of Working in multi-cultural environment.
- Good understanding/experience on result based monitoring.
- Proven Knowledge on “Do No Harm” principles.
- Proven Understanding on cultural sensitivities and respecting different opinions.
Required Languages:
- Fluency in speaking, writing and reading both in English and Bangla is required.
- Working knowledge in any of the CHT languages or Chittagonian dialect will be given advantages.
Disclaimer
Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents.
UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment.
UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.
Applicant information about UNDP rosters
Note: UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.
Non-discrimination
UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority.
All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.
UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
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REQUIRED EDUCATION: Bachelor Degree
EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS: 60