The Position:

Under the overall guidance of the Representative and the direct supervision and guidance of the Programme Coordinator, the Gender-based Violence in Emergencies Specialist provides leadership and guidance on all aspects related to planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting of UNFPA Afghanistan’s GBViE interventions, including identifying opportunities for partnerships and resource mobilization. The GBV in Emergencies Specialist heads the GBV team and is expected to guide international and national staff.

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the ICPD and SDGs in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.

Job Purpose:

In a complex operating environment, you will play a vital role in supporting the UNFPA Country Office’s response to the health and protection needs of women and girls. You will ensure timely effective and efficient implementation of GBV/PSS programming, manage the GBV team, and actively participate and ensure UNFPA representation in inter-agency working groups. To ensure an integrated response, you will develop strong, collaborative relationships across the organization and with external partners. You will guide the application of the international standards for GBV and PSS programming in humanitarian settings, adapting them to the Afghanistan context; identify bottlenecks in GBV/PSS prevention and response within UNFPA’s humanitarian response; devise strategies to address them and ensure application of a resilience approach in the humanitarian response while addressing the humanitarian-development nexus programmatic implementation; provide leadership to ensure that technical knowledge is updated and disseminated for effective implementation.

You would be responsible for:

A. Technical Support and Programming
● Coordinate the development and implementation of the GBV/PSS component of UNFPA’s work, including for feeding into UNFPA’s humanitarian response and formulation of the country programme, as well as strategizing UNFPA’s inputs to joint UN frameworks and humanitarian response plans.
● Manage the implementation of GBV/PSS programme components, including development, and effective implementation and monitoring of work plans into UNFPA’s humanitarian response and development activities, using a result-based approach incorporating creativity, innovation and responsiveness to the needs.
● Ensure UNFPA’s GBV/PSS interventions are survivor-centered and that their design, implementation and reporting are in line with global standards and guidance, including the Essential Package of Services for Women and Girls Subject to Violence, UNFPA’s Minimum Standards for Addressing GBV in Emergencies and Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for GBV in Emergency Programming.
● Provide technical support in developing and implementing a multi-sectoral and coordinated GBV prevention and response program inclusive of safe and effective referral and reporting mechanisms, information sharing and monitoring/evaluation achieved through strong coordination.
● Provide strategic guidance for the implementation of the Mental Health and Psychosocial Support interventions, as it relates to GBV/PSS programming.
● Conduct field assessments and/ or situational analyses of the current services provided in Mother and Child Health Centers (MCHCs), Psychosocial Support Counselling Centers (PSCCs) and PSS Corners integrated in Family Health Houses (FHH) to determine needs and gaps for GBViE prevention and response.
● Oversee the procurement of supplies related to GBV response, including dignity kits and other relevant commodities.

B. Advocacy and Resource Mobilization
● Identify opportunities to mobilize resources for the UNFPA GBV/PSS programme and contribute to development of concept notes, proposals and appeals.
● Prepares donors reports, ensuring timeliness and adherence to donor requirements.
● Identify, analyze, and synthesize information for evidence-based advocacy, resource mobilization efforts and to improve the effectiveness of UNFPA operations.
● Contributes technical inputs to communications materials on GBV, including presentation, briefing papers and annual reports.
● Coordinates with the Resource Mobilization and Partnerships Specialist to maintain partnerships with donors, keeping them regularly updated on implementation.

C. Coordination and Strategic Partnerships
● Participate in other interagency and partnership mechanisms, including relevant working groups of the UN Country Team to ensure UNFPA’s involvement and strong partnership with all gender/GBV actors.
● Engage with other UN agencies, including as part of the UN Gender Working Group, to ensure that gender equality and women’s rights issues are effectively addressed in UN frameworks, responses and plans.
● Represent UNFPA at the GBV Sub-Cluster under the Protection Cluster and liaise with other humanitarian clusters and sectors, GBV managers and Gender Advisers in other agencies and organizations (including NGOs and women’s groups) in order to strengthen and enhance the efforts and activities of stakeholders in the country for a comprehensive multi-sectoral response to gender-based violence within the context of humanitarian action in Afghanistan.
● Work in close partnerships with the Humanitarian Coordinator and other teams to ensure GBV risk mitigation interventions are mainstreamed across other areas of humanitarian intervention such as WASH and Health sectors.
● Promote and facilitate the inclusion of GBV risk mitigation and response into all assessment tools, preparedness and contingency planning, the Humanitarian Response Plan and other appeal processes and documents.
● Maintain coordination across both the humanitarian and development structures to ensure that UNFPA programming is integrated across the sectors.
● Coordinate with the UNFPA regional office and HQ as and when needed for information sharing and channeling technical support.

D. Capacity Building
● Support and advise the country office management and builds knowledge and programming practices in relation to GBV programming.
● Provide technical leadership, management advice and strategic support to the GBV team.
● Strengthen the capacity of staff and partners on the international standards, guidelines and best practices for comprehensive evidence-informed GBV programming, including UNFPA’s Area Offices and partners at regional, provincial and district levels.

● Perform any other duty as directed by the supervisor.

Qualifications and Experience:

Education:

Advanced university degree in social work, public health, community health, international relations, international law, human rights or related field.

Knowledge and Experience:

● At least 7 years of specialized experience in GBV programming, 5 of which should be at the international level.
● Experience in managing GBV programmes in a complex humanitarian context.
● Strong record of coordination and management of GBV programmes, including large multi-year and multi-sectoral projects, designing and appraising proposals and actively liaising with relevant and potential project partners.
● Experience in utilizing the following internationals tools: Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for GBV in Emergencies Programming; Essential Services Package for women and girls subject to violence; Inter-Agency GBV Case Management Guidelines; GBV Information Management System; IASC GBV Guidelines; GBV Coordination Handbook; WHO Ethical and Safety Recommendations for Researching GBV in Emergencies; and the IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support.
● Demonstrated experience in leading capacity building initiatives in GBV programming and their application in humanitarian settings.
● Demonstrated leadership and management experience within a multinational and multicultural environment.
● Strong expertise in capacity development.
● Exceptional interpersonal, networking and negotiation skills.
● Ability to communicate clearly and concisely in writing and orally.

Languages:

Fluency in English is required. Working knowledge of another official UN language is desirable.

Required Competencies:

Values:

• Exemplifying integrity
• Demonstrating commitment to UNFPA and the UN system
• Embracing cultural diversity
• Embracing change

Core Competencies:

• Achieving results
• Being accountable
• Developing and applying professional expertise/business acumen
• Thinking analytically and strategically
• Working in teams/managing ourselves and our relationships
• Communicating for impact

Functional Competencies:

• Advocacy/advancing a policy-oriented agenda
• Leveraging the resources of national governments and partners/building strategic alliances and partnerships
• Delivering results based programmes
• Internal and external communication and resource mobilization

Managerial Competencies:

• Providing strategic focus
• Engaging internal/ external partners and stakeholders
• Leading, developing and empowering people, creating a culture of performance
• Making decisions and exercising judgment

Compensation and Benefits:

This position offers an attractive remuneration package including a competitive net salary plus health insurance and other benefits as applicable.

UNFPA Work Environment:
UNFPA provides a work environment that reflects the values of gender equality, diversity, integrity and healthy work-life balance. We are committed to ensuring gender parity in the organization and therefore encourage women to apply. Individuals from the LGBTQIA+ community, minority ethnic groups, indigenous populations, persons with disabilities, and other underrepresented groups are highly encouraged to apply. UNFPA promotes equal opportunities in terms of appointment, training, compensation and selection for all regardless of personal characteristics and dimensions of diversity. Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is at the heart of UNFPA’s workforce – click here to learn more.

Disclaimer:
Selection and appointment may be subject to background and reference checks, medical clearance, visa issuance and other administrative requirements.
UNFPA does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process and does not concern itself with information on applicants’ bank accounts.
Applicants for positions in the international Professional and higher categories, who hold permanent resident status in a country other than their country of nationality, may be required to renounce such status upon their appointment.