The PBF support has helped catalyze critical peacebuilding processes in a very short period, helping to ensure that the country did not descend into violence during this fragile transition period, including the 2021 presidential elections. Thanks in part to PBF assistance, and with the technical support of UN agencies alongside the government’s commitment and participation, commendable progress has been made in sustaining peace, particularly in the areas of transitional justice, constitutional review, security, judicial and civil service reform, women and youth empowerment and participation, returning migrants and economic development.

A dedicated PBF Joint Steering Committee was established on the 21st of August 2023 to provide strategic guidance on the PBF portfolio and strengthen the portfolio’s coordination, monitoring, and evaluation towards achieving the project results.  The Joint Steering Committee (JSC) is the primary decision-making body overseeing PBF-supported projects. The JSC is Co-chaired by the United Nations Resident Coordinator, the Secretary-General, and the Head of the Civil Service of the Gambian Government. Its membership comprises key coordination Ministries, Development Partners, Bilateral and Multilateral partners, donors, and civil society.

The work of the PBF Secretariat will be guided by the peacebuilding priorities established during the re-eligibility application and the associated Strategic Results Framework for the period 2024 – 2028

Postion Purpose

Under the overall guidance and the direct supervision of the United Nations Resident Coordinator (RC) or his/her representative in the RC Office, to whom he/she will directly report on the PBF Secretariat-related tasks and he/she will actively support the RC’s coordination role as defined in the revised “Terms of Reference” and “Management and Accountability Framework”. The PBF Coordinator will also support the RC in directing the strategic vision for and overseeing the PBF project portfolio and in his/her role as the PBF Steering Committee Co-chair. The PBF Coordinator will also have a matrix reporting  to the UN Peacebuilding Support Office (in DPPA, New York) on the PBF portfolio strategy in the country and PBF project performance.

UNDP will oversee the administrative and contractual management of the PBF Coordinator and Secretariat staff. She/he will collaborate closely with the Steering Committee and RC team, particularly the Head of RCO and the Peace and Development Adviser (PDA).

The principal responsibility of the PBF Coordinator is to ensure the PBF Secretariat fulfils its mandate in supporting the strategic direction, continuous oversight, technical support, coordination, and monitoring and evaluation of the PBF portfolio of projects in The Gambia. The PBF Coordinator will manage the PBF Secretariat team.

UNDP adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. This is a recognition of interconnected nature of development risks & crises that the world is facing and that call for assembling of multidisciplinary teams for an integrated & systemic response. Therefore, UNDP personnel are expected to work across issues, units, functions, teams and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.

• Provide advice and coordination to support the UN RC and the strategic engagement of the JSC on conflict prevention, reconciliation, and social cohesion via support to the UNCT in the formulation, financing, supervision, reporting and communication of the PBF programmatic interventions.
• Promote/advise on leveraging programmatic investments by development and peace actors to strengthen the conceptualization and integration of durable solutions into the Humanitarian-development-peace nexus work of UN Agencies and other relevant stakeholders.
• Provide peace data analysis and evidence on solutions to the CCA and CDA for the development of pathways to solutions in UNSDCF, where relevant.
• Organize or contribute to joint-impact assessments and analyses, advocating for joined-up approaches, identification of collective outcomes, and evidence-based programming on solutions to ensure coherence and avoid duplication of efforts.
• Supervise PBF Secretariat staff and strengthen peacebuilding, conflict prevention and social cohesion expertise;
• Plan PBF Secretariat work and activities.
• Organize Steering Committee meetings and submit implementation reports to facilitate project monitoring and supervision;
• Liaise with RCO and implementing agency via regular exchanges and report to Steering Committee and implementing actors;
• Liaise with Government, recipient organizations and civil society to promote efficient project implementation;
• Ensure close coordination with agencies and NGOs involved in peacebuilding projects implementation;
• Coordinate application process for recipient organizations UN (RUNOs) and non-UN (NUNOs) to appeals of Gender and Youth Promotion Initiatives (GYPI);
• Organize field visits to monitor and formulate, if applicable, recommendations for efficient project implementation

Facilitate quality oversight and monitoring of the PBF portfolio projects in The Gambia.

• Provide technical expertise to ensure coherence and quality control of projects and programmes being implemented, to support reconciliation and conflict prevention.
• Coordinate activities to promote coherence and synergies between projects.
• Ensure diligent monitoring and project execution, in collaboration with recipient agencies and M&E Analyst.
• Identify challenges and potential bottlenecks in implementation process and formulate solutions as appropriate.
• Create a monitoring system to measure progress achieved by PBF projects, including data collection and analysis, in collaboration with M&E Analyst. Enhance national/local ownership on data collection, socio-economic/ political economy analysis, measuring progress towards solutions and application to national/local solutions programming. Particular attention to be made in collecting disaggregated data and analysing differentiated consequences by age, gender, and diversity.
• Ensure quality oversight and coordinate preparation and timely submission of progress reports (quarterly and annual) by recipient agencies.
• Coordinate and finalize preparation of a strategic annual report on peacebuilding situation in the country.
• Contribute to Secretary General’s report on peacebuilding, in collaboration with the PDA.
• Ensure compliance with PBF Guidelines of implementation and reporting processes.
• Organize field visits to monitor and formulate, if applicable, recommendations for efficient project implementation. Support national partners and UN Agencies to consistently monitor and assess solutions programmes for rapid adjustment and course correction as needed.
• Support advocacy and knowledge sharing activities with national/subnational/local authorities and other relevant stakeholders.

Advise inter-agency coordination for peacebuilding, reconciliation, social cohesion and conflict prevention

• Facilitate overall coordination of Technical and Financial Partners (TFPs) involved in peacebuilding initiatives and ensure visibility of PBF support;
• Facilitate coordination of peacebuilding interventions ensuring synergy with the PDA;
• Support RC by promoting information exchange and relevant analyses on peacebuilding using project monitoring and field surveys;
• Ensure new projects are developed based on specific conflict analysis in close coordination with the PDA;
• Set up and facilitate internal coordination mechanisms for each project involving national counterparts, RUNOs, NUNOs and NGOs;
• Coordinate with the PDA to promote information exchanges and tools sharing in the areas of conflict prevention and peacebuilding;
• Create knowledge and lessons learned management system based on projects results;
• Maintain updated mapping of peacebuilding, social cohesion and conflict prevention interventions;
• Facilitate concertation framework for TFPs focused on promoting peacebuilding, conflict prevention and social cohesion;
• Support partners in strengthening conflict-sensitive programming capacities and promote mainstreaming of a conflict-sensitive approach in UNCT programming, in coordination with the PDA.

• Ensure projects are aligned with Peacebuilding Priority Plan and other current or planned interventions to avoid duplicates and promote convergence and complementarity among initiatives;
• Conduct, in coordination with the PDA, national context analyses on a regular basis to guide UNCT programming.
• Formulate suggestions for strategic guidance and entry points for new projects.
• Contribute to development of new PBF project and programme proposals.
• Support periodical assessments of intervention strategy and its relevance to the context.
• Ensure communication on progress of projects peacebuilding catalysing effects to national authorities and TFPs for resource mobilization and sustainable results purposes;
• Promote advocacy with national authorities to mobilize resources supporting the Peacebuilding Priority Plan.
• Keep a constant watch to identify potential financing sources

Facilitate PBF knowledge building and knowledge sharing in the country office.

• Organize training for the PBF project staff.
• Organize programme trainings for PBF partners

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organisation.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: Yes – the PBF Programme Coordinator will provide strategic advice and support to the RC, RCO and UNCT. The position will supervise four direct reports.

Business Direction and strategy-System Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system.
Partnership Management-Strategic Engagement: Ability to capture and sustain attention, interest and agreement of high-level, influential policy and decision makers and secure their buy-in of high-level vision and objectives.
Business Management-Client Satisfaction/Management: Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers’ needs. Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy. Look for ways to add value beyond clients’ immediate requests.
Ability to anticipate client’s upcoming needs and concerns
Business Management-Risk Management: Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks
Business Management-Resource Management: Ability to allocate and use resources in a strategic or tactical way in line with principles of accountability and integrity
Business Management-Portfolio Management: Ability to select, prioritize and control the organization as programmes and projects, in line with its strategic objectives and capacity.
Ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives and the maintenance of business-as-usual, while optimizing return on investment.
2030 Agenda: Peace-Conflict Prevention, Peacebuilding and  Responsive Institutions: Sustaining Peace (including financing) peace building and transition