The Joint SDG Fund supports countries as they accelerate their progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It operates through joint programmes (JPs) that provide the mechanism for transformative solutions implemented by governments and national stakeholders and supported by the UN Country Team led by Resident Coordinators (RCs). Strategic direction for the Fund is provided by the Strategic Advisory Group chaired by the Deputy Secretary-General as the chair of UN Sustainable Development Group. The Fund is managed by the Operational Steering Committee, comprised of representatives of UN entities, and with the support from the Secretariat of the Fund. The UN Development Coordination Office (DCO) hosts the Fund and provides for the alignment with the broader UN Development System reforms. The Administrative Agent of the Fund, in charge of financial management, is the Multi-Partner Trust Fund Office (MPTF-O). Official documents (e.g. Terms of Reference and Operational Guidance) of the Fund and information on funding can be found on the Gateway portal.

To advance the dual mandate of supercharging the UN Development System reform to be fit for purpose and, in turn, supporting the acceleration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Fund incentivizes coherent and coordinated joint UN action, anchored in the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks at country level under the leadership of Resident Coordinator (RC). Serving as the catalytic funding to piece together emerging policy priorities and financing strategies, the Fund aims to galvanize the UN Country Teams around integrated policies and identify the fiscal space to overcome the political and financial hurdles to scale and accelerate progress towards the SDGs.

The key objective of this position is to advise the Head of Secretariat of the UN Joint SDG Fund on the implementation of the Fund’s new strategy, in alignment with the Development Coordination Office (DCO) and the Executive Office of the Secretary-General (EOSG) and in close collaboration with partners.

Provide high-level policy advice and strategic guidance

• Acts as an advisor to the Head of the Secretariat of the UN Joint SDG Fund on the implementation of the Joint SDG Fund’s strategy, in close collaboration with the Development Coordination Office (DCO) and the Executive Office of the Secretary-General (EOSG)
• Provides strategic advice on the alignment between the UN Joint SDG Fund, DCO and EOSG on policy issues related to the 2030 Agenda, the SG’s Our Common Agenda and SDGs acceleration.
• In partnership with DCO-PPB, develops the UN interagency ecosystem to support RCs thought leadership on the six transitions.
• Leads the development of written outputs relevant to the work of the Joint SDG Fund for a variety of audiences, including background notes and material for the participation of the Head of Secretariat, DCO Director, and the Deputy Secretary-General in various meetings.
• Provides strategic guidance on outreach activities and facilitates substantive contributions from a Joint SDG Fund perspective to UNDCO leadership and EOSG.
• Monitors and advises on Member States’ positions on issues relevant to the Joint SDG Fund in different UN fora, including ECOSOC, General Assembly, and specialized meetings.
• Coordinates technical-level preparatory meetings and processes for UN Senior leadership’s visits and meetings relevant to the Joint SDG Fund.
• Oversees knowledge management and exchange of best practices amongst the Joint SDG Fund, DCO, the RC system and EOSG.

Ensure strategic and strong partnership development

• In collaboration with the partnership team of the Joint SDG Fund, advises the Head of Secretariat on the development of new partnerships or the expansion of existing ones.
• Liaises with DCO Policy and Programming Branch and Front Office to ensure alignment with policy, programme and partnership issues and participates in coordination mechanisms as relevant.
• Advises on outreach activities; conducts training workshops, seminars, etc.; makes presentations on assigned topics/activities.
• In support of the Head of the Joint SDG Fund Secretariat, oversees the development of reports and other documents on strategic partnerships and programmes.

Lead programmatic management

• Works closely with the Head of Programme of the Joint SDG Fund Secretariat to ensure programmatic alignment with the Joint SDG Fund Strategy, in partnership with DCO and the relevant UN entities.
• Liaises with Resident Coordinators and UNCTs to advise on the development of quality proposals. Provides briefings and participates in UNCT meetings as relevant.
• Reviews relevant documents and reports; identifies problems and issues to be addressed and proposes corrective actions; liaises with relevant parties; identifies and tracks follow-up actions.
• Leads and/or participates in field missions, including provision of guidance to external consultants, government officials and other parties and drafting mission summaries, etc.
• Performs other related duties, as required.

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

Institutional Arrangement

The Senior Advisor will report to the Head, Joint SDG Fund Secretariat.

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

• 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.
• Business Development:
  • Knowledge Facilitation
    • Ability to animate individuals and communities of contributors to participate and share, particularly externally.
• Business Management:
  • Customer Satisfaction/Client 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 fulfill 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 clients’ upcoming needs and concerns.
  • Risk Management
    • Ability to identify and organize action around mitigating and proactively managing risks.
  • Communication
    • Ability to communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience.
    • Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels.
• UN System Affairs:
  • Intergovernmental affairs
    • Knowledge of intergovernmental bodies (General Assembly, ECOSOC, UNDESA, etc.), including respective mandates, ways of working, and negotiation processes.
• Partnership management:
  • Relationship management
    • Ability to engage with a wide range of public and private partners, build, sustain and/or strengthen working relations, trust and mutual understanding.

Required skills:

• Experience in providing strategic advice to support effective decision making is required.
• Experience providing policy and/or programme advice as well as interagency coordination support in the UN is required.
• Experience and knowledge of the UN system, intergovernmental bodies (General Assembly, ECOSOC, UNDESA, etc.), including respective mandates, ways of working, and negotiation processes is required.
• Experience and knowledge of UN country planning processes and documents is required.
• Demonstrated strong writing skills and the ability to synthesize information is required.

• Professional experience engaging with multiple stakeholders and various UN workstreams/entities in UN Programmes.
• Professional experience within governmental domains of development coordination enhancing coherence and supporting successful programme implementation, particularly for sustainable development outcomes.

• Fluency in English is required.
• Knowledge of another UN languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, Spanish) is desirable.