Closing date: Wednesday, 8 March 2023
Job Identification : 8632
Locations : Skopje, North Macedonia
Posting Date : 02/21/2023, 12:05 PM
Apply Before : 03/08/2023, 04:59 AM
Degree Level : Secondary School Leaving Certificate
Job Schedule : Full time
Agency : UNDP
Grade : NPSA-7
Vacancy Type : National Personnel Service Agreement
Practice Area : Governance
Bureau : Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS
Contract Duration : 1 Year with Possibility for extension
Education & Work Experience : Bachelor’s Degree – 4 year(s) experience OR High School certificate- 7 year(s) experience
Required Languages : English and Mecedonian
Vacancy Timeline
2 Weeks
Mobility required/no mobility
no mobility required
Job Category : Administration/Operations/Support
Job Description
Background
UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.
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.
Office/Unit/Project Description
The UNDP office in Skopje currently employs a team of over 70 people and manages a portfolio of projects in environment and energy, democratic governance, and inclusive prosperity worth around USD 17 million.
This position is foreseen under the second phase of the “Building Municipal Capacity for Project Implementation – Phase 2” Project (hereinafter BMCPI or the Project) managed by the Democratic Governance Unit. During its implementation period (December 2022 – April 2026) the Project will work toward:
- Strengthening capacities of national institutions to provide and institutionalize adequate tools for targeting regional and local development policies and initiatives (primarily Municipal Development Index).
- Strengthening local level capacities to identify, select and prepare more complex infrastructure/development projects (through Technical Documentation Fund – TDF)
- Introducing and integrate the elements of European Green deal and global environmental challenges into local development planning.
At its core, BMCPI aims to address the main challenges of local development and to increase municipal capacities when preparing and designing local infrastructure/development projects. As part of these efforts, TDF has been piloted as part of BMCPI’s previous phase to provide financial support to municipalities for creation of technical documentation for their highest priority infrastructure projects.
In BMCPI’s second phase, the responsibility for implementation of the grants for preparation of technical documentation is shifted from UNDP to the partner municipalities under the so-called Responsible Party Agreements.
Under the overall guidance of the Programme Officer of Democratic Governance Unit and direct supervision of the Project Manager, the Project Monitoring Associate will support the implementation of the Project, primarily, the work related to the TDF component. This involves support to organizing calls for applications by municipalities/regional centers for infrastructure projects, selection of project ideas, preparation of TORs for design and review services, carrying out procurement procedures, support to preparation of technical documentation, capacity building efforts in infrastructure project management targeting municipal administration, as well as facilitation of the transition of TDF from UNDP-supported to Government funding instrument. S/he will directly work with partner municipalities/grantees providing support to implementation of the grants and ensuring quality control of the processes and deliverables. The Project Monitoring Associate will be based in the UNDP North Macedonia office in Skopje.
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the overall guidance of the Programme Officer of Democratic Governance Unit and direct supervision of the Project Manager, the Project Monitoring Associate will support to the implementation of following key functions: Technical and advisory services for implementation of the BMCPI activities related to TDF:
- Provide advisory services in detailing and coordinating the activities related to TDF.
- Provide coordination support to preparation and realization of the calls for applications for technical documentation for municipal and regional infrastructure / development projects.
- Contribute substantively to drafting TORs and other supporting documents for expertise related to infrastructure projects (e.g., experts, coaches/trainers, design, and review services).
- Coordinate and support the work of contractors dealing with different aspects of infrastructure projects development.
- Support, monitor and evaluate the work of the team of trainers/coaches to be hired to support municipal administration on different aspects of infrastructure project management.
- Work as a liaison person between the Project, its designers and reviewers, and the partner/beneficiary institutions (e.g., municipalities, regional centers) on all aspects related to preparation of technical documentation (e.g., data/documents collection, organization of field visits and meetings, facilitating technical level exchanges and communication, handover of prepared technical documentation).
- Support and monitor the projects implemented under the TDF by the municipalities under the Responsible Parties Agreements.
- Provide support to preparation of work-plans and reports through providing data (from monitoring activities), systematization and analysis of information, inter-action with stakeholders.
- Prepare relevant background materials for use in discussions, correspondence, and briefing sessions.
- Support the organization of events (e.g., meetings, trainings, workshops) related to the TDF component of the Project.
- Support the Project activities related to refining the TDF model, and its transfer to the responsible institutions (e.g., Bureau for Regional Development).
Provide administrative support to the implementation of project:
- Provide technical and administrative assistance in preparation of tender documentation (drafting ToRs, tender dossiers) and required by the Project’s TDF component. This applies both when tenders are announced by UNDP and the partner municipalities.
- Provide support to partner municipalities in carrying out tender procedures as required.
- Maintain active communication with the procurement unit and other UNDP colleagues involved in the procurement system.
- Assist the organization of field visits, missions, conferences, and other logistics arrangements for different Project needs (TDF and other components).
- Arrange meetings and draft routine correspondence, minutes including preparing background materials for discussions and briefing sessions.
- Help the Project team members as necessary.
Provide support to gender mainstreaming across Project’s interventions:
- Support the Project Manager in mainstreaming gender equality in the programme implementation, especially with respect to TDF-related activities.
- Support Project-supported activities aiming at improving gender mainstreaming in restructure / development projects.
- Support the Project Manager in preparing gender equality background materials for use in discussion, correspondence and briefing sessions related to TDF activities.
- Ensure that all the data, when collecting and compiling inputs relating to programme, are gender disaggregated.
Ensure quality communication of project results and impact using the established monitoring system and data collection to feed communication of results, advocacy as well as for further resource mobilization and new partnerships for scaling up:
- Ensure effective and efficient implementation of the project communication plan.
- Ensure that monitoring system and data collection is adequately utilized in communication activities to promote the project results.
- Closely collaborate with UNDP communication specialists in the design and promotion of relevant project communication products.
- Ensure that relevant data is collected, and lessons learnt during project implementation are used in communicating results, advocating for change, informing future initiatives, and guiding further expansion in the areas of work of UNDP.
- Based on the data collected prepare briefs for the Project Manager, and other UNDP colleagues to use in presentations, and meetings with stakeholders.
Facilitate knowledge sharing within the Project:
- Keep track of lesson generated throughout Project implementation, especially with respect to TDF document, report and share them as necessary.
- Systematize, and document the necessary knowledge and guidance material of need for the Project partners/beneficiaries in support to the TDF transition process (from UNDP toward institutions).
- Participate in trainings for the operations/project staff on administration and other relevant topics.
- Keep track of the changes of UNDP procedures and provide timely advice to the Project Manager and other project staff on what are the applicable procedures to fulfilling the project objectives.
- Perform any other duties related to the project as required.
Institutional Arrangement
The Project Monitoring Associate will report to the BMCPI Project Manager (for more details see the organigram in Annex A). The Project Monitoring Associate will be in Skopje but will also travel throughout the country as per the requirements of the project implementation.
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 Management-Monitoring:
- Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback on the consistency or discrepancy between planned and actual activities and programme performance and results.
- Business Management-Evaluation:
- Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks.
- Ability to anticipate client’s upcoming needs and concerns.
- Digital & Innovation-Data analysis:
- Ability to extract, analyze and visualize data (including Real-Time Data) to form meaningful insights and aid effective decision making.
- Digital & Innovation- Data storytelling and communications:
- Skilled in building a narrative around a set of data and its accompanying visualizations to help convey the meaning of that data in a powerful and compelling fashion.
- General-Event planning and execution
- Ability to plan, manage and execute of public and private events to ensure that they support and amplify individual communications and advocacy initiatives, as well as UNDP’s overall brand and mandate.
- Digital & Innovation-Behavior change communication/communication for development:
- Knowledge of appropriate digital communication methodologies for development and behavior change, and ability to apply them practically.
Required Skills and Experience
Education:
- Secondary education.
- Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering, Architecture or other relevant field.
Experience:
- Minimum 7 years (with Secondary education) or 4 years (with Bachelor’s degree) of relevant work experience in different aspects of construction project management (e.g., feasibility studies, design, review, implementation, supervision, monitoring of infrastructure projects, contract management) or experience in performing similar tasks.
Languages:
- Proficiency in English and Macedonian (written and oral).
- Knowledge of other local languages shall be considered as an asset.
Required skills:
- Experience with national and international approaches to and standards in construction project management.
- Experience in monitoring and evaluation of development projects / knowledge and experience. with project monitoring and evaluation tools and practices.
- Experience in working with local governments.
- Excellent computer literacy (MS Office; Windows, Internet).
Desired skills:
- Experience with specialized software and systems for construction projects (e.g., AutoCAD, ArchiCAD, GIS).
- Experience with procurement procedures, preferably for construction projects.
- Excellent communications, report writing and analytical skills.
- Driving license B-category.
Required Documents:
- Personal CV or P11, indicating all past positions held and their main underlying functions, their durations (month/year), the qualifications, as well as the contact details (email and telephone number) of the Candidate, and at least three (3) the most recent professional references of previous supervisors. References may also include peers.
- A cover letter (maximum length: 1 page) indicating why the candidate considers him-/herself to be suitable for the position.
- Managers may ask (ad hoc) for any other materials relevant to pre-assessing the relevance of their experience, such as reports, presentations, publications, campaigns or other materials.
Travel:
- Travel throughout the country as per the requirements of the project implementation.
Disclaimer
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.
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