Senior Policy Officer, Gender Equality

Background

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women has been working in Lebanon since 2015 to address the economic and social needs of refugees and host communities in close cooperation with the Government of Lebanon. UN Women Lebanon works on issues of women’s political participation, peace and security, economic empowerment and changing social norms around gender and masculinities.

Through the Women Peace and Security (WPS) programme, UN Women supports the implementation, reporting, monitoring and evaluation of progress and results of the National Action Plan (NAP) 1325 (endorsed in 2019 by the Government of Lebanon) including supporting i) the security and defense sectors in developing and implementing gender affirmative policies; ii) removing discrimination against women in the law; iii) promoting women’s role in peace building, recovery, transitional justice and mediation efforts; and iv) ensuring monitoring and documentation of women’s rights and gender equality in times of conflicts and crisis. The programme includes the work on addressing social norms, engaging men and boys in achieving gender equality and challenging traditional gender roles at community, institutional and policy levels. In addition, UN Women Lebanon works with national women’s rights organizations and with emerging women-led Community Based Organizations in their efforts to seek the truth, foster collective remembrance and ultimately, move towards reconciliation around the legacy of the civil war.

Reporting to the Programme Management Specialist, the Senior Policy Officer Gender Equality, will oversee the development of programmes, provide capacity building to Lebanon’s Country Office (CO), establish and strengthen partnerships, and develop relevant knowledge products on Gender Equality.

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Oversee the development of programmes on WPS to Country Office teams

Oversee the development of regional programme documents on WPS;
Provide technical inputs to programme proposals from country offices;
Provide advice on contextualizing/ localizing programme documents, country strategies, and knowledge
products;
Coordinate monitoring and reporting for Women,Peace, & Security in collaboration with programme teams.

2. Provide capacity building support to Country Office teams and partners

Provide substantive technical and policy support to country office programme teams in developing and strengthening projects/ programmes to support the implementation of global norms and standards;
Develop, implement and monitor capacity building initiatives;
Provide technical support to partners on implementation of WPS Agenda;
Provide technical policy advice to programme/ project managers/ specialists in the Country Office.

3. Establish and strengthen strategic partnerships with stakeholders, regional/ international actors and
development partners

Build and maintain alliances and strategic partnerships for the advancement of WPS, including with donors;
Produce periodic updates and briefs on regional/country development situation to be used by stakeholders, CO and HQ;
Maintain close contact with relevant staff in UN Women HQ.

4. Manage the resource mobilization strategy for WPS in the region

Participate in the implementation, monitoring and periodic updating of the resource mobilization strategy on WPS in the region;
Provide technical support to field-based presences in the region in mobilizing resources for the implementation of WPS;
Research and analyze information on donors; prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation.

5. Oversee the design of WPS initiatives in the region and the development of relevant knowledge products

Provide policy recommendations and guidance to strategic planning and positioning on WPS;
Work closely with and provide advice to regional/ national bodies and interagency groups that influence national policies related to WPS and where necessary represent UN Women;
Research, develop and present analytical reports, research papers, briefing notes, background papers, summaries, correspondence, and knowledge products on WPS;
Identify promising practices, technical expertise, and strategic opportunities in WPS.

6. Oversee knowledge building and sharing for WPS

Identify and disseminate lessons learnt and good practices in collaboration with country offices;
Ensure technical skills and knowledge are shared within and among COs.

Key Performance Indicators

Timely and quality technical advice and support
Leadership in area of expertise in the region
Quality reports and other strategic documents drafted and submitted in a timely manner
Strong relationships with various partners and stakeholders
UN Women is well represented in important meetings on topics related to expertise
Contributions to resource mobilization
Timely and quality knowledge products

Competencies

Core Values:

Respect for Diversity
Integrity
Professionalism

Core Competencies:

Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
Accountability
Creative Problem Solving
Effective Communication
Inclusive Collaboration
Stakeholder Engagement
Leading by Example

Functional Competencies

Excellent knowledge of WPS thematic area
Strong knowledge of the region
Excellent networking skills
Ability to interact with donors, identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising
Ability to perform qualitative and quantitative policy research
Ability to advocate and provide policy advice
Excellent analytical skills;
Ability to write policy papers, speeches, briefings;
Strong knowledge of programme development, implementation, results-based management and reporting

Required Skills and Experience

Education and Certification:

Master’s degree or equivalent in gender equality, public administration, law, human rights, international relations or other social science fields is required.
A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree

Experience:

At least 7 years progressively responsible experience in designing, managing programmes, advocating for women rights and gender equality.
Experience in programme, policy analysis, and strategic planning;
Experience working with, and building partnerships with governments, donors and civil society organizations internationally and in the field;
Experience working with the UN is an asset.
Computer skills, statistics, internet communication and command of MS Office

Language Requirements:

Fluency in oral and written English and Arabic is required.
Knowledge of other UN official working language is an asset.