Project Manager

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. Placing women’s rights at the centre of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. UN Women provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

UN Women in South Sudan supports the government to implement commitments to international normative standards on gender equality and women’s human rights. The new UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) for 2022-2026 and the corresponding UN Women South Sudan Strategic Note (2022-2026), defining UN Women’s strategic engagement in South Sudan, focuses on strengthening the national structures and mechanisms for gender mainstreaming in policies, plans and budgets; supporting efforts to prevent and eliminate violence against women; promoting women’s economic empowerment ; promoting policies and government investment in women’s empowerment and resilience building in the context of climate change, humanitarian crisis as well as threats to peace and security. UN Women works with a range of stakeholders in South Sudan including the government, civil society and women’s organizations, youth, UN agencies and donors, to promote gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Currently, UN Women in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare and the Office of the Vice President (Gender and Youth Cluster) is developing a programme that aims at promoting the social economic empowerment of women and adolescent girls in South Sudan. The project called “South Sudan Women Economic Empowerment Project (SSWEEP)”, will be implemented in 10 states and 2 administrative areas in South Sudan focusing on promoting women’s access to economic opportunities, protection and access to GBV information and services and also strengthening the capacity of the Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare to effectively implement its mandate of promoting Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment. The project has four (4) components, namely: a) Community Empowerment Support to Women and Girls, b) Establishment of the Women’s Entrepreneurial Opportunity Facility (WEOF), c) Scaling up services for Survivors of GBV and d) Institutional strengthening focusing on the Ministry OF Gender, Child and Social Welfare, Gender and Youth Cluster, and related national institutions.

Under the overall guidance and direct supervision of the Country Representative, the Project Manager is responsible for overseeing the management, development, implementation, monitoring and reporting of the SSWEEP for the Country office, as well for managing the human and financial resources of the team. This includes providing technical support to the implementation of the Country Office SSWEEP, overseeing the monitoring of progress against mutually agreed results frameworks and performance indicators, monitoring Country Office SSWEEP financial situation to ensure adherence to delivery rates and utilization of resources to meet agreed upon targets and results, reviewing and developing partnerships and resource mobilization strategies, and leading knowledge management efforts. 

The Project Manager will undertake the following functions, and responsibilities:

   Oversee the programmatic development for Country Office, based on the SSWEEP, Strategic Note and project document:

• Advise and guide the development of Country Office  including design and formulation programme/ project initiatives;
• Review and provide feedback to ongoing projects/ programmes on related strategies and documents, workplans, case studies, and related knowledge products and publications;
• Provide strategic and specialized technical advice on the development of systems, processes and mechanisms to support programme planning, implementation, monitoring and progress reporting;
• Review and evaluate proposals and oversee the preparation of donor proposals and reports;
• Finalize policy documents, briefs and other strategic papers/ materials for the use in the development and presentation of policy and programmatic positions.

Provide technical support to the implementation of the Country Office programmes:

• Assess Country Office annual work plans and provide recommendations to assure compliance with programme goals and results-based indicators;
• Analyze and ensure alignment of project budgets with logical framework matrices and work plans;
• Oversee programme quality control and identification of potential challenges;
• Ensure country office have aligned programme plans with operations plan.

  Oversee monitoring and reporting for Country Office:

• Review and recommend programme monitoring standards, criteria, and other indicators for measuring and assessing progress/results;
• Oversee the monitoring of progress against  mutually agreed results frameworks and performance indicators;
• Gather information and prepare reports on progress of programme implementation for CO and donors; prepare technical reports;
• Provide technical support in the preparation of audits and follow up on the implementation of audit recommendations; 
• Develop, coordinate and provide training on results-based management to CO.

Review budget management for Country Office programmes and manage people:

• Lead a team, perform staff performance reviews, ensure capacity development of staff members by suggesting development opportunities;
• Monitor Country Office programme financial situation to ensure adherence to delivery rates and utilization of resources to meet agreed upon targets and results;
• Ensure effective information flow, communication and coordination between offices, programmes and projects.

Build partnerships and support in developing resource mobilization strategies:

• Review and develop  partnerships and resource mobilization strategies;
• Finalize relevant documentation on donors and develop potential opportunities for resource mobilization;
• Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing;
• Determine programmatic areas of cooperation, based on strategic goals of UN Women, country needs and donors’ priorities and develop the relevant partnerships.

Lead knowledge building and sharing efforts:

• Lead the process of identifying and synthesizing of best practices and lessons learned that are directly linked to the implementation of the programme and contribute to their global dissemination.

Perform other job-related duties as requested by supervisor from time to time.

Key Performance Indicators:

• Country Programmes/SWEE project are implemented in line with SWEE project document, Strategic Notes and Annual Work plans;
• Programme teams adhere to UN Women’s Rules, Regulations, policies and procedures, using a results-based management approach;
• Programmes are implemented in a timely manner, in line with budgets;
• Regular monitoring of programmes, addressing issues in a timely manner
• Timely and quality reporting;
• Regular dissemination and sharing of information; country offices are sharing best practices/ lessons learned on programme management.

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.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Core Values and  Competencies: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-values-and-competencies-framework-en.pdf

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them;
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
• Excellent analytical skills;
• Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management;
• Strong knowledge of UN programme management systems;
• Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation;
• Strong networking skills.

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Political Science, Development, Public Administration, Gender 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;
• A project/programme management certification would be an added advantage.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in programme management, including programme design, programme coordination, monitoring and evaluation, donor reporting and capacity building;
• Experience in working in a gender related area is an asset;
• Experience in setting priorities, budgets, work plans, participating in programme development and programme writing;
• Proven experience in leading teams effectively.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English is required;
• Working knowledge of the other UN official working language is an asset;
• Working knowledge of Arabic is an added asset.

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks.