Capacity building and partnerships individual contractor

Result of Service

To successfully deliver support to the partnership with Gangwon Province, Korea, to support the coordination of IUTC, as well as deliver support to internal and external clients and working towards delivery of global capacity development programmes and initiatives.

Work Location

Remote (Home based)

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

BACKGROUND TO UN-HABITAT

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable human settlements development and the achievement of adequate shelter for all. For close to forty years, UN-Habitat has been working in human settlements throughout the world, focusing on building a brighter future for villages, towns, and cities of all sizes. One of the four focus area under the new Strategic Plan 2020-2023 is Strengthened Climate Action and Improved Urban Environments. UN-Habitat’s Global Solutions Division is overseeing the Agency’s operational work as well as the institutional and programmatic relationship with climate initiatives and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

BACKGROUND TO INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTOR

The Global Solutions Division (GSD) is responsible for providing programmatic direction for UN-Habitat and is responsible and accountable for the programmatic delivery of the Strategic Plan. The Division leads the tools and methodology production and the integration of the various substantive competencies toward the effective delivery of UN-Habitat's mandate and Strategic Plan. It provides substantive training to staff members and supports the capacity development of Member States and partners.

The Programme Development Branch (PDB) is responsible for the overall coordination of programme development. It brings together normative and operational expertise supporting high-quality integrated programmes that maximize results across the outcomes and the Domains of Change in the Strategic Plan. It builds on the concrete demands of national and local governments, strengthening the capacity of government and urban stakeholders at all levels to address the social, economic, environmental, and crisis dimensions of sustainable urbanization. The Branch also focuses on supporting global programme development to strengthen normative capacity and knowledge generation to increase impact and influence, through strategic partnerships.

The Capacity Development and Training Unit (CDTU) transforms knowledge into capacity-building products, including practical and problem-solving tools that respond to the needs of governments, cities, technical cadres, urban practitioners, as well as policymakers. CDTU undertakes capacity building needs assessments and delivers a wide range of strategies, trainings, and technical support for the implementation of the NUA and SDG11 in close collaboration with partners including training institutions. The Unit manages the partnership with the International Urban Training Centre, together with the Gangwon Province of the Republic of Korea. The Unit also coordinates engagement with academic and research institutions, including the global partnership between UN-Habitat and universities worldwide, the Habitat UNI. The partnership promotes universities to become closer partners of cities, actively engaged in problem-solving, closing the gap between academia and practice, and encouraging collaborative learning.
Objectives
The main objective of the Individual Contractor is to support the projects and activities of the Capacity Development and Training Unit. This includes supporting the coordination of the International Urban Training Centre, supporting the coordination of the Habitat UNI Network, supporting the preparation and delivery of events for the UN-Habitat Assembly, and any other support required.
Duties and responsibilities:
Within the delegated authority and under the supervision of Chief of Unit or his/her designated mandated representative(s), the Individual Contractor will involve the following typical main duties leading to the ultimate requested outputs:
•Support the project evaluation of the 3rd phase of IUTC partnership with Gangwon province in close collaboration with Evaluation unit and other members of CDTU;
•Support the coordination of the preparation, finalization, and signature of the next phase of the IUTC MoU between UN-Habitat and Gangwon Province.
•Support the capacity-building impact assessments among IUTC alumni, after 15 years of partnership with UN-Habitat to improve capacity in sustainable urban management in Asia region;
•Support the drafting, design and publication of a report that features good practices in capacity building through selected successful stories from the IUTC alumni;
•Facilitating the communication between IUTC and CDTU and project administration;
•Support the organization and coordination of international trainings on sustainable urbanization in Asia Pacific in collaboration with training partners and UN-Habitat’s Regional Office in Asia Pacific;
•Support the coordination of the Secretariat of Habitat UNI, by organizing monthly meetings with the Steering committee and other meetings, share information, maintain proper filling, and coordinate the collaboration with UN-Habitat’s communities of practice;
•Support the organization of events coordinated by the Unit at the UN-Habitat Assembly 2023 (preparation of official events, development of concept notes, liaison with potential panelists, collaboration with universities);
•Support the development of various project documents;
•Support the preparation of reports to Member States and the Implementation of the Resolution on Capacity-building and the Strategy;
•Support the development and dissemination of key capacity-building initiatives developed by CDTU;
•Any other tasks as discussed and agreed with relevant Programme Managers in the Unit.

Reporting Requirements
The individual contractor reports to Associate Programme Manager, Capacity Development and Training Unit

Qualifications/special skills

First level bachelor's degree (BSc. or equivalent) in relevant field such as international development, social studies, engineering, or areas related to urban sustainability or international development is required.
2 years of professional work experience at the national and/or international level in communications, capacity development, partnership or other relevant programmes is required.
Experience with project management, website development and digital tools is desirable;
Experience working in the UN or Asia Pacific or other international development organization with international understanding of partnerships and knowledge-based collaboration such as with academia is desirable.
Demonstrated experience in organising events, designing and implementing communication plans and strategies for projects, website development, and graphic design and digital tools communication is desirable;

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this Individual Contractor, fluency in oral and written English is required. Fluency in other UN languages is considered an advantage.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.