Project Associate (Disability Inclusion)

Job Title: Project Associate (Disability Inclusion)

Organization: UNDP

Job Identification: 13166

Location: Accra, Ghana

Apply Before: 09/05/2023, 07:00 AM

Job Schedule: Full time

Grade: NPSA-6

Vacancy Type: National Personnel Service Agreement

Practice Area: Governance

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

Vacancy Timeline: 2 Weeks

Job Description

Background

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are core principles at UNDP:  we value diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate, we foster inclusion as a way of ensuring all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, and we ensure equity and fairness in all our actions. Taking a ‘leave no one behind’ approach to our diversity efforts means increasing representation of underserved populations. People who identify as belonging to marginalized or excluded populations are strongly encouraged to apply. Learn more about working at UNDP including our values and inspiring stories.

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.

Job Purpose and Organizational Context

UNDP is the leading United Nations organization in fighting to end the injustice of poverty, inequality, and climate change. Working with our broad network of experts and partners in 170 countries, we help  nations to build integrated, lasting solutions for people and planet. Learn more at undp.org or follow at  @UNDP 

The UN Partnership on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (PRPD) is dedicated to the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). Bringing together   different UN entities, governments, persons with disabilities and civil society for the purpose of joint programming and partnerships, it works through three strategic approaches: catalytic program  funding, knowledge management and context relevant capacity building to support inclusive systems
and policies. 

The PRPD recognizes a rights-based approach to disability, as detailed in the CRPD and its associated guidance. This means that sustainable change will require empowerment and meaningful participation of persons with disabilities and their representative organizations (rights holders) and acceptance and capacity of duty bearers to fulfill their obligations and to be accountable. However, Ghana and many countries still struggle to transform the CRPD into concrete policies, systems,
programs and services that uphold the rights of persons with disabilities. It is urgent that the government of Ghana and implementation partners deliver on SDG commitments through CRPD  compliant  interventions.
To support the attainment of Ghana’s SDG commitments related to disability, the main bottlenecks and priorities in relation to the fulfilment of the CRPD are clearly understood. It is also important to understand who the key stakeholders are and what capacity gaps they might have, which needs to be  addressed for the effective implementation of the CRPD and other national disability provisions. To address this, the UN in Ghana with support from the UNPRPD conducted a situational analysis to identify the gaps and propose key interventions to address them. The UN in Ghana is implementing a joint project aimed at addressing the key gaps identified with funding from the UNPRPD Multi-Partner Trust Fund. The project is being implemented by the UNDP and UNFPA in partnership with the National Council on Persons with Disabilities Disability (NCPD) and the Ghana Federation of Disability Organisations (GFD), with technical collaboration from UNICEF and UNESCO. 

The Programme Associate will be a member of the Inclusive Growth and Accountable Governance Cluster (IGAGC). The person will be the focal point for the management of the joint UN disability project. With cross-sectoral and integrated approach, the IGAG focuses its interventions in inclusive growth, human rights, governance and peacebuilding. 

Duties and Responsibilities
Support the project team to ensure effective project planning and implementation.

• Compile and summarize information and data for the formulation of project work plans, draft annual/quarterly budgets, proposals on implementation arrangements, and on other specific project related topics or issues.
• Provide comprehensive support in all aspects of project implementation in accordance with the project documents, annual work plans and other agreements between UNDP and responsible partners. Ensure quality of delivery by consultants, beneficiaries, and contracted companies; and communicate findings to the supervisor.
• Ensure compliance of project business processes with UNDP Project Operational Policies and Procedures (POPP) and UNDP Standard Operating Procedures (SOP). When necessary, provide guidance to project staff on business processes, administrative and other requirements and procedures.
• Ensure gender, youth and diversity is integrated and mainstreamed throughout the implementation of programme outputs. and youth in the project implementation, including in data collection and compilation. Prepare the required background materials for use in discussions, briefings, and correspondence.
• Have overall oversight and direct management of the project in a flexible and participatory manner, adopting a facilitative approach, while retaining strong result-driven programme planning and implementation.
• Facilitate coordination and effective participation of implementing partners and relevant stakeholders in programme implementation, to ensure that the process is inclusive, participatory, and transparent
• Organize technical committee meetings, and maintain consistent and clear communication between implementing partners.
• Maintaining contacts with partners and project personnel, arrangement of appointments and meetings, and taking minutes when required.
• Prepares and organizes logistics for missions, as required, including arrangements of travel and hotel reservations and other documents. 

Ensures effective administrative and logistical support to ensure successful project delivery

• Maintains records/documents/files related to projects and programmes in a user-friendly manner.
• Provides administrative support to meetings, conferences, and workshops including selecting appropriate venues, coordinating project procurement procedures
• Assists in proper control of supporting documents for payments and financial reports.
• Supports preparation of routine correspondence, letters, memorandums and reports to partners.
• Assists in budget preparation ad programming; organises required information for audits.
•  Maintaining project records and files

Support partnerships and resource mobilization.

• Establish and maintain contacts and cooperation with the relevant UN Agencies, government institutions, NGOs, and other relevant stakeholders. Provide support in updating the database of the relevant public and development partners, and other stakeholders who are counterparts for the project. 
• Ensure regular communication and coordination with partners, project counterparts, stakeholders, and beneficiaries; and develop and maintain effective mechanisms for integrating and responding to their feedback and insight. 
• Support creation of high quality information and visibility of the project activities among the stakeholders; and ensure careful selection of communication tools and tailoring the messages to take into account disability and gender equality sensitivities as well as the overall socio-political and development context in Ghana. 
• Undertake horizon scanning and explore opportunities for resource mobilization in consultation with direct supervisor. Develop concept notes and technical proposals on themes related to disability inclusion 
• Establishes and maintains good working relationships with the relevant stakeholders and development partners with interest on disability inclusion. 
• Identifies and works with key partners/stakeholders to ensure synergies with other projects/initiatives and to avoid duplication of activities among actors. 
• Identifies opportunities for mobilizing additional resources to facilitate the implementation of key interventions aimed at enhancing disability inclusion beyond the project.  

Provide support to the effective monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on progress of project implementation

• Support implementation of the project monitoring system in alignment with its Monitoring and Evaluation framework to ensure effective information sharing, provision of feedback, and elaboration of high-quality progress reports.
• Collect, analyze and present information for monitoring and evaluation of project implementation against project targets as well as for audit purposes. Identify gaps in implementation and provide support in bridging those gaps in consultation with supervisor and partners.
• Assist in the organization of field and study visits, missions, workshops, roundtables, and conferences within the project.
• Identify sources of information related to disability inclusion policy-driven issues. Identifies and makes synthesis of best practices and lessons learnt directly linked to programme goals and aspiration.
• Contribute to the preparation of technical policy briefs and programme support documents on disability inclusion.
• Assist in implementation of effective risk management for the project with a well-documented
• risk mitigation plan in place. Support monitoring of previously identified and emerging risks.
• Regularly monitor expenditures and commitments against the project budget and relevant plans, and provide finance-related information to support project implementation. When necessary, recommend corrective actions and draft various correspondence concerning finance, operations, and budgetary issues.
• Prepare and consolidate required project reports on a timely basis and in line with monitoring and reporting guidelines and donor requirements.

 

 Support knowledge building, knowledge sharing and capacity building relevant to the assigned project.

• Participate in training and organize briefings on internal procedures for the project staff. Provide support to other capacity building activities, including to the design and delivery of tools, materials for workshops, or platforms that tap into the collective intelligence of communities and mobilize action.
• Provide support in the dissemination and sharing of relevant data and lessons learned within the CO and regionally. Keep pulse on emerging best practices nationally, regionally, and internationally that relate to disability inclusion.
• Make sound contributions to knowledge networks and communities of practice. Support compiling and systematizing project knowledge, products and tools as well as their wide distribution to partners.
• Develop success stories, activity reports and articles to communicate the achievements of the joint programme.

Provide technical support to the UN Disability Sub-Working Group and Other reaponsibilities

• Provide technical support to the UN Disability Sub-Working Group, performing responsibilities which, will include support for thee completion of UNCT Disability Scorecard and IMS Section 
• Perform other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization  

Institutional Arrangement:
The Project Associate works under the general supervision of the lead for Inclusive Growth and Accountable Governance Cluster (IGAGC), and collaborates closely with the project focal points of UN agencies who are part of the joint project with direct supervision from the Programme Analyst (Gender and Human Rights

Competencies

•  Core
  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, constructivel  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	Working withb Evidence and Data	Ability to inspect, cleanse, transform and model data with the goal of discovering useful information, informing conclusions, and supporting decision-making
Business Management	Digital Awareness and Literacy	Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skillfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed
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 fulfil 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 client’s upcoming needs and concerns.
Business Management	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.
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
Technical - Finance	Budget management	Ability to support budgetary aspects of work planning process, drawing and management of team budgets
Technical – _Procurement	Procurement management	The ability to acquire goods, services or works from an outside external source

Education:

University Degree in Business Administration, Political Sciences, Social Sciences, or related field is required, or equivalent field will be given due consideration.

Experience:

• A minimum of 4 years (with bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible in project management, and administrative experience is required.

Required Skills and Experience

• Experience in the use of computers, office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and web-based management systems, and advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages.

 Desired skills 

• Experience in preparation of financial reports and overviews
• Knowledge of monitoring and evaluation tools
• Knowledge of project management processes
• Knowledge of procurement procedures of national / international organizations
• Demonstrated experience in promoting disability inclusion or promoting the rights of marginalised groups
• Exposure to inter-agency coordination, specifically coordination of joint programmes;
• Proven experience in developing joint workplan, formulating corresponding budgets, and implementing them on time
• Substantive experience of building partnerships with UN agencies, civil society, academia and disability groups is relevant; 

 Required Language(s)

 Fluency in English 

Disclaimer

Important information for US Permanent Residents ('Green Card' holders) 

Under US immigration law, acceptance of a staff position with UNDP, an international organization, may have significant implications for US Permanent Residents. UNDP advises applicants for all professional level posts that they must relinquish their US Permanent Resident status and accept a G-4 visa, or have submitted a valid application for US citizenship prior to commencement of employment. 

UNDP is not in a position to provide advice or assistance on applying for US citizenship and therefore applicants are advised to seek the advice of competent immigration lawyers regarding any applications.

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.

Non-discrimination

UNDP has a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual exploitation and misconduct, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.  

UNDP is an equal opportunity and inclusive employer that does not discriminate based on race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status. 

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