Regional Chief of Programme & Planning, Kenya- Nairobi

Regional Chief of Programme & Planning, Nairobi
Closing Date: Friday, 23 July 2010
United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF)
United Nations Children's Fund

Closing date: 23 Jul 2010
Location: Kenya - Nairobi

Purpose of the Position
You will be responsible for oversight
, quality assurance, technical assistance and capacity strengthening for programme planning, development, monitoring, evaluation and reporting in the Eastern & Southern Africa Region. Enforce policies, directives, standards for country programme documents, and exercise quality assurance related to best practices for UNDAFS, AWPs, annual and donor reports.

You will be responsible for increasing UN Coherence at regional level through work with Regional Directors Team programme units or clusters and with counterparts in Regional Offices of other UN Agencies. Liaises closely with counterparts in Policy, Planning and UN Coherence in Headquarters, as well as with relevant staff in UNDGO. You will work closely with Deputy Regional Director and Regional Chief of Operations to ensure ESARO’s functions are well planned, monitored and reported.

Key Expected Results
1. Technical Support and Quality Assurance
You will provide strategic advice, oversight and technical support to ESAR Representatives and Country Offices in programme development particularly for countries preparing for the Executive Board at the stages of joint UN Mid-Term Reviews, Situation Analysis, Joint Strategy, CPAP development. Monitor and ensure adequate quality of programme preparation. Plan for coordinated provision of ESARO strategic advice and technical support to contribute to high quality country programme review, monitoring and evaluation

2. Regional Strategy Development, Support and Coordination
You will support and advise the Country Offices, the Regional Director and RMT in the review of Country Strategies, and Mid-Term Reviews. Guide and supervise the development of regional strategic priorities on social policy, gender and human rights programming and knowledge management and country-level roll-out and implementation. Guide the development of a regional resource mobilization strategy, relevant contributions analysis and monitoring tools, and ensure appropriate follow-up. Coordinate and consolidate ESARO strategy, programme and planning documents and reports for presentation to the Executive Board, regional for and other partners.

3. Strategic Leadership and Representation
You will promote collaboration on Child-related policy development analysis and monitoring issues with other UN agencies, African development institutions, regional bodies and networks, internally across all ESARO programme, communication and operational functions, and the Programme, DPP and other Divisions in NYHQ. Work closely with Regional Director and Deputy Regional Director to ensure high quality support to UN Coherence processes within the framework of the Regional Directors Team. Represent UNICEF in the RDT quality support assurance and programme support cluster, and contribute to inter-agency quality assurance and programme support to UNCT’s particularly in UNDAF roll-out and MTR countries.

4. Regional Programme Planning
You will contribute to regional office programme planning and coordination, including Annual Report preparation, planning and programme development activities, review of Country Offices Annual Reports. Ensure regional analysis on the best programme practices and cross-sectoral policy and programming issues and facilitate inter-country networking.

5. Regional Office Management
Oversee, coordinate and manage the work plans and reviews and work of the staff of the ESARO Social Policy, Planning and M&E Section. Coordinate and guide the preparation of regional office budget process and work planning exercises. Facilitate inter-sectoral coordination.

Qualifications of Successful Candidate
- Advanced university degree in social sciences, development, policy, or other related field.
- Ten years of professional work experience at national and international levels in programme planning and analysis, monitoring and evaluation, eight of which should be in developing countries, with preferably four years in Africa.
- Good knowledge of theory and practice around PRSPs, NDPs, Visions, different UN joint programming modalities, new aid environment, including DBS, SWAps, SIPs, other baskets.
- Good knowledge of management information (programmatic and financial) and software applications; knowledge of PrOMS and Cognos applications an asset
- Strong training/facilitation skills essential
- Good knowledge of human rights based approach to programming
- Strong skills in programme design & tools, programme and budget monitoring and programme implementation.
- Good team management and staff development skills
- Good knowledge of UN Reform/Coherence issues, OECD-DAC issues, and Government (National and sub-national) development planning and budgeting processes.
- Fluency in English and another UN language, preferably French. Working knowledge of Portuguese an asset.

Competencies of Successful Candidate
- Has highest-level communication skills, including engaging and informative formal public speaking.
- Creates and encourages a climate of team-working and collaboration in a multi-cultural environment.
- Consistently achieves high-level results, managing and delivering projects on-time and on-budget.
- Has high-level leadership and supervisory skills; provides others with a clear direction; motivates and empowers others; recruits staff of a high caliber; provides staff with development opportunities and coaching.
- Sets, develops and revises organizational strategy and develops clear visions of the organization’s future potential.
- Analyzes and integrates diverse and complex quantitative and qualitative data from a wide range of sources.
- Quickly builds rapport with individuals and groups. Actively nurtures good relationships with people across all organizational levels and boundaries, and with government leaders and stakeholders.
- Negotiates effectively by exploring a range of possibilities.
- Contributes and tries out innovative approaches and insights.

UNICEF is committed to diversity and gender equality in its workplace. Women and nationals of developing countries are strongly encouraged to apply.

How to apply

If you want a challenging career while improving the lives of children around the world UNICEF, the leading children's rights organization, would like to hear from you.

Visit us at www.unicef.org/about/employ to register in our new e-Recruitment system and apply to this and other vacancies, quoting E-VN-2010-001484. Applications must be received by 23 July 2010.

Please note that only candidates who are under serious consideration will be contacted.

In the selection of its staff, UNICEF is committed to gender balance and diversity without distinction as to race, sex or religion, and without discrimination of persons with disabilities: well qualified candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

Reference Code: RW_875MCZ-83

Source: Reliefweb