Support Services Senior Associate

Background Information - Ghana Multi Country Office (GMCO)

Background Information – Country Specific

The Nigeria Duty Stations are managed by the Nigeria Country Office based in Abuja, Nigeria.

Nigeria is considered a key player in the West African region, with an estimated population of 200 million and accounts for about 47% of the total population of West Africa. Nigeria is considered a High Priority Country for UNOPS GMCO; being a fragile country with a complex development profile and possessing a high risk of humanitarian emergencies and disasters. Likewise with high donor interest and demand for implementation support, Nigeria is viewed as a country in which UNOPS can add value and scale-up efforts by its partners to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly the Government of Nigeria.

The last donor-funded project implemented by UNOPS ended in June 2018. The office was reopened in April 2019 and high-level efforts are ongoing to secure donor funded projects. Our objective for 2021 is to consolidate the implementation of our Strategy 2018-2021 - to become Known, Recognized and a Resource for our development partners on the ground, delivering on our mandate of infrastructure, procurement and project management. 

Building on our global experience successfully delivering projects in complex operating environments, a healthy pipeline of engagements are at various stages of discussion with our priority partners  including international financial institutions, UN agencies, bilateral and multilateral donors focusing on the North East region.  The North-East region of Nigeria (NE) is currently in a complex protracted crisis with considerable humanitarian and developmental needs along with extensive damages to social and physical infrastructure.  Likewise, the unanticipated COVID-19 pandemic has further impaired the already fragile health system.  

The capacity of the entire country's health system to address the possible impact of the pandemic remains limited.  Critical resources such as trained health workers and medical supplies are being diverted to respond to the pandemic, thus leaving other essential services heavily under-resourced and dysfunctional

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is looking for a Support Services Senior  Associate to offer operational support to the team in the Nigeria Country Office to deliver a project to Strengthen the health system of conflict- affected and hard-to-reach areas of Borno State.

The Support Services Senior  Associate will maintain a close eye on the operational performance, identify probable issues that may need attention, support in problem analysis and solution identification as necessary, coordinate resolution as per action-items assigned. The Support Services Senior  Associate may  be required to work in complex and challenging environments with limited resources.

The Support Services Senior Associate will be responsible for the following summary of functions:

1. Management Support

2. Team Management

3. Logistics, Administration and Security Management Services

4. Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing

A.  Education

• A minimum of Secondary School certification  is required.

• A University Degree or Diploma  in Business Administration, Public Administration, Procurement, Logistics, International Relations, Political Science or equivalent disciplines will be considered an asset and may substitute for some of the required years of experience.
  
  
  

B. Work Experience 

• Minimum of seven (7)   years of relevant experience in general administrative, logistics, or operations’ support services in national or international public or corporate organizations.

• Some experience in UN system organizations is desirable.

• Proficiency in computers and office software packages (Google Office Suite or Google Workspace) and experience in handling web-based management systems is required.

• Experience in use of Enterprise systems including OneUNOPS is desirable.

• Previous experience working in Northeast Nigeria will be considered an advantage;

C. Language Requirement

● Full working knowledge of English is required

● Knowledge of another official UNOPS language is an asset 

• Contract type: Local Individual Contract Agreement (LICA)
• Contract level: LICA 7/ ICS 7
• Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization - UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• Maiduguri is a Non-Family duty station
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.  

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.

Africa Region

AFR helps ensure that projects are executed to the highest standards, providing a shared knowledge base and ensuring that best practices and lessons learned are disseminated between projects across the entire region.