Programme Management Specialist (School Construction Projects)

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.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION - UNOPS Amman Hub

The UNOPS Hub in Amman implements projects on behalf of UN agencies and bilateral donors and in close coordination with the Government and national authorities. With an established presence across the region, the office runs operations including large-scale procurement, project development, and technical management, and provides financial, human resources, and infrastructure-related services.

The UNOPS Hub in Amman delivers projects in an efficient and effective manner, in line with the principles, rules, and regulations of UNOPS, to achieve the outcomes sought by the clients.

The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS. 

UNOPS is committed to achieving a fully diverse workforce.

UNOPS is undertaking a project to support the establishment and management of the Programme Management Unit” (PMU) funded by the Federal Republic of Germany through the KfW. The PMU will be incorporated into the Development Cooperation Unit (DCU) at the Ministry of Education (MoE), and it aims to support the establishment of the function of coordination and facilitation for the German School Construction Projects (SCP) at the MoE (DCU) and to support the implementation of the Development Policy Loan (DPL) and any other future projects financed by the German Government. 

The main objectives of the PMU include: a) to facilitate and create the function of coordination for all the German projects and activities at MoE, b) to act as a focal point for KfW/Government of Germany and the School Construction Projects and DPL; c) support communication and coordination with other stakeholders, and d) to provide capacity development, on-the-job training, and quality assurance, considering international standards of the outputs related to these projects prepared by the concerned departments and managements at MoE.

The DPL aims at supporting reforms in the Ministry of Education (MoE) and related entities to improve Facility Management (FM) in Jordanian public schools. The reform agenda for the DPL will primarily focus on facility management at three levels: i) policy, ii) school administration, iii) governorates and field directorates, and iv) schools and local communities.

The Programme Management Specialist (School Construction Projects) will support MoE through overseeing the operations and facility management plans at MoE; ensuring facilities sustainability and that all buildings facilitate education within an inductive and safe learning environment; ensuring that all plans are executed properly according to the approved ones, and that services within the schools are handled properly to achieve the satisfaction of targeted stakeholders: students, teachers and local community.

Under the direct supervision of the Head of PMU, the Programme Management Specialist (School Construction Projects)  must be able to undertake independently, the following functional/ technical tasks:

Programme Coordination and Planning

• Review and advise the MoE on technical operation, maintenance issues, needs, and plans from the planning phase until the operation of schools. This includes reviewing the designs and specifications to ensure it meets the agreed quality and international standards (i.ensure that all specifications are school-oriented, heavy duty and durable, etc.);
• Review and analyze the current Facility and Building Maintenance System from MoE to school level (including the proposed systems by other donors and organizations such as Queen Rania Foundation, USAID, GIZ, etc), to identify stakeholders, responsibilities, line of communication, maintenance plans, budgeting, scheduling of works, etc.;
• Identify influencing factors (financial, cultural, educational, quality standards, etc.), weaknesses, and inefficiencies in processes, and develop concepts/ mitigation measures in accordance with the relevant positions at MoE to overcome the identified weaknesses while considering low budget alternative maintenance concepts and solutions;
• Review alternative maintenance systems practised internationally, and discuss possible feasible outcome with respect to local context;
• Provide support to the MoE to develop plans for security in terms of coverage, check points, closed-circuit television camera (CCTV) in accordance with international standards.

Governance, Monitoring, and Reporting

• Review and analyze reports from the Facility and Building Management System, and provide technical advice to MoE for meeting the scheduled milestones and progress according to the agreed work plans;
• Provide proactive advice for managing any deviation from plans, monitor maintenance contracts and payments, and resolve any pending issues;
• Provide proactive advice for monitoring the expenditures against the available budget in order to achieve maximum value for money by controlling maintenance costs.

Quality Control and Assurance

• Provide quality assurance on the implementation of general outlines of maintenance and service provision plans for the different buildings of the “School Construction Project III & IV” and any other school construction project financed by KfW;
• Ensure quality of the services provided, through reviewing schools maintenance reports and plans, including the day-to-day plans, annual plans, and long-term plans;
• Provide quality assurance in relation to execution of facilities maintenance in accordance with the scheduled requirements and/ or identified corrective matters as well as the international standards;
• Provide quality assurance on the design details and materials specifications;
• In collaboration with PMU Architect Engineer, identify deficiencies in the current school infrastructure (detail, finishes, sustainability of materials, components review performance requirements);
• Analyze existing school maintenance and cleaning practices and develop training material for school staff;
• Ensure that all facilities are provided with proper and essential services, including water supply, sanitary systems, storm water drainage system, HVAC systems, electricity systems, cleaning, security, safety, maintenance, and all related matters to ensure sustainability of infrastructure investments.

Knowledge Management

• Share knowledge with the PMU team members and other relevant key stakeholders and donors, including through open EMIS, to ensure coordinated delivery of activities and synergies;
• Contribute to the identification and dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for PMU and DPL development planning and knowledge building;
• Support the MoE in capacity building planning and transfer of operations and facility management-related knowledge among MoE staff.

Internal/ External Communication

Outside MoE:

Supporting the communication with the following stakeholders outside MoE:

• KfW
• MoPWH
• Consultants
• Contractors
• Government entities/ authorities for approvals and regulations.
• Utility providers
• Local communities
• Donors/Implementing Agencies/International Partners

Inside MoE:

• PMU
• Development and Coordination Unit (DCU)
• Managing Directorate of School of Buildings and International Projects
• Managing Directorate of Educational Planning Research
• Managing Directorate of Queen Rania Center for Education & Information Technology
• Management of Supplies and Equipping
• Managing Directorate of Financial Affairs
• Managing Directorate of Legal Affairs
• MoE Field Directorates
• Schools Administration

3. Monitoring and Progress Controls

(Clear description of measurable outputs, milestones, key performance indicators and/or reporting requirements which will enable performance monitoring)

• Number of system modifications conducted in order to establish a mechanism for monitoring and tracking the projects at the different phase;
• Number of technical support provided with regards to the management and administration of the programme’s ERP;
• Number of technical support provided for establishing an efficient reporting system, managing and using coordination, scheduling, programming, file sharing and collaboration platforms.

• Advanced university degree (Master degree or equivalent) in Civil Engineering, Architectural Engineering, Project Management, or Business Administration is desired.           
• Bachelor’s degree in Civil or Architectural Engineering is required with a combination of 2 additional years of relevant professional experience 
• International Project Manager Association (IPMA Level B) or Project Management Professional (PMP - PMI) or PRINCE2 foundation is desired,

• Five (5) years of demonstrated successful and progressive experience in service engineering operations, site supervision, and facility management is required;
• Demonstrated progressive experience in supporting the implementation of medium to large construction project(s) in public/ development sector (quality buildings) is preferred;
• Experience in developing and managing relationships with donors and government/ public sector partners, as well as engaging with bilateral and multilateral partners is prefered;
• Demonstrated ability and motivation to build local staff capacity and train others, as well as to engage effectively with stakeholders is prefered;
• Experience in budget limitations and alternative systems including prevention of vandalism;
• High proficiency with computers, and other software/ platforms related to the positions field of expertise. Good experience in working with the G-Suite platform including, Google Drive, Google Calendar, Gmail, Google Sheets, Docs, and Slides is required;
• Familiarity with donor funded school construction projects implemented in the Education sector in Jordan is preferred;
• Comprehensive knowledge of local designs details context and material price in order to be aware of budget restrictions, and to ensure appropriate detailing and materials;
• Demonstrated experience in Gender mainstreaming in the public sector is preferred;
• Experience of working in the UN/ International Organization is preferred.

• Excellent communication skills, including fluency in spoken and written Arabic and English languages, are required; 

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• 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.
• Amman is a family duty station.
• This position is open to nationals only.
• 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
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• 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.