Economic Development Associate-Electricity

In September 2016, the agreement 'Principles for Financial Clearance, Resolution of the Palestinian Electricity Debts and Establishment of a New Energy Market in the Palestinian Sector’ ('the Electricity Agreement’) was signed by the Palestinian and Israeli parties. If implemented in full, the Electricity Agreement will transfer significant control and authority over the electricity sector in the West Bank from the Israelis to the Palestinians. The agreement also provides an opportunity to resolve the longstanding Palestinian debt to the Israel Electric Company (IEC) and will pave the way for the establishment of a new Palestinian electricity market.

Implementation of the agreement requires the Palestinian Authority (PA) to assume significant additional responsibilities for the sector for which technical, financial and institutional capacity-building is necessary. The OQ has facilitated the development of a detailed 'Implementation Plan’ for the agreement and has developed an 'Electricity Agreement Tracker’ which is being used by the PA and the OQ to track progress, identify financing and capacity gaps, and flag risks on an ongoing basis. The timeline to fully implement the Electricity Agreement is two years, commencing after the signing of a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA).

Although implementation has been slower than planned, the first major step was taken on July 10, 2017 when the interim PPA for the Al-Jalama substation in Jenin was signed and the substation energized. This has facilitated the negotiations of the main PPA for the sale of electricity from IEC to the Palestinian Electricity Transmission Company (PETL).

The EDA will contribute to the following deliverables:

Project Management and Delivery

1. Closely support implementation of one or more OQ energy projects, including supporting the further implementation of the Electricity Agreement.
2. Provide guidance on project strategy and direction and adapt this guidance as necessary in response to changing information.
3. Propose and maintain a detailed project plan and agree on outputs and deliverables with the Director of Energy.
4. Ensure that the project goals are met within acceptable tolerances from the perspective of project timeline, cost, quality and scope using a variety of tools including the OQ Electricity Agreement Tracker; take corrective action where necessary.
5. Identify, mitigate and manage risks associated with the delivery of project work streams, in liaison with the Director or Energy and the rest of the Energy Team.
6. Support the production of internal and external project outputs on a day-to-day basis, including: presentations, written documents, background research, Gantt charts and other tasks relevant to the project.
7. Support procurement of external service providers, in coordination with relevant OQ staff.

Stakeholder Engagement

1. Develop and maintain a comprehensive overview of electricity stakeholders at various levels.
2. Establish solid working relationships with Palestinian stakeholders at the appropriate level to ensure continued cooperation on the Electricity Agreement project, access to relevant information and to coordinate outputs. This will require the EDA to travel regularly to Ramallah and potentially Gaza.
3. Ensure stakeholders are aware of project activities, progress and risks.
4. Manage and facilitate the engagement of external service providers by maintaining effective communication with them; facilitating meetings, access to data and contacts as required; providing input to their work and ensuring an acceptable quality of delivered services.

Project Communication and Outreach

1. Prepare a range of written communication documents (such as reports, letters, emails and presentations) for internal and external project stakeholders as needed.
2. Assist with the organization and facilitation of meetings relating to the project.
3. Contribute to the Office fundraising efforts for the different energy projects, including the Electricity Agreement project, by engaging with potential and existing donors and drafting fundraising proposals.

Research, Monitoring and Knowledge Sharing 

1. Develop and maintain a comprehensive understanding of the Palestinian energy sector by identifying challenges, opportunities for further engagements and key players, and regularly share any learnings with the OQ’s Energy Team.
2. Develop and maintain a comprehensive understanding of regional energy developments, and regularly share any learnings with the OQ’s Energy Team.
3. Support data and information gathering relevant to energy sector work streams.

Event Organisation:

• Advanced Degree (Master’s/MBA/PhD etc.) in a relevant discipline such as Project Management, Engineering, Politics/ International Relations, is preferred. or Relevant Bachelor’s degree in related studies, combined with relevant training and an additional 2 years of experience may be accepted in lieu of a Master’s degree

• 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
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• 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.

Contract type: LICA Specialist 

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.