Project Management Support - Senior Assistant

As part of UNOPS sustainability agenda, several initiatives have been carried out to mainstream gender equality and social inclusion. Sustainability aspects, especially gender equality is a key focus area in UNOPS 2018-2021 strategic plan and UNOPS has launched in 2018 a Gender Mainstreaming strategy and Action plan, which positions gender equality as a key component of the projects UNOPS implements on behalf of partners around the world.

The SIDA funded project “Promoting Decent Work through Strengthening Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Management and Social Dialogue” aims to contribute to:

• Improve policies, regulations, rules and procedures on labor rights and working conditions 

• Improving human and technical capacities of the Government institutions such as Ministry of Employment and Finance/Department of Labour and Social Welfare and the Labour Inspectorate to ensure decent working conditions for men and women. 

• Strengthening the capacities social partners for managing and coordinating meaningful social dialogue

• Advocating for greater implementation of the OSH principles and standards by the private sector,

• Capacity building of the university students, trainees of the vocational educational training centers, and young lawyers to appropriately identify and address issues benefits and setbacks of the (non)implementation of the OSH measures  in practice 

As an affirmation of the above, this project is designed to contribute as well to the implementation of Kosovo's European Reform Agenda (ERA) in the areas of Good Governance and the Rule of Law, Competitiveness, Investment Climate, Employment and Education. Moreover, the project is inspired by the European Social Charter - a treaty that without discrimination guarantees fundamental social and economic rights guaranteeing a respect of human rights related to employment, housing, health, education, social protection and welfare. 

The project applies the human rights-based approach (HRBA), Leave No One Behind (LNOB) and Gender Equality as the central, transformative vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This project contributes to the SDG 8 Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all specifically to the Target 8.8 Protect labor rights and promote safe and secure working environments of all workers, including migrant workers, particularly women migrants, and those in precarious employment.

The project will coordinate closely with the key stakeholders: Ministry of Employment and Finance, the Department of Labour and Social Welfare, Labour Inspectorate, Employment Agency of Kosovo, Ministry of Education Science and Technology, Agency for Vocational Education and Training and Adult Education, Civil Society Organisation (CSO) active in the area of labour rights and social inclusion, private sector  Kosovo Economic and Social Council, National Council for Safety and Health at Work, Trade Unions, and others relevant actors.

UNOPS’ Pristina Office reports to the UNOPS Multi Country Office in Vienna, as part of the UNOPS Europe & Central Asia Region (ECR). UNOPS presence in Pristina was established in 1999 to help the Kosovo Government and other partners achieve their development, peace and security goals and aims to enable the achievement of UN-SDG Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement through projects tailored interventions by providing a broad spectrum of sustainable project management, procurement and HR Services to development partners in the following areas:

Governance and Rule of Law;

Provision of Health Sector Strengthening in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic;

Infrastructure - Design development and Construction Project/Contract Management;

Technical Assistance;

Partner Personnel HR Management;

Project Management

Under the supervision and guidance of the Project Manager, the Project Management Support Senior Assistant will assist and provide support on the day-to-day administration of the project.

The Project Management Support Senior Assistant will works in close collaboration with colleagues in the project and project partners.

The Project Management Support Senior Assistant will undertake the following activities/responsibilities related to the project implementation:

• Assist in drafting working documents and reports while ensuring consistency in format and content.

• Monitor project expenditures and disbursements  against allocations.

• Process payments  in the UNOPS’ corporate system OneUNOPS; 

• Assemble project working documents and maintain an electronic filing system.

• Assist in collecting inputs for preparation of narrative and financial reports

• Assist in generating reports to the internal project team as appropriate

• Assist in arranging, managing and follow up  project-related meetings, events and seminars/workshops.

• Take minutes of the meeting and write summary reports;

• Assist with preparing and updating monthly, quarterly and annual meetings and reports.

• Assist in preparation of briefing materials, reports and other relevant materials required for the project management. 

• Follow up on organizational events as foreseen in the approved work plan.

• Assist in conducting project activities including field visits / training / events and workshops.

• Contribute to the preparation of the project work plan, strategy on communications and outreach.

• Assist in the preparation for field visits and spot checks to the project  partners

• Maintain professional relationship and regular communication with all project partners

• Any other duties assigned by the Supervisor.

• Secondary school diploma is required;

• A Bachelor degree in Business Administration, Public Administration, Engineering or related field is an asset.

• Five years of relevant experience in project support services in combination with a secondary school diploma is required. Bachelor’s degree may substitute for  some years of experience.

• Experience in work with the international aid development sector, including the UN system, international NGOs and International Donors is desirable.

• Previous UNOPS experience is an asset.

• Fluency in English and Albanian is required, knowledge of Serbian language is considered an advantage.

• 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
• 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.

Contract type: Individual Contractual Agreement - ICA 
Contract level: LICA 5
Contract duration: Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.


For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx 

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.