Partnerships Advisor (EU negotiations Chapter 9 Financial Services – vehicle register, Retainer)

The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners' peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world.  UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects.  Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations.  

Austria Multi-Country Office (AUMCO)

The Austria Multi-Country Office (AUMCO) is part of the UNOPS Europe and Central Asia Region (ECR). Specifically, AUMCO aims to enable achievement of Agenda 2030 and the Paris Agreement through global programmes and tailored interventions in the Balkans, South Caucasus, and Central Asia, focused on:

• Infrastructure
• Procurement 
• Project Management (full service, back on track)
• HR and Transactional Services
• Grants Management 
• Technical and Advisory Services
• Project Information

Project Information

Under the framework of the multi-year project titled “Knowledge for Reform Action in the Western Balkans,” UNOPS is providing support in the six countries of the Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia) with access to tailored expertise, knowledge and best practice to assist them with advancing their respective reform agenda. Learning and exchanges will be promoted across the Region, as well as from neighboring countries which have joined the European Union (EU). The aim of the project is to strengthen institutional, administrative and legislative frameworks and practices.

Under the direct supervision of the Chief Technical Advisor, and in close cooperation with beneficiaries, the Partnerships Advisor will provide technical expertise to government authorities, primarily the Ministry of Interior of the Republic of North Macedonia that is. The assignment will also be done in consultations with the Secretariat for European Affairs, as well as other institutions as appropriate. 

The work under this ToR is a part of preparation for negotiations under Chapter 9 – Financial Services (Cluster 2 – Internal Market) and indirectly Chapter 14 - Transportation. It is directly linked to the findings of the EC Country Report 2021, the legislation still allows the Ministry of Finance to set premiums for motor vehicle insurance, which is contrary to the EU acquis. Data on the proportion of vehicles that are uninsured is available, but it is unclear whether they are actually in circulation. No systemic measures are taken to prevent uninsured driving. A number of basic key services, such as issuance of driving licenses or registration of vehicles incurred significant delays and caused dissatisfaction among citizens. 

The legal framework for road transport is broadly aligned with the EU acquis. However, legislation is not keeping pace with changes in the EU acquis. Progress has been made towards establishing an executive body for road traffic safety. More efforts are needed to align with the social and safety acquis. The national system for continuous road crash data collection is still not established and the action plans on road safety inspection and audit need to be followed up and implemented. The State Transport Inspectorate needs to strengthen its enforcement and technical capacities. Further harmonization is needed on penalties for infringing the European Agreement on the work of crews of vehicles engaged in international road transport (AETR). Signature of the Interbus protocol on regular and special regular services is pending. The five-year road and rail maintenance plan has not been approved and road maintenance remains weak. Legislation on clean energy and energy efficient road transport vehicles, and intelligent transport systems is not in line with the EU acquis.

The conclusions of the Subcommittee on Internal Market and Competition of the SAA of 9 February 2022 also point out to the need to improve the legislative and strategic framework in this regard. 

The assignment will be carried out by four experts: three Partnerships Advisors and on Partnerships Specialist: 

1. Partnerships Advisor on uninsured & unregistered vehicles 
2. Partnerships Advisor on vehicle register 
3. Partnerships Advisor on road safety
4. Partnerships Specialist to support the Partnerships Advisor on uninsured & unregistered vehicles

1. Technical Expertise
2. Stakeholder Engagement

Education

• An advanced university degree (e.g. Masters) in the discipline relevant to transportation or engineering is required OR
• A first-level university degree (e.g. Bachelor) in combination with 2 additional years of progressively relevant experience may be accepted in lieu of an advanced university degree.

Work experience 

• A minimum of seven (7) years of relevant experience on the issues of road transportation or vehicle registration.
• Knowledge of the EU acquis on transportation and vehicle registers.
• Familiarity with the context of the Western Balkans region is highly desirable.
• Proven records of building strong relationships and/or operate in an influential manner with gov authorities and/or UN officials is required
• Ability to consistently exercise discretion and confidentiality with sensitive information is highly desirable.

Languages

• Proficiency in English is required.
• Knowledge of locally spoken languages including lingua franca is an advantage.

Contract type: ICA

• 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.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and it is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, or disability.
  
• 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.  
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.
• 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.