Technical and Communication Officer

Background Information - UNOPS Water, Environment and Climate (WEC)

The Water, Environment and Climate (WEC) portfolio, based in Vienna, and with offices based globally is part of the UNOPS Global Portfolio Office. The Portfolio has built strong partnerships and is effectively managing a portfolio of over 500 million USD over the last 15 years to support key initiatives with fund management, project implementation and administrative support. 

WEC effectively operationalizes partners' agendas with global approaches, as well as regional and country specific activities focused on climate action, protection and conservation of the environment. Partners profit from WEC’s ability to operationalize and/or scale up their important substantive agendas, including in support of key multilateral environmental and climate agreements,  such as the Paris Agreement, the Cartagena Convention as well as the Sustainable Development Goals. 

The South China Sea region and the UNEP/GEF SCS-SAP Project

The South China Sea is a semi-enclosed sea, which supports a number of unique habitats and ecosystems that are amongst the most biologically diverse shallow water marine ecosystems globally. The richness and productivity of the South China Sea and associated environments are, however, seriously threatened by high population growth, pollution, overharvest and habitat modification, resulting in high rates of habitat loss and impairment of the regenerative capacities of living resources. The socio-economic impacts of environmental deterioration are significant for the economies of this region. 

Recognising that actions were urgently needed to halt degradation of the environment of this marine basin, the countries of the region sought the assistance of UNEP and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the project “Reversing Environmental Degradation Trends in the South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand” was implemented from 2003-2008. This included a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) of the issues and problems and their societal root causes as the basis for development of a Strategic Action Programme (SAP) which was inter-governmentally adopted in 2008. The SAP established a series of objectives and priority actions for coastal habitats, land-based pollution management, and the overexploitation of fish stocks in the South China Sea.

In May 2018, a US$ 15 million grant was released by the GEF to support the execution of the South China Sea  SAP Project (SCS-SAP) until December 2026 (originally 2018-2023). The United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) is the executing agency for the implementation of the SCS-SAP project. The SCS-SAP Project includes Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Viet Nam, with direct outcomes on habitat conservation on mangroves, coral reefs, seagrass, and coastal wetlands; knowledge management; sustainable financing; and regional governance and collaboration.

Background: Communications and Technical Analyst 

Under the direct supervision of the Environmental Marine Specialist with the overall supervision of the Senior Project Manager in Bangkok, Thailand, the Technical and Communication Officer will be responsible for providing and ensuring a range of programmatic support in the marine and coastal ecosystem project activities, including the knowledge management platform, financing facility, and project sustainability and governance. The Technical and Communication Officer is also responsible for regularly developing communications materials to relay project initiatives.

The Technical and Communication Officer  will undertake the following activities/ responsibilities:

 Technical Support

• Support the project team in the execution of approved project plans (including delegated milestones). 

• Support the development, implementation and monitoring of the transboundary projects, regional working groups, financing facility, and small grants. 

• Support in the operations of the Small Grants facility, including reviewing of submitted concept notes, coordinating with chosen entities, and monitoring of projects.

• Supervise, monitor, and evaluate the performance of service providers to ensure alignment with project priorities.

• Prepare implementation and technical reports or similar documentation, ensure it is regularly updated, monitored, and compliant.

• Support the project team in the achievement of technical milestones of the project.

• Monitor and record best practices and innovative approaches. Contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for planning and knowledge building.

• Maintain records of project files and other supporting documents.

• Support in coordination with regional organizations, stakeholders, and project partners towards the implementation of projects.

• Support in preparation and coordination of project events, workshops, and conference participation.

  Communication and Knowledge Management

• Ensure that SCS-SAP Project initiatives are documented and communicated to stakeholders using social media platforms, reports, amongst others.

• Support the technical team in the dissemination, outreach and operationalization of sustainability objectives of the project, including the development of the knowledge management platform.

• Produce communications and visibility materials. 

• Support the implementation and monitoring of existing and newly developed project communication plans.

• Managing information flow by keeping, circulating and archiving detailed project notes and records.

1. Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA)
2. Contract level: IICA 1/ICS 8
3. Contract duration Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 

• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• 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 ( they take around 4 hours to complete)  in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.

• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and 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 personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.