Partnership Development Associate at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the United Nations' global development network. It advocates for change and connects countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better life for themselves. It provides expert advice, training and grants support to developing countries, with increasing emphasis on assistance to the least developed countries. It promotes technical and investment cooperation among nations.

Headquartered in New York City, the status of UNDP is that of an executive board within the United Nations General Assembly. The UNDP is funded entirely by voluntary contributions from UN member states. The organization operates in 177 countries, where it works with local governments to meet development challenges and develop local capacity.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Partnership Development Associate

Job Identification: 21630
Location: Abuja
Employment type: Fixed Term
Contract duration: 2 Year with Possibility for extension
Practice Area: Management
Grade: G6

Job Summary

• In line with the 2022-2025 strategic framework of the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme which builds on the previous framework of 2018-2021 that facilitated UNV transformation including the decentralization and restructuring of offices and functions.
• The current strategic framework 2022-2025 seeks to promote volunteerism as a powerful and cross-cutting means of implementing the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. It is also viewed as a tool to engage the UN development system, member states, civil society and the private sector to promote an environment conducive to volunteerism and volunteers in order to enhance sustaining development results.
• The main objectives of the UNV programme are 1/ support Member States in the SDGs implementation through volunteer promotion and 2/ mobilise UN Volunteers to support the mandate and programmes of the UN system at large. At the country level, UNV Field Units directly engage with partners such as the government and UN Agencies in order to promote volunteerism as a strategic means to implement national development programmes.
• The UNV Programme works directly with the UN system to propose integrated volunteer solutions that can support the implementation of their mandates and operations.
• This include working with the government of Nigeria at various levels (through a Full Funding agreement) and other external partners to fund volunteer assignment and opportunities that are most relevant to the country and the UN system.
• This position is part of UNV programme to position UNV as a common service and talent solution provider to the UN system and external partners.
• At the field office level is the need for continued communication, stakeholders’ engagement and partnership outreach in order to achieve programme visibility, financial and impact sustainability.
• Reporting to the Partnerships Development Specialist, UNV HQ,[VO1]  with matrix reporting to the Programme Analyst, UNV Nigeria, the Partnership Development Associate supports management of the Full Funding (FF) agreement. She/he is responsible for supporting the effective mobilization and placement of UN Volunteers, provide  administrative/operational support to volunteers, and supporting the efforts of advocacy and positioning of UNV interests in the country, in line with UNV’s Strategic Framework. 
• The Partnership Development Associate supports building relationships with main partners, and supports coordination with the Regional Office and HQ organizational units, on volunteer mobilization, programme implementation, and provision of substantive inputs, and facilitation of corporate initiatives.

Duties and Responsibilities
Advocacy, partnership building, and UNV programme integration:

• Support UNVs’ field efforts  in the country, ensuring key results and delivery of the Strategic Framework and the Sustainable Development Goals;  
• Provide support to the Partnership Development Specialist and to the Programme Analyst to establish, foster and maintain effective outreach and relationships for the expansion of FF and Special Voluntary Fund (SVF) initiatives, including the formalization of partnerships and other exchanges of confidence such as inclusion in the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF), as well as with government, UN agencies, NGOs, the private sector and other relevant development partners; 
• In coordination with the Field Unit and HQ, identify resource mobilization entry points with key partners and donors in the country if and when applicable.
• Support the Country Coordinator in duplicating the State government FF   partnership with other countries in and across the regions. 
• Develop FF quarterly and annual reporting, with a focus on lessons learned and challenges encountered. 
• Support Field Unit in encouraging national and local actors to establish a framework on volunteer infrastructure that supports volunteerism for peace and development, including the adoption of relevant policies and legislation; 
• Strengthen and determine business intelligence related to partnerships, promotion of volunteerism and shaping and delivering volunteer infrastructure advisory services and conduct country scans as input for corporate planning processes; 
• Support, in the case of UNV-funded projects UNV programmatic engagement. 

Partnerships Coordination & Knowledge Management:

• Facilitate the FF coordination function including financial monitoring and reporting, providing input to briefing notes, preparing meetings and presentations, and regularly providing implementation status updates as requested by ERCS  
• Plan timelines and discuss parameters of the FF agreement implementation with partners;
• Ensure FF partners are informed throughout the implementation process, regularly providing  status updates on the FF agreement implementation;
• Provide statistics on assignments and support with input to financial (and other) reports to partners;
• Follow through on the FF agreement implementation with funding partners and as needed with sections across UNV (ROs, FUs, ERCS, VSS, HRS), to ensure agreed timelines and parameters are met
• In close coordination with the Regional Office and the Communications Section at headquarters, prepare, disseminate and present country-specific promotional information on the mandate and work of UNV with relevant development partners and the media;  

UN Volunteer mobilization and management:

• Liaise closely with the Field Unit, Regional Office (RO), and HQ units for effective expansion, and implementation of the Full funding (FF) programme.
• Coordinate and support development and submission of Descriptions of Assignments (DoAs) by UN partners on FF calls.
• Support volunteer promotion activities, and work with HQ and RO Communications teams to produce FF volunteers’ impact stories and other communications material.
• Contribute to the design and support the implementation of talent acquisition activities undertaken by UNV Nigeria in collaboration with the Regional Office.
• Support the preparation and delivery of induction sessions for new United Nations Volunteers (UNVs). 
• Support UNV Nigeria's handling of requests from UN Volunteers and ensure that related issues requiring action are brought to the attention of the supervisor. 
• Document frequently asked questions in the form of FAQs and keep them up to date. 
• Support the promotion and use of the online volunteering service internally and among eligible users of the service. 
• Support liaison with UN agencies in the country to ensure an understanding of UNV’s mandate, key offers and the added value that UN Volunteer assignments bring in support to the achievement of their respective mandates. 
• Identify volunteer placement opportunities and present UNV value proposition and volunteer modalities with the objective of maximizing international and national volunteer presence, including collaboration in the preparation of descriptions of assignment, with partner agencies and other partners. 
• Attract relevant national talents and manage local talent sources as per the country demand forecast and agreed talent acquisition priorities, in coordination with the regional Talent Acquisition Analyst.
• Support the Country Coordinator to provide overall management and administrative support to UN Volunteers.

Required Skills and Experience
Education:

• Secondary education is required
• A university degree in social sciences, international development, project management, public/business administration or related fields will be given due consideration, but it is not a requirement.

Experience:

• A minimum of 6 years (with high school diploma) or 3 years (with bachelor’s degree) of relevant experience preferably in a humanitarian, partnership support, development and/or peace related field;   
• Experience in partnerships and/or inter-agency cooperation is essential; 
• Work experience with the United Nations is an asset;   
• Previous experience in a civil society setting and/or as a volunteer with volunteer management and/or promotion of volunteerism is a distinct advantage;
• Experience in Microsoft office and internet; 
• Openness to embrace Digital Transformation and use of new technologies;
• Fluency in English and in the local language of the duty station.

Competencies:
Achieve Results:

• Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline

Think Innovatively:

• Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements

Learn Continuously:

• Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback

Adapt with Agility:

• Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible

Act with Determination:

• Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident

Engage and Partner:

• Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships

Enable Diversity and Inclusion:

• Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies:
Negotiation and Influence:

• Ability to reach an understanding, persuade others, resolve points of difference, gain advantage in the outcome of dialogue, negotiates mutually acceptable solutions through compromise and creates ‘win-win’ situations

Knowledge Generation:

• Ability to research and turn information into useful knowledge, relevant for context, or responsive to a stated need 

Results-based Management:

• Ability to manage programmes and projects with a focus at improved performance and demonstrable results 

Partnerships Management:

• Ability to build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP/UNV strategy and policies 

Digital Awareness and Literacy:

• Ability and inclination to rapidly adopt new technologies, either through skilfully grasping their usage or through understanding their impact and empowering others to use them as needed 

Event planning and execution:

• Ability to plan, manage and execute of public and private events to ensure that they support and amplify individual communications and advocacy initiatives, as well as UNV's overall brand and mandate.

Private sector engagement: 

• Ability to identify, conduct outreach, and manage relationships with the private sector.

Application Closing Date
8th November, 2024.

How to Apply
Interested and qualified candidates should:
Click here to apply online