The Position:

Under the direct supervision of the UNFPA Director of the Sub-regional office for the Caribbean (SROC), the Liaison Officer plays the leading role in the delivery of the UNFPA country policy advocacy and dialogue, and designs, develops, and manages an innovative and responsive programme in Barbados and the OECS in alignment with the UNFPA Sub-regional Programme for the Caribbean (2022-2026). You will lead the programme in support of national priorities, ensuring that it translates into tangible solutions and results, including by mainstreaming resilience, prevention, preparedness along the humanitarian-development-peace continuum.

How you can make a difference:

UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person’s potential is fulfilled. UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the ICPD and SDGs in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.

In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.

UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.

Job Purpose:

The UNFPA Liaison Officer plays a leading role in strengthening the countries’ capacity to implement the ICPD Program of Action within the context of its national development efforts for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, thus ensuring national ownership. The Liaison officer substantively contributes to advancing a policy-oriented agenda, leveraging the resources of national governments, building strategic alliances and partnerships with counterparts in government, multi-lateral and bilateral agencies and civil society as well as developing internal and external communications. Particular attention will be given by the Liaison Officer to expanding the full spectrum of UNFPA’s humanitarian action to better safeguard the health and lives of women and adolescents, mainstreaming resilience, prevention, preparedness along the humanitarian-development-peace continuum. The Liaison officer proactively supports the resource mobilization strategies at country level and provides the Director with information on achievement of results in the implementation of UNFPA initiatives. S/he is primarily responsible for management of UNFPA programme activities and for promoting the goals of UNFPA at the national level, ensuring the integration of issues of population, sexual and reproductive health and rights and gender in the broader development agenda and from a humanitarian-development-peace nexus perspective. S/he will also coordinate technical advisers and contribute to UN systems coordination through participation in policy dialogue and provision of inputs into joint common system initiatives.

Key areas of work include:

• Policy development and advocacy
• Partnerships and advocacy
• Resource mobilization

Reporting to the SROC Director/ Representative, the Liaison Officer will act on his/her behalf as required.

You would be responsible for:

Programme leadership:

• Responds creatively to complex challenges and frequently changing demands in terms of a fluctuating resource base, multiple funding arrangements and donor contacts. The Liaison Officer advances the ICDP agenda in a politically sensitive environment responding to changing substantive priorities of Governments;
• Facilitates and coordinates the advocacy for public policies, promotes partnership, synergy and strategic alliances with counterparts in government, multi-lateral and bilateral agencies, civil society organizations as well as the private sector. S/he contributes to UN system coordination through participation in policy dialogue and provision of inputs into joint common system initiatives;

• Facilitates the achievement of programme results by identifying, providing and coordinating substantive and technical inputs into work plans development and implementation, ensuring substantive monitoring and oversight and coordinating and evaluating the inputs of consultants and technical experts;
• Facilitates the full spectrum of UNFPA’s humanitarian action to better safeguard the health and lives of women and adolescents, mainstreaming resilience, prevention, preparedness along the humanitarian-development-peace continuum and working in close collaboration with humanitarian partners;
• Facilitates the achievement of programme results by identifying, providing and coordinating substantive and technical inputs into work plans development and implementation, ensuring substantive monitoring and oversight, and coordinating and evaluation of the inputs of consultants and technical experts;
• Assess and address implications of national trends on UNFPA work in Barbados and OECS;
• Consult with Government, civil society and other stakeholders on national priorities;
• Recommend areas of assistance on the basis of continuous review and analysis of demographic and socio-economic data and national population policies in the context of the formation, implementation and monitoring of UNFPA supported multi-country programme;
• Recommend areas of assistance on the basis of continuous review and analysis of demographic and socio-economic data and national populations policies in the context of formulation, implementation and monitoring of UNFPA supported programme in Barbados and OECS;
• Provide inputs to the SRO based on country specificities for the development of the multi-country programme;
• Ensure continuous feedback to the RO/SRO on programme, technical and operations policy, regulations, procedures etc. as well as lessons learned;
• Manage the multi-country programme interventions in Barbados and OECS in line with the UNFPA Strategic plan, liaising with the SRO technical and programme teams;
• Implement UNFPA guidelines, policies, standards, tools and systems;
• Coordinates technical assistance to partners and stakeholders in Barbados and OECS;
• Prepare programme and financial progress reports and feedback to donors;
• Take lead in promoting knowledge sharing with partners and the sub-regional office.

National capacity development:

• Create and an enabling environment for the implementation of the ICDP agenda and support national counterparts in charge of capacity development;

Partnerships and advocacy:

• Advocate for ICPD agenda with national institutions and other UN agencies represented at the national level;
• Promote South-South cooperation for the achievement of the ICPD goals;
• Pursue innovative ways to maintain and create new partnerships;
• Maintain a continuous flow of information with government and donors;
• Advocate for organizational goals in population and development, sexual and reproductive health, and gender with national counterparts and within the United Nations system as part of coordinate development activities demonstrating emphatic with national perspective and the capacity to align organizational goals with national priorities;

Resources Management:

• Support the UNFPA Director in overall accountability for the management and work of the Liaison office, working in close coordination with the Deputy Director and the Operations Manager;
• Participate in the formulation of the annual work plans and monitor their day-to-day implementation through consultations, correspondence and field visits;
• Assist in the formulation and implementation of a resource mobilization strategy Barbados and OECS and mobilize, additional financial resources for the SRO;
• Support the SROC Director in achieving staff accountability, learning and career management within the office;
• Develop and guide an integrated systems approach to the work of the Barbados and OECS based UNFPA office working closely with the operations manager;
• Communicate standards of performance, and assign responsibilities for achieving results according to the SI and the PAD system;
• Establish and maintain a harmonious working environment; seek to strength team-building by encouraging active participation and interaction with relevant staff to foster staff motivation, development and empowerment; and lead by example.
• Ensure an ethics-based approach to management of all human and financial resources.

Qualifications and Experience:

Education:

Advanced degree in Public Health, Medicine, Sociology, Demography, Gender, International Relations, International Development, Economics, Public Administration, Management or other related discipline.

Knowledge and Experience:

• 5 years of progressively responsible professional experience in the field of development and population activities, including programme designing, appraisal and management.

• Demonstrated ability to refine programme design to ensure alignment of organizational programme objectives to national priorities/capacities.
• Proven ability to lead and manage teams to achieve demonstrable results.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills to foster engaged partnerships at a high level of representation and to maintain political partnerships.

Languages:

Fluency in English; knowledge of other official UN languages will be an advantage