Org. Setting and Reporting

The position is located in the Regional Office for Southern Africa (ROSAF) of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Pretoria, South Africa. The incumbent will work under the supervision of the Regional Representative, ROSAF and the Regional Section for Africa and the Middle East (RSAME), as well as the overall guidance of the Office of the Director (OD), Division for Operations (DO) of UNODC in Vienna, Austria. S/he will work in close coordination with other relevant thematic offices based at UNODC headquarters Vienna.

For more information on UNODC, please visit our website: www.unodc.org.

Responsibilities

The incumbent will primarily work in the region covered by ROSAF and will also serve as a resource person for other UNODC offices in Africa, facilitating the sharing of good practices throughout the continent and liaising with existing UNODC programmes at global and regional level (including the Youth4Impact Programme in the Regional Office for the Middle Est and North Africa (ROMENA)).Within assigned authority and in line with the cross-cutting commitment on youth empowerment of the UNODC Strategy 2021-2025 and with the Change Enabler on empowering children and youth of the UNODC Strategic Vision for Africa 2030, the Regional Advisor (Youth Programming and Mainstreaming) will be responsible for the following specific duties:

• Explore opportunities for developing new youth-focused projects and programmes in all UNODC mandate areas at country, sub-regional and regional level.

• Engage in mainstreaming youth empowerment and engagement across all projects and programmes implemented in the region, to include youth components or activities.

• In close coordination with the UNODC Youth Focal Point in HQ, develop tailored guidance, information and capacity building products focusing on meaningful youth engagement, youth programming and mainstreaming.

• Coordinate with youth-led and youth-focused organizations to co-develop youth-focused initiatives on the continent related to UNODC’s mandate areas.

• Support the development of youth, peace and security actions and policies at national and regional levels related to UNODC’s mandate areas.

• Provide advisory services to requesting Governments within the region for the formulation and implementation of effective youth-related policies and programmes.

• Promote and facilitate youth consultations in connection to the development of national/regional policies, strategies and programmes.

• Identify, prepare and contribute to the development of ideas, reform proposals, conduct training and prepare documents, in collaboration with UNODC field offices and headquarters.

• Provide substantive support to in-house processes to ensure a coherent and integrated technical cooperation approach, in close collaboration with UNODC field offices and the UNODC Youth Focal Point.

• Support youth-focused programmes across Africa and provide inputs on these initiatives to global UN reports. Liaise and cooperate regularly with officials from countries across Africa, taking advantage of multilingualism on the African continent.

• Liaise with relevant Member States’ representatives to support the development of regional and national programmes and strengthen national or regional cooperation with a particular focus on youth and young populations. Support requesting Member States to better protect their youth and societies from crime, violence, and drugs including a) enhancing legal-, policy- and institutional frameworks to effectively prevent crime, drug use and violence among Youth; b) improving the response of relevant sectoral systems and institutions to effectively respond to the needs of vulnerable and at-risk young men, young women, boys and girls and their families; and c) empowering young men, women, boys and girls and enhancing their awareness and resilience around drug use and associated health risks and crime, as well as all forms of violence and exploitation.

• Manage effective mobilization of resources for regional and national programmes.

• Seek appropriate partnerships with other organizations of the United Nations System in the development of regional and national programmes and related activities.

• Draft policy and programmatic documents.

• Organize and participate in meetings, workshops, study tours and seminars relating to pertinent UNODC mandates.

• Collect and analyze data to identify trends or patterns and provide insights through graphs, charts, tables and reports using data visualization methods to enable data-driven planning, decision-making, presentation and reporting, in particular, to facilitate global trends analysis relating to pertinent UNODC mandates.

• Perform other work-related duties as required.

Competencies

• Professionalism: Has knowledge and understanding of theories, concepts and approaches relevant to UNODC mandated areas of work – the world drug problem, organized crime, corruption and economic crime, terrorism prevention, crime prevention and criminal justice. Has knowledge of development policy, technical cooperation and substantive work covered by UNODC’s mandates, as it relates to youth. Has demonstrated ability to perform, manage, fundraise and/or advise on the planning, development and management of operations. Has demonstrated ability to negotiate and apply good judgment. Has demonstrated ability to draft documents and produce reports/papers on integrated programmatic issues which synthesize information and data from diverse sources. Has knowledge of resources mobilization strategies. Is able to apply United Nations rules, regulations, policies and guidelines in work situations. Has ability to analyse and interpret data in support of decision-making and convey resulting information to management. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

• Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs for which one has responsibility within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules; takes responsibility for delegated assignments; takes personal responsibility for his/her own shortcomings and those of the work unit, where applicable.

• Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Education

An advanced university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in law, political science, social science, international relations, public administration or related area is required. A first-level university degree in similar fields in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Work Experience

A minimum of seven years of progressively responsible professional experience in programme development and implementation in areas related to the world drug problem, organized crime, corruption and economic crime, terrorism prevention, crime prevention and criminal justice is required.

Work experience in resource mobilization, policy, planning and managing international development or technical co-operation programmes and provision of advice on such matters at national and/or international level is required.

Work experience working with youth and young populations, youth-led organizations (civil society and/or academia) in areas related to the world drug problem, organized crime, corruption and economic crime, terrorism prevention, crime prevention and criminal justice is required.

Work experience with the Youth 2030 Strategy and other key youth engagement mechanisms in the UN system, such as the youth, peace and security agenda, is desirable.

Work experience with the African Union (AU) and its youth policy is desirable.

Experience in data analytics or related area is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For this position, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of Arabic, French and/or Portuguese is desirable. Knowledge of other United Nations official languages is an advantage.

Assessment

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise and a competency-based interview.

Special Notice

• This position is temporarily available for 11 months. If the selected candidate is a staff member from the United Nations Secretariat, the selection will be administered as a temporary assignment.

• While this temporary assignment may provide the successful applicant with an opportunity to gain new work experience, the selection for this position is for a limited period and has no bearing on the future incumbency of the post.

• Staff members of the United Nations common system organizations who will reach the mandatory age of separation or retirement within the duration of the current temporary need period are not eligible to apply. Submitting an application or selection for the current temporary job opening does not delay or increase the mandatory age of separation.

• Retirees above the mandatory age of separation who wish to be considered for the current temporary job opening must indicate the reason for their last separation as “retirement.” Such retirees shall not be employed by the Organization, unless (a) the operational requirements of the Organization cannot be met by staff members who are qualified and available to perform the required functions; and (b) the proposed employment would not adversely affect the career development or redeployment opportunities of other staff members and represents both a cost-effective and operationally sound solution to meet the needs of the service.

• Pretoria is classified in the “A” category (family duty station).

United Nations Considerations

According to article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. Candidates will not be considered for employment with the United Nations if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. The term “sexual exploitation” means any actual or attempted abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust, for sexual purposes, including, but not limited to, profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the sexual exploitation of another. The term “sexual abuse” means the actual or threatened physical intrusion of a sexual nature, whether by force or under unequal or coercive conditions. The term “sexual harassment” means any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature that might reasonably be expected or be perceived to cause offence or humiliation, when such conduct interferes with work, is made a condition of employment or creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive work environment, and when the gravity of the conduct warrants the termination of the perpetrator’s working relationship. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment.

Due regard will be paid to the importance of recruiting the staff on as wide a geographical basis as possible. The United Nations places no restrictions on the eligibility of men and women to participate in any capacity and under conditions of equality in its principal and subsidiary organs. The United Nations Secretariat is a non-smoking environment.

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to applicants with disabilities upon request, to support their participation in the recruitment process.

The paramount consideration in the appointment, transfer, or promotion of staff shall be the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity. By accepting an offer of appointment, United Nations staff members are subject to the authority of the Secretary-General and assignment by him or her to any activities or offices of the United Nations in accordance with staff regulation 1.2 (c). In this context, all internationally recruited staff members shall be required to move periodically to discharge new functions within or across duty stations under conditions established by the Secretary-General.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.