Result of Service

Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable Human Settlements in the Sahel

Work Location

Home-based

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) is the agency for human settlements mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. UN-Habitat has been working in human settlements throughout the world, focusing on building a brighter future for villages, towns, and cities of all sizes. The Regional Office for Africa supports African countries developing human settlements projects to address fast urbanization of the continent and achieve sustainable development by focusing on challenges faced by cities in Africa. UN-Habitat in West Africa is expanding from 5 active country programmes in 2020 to 14 by the end of 2024 and has a fast-growing portfolio with a total of almost 50 millions, that has a potential to grow much more in the future with key thematic issues related to : Urban policy and Strategic Spatial Planning; Durable Solutions for Displaced Populations; Housing, Basic Services, and Urban Resilience; Urban Governance, Municipal Finance, Youth, Public Spaces and Smart Cities; and Urban Planning and Land Management. To address the needs of the region, UN-Habitat is settling-up a West African Hub, that will oversee the regional portfolio, providing technical, financial, and administrative guidance to the countries programme, as well as contribute to mobilize resources through new initiatives in the region. There is a high need to strengthen UN-Habitat’s activities for the region, to be closer to Member States and enhance programme delivery and resource mobilization. At the regional level, the Sahel region has been facing a range of conflicts for nearly a decade, including those related to independence and statehood in Mali that have impacted Burkina Faso and Niger, as well as those caused by Boko Haram in North-East Nigeria, Northern Cameroon, and Western Chad. The crisis is complex and is further compounded by the impacts of climate change, including worsened desertification, food insecurity due to longer dry seasons, and increased flooding due to more intense rainfall events. These climate and environmental challenges have significant impacts on human mobility in the region. UN-Habitat is working to address these challenges and promote sustainable and equitable urban development in the Sahel region and is currently partnering with UNDP on a Sahel Resilience Project, implementing the second phase of the initiative on urban resilience for seven countries of the Sahel (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria and Senegal). This includes the finalization of seven (7) city resilience framework for action (RFAs), and the deepening of the Spatial Development Strategy for the Sahel (SDSS) through the development of Spatial Strategic Action Plans (SSAPs). The SSAPs will focus on two strategy areas, such as the Liptako-Gourma area (Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger) and the Kano-Agadez corridor (Niger and Nigeria). In the Liptako-Gourma, UN-Habitat is also implementing the DA16th Tranche project ‘’Promoting a multi-scaled territorial approach: strengthening urban resilience to better prepare for protracted displacement’’ which includes the development of a spatial observatory for the region, to collect and analyse data of spatial areas. UN-Habitat is also supporting the durable establishment of the Center of Excellence on Housing (CEH), at the regional level, in collaboration with the University Joseph Ki-Zerbo of Burkina Faso and Cheikh Anta Diop of Senegal. This center aims to serve as an innovative and sustainable knowledge hub that provides data, knowledge, expertise and long-term capacity building and training services to develop the skills of urban practitioners in the eight countries of the West Africa Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU – Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo). The capacity building activities, as well as the digital component of this center are linked to the implementation of the DA 15th Tranche project ‘’Harnessing urbanization for a more resilient, inclusive and green recovery in French-speaking least developed countries’’. Finally, UN-Habitat is also looking to expand its portfolio in new countries, such as Sierra Leone, through the implementation of the City-to-City Cooperation between Freetown and Zurich, Switzerland, with a focus on urban regeneration of Freetown Central Business District (CBD) area, and the Gambia, through a regional project promoting sustainable and integrated urbanization processes in Senegal and the Gambia (ACCD), which will provide key policy and strategic tools to the governments, to better guide urbanization processes, promoting coherent and strategic investments and greater inter-country cooperation. With this scenario, UN-Habitat is seeking to recruit a Regional Programme Developer, to contribute to the implementation of Regional Projects and Programmes in West Africa, develop new portfolios for the region and mobilize additional resources. Activities and Responsibilities Under the direct supervision Senior Human Settlement Officer for West Africa (SHSO) and the Programme Associate for West Africa, the consultant will carry out the following duties and responsibilities: – Assist the Senior Human Settlement Officer (SHSO) in finalizing the activities of the first phase of the of the Sahel Resilience Project, specifically the finalization and dissemination of the City Resilience Frameworks for Action (City RFAs); – Assist the SHSO in implementing the activities of the project ‘Harnessing urbanization for a more resilient, inclusive and green recovery in French-speaking least developed countries’, specifically linked to the CityRAP capacity building component; – Assist the SHSO in the implementation and development of the Africa Urban Resilience Program (AURP) and its Aqinile Partnership; – Provide guidance on the integration of projects under the scope of UN-Habitat’s programmes in West Africa in the Integrated, Planning, Management, and Reporting (IPMR) platform, including planning and monitoring; – Provide inputs and contributions to concept notes and project documents, and guidance for the internal project validation procedure.

Qualifications/special skills

Advance university degree (Master’s degree or equivalent) in Urban Planning, Urban Development and International Cooperation or related field. A first-level university degree in combination of two years qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree is required. o A minimum of five (5) years of progressively responsible experience in urban planning, urban policy and/or related field is required. Strong understanding of UN-Habitat’s mandate, principles, and operations is desirable.

Languages

English and French are the official working languages of the United Nations. Fluency in oral and written English and French languages is required.

Additional Information

Not applicable

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.