Humanitarian Affairs Specialist (Access and Civil-military Coordination) (P-4), FT, Port Sudan, Sudan (open to non-Sudanese nationals only)

Under the general guidance of the Chief of Field Operations and Emergency, responsible to lead and support Sudan Country Office’s efforts to establish, sustain and improve the quality of humanitarian access to children in regular and hard-to-reach areas. The Specialist reports to the Chief Field Operations and Emergency who is at P5 level.
To provide technical assistance, implementation support, and capacity building to UNICEF Sudan CO/FO staff across functional profiles on humanitarian access/Civil-miIitary and related issues, in line with the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs), UNICEF Emergency Procedures, and other UNICEF and interagency policy and guidance, and in collaboration with HPS/CHTE EMOPS team.
Help development of Sudan CO access strategy, engagement guidelines, implementation of FO action plans, actor mapping and other policy related documents.
Special emphasis will be on humanitarian access & civil military support to Darfur and Kordofan field offices and partners operating in hard-to-reach areas and areas with severe access constraints, or emergency situations with significant shrinking of the humanitarian space and access.

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, hope.

PURPOSE OF THE JOB

Under the general guidance of the Chief of Field Operations and Emergency, responsible to lead and support Sudan Country Office’s efforts to establish, sustain and improve the quality of humanitarian access to children in regular and hard-to-reach areas. The Specialist reports to the Chief Field Operations and Emergency who is at P5 level.

To provide technical assistance, implementation support, and capacity building to UNICEF Sudan CO/FO staff across functional profiles on humanitarian access/Civil-military and related issues, in line with the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs), UNICEF Emergency Procedures, and other UNICEF and interagency policy and guidance, and in collaboration with HPS/CHTE EMOPS team.

Help development of Sudan CO access strategy, engagement guidelines, implementation of FO action plans, actor mapping and other policy related documents.

Special emphasis will be on humanitarian access & civil military support to Darfur and Kordofan field offices and partners operating in hard-to-reach areas and areas with severe access constraints, or emergency situations with significant shrinking of the humanitarian space and access.

How can you make a difference? 

KEY END-RESULTS

1. Strengthened capacity of UNICEF Sudan CO/FO staff across functional profiles on humanitarian access/Civil-miIitary and related issues, in line with the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs), UNICEF Emergency Procedures, and other UNICEF and interagency policy and guidance, and in collaboration with HPS/CHTE EMOPS team.
2. Continuously improved access to all areas with humanitarian needs, and particularly to hard to reach areas, through technical assistance, implementation support to UNICEF Sudan CO/FO staff.
3. Development and operationalization of Sudan CO access strategy, engagement guidelines, implementation of FO action plans, actor mapping and other policy related documents.
4. Improved humanitarian access & civil military support to Darfur and Kordofan field offices and partners operating in hard-to-reach areas and areas with severe access constraints, or emergency situations with significant shrinking of the humanitarian space and access.
5. Strong inter-agency engagement including with OCHA, Sectors and Partners on access and civil-military coordination issues, to ensure coordinated strategy and implementation.
6. Coherent and strong UNICEF internal position and capacity on humanitarian access and civil-military coordination.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES and DUTIES & TASKS 

Within the delegated authority and under the given organizational set-up, the incumbent may be assigned the primary, shared, or contributory accountabilities for all or part of the following areas of major duties and key end-results.

Coordination and Capacity Building

1.   Serve as the SCO expert on humanitarian access policy, guidance, tools, and other resources at UNICEF.

2.   Identifies UNICEF Sudan country office and field offices Access & CMCOORD needs, gaps and opportunities across programs and operations, and proposes appropriate solutions and courses of action.

3.   Organize the UNICEF Sudan country office and field offices work on Access & CMCOORD issues across functional areas as needed. Collaborates closely with the office’s Access Focal Point/Technical Team, among others.

4.   Represent UNICEF Sudan country office in the inter-agency access & CMCoord platforms.

5.   Advises UNICEF Sudan country office and field offices leadership on key Access & CMCOORD issues (e.g. access strategy, humanitarian notification systems, use of armed escorts, access reporting and analysis) and keeps abreast of related inter-agency processes.

6.   Under management guidance, lead engagement with State and/or non-State armed actors on access and protection.

7.   Undertake a consultative process to establish and update UNICEF Sudan country office and field offices level Access Strategies and Access Action Plans.

8.   Support the coordination of rapid assessments (inter agency or independently, as appropriate) during the acute stage of an emergency to determine programmatic needs, possible access impediments, as well as factors affecting the organization’s capacity to function in the field.

9.   Support the delivery of EMOPS/HPS in-person and remote capacity building initiatives on humanitarian access, including but not limited to country-specific webinars, Country Office tailored humanitarian access & CMCoord trainings.

Analysis and Information Management

10.  Ensure provision and availability of necessary access related analysis (e.g. SitAN, SWOT, Actor Profiles, etc.).

11.  Serve as the focal point or link with FOS, RO, HQ and inter-agency partners (e.g. AWG, CMCoord Cell) on humanitarian access &Civmil analysis.

12.  Work with CFOs to pro-actively seek out HTR areas and un-assessed populations, paying particular attention to ensuring that assistance.to targeted populations is provided in line with humanitarian principles.

13.  Identify actors, including armed non-state actors (ANSAs), of relevance to UNICEF operations or programmes; consider them into actor mapping exercises, and facilitate a deliberative and collaborative assessment and decision-making process pertaining to whether or not and how to engage, in accordance with UNICEF guidelines.

14.  Use networks to obtain and triangulate credible information on access that can be fed into humanitarian programmes, operations and negotiations to ensure principled and effective programmes; as well as the security of staff and protection of civilians.

15.  Ensure institutional memory through documentation of decisions, negotiations, actors, and more.   Ensure UNICEF Sudan country office contribution to the inert-agency access incidents reporting tool AMRF, and UNICEF has its own record of reported incidents to enable better in-house analysis.

16.  Capture and document field experience, field practice, and lessons learned in the domain of humanitarian access & Civil-military coordination for its incorporation into corporate guidance.

Engagement and Networking

17.Negotiate, with external actors, programmatic and logistics modalities (i.e. technical arrangements), positive protection outcomes and enabling conditions, as well as solutions to overcome immediate operational challenges faced by UNICEF Sudan country office and field offices and partners.

18. Sensitize external actors on humanitarian principles, access and international law, UNICEF’s mandate and way of operating, and core humanitarian standards, in line with the CCCs.

19.  Coordinate implementation of humanitarian agreements by ensuring internal conformity and serving as focal point to trouble-shoot issues as they arise.

20.Support and advise senior-level humanitarian access negotiation efforts, as required.

21.Support the Country Representative to decide on engagement with armed non-state actors by coordinating inputs for the decision-making process in line with UNICEF’s guidelines.

22.Network to expand and attain greater influence over actors who control humanitarian access. Participate in inter-agency efforts on humanitarian access & civil-military coordination.

JOB GRADE FACTORS [1]

P/L4

• Typically, as head of the section, provides leadership, guidance and direction for overall Emergency programmer development, design, planning, implementation, and management in a small to medium size country office structure;                 
• Holds primary responsibility for formulation of humanitarian access and civil-military coordination goals and objectives and the development of strategies and innovative approaches.
• Holds shared responsibility for strategic recommendations and decisions on situation analysis, programme/project planning, implementation and evaluation as well as administrative decision making on the use of funds and human resources that have significant impact on humanitarian access and civil-military coordination.
• The job requires excellent communication, negotiation, and other human relations skills, as well as effective decisive leadership and decision making competency under pressure in the complex working environment dealing with other UN agencies, governmental officials, other entity personnel, NGOs, donors and other important partners.             

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

The following minimum requirements:

QUALIFICATION and COMPETENCIES

1. Education

An advance university degree in any of the following:

International Relations, Social Sciences, Public Administration, or other relevant fields related to the work of UNICEF. (Demonstrated relevant work experience will be considered as a priority over educational qualifications). * A first level university degree with an additional two years of experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

• Work Experience:

A minimum of eight years of relevant professional experience at international level in the field of humanitarian assistance and protection, of which at least 5 years at the field level in humanitarian settings, especially complex and high threat environments.

Demonstrated and progressive knowledge, skills, and experience on humanitarian access & civil-military coordination and related technical competencies, including: conflict analysis and actor mapping; humanitarian negotiations; engagement with State and non-State parties to conflict; humanitarian civil-military coordination; humanitarian access planning, strategy development, and implementation; capacity building/training on humanitarian access; or other access relevant topics.

Strong understanding of the practical application of the humanitarian normative framework, including but not limited to international humanitarian law, the humanitarian principles, and children’s rights, as well as the UN and humanitarian architecture, is required. Prior field experience in UNICEF, a UN humanitarian agency or similar humanitarian organization is an advantage.

Overall experience in humanitarian response in settings of armed conflict and/or natural disaster, and technical expertise including for instance: emergency preparedness, humanitarian logistics and supply, security risk management, emergency programs, and interagency or cluster coordination, is an asset.

• Language Requirements: Fluency in English and Arabic is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.

For every Child, you demonstrate…

UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

ii)Core Competencies (For Staff with Supervisory Responsibilities) *

 

§ Nurtures, Leads and Manages People (2)

§ Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness (2)

§ Works Collaboratively with others (2)

§ Builds and Maintains Partnerships (2)

§ Innovates and Embraces Change (2)

§ Thinks and Acts Strategically (2)

§ Drive to achieve impactful results (2)

§ Manages ambiguity and complexity (2)

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority, and discrimination. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

UNICEF’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason. 

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants’ bank account information.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.