Programme Manager – UN Women (For Rwanda Nationals only)

I. Organizational Context

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations is the global champion for women and girls and was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs and priorities worldwide. UN Women supports UN Member States as they set global standards for achieving gender equality and works with governments and civil society to design laws, policies, programmes and services needed to ensure that the standards are effectively implemented and truly benefit women and girls. It works globally to make the vision of the Sustainable Development Goals a reality for women and girls and stands behind women’s equal participation in all aspects of life, focusing on women participation in all governance systems and structures, women economic empowerment, elimination of discrimination against women and girls and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

Rwanda has adopted its new National Strategy for Transformation (NST 1) that will guide its national transformation programme over the next seven years (2018 – 2024) and accelerate the implementation and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Aligned to this strategy, the United Nations Development Assistance Plan 2018 – 2023 (UNDAP II) provides a guiding framework for support to the Government of Rwanda’s transformational agenda, including to furthering gender equality and women’s empowerment (GEWE).

Under this framework, the One UN (with UN Women as lead agency), the gender machinery (MIGEPROF as the lead, GMO, NWC and FFRP) and other relevant stakeholders have developed a joint programme on gender (2018-2023) to further position GEWE across the NST 1 and within the UNDAP II pillars of Transformational Governance, Economic Transformation, and Social Transformation. The overall goal of this new programme is to ensure that “Women and girls, especially the most vulnerable, participate in, contribute to and benefit from political, economic and social transformation in Rwanda”. The programme will leverage the comparative advantages of the participating UN agencies – UN

Women, UNDP, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, IOM and OHCHR – and its implementing partners, namely Government Institutions, CSOs, and the Private Sector.

UN Women as part of its global mandate coordinates and promotes the UN system’s work in advancing gender equality, and in all deliberations and agreements linked to the 2030 Agenda and works to position gender equality as fundamental to the Sustainable Development Goals, and a more inclusive world. As such, UN Women Country Office was mandated to lead the coordination and implementation of the Gender Joint programme.

Under the overall guidance of the UN Women Country Representative and direct supervision of the Head of Programme, the Programme Manager will ensure the management and coordination of the joint programme, provide technical expertise and exercise overall responsibility for planning, implementing, monitoring and evaluation and reporting on results of the programme. The Incumbent will work in close collaboration with UN Women programme and operations team, UN Women Regional office East and Southern Africa and HQ staff, ONE UN Participating Agencies, Government institutions, development partners, private sector and civil society organisations ensuring successful implementation of the gender joint Programme.

II. Functions

Programme Management and coordination

• In close consultation with the partners, ensure the preparation of the project work plans, budget and performance indicators and oversee their implementation;
• Provide assistance to elaborate the programme quarterly activity/work plans, draft technical terms of reference, and support the recruitment of experts as required;
• Provide technical assistance to the programme stakeholders to ensure efficient and effective programme management, supervision and use of related funds;
• Ensure synergies with other members of the team for effective and coordinated programme results;
• Provide overall advice, guidance to all stakeholders to ensure quality and timely delivery of programme results
• Manage the submissions of implementing partners’ progress and final financial and narrative reports;
• Facilitate broad consultations with the One UN Participating agencies and the implementing partners on all programme-related matters Provide technical support throughout the programme cycle;
• Provide the oversight of the budget management and timely disbursement of funds;
• Supervise, mentor and coach Programme Analysts, Associates and interns working directly under the Joint gender programme portfolio and conducts their performance assessments;
• Oversee recruitment processes, as necessary;
• Coordinate all procurement processes necessary for the implementation of the joint Programme;
• Organize technical and Project Steering Committees, programme reviews and/or evaluation meetings, as needed.

Capacity building

• Identify capacity building needs of partners and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives to partners;
•  Provide or commission specific trainings to the programme delivery team to enhance their capacity at strategic, programmatic and operational level

Monitoring, evaluation and reporting of the joint programme

• Provide guidance to staff and partners on Results Based Management;
• Work with partners to refine project baselines and indicators for sound performance management;
• Closely monitor the overall implementation, impact and risks and inform the technical committee and steering committee members of any changes within the programme environment which could affect expected outcomes;
• In collaboration with key stakeholders, organize field missions including joint technical and high-level field missions to monitor programme achievements, challenges and lessons learnt;
• Lead the drafting of donor reports; provide inputs into UN Women quarterly and annual reports; and participate to One UN Result groups meetings and contribute to the One UN Reports as necessary.
• Ensure that quality programme progress and financial reports are prepared and submitted as required under cost sharing agreements with the UN agencies supporting the programmes;
•  Report periodically to UN Women, the technical committee and the Steering Committee on progress and status of implementation of activities;
• Report on programme results and progress towards outcomes, outputs and activities;
• Ensure that the programme steering committee (SC) meetings are convened and reported upon, at least twice a year to report on programme progress and approve subsequent activity/work plans;
• Ensure that programme Technical Committee meetings are convened and reported upon prior to SC meetings or as necessary.

Build partnerships and support in developing resource mobilization strategies

• With guidance of the programme steering commiittee, develop and implement partnerships and resource mobilization strategies for the Portfolio;
• Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing;
•  Draft inputs to country strategy documents, briefs, policy dialogue and other documents related to women leadership and participation and women’s empowerment.

Contribute to inter-agency coordination on gender to achieve coherence and alignment of gender in national and One UN programme frameworks

• Provide technical support to the Representative and the entire Senior Management Team on inter-agency coordination related activities by attending meetings, events, and participating in Result groups and committees as needed;
• Coordinate with other UN agencies, Government departments, donors and NGOs to ensure the programmes’ capacity development is harmonized and aligned with other in-country efforts.
• Prepare analytical and regular progress reports on UN Womens’ programme experiences in support of UN Women inter-agency coordination role in the areas related to the joint programme and other relevant thematic areas.

 Coordinate advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts

• Develop and review background documents, briefs and presentations related to the gender joint programme;
• Represent UN Women in meetings and policy dialogues on issues related to gender and gender joint programme as necessary;
• Develop advocacy strategies and oversee their implementation;
• Identify best practices and lessons learned to guide programme improvement, strategic planning and resource mobilization;
• Develop knowledge management strategies, products and methodologies related to the joint programme.
• Support the strategic positioning and visibility of the programme

111. Competencies

Core Values:

• Respect for Diversity
• Integrity
• Professionalism

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues
• Accountability
• Creative Problem Solving
• Effective Communication
• Inclusive Collaboration
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Leading by Example

Development and Operational Effectiveness/Leadership

• Demonstrated knowledge of the political and economic environment and challenges facing gender equality and women’s empowerment in Rwanda;
• Strong leadership and co-ordination skills with sound team management;
• Knowledge of UN Women/UN procedures, rules, policies, regulations and practices would be an Asset;
• Proven track record of analytical and problem-solving skills;
• Ability to work under pressure on multiple activities concurrently through tight deadlines;
• Ability to perform work of confidential nature and handle a large volume of work;
• Good knowledge of administrative rules and regulations.
• Fully proficient computer skills and ICT applications customized to project management
• Good drafting skills;
• Ability to participate effectively in a team based and information sharing environment;
• Ability to review a variety of data, identify and adjust discrepancies, identify and resolve
• operational problems;

Functional Competencies

• Strong programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills
• Strong knowledge of Results Based Management
• Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making
• Strong knowledge of women’s leadership and participation in governance systems and women’s empowerment
• Strong analytical skills
• Ability to identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising and develop strategies

Knowledge Management and Learning

• Shares knowledge and experience
• Actively work towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more practice areas, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills

1V. Recruitment Qualifications

Education and certification:

• Master’s degree in project management or relevant disciplines such as International Relations, Gender and Development, Public Policy or Administration, Governance or other related areas.
• N.B: Specialized professional training in project management/development/implementation such as Prince2, ATLAS, Project Management Institute (PMI) certifications, or other internationally recognized project management certifications may be an asset.

Experience:

• At least 5 years of experience of project/programme management and administration of donor funded projects, preferably with the UN System or any other bilateral or multilateral donors;
• At least five years of progressive responsible work experience at the national or international level in design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development projects involving different stakeholders;
• Technical experience in gender analysis and mainstreaming;
• Experience in coordinating and liaising with government agencies and/or donors is an asset;
• Experience working in the UN System is an asset;
• Experience in leading/managing a team is an asset.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in English and Kinyarwanda is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset

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