ExpRes consultants: Disaster risk management

Background

UNDP helps countries prevent armed conflict, alleviate the risk and effects of disasters from natural hazards and build back better and stronger when crises happen. Building resilience to conflicts and disasters is at the very heart of UNDP's work. When a crisis strikes, UNDP ensures that while the humanitarian response focuses on the immediate lifesaving needs of a population, those responsible also work towards longer-term development objectives.

Created in 2001 by UNDP's Executive Board, the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) works around the world to restore the quality of life for men, women and children who have been devastated by natural disaster or violent conflict. Operating through some 100 Country Offices (COs), the Bureau provides a bridge between the humanitarian agencies that handle immediate relief needs and the long-term development phase following recovery. Carving stability out of chaos, BCPR continues to seek new ways of preventing conflicts and of doing business - faster, earlier and in riskier situations.

When operating in countries in development and crisis situations, UNDP country offices are almost always faced with the challenge of finding adequate human resources with the required technical expertise in the short time-frame that crisis related situations often demand. BCPR is at the forefront of receiving regular requests from COs asking for the quick deployment of staff or identification of consultants with specific expertise for durations ranging anywhere from a few days to a few months.

ExpRes was created in 2009 as one of the tools to help address this challenge. ExpRes is the ‘Experts Roster for Rapid Response’ of UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery and has seen over 600 experts deployed since its inception. The system provides pre-selected and technically vetted consultants to support the work of UNDP country offices/units and other UNDP partner agencies in the area of crisis prevention and recovery.

In this context, UNDP is soliciting the submission of CVs (individuals, not firms) from experts and experienced consultants to be considered for registration with the UNDP ExpRes Roster in the below profile.

If you are already a member of ExpRes, you do not need to apply.

Duties and responsibilities

Disaster risk management

Including mainstreaming disaster risk reduction into development processes, disaster recovery, local level risk management and disaster/risk management inventories;

Disaster risk management and governance

Including institutional and legislative systems, capacity assessments, strengthening Governance and restoring the Post-Disaster Foundations for Development;

Disaster risk management and gender

Including mainstreaming gender perspectives into disaster risk reduction, DRM and Gender programming and gender sensitive DRM assessments;

Capacity development and disaster risk management

Including assessment of the existing capacities for disaster risk reduction, design and development of specific DRM capacity development initiatives and identification of DRR capacities and development needs for specific vulnerable groups;

Climate risk management

Including assessment of climate risk profile at national or sub-national levels, development of tools, guidelines and methodology for conducting climate risk assessments, analysis of existing instruments viz. institutional, legislative, policy and developmental frameworks, capacity assessments and design and formulation of CRM interventions;

Post disaster needs assessment (PDNA)

Including PDNA Coordinator, Information Management, Sectoral experts and Report writers;

Urban risk management

Including planning for and reduction of rapid, unplanned, urban growth that leads to increased pressure on social services and governance structures, and to inadequate living conditions of poor populations.

Duties and responsibilities

Consultants will provide advisory support to clients (UNDP offices, national project teams, and national stakeholders including governments, civil society organizations and affected communities in the region) in areas of Crisis Prevention and Recovery. Specific reporting and working relationships will be specified at the time of contracting for a specific assignment.

When demand arises in a particular thematic area, pre-selected consultants are called upon to provide demand-driven advisory services, access to knowledge, and technical backstopping to UNDP Country Offices. The range of tasks for the consultant vary according to the assignment and may include research, diagnostic missions, provision of strategic advice, capacity assessments and capacity development activities, strategic development and implementation of projects and policies, on-site support to programme identification and development, monitoring and evaluation, legislation drafting, negotiation and coordination with public/private partners and stakeholders, partnership development, community engagement and outreach. Consultants will perform their duties from home combined with the in-country missions and/or project site visits (per request of the UNDP Country Office). Consultants are expected to attend relevant meetings and workshops at the country level, including stakeholder consultations, inception and validation meetings. Requirements for specific competencies, qualifications, duties and responsibilities will be outlined in assignment TORs.

Competencies

Ethics & values:

• Demonstrating / Safeguarding Ethics and Integrity;
• Demonstrates and promotes the highest standard of integrity, impartiality, fairness and incorruptibility in all matters affecting his/her work and status.

Organizational awareness:

• Demonstrate corporate knowledge and sound judgment understands the structure and hierarchy of UN/UNDP, process flows throughout the organization, products and services, their measures of effectiveness, and perceptions of clients;
• Excellent knowledge of development issues and internationally-agreed development goals;
• Knowledge of UNDP's approach to ICT for development and e-governance;
• Good knowledge of the socio-economic and political situation of the countries in the different regions.

Developing & empowering people/coaching and mentoring:

• Self-development, initiative-taking;
• Takes appropriate risk in developing new or adapting existing methods and approaches to more effectively perform tasks or to solve problems in new and unique ways.

Working in teams:

• Acting as a team player and facilitating team work;
• Works collaboratively with colleagues inside UN/UNDP as well as its partners and other stakeholders to pursue common goals.

Communicating information and ideas:

• Facilitating and encouraging open communication in the team, communicating effectively;
• Delivers verbal/written information in a timely, clear, organized and easily understood manner;
• Excellent oral and written skills to develop knowledge products in relevant areas.

Self-management & emotional intelligence:

• Creating synergies through self-control tolerates conditions of stress, uncertainty or ambiguity and continues to maintain a positive outlook and to work productively.

Conflict management/negotiating & resolving disagreements:

• Managing conflict;
• Remains calm, composed and patient, regardless of his/her own state of mind in the face of conflict.

Knowledge sharing & continuous learning:

• Learning and sharing knowledge and encourage the learning of others;
• Demonstrates commitment to ongoing professional development and keeps abreast of new developments in his/her professional field.

Appropriate and transparent decision-making:

• Informed and transparent decision making;
• Accepts responsibility and accountability for the quality of the outcome of his/her decisions.

Required skills and experience

Education:

• Advanced university degree (Master, PhD) relevant to the thematic area.

Experience:

• At least 7 years of proven working experience in disaster risk management including field experience in designing, implementing and evaluating DRM programmes at national level; experience in developing/application of risk information tools at different levels;
• Extensive technical knowledge relevant to the thematic area;
• Region specific experience;
• Theoretical and practical experience in drafting, implementing, monitoring and evaluating public policies, strategies or concepts relevant to the selected thematic area;
• Proven and recent experience with technical assistance for project development, implementation, management and/or evaluation;
• Excellent drafting and formulation skills; proven record of drafting official reports or papers/studies in the selected area;
• Experience working as a public official in the selected area or working/collaborating with the government is a plus;
• UN experience an asset;
• Experience with training and facilitation is an asset.

Languages:

• Fluency in spoken and written English is a must, knowledge of another UN Language a plus. We are specifically looking for candidates with excellent French and Arabic language skills (fluent written and spoken).

UNDP is committed to achieving workforce diversity in terms of gender, nationality and culture. Individuals from minority groups, indigenous groups and persons with disabilities are equally encouraged to apply. All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.