There is no expectancy of renewal in accordance with UN Staff Regulations 4.5.
This post is subject to a maximum term limit. The term limit applicable to this post is currently 5 years.
The Position:
The post of Director, Regional Office, is located in the West and Central Africa UNFPA Regional Office (WCARO), and reports directly to the Deputy Executive Director for Programme. The Director is a member of the Executive Committee, provides overall strategic vision, direction and leadership in the Region, and serves as the senior adviser within the Fund on all matters related to the Region.
S/he supervises the Regional Office, Sub-regional offices (as relevant), as well as the Country Representatives in the region.
How you can make a difference:
UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled. UNFPA’s strategic plan (2022-2025), reaffirms the relevance of the current strategic direction of UNFPA and focuses on three transformative results: to end preventable maternal deaths; end unmet need for family planning; and end gender-based violence and harmful practices. These results capture our strategic commitments on accelerating progress towards realizing the International Conference on Population and Development programme of action and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Decade of Action leading up to 2030. Our strategic plan calls upon UN Member States, organizations and individuals to “build forward better”, while addressing the negative impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic on women’s and girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights, recover lost gains and realize our goals.
In a world where fundamental human rights are at risk, we need principled and ethical staff, who embody these international norms and standards, and who will defend them courageously and with full conviction.
UNFPA is seeking candidates that transform, inspire and deliver high impact and sustained results; we need staff who are transparent, exceptional in how they manage the resources entrusted to them and who commit to deliver excellence in programme results.
Job Purpose:
The Director ensures that the Regional Office fulfills its overall terms of reference through, inter alia; leading the strategic positioning of UNFPA in the region; bringing a regional perspective to bear on all aspects of UNFPA’s work; advocating at the high policy level for political and financial support for the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD); overseeing policy support and operations to ensure the relevance, quality and effectiveness of integrated programme and technical support in the region; strengthening country offices and United Nations Country Teams (UNCTs) in results-based programming; ensuring rapid and appropriate responses to humanitarian crises; and assuming leadership and accountability for the management of regional operations and resources.
Key activities include:
- Strategic direction, planning and management
- Programme support and representation
- Programme oversight and coordination
- Management of resources
In all activities, the Regional Office Director ensures collaboration and coordination among the Regional Office’s business units, Sub-regional and country offices as well as with all Headquarters Divisions, ensuring the timeliness, adequacy, quality and relevance of the work of the Regional Office in increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of UNFPA’s programmes and operations in the Region.
The Director chairs the Regional Management Team and is a member of the Regional Directors’ Team.
Requirements:
Qualifications and Experience:
Education:
Advanced degree (preferably PhD) in Public Health, Medicine, Sociology, Demography, Gender, International Relations, International Development, Economics, Public Administration, Management or other related fields.
Knowledge and Experience:
- Over 15 years of increasingly responsible professional experience in public administration and international development of which 10 years were in the field of population and development at the international level;
- Strong track record of leadership in development programmes;
- Proven ability to lead, develop and motivate a diverse team of programme specialists to achieve demonstrable results;
- Extensive network within the development community;
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills in English;
- Field experience essential.
Languages:
Fluency in English required; fluency in French highly desirable; and fluency in Spanish or Portuguese an asset.
We are no longer accepting applications for this position.
