Background

The impact of the Syria crisis on Lebanon is unprecedented in the history of complex, refugee-driven emergencies. The crisis is not only challenging the country’s existing social and economic infrastructure, it also brings to Lebanon a new set of disparities, cleavages and tensions that threaten to undermine Lebanon’s delicate social and political stability.

With the protracted nature of the crisis, refugees are living in poverty, accumulating debt and making tough choices to reduce costs, with negative consequences for quality of shelter, access to health, clean water and education opportunities. Furthermore, areas with the highest concentration of refugees, North Lebanon and the Bekaa valley, are among the poorest and most underserved regions of Lebanon. Even before the crisis, social services, infrastructure and livelihood opportunities were inadequate. Now, increased refugee populations are putting enormous pressure on water, sanitation, education and health care systems, with critical consequences for Lebanon’s natural and environmental resources.

Reflecting the protracted nature of the crisis and its profound impact on Lebanon, the response to the crisis moved in 2017 towards a four-year integrated humanitarian-stabilization response, the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) 2017-2020. The LCRP is an integrated humanitarian and stabilization strategy. The main objectives are to: (1) Ensure protection of vulnerable populations, (2) Provide immediate assistance to vulnerable population, (3) Support service provision through national systems, and (4) Reinforce Lebanon's economic, social and environmental stability by investing in Lebanese institutions, services and systems in a manner that helps maintain Lebanon's stability throughout the crisis. The LCRP is led by the Minister of Social Affairs (MoSA) with support from UNHCR and UNDP through the LCRP Response Management, and in collaboration with other ministries and the lead UN agencies. The plan covers 10 sectors and all activities are coordinated by line ministries through sector working groups. Response partners thus work across a range of areas: Food Security, Basic Assistance, Education, Health, Water, Protection, Social Stability, Livelihoods, Energy, and Shelter.

UNDP’s role has evolved in parallel, with UNHCR leading on the refugee dimension of the response, UNDP leads on stabilization, under the overall umbrella of the Regional Refugee and Resilience Response Plan (3RP) for the Syria crisis. In addition to this overall leadership role, UNDP is also leading three of the ten sectors of the response, the social stability, livelihoods and energy sectors, while UNDP programmes are providing crucial contribution to Lebanon’s stability by supporting host communities in the areas of livelihoods, basic infrastructure and environmental and social stability.

Through the LCRP response management, UNDP places a strong emphasis on ensuring an integrated Monitoring & Evaluation framework, based on a broad evidence base, informed by quantitative and qualitative research as well as direct engagement with affected populations. Furthermore, mainstreaming protection, conflict sensitivity, gender and environment are key areas of focus within the response and for UNDP.

Moving forward, and based on recommendation from the LCRP mid-term review, UNDP will take a key role in shaping the future of the response, post-2020 and leading dialogue with development actors to ensure coherence and complementarity of approaches in aid coordination and programming towards the Sustainable Development Goals.

Duties and Responsibilities

Summary of Key Functions:

• Strategic development of UNDP’s overall response to the Syria Crisis in Lebanon
• Leads UNDP’s involvement in and substantively contributes to joint needs assessments and development of United Nations Strategic Framework (UNSF) and the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP)
• Development of strategic partnerships and resource mobilization
• Provision of strategic policy advisory services and facilitation of knowledge and capacity building on recovery issues

As a senior member of the CO management team, ensures sound strategic direction of UNDP’s positioning within the framework of the LCRP, and the linkages with UNDP’s programmatic response to the impact of the Syria crisis:

• Thorough analysis of the situation in the crisis response context and provision of strategic advice to CO Management.
• Management of UNDP LCRP coordination team – at the level of the inter-sector and dedicated sectors – to fulfil its role in the framework of the LCRP in partnership with UNHCR and the Government of Lebanon.
• Ensuring the effective engagement of UNDP field presence in the coordination structures of the LCRP at decentralized levels, and providing trouble shooting and/or technical and strategic support as needed.
• Serving as the interface between UNDP’s coordination support to the LCRP, and the Organization’s programmatic response, to strengthen linkages, explore synergies and leverage UNDP’s long-standing engagement on joint areas of engagement (e.g. environment, peace building, etc.).
• Identification of strategic opportunities and areas of cooperation, including opportunities for joint programming with UN agencies and other development partners (IFIs, INGOs etc.) within the framework of the LCRP and/or the UNSF.

Ensures strategic, effective and coherent positioning of UNDP in response to the impact of the Syria crisis, in coordination with the DRR Programme/Operations, focusing on the achievements of the following results:

• Facilitation of the development and update of an integrated vision and framework for UNDP’s response to the impact of the Syria crisis in Lebanon, in coordination with the DRR Programme/Operations.
• Facilitation of coordinated approaches and/or forward-looking analysis within the framework of UNDP’s response to the crisis, leveraging UNDP’s engagement in the LCRP, and programmatic know-how.
• Quality assurance and effective application of RBM tools, establishment of management targets and monitoring achievement of results.
• Review and coordination of the donor reporting related to UNDP’s response to the impact of the Syria crisis.
• Continuous analysis of the programme environment and timely readjustment of approaches/programmes, in partnership with the LCRP coordination team and the Programme.

Establishes and maintains strategic partnerships for UNDP’s response to the impact of the Syria crisis in Lebanon, focusing on achievement of the following results:

• Determination of programmatic areas of cooperation based on strategic goals of UNDP, the country’s needs and donors’ priorities, within the framework of the LCRP, and in the context of UNDP’s programmatic response, in close coordination with UNDP’s Programme team.
• Facilitation of partnerships strategies to achieve key programme outcomes as established by the CO, with the UN Agencies, IFI’s, government institutions, bi-lateral and multi-lateral donors, private sector, civil society etc.
• Serves as the focal point for strengthening institutional partnership with key UN agencies engaged in the response, and for UNDP’s sub-regional facility to the response to the Syria crisis.
• Analysis and research of information on new donors, and preparation of substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation to support the further positioning of UNDP.
• Coordination of key communications products with the Communications team on UNDP’s response to the impact of the Syria crisis in Lebanon.
• Resource mobilization for the core support of UNDP to the LCRP.

Ensures provision of top quality and strategic advisory services, capacity building and facilitation of knowledge focusing on the following results:

• Provision of top quality and strategic advice to national counterparts on development of recovery/stabilization strategies in the context of the LCRP, and the sectors where UNDP co-leads.
• Identification, sharing and applications of international best practices, and lessons on resilience/stabilization and the operationalization of the Humanitarian Development Peace Building nexus.
• Capacity building for UNDP staff on issues related to the UN’s response to the Syria crisis.
• Promotion and facilitation of the introduction of innovation within the framework of UNDP’s support to the LCRP, and crisis programming.

Impact of Results: The key results have an impact on the overall success of UNDP’s support of Lebanon in managing a protracted crisis.

Corporate Competencies:

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards
• Promotes the vision, mission, and strategic goals of UNDP
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability

Functional Competencies:

• Knowledge Management and Learning
• Promotes knowledge management in UNDP and a learning environment in the office through leadership and personal example
• Actively works towards continuing personal learning and development in one or more Practice Areas, acts on learning plan and applies newly acquired skills

Development and Operational Effectiveness

• Ability to lead strategic planning, results-based management and reporting
• Ability to lead formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of development programmes and projects, mobilize resources
• Ability to formulate and manage budgets, manage contributions and investments, manage transactions, conduct financial analysis, reporting and cost-recovery
• Good knowledge of the Results Management Guide and Toolkit
• Good ICT skills, knowledge of Atlas
• Ability to implement new systems and affect staff behavioral/ attitudinal change

Management and Leadership

• Builds strong relationships with clients, focuses on impact and result for the client and responds positively to feedback
• Consistently approaches work with energy and a positive, constructive attitude
• Demonstrates good oral and written communication skills
• Demonstrates openness to change and ability to manage complexities

Required Skills and Experience:

Education: Master’s Degree or equivalent in Business Administration, Public Administration, Economics, Political Sciences, Social Sciences or related field.

Experience:

• A minimum of ten years field experience, preferably in crisis/fragile contexts.
• Extensive experience at the national or international level in providing management advisory services, hands-on experience in design, monitoring and evaluation of development and strategies and programmes and establishing inter-relationships among international organizations and national governments.
• Proven knowledge in results-based management, strategic partnerships and communications, and coordination preferably in the context of humanitarian/refugee/crisis response. Previous experience working with UNHCR an asset.
• Experience in the region is preferable.

Summary of Critical Competencies for Immediate Response Situations:

Possess a comprehensive set of competencies enabling immediately taking on the challenging role of leading early recovery efforts – strategic, integrity, results orientation, teamwork, good inter-personal skills, well developed communication skills, sound judgment, analytical skills, flexibility, proactive engagement, innovation, risk management, gender and culturally sensitive, ability to work under pressure and demonstrates high tolerance for change, complexity and unpredictability.

Language Requirements: Fluency English, French and Arabic an asset

Source:https://jobs.partneragencies.net/erecruitjobs.html?JobOpeningId=24943&hrs_jo_pst_seq=1&hrs_site_id=2