UNESCO’s vital role in empowering women and adolescent girls in Afghanistan is demonstrated through its provision of Basic General Literacy throughout the country, which is the biggest intervention within UNESCO’s YALBE programme. In the past decade, UNESCO has provided over 1 million learners with Basic General Literacy and Skills-Based Literacy. Currently, UNESCO is providing Basic General Literacy to over 25,000 youth and adults (over 60% women and adolescent girls) in 20 provinces and will be expanding the coverage further.
Under the overall authority of the Officer-in-Charge of UNESCO Office in Kabul and immediate supervision of the Head of Education Unit of UNESCO Office in Kabul, the incumbent will contribute to coordinate and implement activities of the Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education education programme in Afghanistan. S/He is responsible for overall planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation, reporting, and documentation of the programme. Specifically, s/he will undertake the following tasks and responsibilities:
Ensure overall efficiency and effectiveness of the programme implementation, delivery and accomplishment on programme goals and objectives from the operational aspect, including:
Ensuring quality and timely delivery of the Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education interventions by coordinating technical work of national technical staff and facilitating activities of the international technical experts in close consultation with relevant technical institutes (e.g. UIL), relevant stakeholders and field operations, including the management of the project team;
Regularly monitoring and updating, as relevant, of the project work plan;
Planning and organizing procurement of goods and services and regularly monitoring its implementation;
Identifying project implementation partners and providers of goods and services;
Following up on the implementation of the contracts, assessing the quality of services provided and requesting disbursement of funds; and
Building synergies with other projects and activities of UNESCO Kabul Office and relevant projects of other development partners in Afghanistan.
Ensure monitoring and evaluation of project implementation and the reporting on activities by:
Contributing to monitoring and evaluation of project activities, reporting on progress and suggesting updates to the project timeframe;
Regularly monitoring the financial status of the project and promptly developing budget revision if needed;
Preparing reports on project activities for UNESCO, the donor and partners;
Ensuring the implementation of the communication and visibility plan of the project;
Fostering exchanges of information, experience, identifying new strategies of action to improve delivery of services and to achieve the project requirements and objectives; and
Supervising and providing leadership, guidance and direction to the project team.
Ensure effective technical coordination on project implementation by:
Regularly communicating with the relevant stakeholders on Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education to ensure smooth project implementation;
Leading relevant coordination meetings with relevant stakeholders on Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education, strengthening the leading role of UNESCO on this area;
Collaborating with other education teams in UNESCO Kabul Office, ensuring the complementary nature of the education interventions in the office; and
Participating in necessary external meetings to advocate for support in Youth and Adult Literacy and Basic Education, including contributing to resource mobilization efforts.
Required Qualifications:
Education:
Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in the field of education, social sciences, development studies or closely areas.
Work Experience:
Minimum four years of relevant professional experience in education, preferably relating to literacy and non-formal education.
Experience in developing countries.
Skills and Competencies:
Ability to work effectively in a team and to maintain effective working relationships in a multicultural environment;
Ability to build and maintain partnerships;
Ability to work under pressure, to manage heavy workloads and to meet tight deadlines, paying close attention to detail and quality of work;
Excellent understanding of development partners’ expectations and trends in the education sector;
Excellent project management skills, including results-based management, financial management, monitoring, evaluation and reporting;
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to draft clearly and concisely;
Excellent coordination and organizational skills;
Strong sensitivity and adaptability in post conflict countries and diversity (culture, gender, religion, race and nationality);
Integrity, reliability and sense of commitment in the execution of duties;
Good analytical and problem solving skills; and
Strong IT skills including good knowledge of standard office software and online collaboration tools.
Languages:
Excellent knowledge (written and spoken) of English.
