RE-ADVERTISEMENT - OPERATIONS SPECIALIST (VOTER REGISTRATION)

Location :	Kabul, AFGHANISTAN
Application Deadline :	15-Sep-13
Type of Contract :	FTA International
Post Level :	P-4
Languages Required :	English
Duration of Initial Contract :	One year with possibility of extension
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Background
Years of conflict have damaged Afghanistan’s economic, political, physical, social and institutional structures. Reconstruction demands a secure environment in which there is credible leadership and enforced rule of law. Strong, legitimate and effective public administration structures, responsive to the needs of ordinary citizens - including the poor – are a precursor to any sustainable development. To this end, UNDP supports Afghan electoral institutions so that they can become more effective vehicles for development. The UNDP Enhancing Legal and Electoral Capacity for Tomorrow (ELECT) project- phase I (2006 – 2011) lent technical and operational assistance to Afghan electoral bodies throughout the 2009 presidential and provincial council elections, as well as the 2010 parliamentary elections. This included the establishment of Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) offices throughout Afghanistan’s 34 provinces. The ELECT II project, commencing in January 2012, provides long-term assistance to the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) of Afghanistan, focusing on institutional strengthening and capacity consolidation. The overarching objective of ELECT-II is to support the national electoral institutions to plan and conduct credible future elections with minimal external support. Continuing long-term assistance through support to capacity building of national electoral authorities beyond 2010 is in accordance with Security Council Resolution 1974 (2011). This assistance is closely coordinated with UNAMA, UNDPKO and EAD. The three key outputs for ELECT II are: Output 1: Operational and technical capacity of the IEC is developed to ensure well organized, future Afghan-led electoral processes; Output 2: The quality of the national voter registry is improved; Output 3: Capacity of the IEC to encourage broader democratic participation is strengthened. For this purpose, the IEC requested support to assess IEC voter registration framework and infrastructure setup, logistics operations and security, Risk management and Risk mitigation methods as well as operational planning capabilities at provincial level in order to improve procedures efficiency, strengthen the anti-fraud design, and to promote sustainability in accordance to the applicable legal framework. As a result, the ELECT Project is to provide support to the IEC in: its intention to initiate a long-term sustainable process involving field operations at the sub-provincial level. The Voter Registration Operations Specialist will advise on the creation of detailed specifications and the development of full Voter registration field operational plans and the proposed locations for electoral field offices.
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the Chief Technical Adviser (CTA), the Voter Registration Operations Specialist will carry out / achieve the following functions : Summary of key functions: Establish electoral field framework to support a VR process; VR field operation oversight and monitoring; VR planning and operation development; Ensure infrastructure is sufficient for the VR operation in the field; Coordinate with the ELECT II Project Operations Manager on administrative requirements for the VR operations. Assist the IEC on the development and implementation of voter registration (VR) operational plans at the field level consistent with the operational plan for the voter registration project planning and the ELECT II project document. Advises IEC in field voter registration activities and planning process for the VR operation through designing planning systems and processes in a way that maximizes capacity building for the IEC and enables the IEC to increasingly take the lead in the planning process; Works hand in hand with the IEC head of field operations and logistics department to build capacity, increase electoral knowledge with regard to planning, systems and implementation and allow the head of departments to take the lead in planning for future elections; Contributes to the development of the VR budget process for 2010 through the coordination of the definition of systems and resource requirements and costing; Advises on the validity and accuracy of electronic and other systems used for VR field operations; Contributes to the process of devising an appropriate security plan in consultation with the necessary parties to ensure smooth field operations; Advises and assists the IEC with the development of contingency plans to ensure the VR process remains on track. Oversight, monitoring and reporting of VR operational activities: Monitors VR activities, especially during peak times, , and advises the IEC Field Operations counterpart on adjustments to the implementation progress; Review field reports of political developments, program activities, and measure program results and determine, in conjunction with the IEC counterpart, remedial actions to be taken; Advises, monitors and reports to the ELECT CTA, STA and other counterparts on VR operations, policies and procedures adopted by the IEC and their implementation by provincial election administrations; Liaises and advocates as necessary with government officials, technical advisors and experts and civil society organizations; Maintains a system of continuous evaluation of VR operational activities in the field; Advise the IEC on Field and Voter Registration operational issues Identifies new approaches and modalities that are adaptable in order to achieve established targets. Initiation of planning for the VR operation: Contributes to the planning processes for the VR operation which build on lessons learned from previous planning processes and increasingly facilitates the IEC taking the lead in the process; Coordination of the design, set up and management of the various facilities required for the elections process: Coordinates the design of the ELECT field structure and identify and manages the set up of the required facilities and offices throughout Afghanistan; Assists the IEC to design its field structure and coordinates support in the set up and management of its facilities throughout Afghanistan; Assists the IEC in the design of its HQ including all facilities, National Tally center, operations center, storage facilities, Data Management center and media center. Coordination with ELECT Operations Manager for the provision of administrative support in order to support the election and provide the necessary resources, equipment and electoral materials. Assist the CTA and STA in the overall management of UNDP assistance for IEC Voter registration capacity building and implementation and other related responsibilities; Provide input and advice on Voter registration related procurement planning; Contribute to the development of VR field staff.
Competencies
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; Treats all people fairly without favoritism; Excellent communication, interpersonal and management skills from a gender perspective and capacity to quickly develop a rapport with people from different backgrounds with both women and men. 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 and monitoring of management projects; Solid knowledge in financial resources and human resources management, contract, asset and procurement, information and communication technology, general administration; Ability to lead business processes re-engineering, implementation of new systems (business side), 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; Leads teams effectively and shows mentoring as well as conflict resolution skills; Demonstrates strong oral and written communication skills; Complete UNDP Certification programmes: Prince2, Procurement, HR, Accounting and Finance.
Required Skills and Experience
Education: Master’s Degree in related field. Experience: Minimum 7 years of experience providing professional advice on voter registration operations, electoral operations and capacity development in the area of elections security, logistics and field operations; Experience in voter registration, security and risk management, election operations logistics and field operations; Demonstrated technical skills and knowledge, which are transferrable to the Afghanistan environment; Afghanistan election experience essential. Language requirements: Fluency in written and oral English is required; Dari/Pasto desirable. Application conditions: Interested and qualified International candidates should apply on-line through the UNDP Jobs site at http://www.undp.org.af/Jobs/index.htm and please ensure that to fill up and upload Personal History Form-P.11 which is available at http://www.undp.org.af/Jobs/index.htm in the relevant field of the on-line application and please ensure that to fill up and upload Personal History Form-P.11 which is available at in the relevant field of the on-line application Incomplete applications or applications received after the closing date will not be given consideration. Please note that only applicants who are short-listed will be contacted; For more detailed information about UNDP Afghanistan please visit our website at www.undp.org.af; Qualified female candidates are highly encouraged to apply; Successful candidates must be prepared to start work within 6 weeks of the offer of appointment; Internal candidates who have served a minimum of 12 months in the current assignment are invited to apply.
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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.