Health, Safety, Social and Environmental Associate– Social Development(Retainer)

Background Information - Job-specific

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian, and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS Nepal context:

During 2015 – 2022 UNOPS Nepal has engaged closely with the Government of Nepal and several development partners in the reconstruction efforts of the government of Nepal including assessment of damaged buildings and enrolment of beneficiaries into housing grant schemes. UNOPS supported homeowners engaged in the reconstruction process, modernization and improvement of policing services, retrofitting damaged houses and reconstruction of disability-friendly schools, and delivering some essential equipment to support COVID-19 response efforts. The functional objective of UNOPS Nepal is to deliver its projects efficiently and effectively in alignment with government priorities following UNOPS rules and regulations, to achieve the outcomes sought by the Government and funding partners, and to contribute to the achievement of SDGs.

While ensuring gender, diversity, and inclusion are mainstreamed in all its projects, UNOPS Nepal is currently working on several new engagements to support the government of Nepal under Health, Rule of Law, Climate Change, DRR, Urban development, procurement support among others and create new opportunities and jobs for the people of Nepal.

In alignment with government priorities, the UNOPS Nepal country office looks forward to providing long-term strategic and advisory support to the country by enhancing the capacity of national and sub-national governments and partners within all three tiers of government. By prioritizing evidence-based planning, capacity building, and developing model projects for creating sustainable and inclusive cities, UNOPS Nepal country office also aims to build strong relationships with urban municipalities at the local level. Aiming to create a sustainable city by promoting a green and resilient, climate adaptive, and socially inclusive development approach the assignment will focus on prioritizing the municipalities for its future interventions.

Project Information:

FCDO’s Security and Justice Programme (SJP) is a five-year programme (2023-27) with an anticipated budget of up to GBP 35 million. The programme will continue the now-completed Integrated Programme for Strengthening Security and Justice (IPSSJ)’s dual focus on tackling criminal violence, in particular gender-based violence (GBV), and supporting respective Government entities, including Nepal Police, to strengthen their services.

Building on the ongoing Launch of the SJP (Inception Phase), the larger SJP will support more representative, accountable, and responsive policing and also help tackle gender-based violence in Nepal. The programme will contribute to the following result areas:

1. Security and justice providers have improved their capacity to serve the public and managing relationships with communities, leading to increased public safety with increased trust from people in the state.

2. Security and justice institutions at the Provincial and Palika levels have effective, accountable, inclusive, and sustainable systems in line with the federal constitutional mandates to improve their skills and better manage their resources to meet people’s security and justice needs.

3. Decreased prevalence of GBV led by increased access to services for those who seek them.

The 2015 constitution of Nepal, envisages the devolution of policing in Nepal into 7 provincial Police Services and a Federal Police Organization (Nepal Police) in the federal sphere. How they combine to provide policing services in Nepal remains a work in progress. It will be highly complex in terms of changes in legislation, policy, administration, and organizational culture, even while standards of coordination and delivery must be maintained across the whole country. The changes will require new ways of working under SJP and create new needs to which UNOPS will seek maximum impact in its project period in at least three target provinces.

In relation to this, UNOPS, as a potential implementing partner for the FCDO, is planning to recruit Health, Safety, Social and Environmental Associate– Social Development (Retainer) for the policing component of the SJP programme. Functional Responsibilities

Under the guidance and supervision of the SJP Infrastructure lead and GESI officer, , the incumbent will perform a broad range of operational functions, including:

● Ensure that all field-level HSSE procedures and policies promote equal rights and social inclusion

● Work with a team leads to adaptation risk assessments and emergency plans for inclusion and protection. For example, identify hazards that affect women or vulnerable groups and recommend extra safeguards.

● Lead or coordinate training and awareness sessions for field staff and contractors on inclusion and safeguarding. Ensure everyone understands relevant policies (e.g. codes of conduct) and knows how to report issues. (As one UNOPS job description notes, the role may “provide induction, orientation and continuous advice” on GESI/PSEAH policies

● Monitor and report on compliance with inclusion and safeguarding standards at sites. Conduct regular audits or checklists to track whether field activities meet HSSE, GESI and PSEAH requirements, and report progress on a monthly basis.

a. Education

● Completion of Secondary education is required.

● A Bachelor's Degree or equivalent in Gender Studies, Social Science, Development Studies, Community Development, or other relevant discipline is desirable (but not required) and may compensate for some of the required years of experience.

b. Work Experience

A minimum of 6 years of work experience in Health, Safety, Security, and Environment (HSSE) is required.

Background in health/safety/environment roles, ideally in development or humanitarian settings, with evidence of promoting diversity and protection (e.g., having worked on community programs that prioritized women’s access or protected vulnerable groups) is desirable.

Knowledge of GESI and PSEAH concepts: Understanding of gender equality, social inclusion and safeguarding principles, and how they apply to field operations is desirable.

Training and communication skills: Ability to explain and teach inclusion and safeguarding issues clearly to diverse audiences. Experience conducting workshops or briefings on gender, diversity or anti-harassment topics is an asset.

Analytical and report-writing ability: Competence in assessing gaps in compliance (for example, analyzing site conditions or incident data by gender) and preparing clear recommendations or reports is an asset.

Interpersonal and cultural sensitivity: Comfortable engaging with different cultures and genders, and able to build trust so staff and community members feel safe raising concerns is desirable.

Experience in working with the G-suite platform including Google Drive, Google Calendar, Gmail, Google Sheets, Docs, and Slides is an asset.Work experience in the national context of Nepal is highly desirable.

c. Language:

Fluency in oral and written Nepalese and English is required

Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.

Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.

UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce.

Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.

We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions

For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post.

For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses ( they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.

All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.