Women, Peace and Security Specialist

Mission and objectivesThe United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the United Nations leading agency on international development. UNDP works in 170 countries and territories to eradicate poverty and reduce inequality. UNDP helps countries to develop policies, leadership skills, partnering abilities, institutional capabilities, and to build resilience to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. At the heart of UNDP's mission lies a strong commitment to advancing gender equality and creating a more just and equitable world. UNDP in Serbia has a proven track record of fostering an environment that champions gender equality and tackles discrimination effectively. UNDP Serbia is committed to empowering women and men to benefit equally from emerging technologies, societal advancement, and overall well-being, through interventions across all strategic priorities. Within the Country Office a Gender Equality Portfolio operates with the task of implementing gender-focused projects, as well as to ensure that gender aspects are integrated across other portfolios. UNDP Serbia plays a leadership role among country offices in the Western Balkans in integrating gender perspectives into Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) control policies. Within the framework of the Regional Roadmap for SALW Control, we actively contribute to regional initiatives and support the implementation of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda. In addition, through engagement with diverse groups of young people, UNDP aims to increase youth participation in policy and decision-making processes—advancing both the Youth, Peace & Security and Women, Peace & Security agendas, while promoting social cohesion across communities.

ContextIn the aftermath of the violent conflicts in the former Yugoslavia during the 1990s, Serbia has faced significant challenges related to gender-based violence (GBV), particularly against women and girls https://www.undp.org/serbia/publications/firearms-misuse-domestic-violence-and-suicide-brief-overview. The legacy of these conflicts, coupled with the widespread availability of firearms, has heightened insecurity and violence, especially in domestic environments https://www.undp.org/serbia/publications/characteristics-and-prevention-intimate-partner-femicide-suicide-cases-committed-firearm and https://www.undp.org/serbia/publications/domestic-violence-and-firearms-misuse. Since the adoption of Serbia's first National Action Plan for implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1325 in 2010, efforts have centered on increasing women's representation in the security sector, their inclusion in international missions, and bolstering initiatives to prevent violence against women. UNDP Serbia is strongly committed to advancing the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, to which it is currently contributing through two key projects: Reduce Risk – Increase Safety and Youth 4 Inclusion, Equality & Trust. ‘Reduce Risk-Increase Safety’ is focused on preventing domestic violence, suicides, and mass shootings involving firearms, and on integrating gender perspectives into Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) control policies. Our work prioritizes the meaningful inclusion of women in security forces, supports the development and implementation of gender-based violence (GBV) policies, and contributes to restoring safety and trust within communities. The joint UN initiative ‘Youth 4 Inclusion, Equality & Trust’ (2022-2026) is empowering young people in Serbia and the region to engage in constructive narratives, strengthen intercultural dialogue, inclusion, gender equality and create mutual understanding and trust. The initiative aims at enhancing the role of youth in promoting increased comprehension and respect for diversity. Working with diverse young people, the project aims to increase youth participation in policy and decision-making processes, advancing Youth, Peace & Security and Women, Peace & Security agendas and promoting social cohesion. Collaboratively, UNDP, UNFPA, UNESCO, UN Women, relevant local ministries, municipal and youth councils, youth members of political parties, media, academic and cultural institutions, and civil society organisations are working to fulfil these goals. This United Nations Volunteers (UNV) assignment is part of UNDP Serbia’s Women, Peace and Security (WPS) programming initiative, currently implemented through two key projects: Reduce Risk – Increase Safety and Youth 4 Inclusion, Equality & Trust.

Task DescriptionUnder the direct supervision of Gender Equality Portfolio Manager, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks: Contribute to the development of programmes in the area of Women, Peace and Security (WPS) • Assist in the design and implementation of programmes and initiatives under the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, with a focus on preventing the misuse of firearms in cases of domestic violence, violence against women, harmful masculinities, and suicide, as well as promoting youth engagement in building a culture of peace. Tasks include providing support in collecting background information and conducting basic context analysis, drafting inputs for project documents, helping coordinate events and workshops with key stakeholders, and contributing to the preparation of aware-ness-raising materials and campaigns.; • Assist in identifying key areas for priority support and intervention related to WPS pro-grammes; • Assist in identifying opportunities to integrate WPS priorities into humanitarian, peace-building, and development programming—particularly by promoting women’s leader-ship in crisis response, addressing gendered impacts of armed violence, and ensuring gender-sensitive approaches in conflict prevention and recovery efforts.; • Provide technical inputs to annual work planning, monitoring, and reporting for WPS-related projects, including Reduce Risk–Increase Safety and Youth 4 Inclusion, Equality & Trust, ensuring integration of gender-sensitive approaches. • Support collaboration with women’s groups in the security sector, civil society organizations, women’s rights advocates, youth-led initiatives, media, and national partners to enhance women’s participation and leadership in peacebuilding and security governance. Contribute to the implementation and management of WPS Programmes • In cooperation with the UNDP’s SDG Center on WPS and Humanitarian action, follow up with key national partners on the implementation of targeted interventions that sup-port women’s participation in the security sector, such as through the Network of Women Police Officers in Serbia. The Network was established to enhance the role and visibility of women police officers within the Ministry of Interior of Serbia. It aims to empower women in their professional roles, support their career advancement, and promote women's safety and the prevention of gender-based violence—aligning with the Ministry’s principles of equality, non-discrimination, and respect for diversity.Support the UNDP’s SDG cluster in implementing, monitoring, and reporting on targeted program activities within projects that advance the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda, including “Reduce Risk – Increase Safety” and “Youth 4 Inclusion, Equality & Trust.” • Contribute with technical assistance and capacity development to WPS team’s efforts in managing programme/project partners including with the Ministry of Interior, the Network of Women Police Officers, women’s and youth civil society organizations, and the Network of Women Journalists Against Violence; • Contribute to the development and implementation of capacity building initiatives targeting key WPS partners and stakeholders in Serbia including on high-level advocacy and women’s participation in conflict resolution and local peacebuilding. Assist in partnership building and resource mobilization efforts • Contribute with inputs to WPS resource mobilization efforts; analyze and maintain in-formation and databases; • Assist in preparing relevant documentation such as project summaries, meeting minutes, speeches, and donor profiles; • Participate in donor meetings and public information events, as delegated; • Support the expansion of partnership on WPS with governmental, non-governmental and UN sister agencies in the area of advancing the WPS agenda. Provide support to advocacy, knowledge building and communication efforts; • Support drafting background documents, briefs and presentations related to WPS; • Contribute to organizing events on WPS, including the Open Day/high-level dialogue on WPS; • Compile information from different sources on contextual developments and key WPS trends; • Support as needed the development of publications, advocacy and communication materials. Furthermore, UN Volunteers are required to: • Strengthen their knowledge and understanding of the concept of volunteerism by reading relevant UNV and external publications and take active part in UNV activities (for in-stance in events that mark International Volunteer Day); • Be acquainted with and build on traditional and/or local forms of volunteerism in the host country; • Reflect on the type and quality of voluntary action that they are undertaking, including participation in ongoing reflection activities; • Contribute articles/write-ups on field experiences and submit them for UNV publications/websites, newsletters, press releases, etc.; • Assist with the UNV Buddy Programme for newly-arrived UN Volunteers; • Promote or advise local groups in the use of online volunteering, or encourage relevant local individuals and organizations to use the UNV Online Volunteering service whenever technically possible.

Competencies and values☒ Accountability ☒ Adaptability and Flexibility ☒ Communication ☒ Creativity ☒ Ethics and Values ☒ Judgement and Decision-making ☒ Planning and Organizing ☒ Professionalism ☒ Respect for Diversity ☒ Self-Management ☒ Working in Teams

Living conditions and remarksThe UN Volunteer will be based in Belgrade, the capital of the Republic of Serbia. The urban area of Belgrade has a population of 1.23 million, while nearly 1.7 million people live within the administrative limits of the City of Belgrade. Belgrade has an extensive public transport system consisting of buses, trams, and trolleybuses, which are free of charge and widely used by residents. The city is well connected with the other parts of the country as well as with other European cities and capitals by buses, trains and airlines. Thanks to Belgrade’s central location, most European cities are a couple of hours away. Belgrade has become a prominent tourist destination in Europe. Belgrade offers a unique sense of history, a rich vein of culture, and a variety of entertaining, cultural, sport and outdoor experiences. Social life in Belgrade is usually a pleasant experience for foreigners and there is a range of activities available. Belgrade's real estate market is very vibrant, and it is not difficult to find safe and comfortable accommodation. Services in terms of banking, transportation, communications, etc. are well-developed and available. A significant number of people in Belgrade speak English, so everyday communication will not be a problem. English-speaking media is available, and restaurants and cafes have menus in English. For more details, please visit: http://www.serbia.com/ and https://www.beograd.rs/en/living-in-belgrade/ Belgrade is a family duty station, classified as “A” by ICSC. A to E duty stations are rated on a scale that assesses the difficulty of working and living conditions from A to E, with A being the least and E, being the most difficult. Medical facilities are well-developed and easily accessible. The educational institutions at all levels as well as international schools are available. In accordance with the security risk assessment, it is under Security Level 1 (minimal). No security clearance is required when traveling to SL1 areas. UN Volunteer entitlements and allowances: The purpose of the allowances and entitlements paid to UN Volunteers is to enable UN Volunteers to sustain a secure standard of living at the duty stations in line with United Nations standards without incurring personal costs. The allowances are in no way to be understood as compensation, reward, or salary in exchange for the UN Volunteer’s service. Contingent on specific eligibility criteria, location of the volunteer assignment and contractual type and category, the payment of allowances will begin from the date of Commencement of Service For more information on entitlements please read the Condition of Service (https://explore.unv.org/cos) and use the entitlement calculator (https://app.unv.org/calculator) for the most up to date information.