On 24 February 2022, the military of the Russian Federation invaded Ukraine, with strikes across the territory of Ukraine. Since then, Russia’s invasion imposes a severe humanitarian and socio-economic toll, global energy and food crisis, large-scale destruction of the country's infrastructure, and disruptions in the provision of critical services and degradation of social fabrics and communities’ ties, triggering one of the world’s most significant forced displacements.
Severe attacks on energy and critical infrastructure facilities leave millions of people without electricity, water or heating supply, struggling to access water, food, health services, materials to repair homes, among others. The continued attacks cause substantial damage to the country’s economy and agricultural production, and also affect the poorest countries worldwide.
UNOPS support to partners spans the humanitarian-development nexus from emergency response to building back better, across the housing, health, education, transport, energy and mine action sectors, through infrastructure, procurement and technical assistance/project management interventions, with the ultimate aim of supporting the country on its EU accession and in its achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Background Information - Job-specific
Under the overall guidance and direct supervision of the Country Director and in close coordination with the Head of Programme, Regional Office and the Partnerships Group, the Partnerships & Programme Support Advisor is the senior Partnerships Development and Programme Support Lead for the Country Office and is a member of the Office Senior Management Team and responsible for developing and implementing the UEMCO partnerships development strategy, donor and client coordination activities and ensuring effective transition of opportunities from the pipeline stage through project formulation, initiation and early implementation. This includes strengthening internal coordination between business development, programme, and support functions to enable timely engagement, acceptance, project setup, and smooth handover to delivery teams in line with UNOPS policies and performance standards. The incumbent works in close functional coordination with the Regional Office / HQ Partnerships Group and Programme Management functions to ensure coherence with corporate strategies.
The Partnerships and Programme Support Advisor provides situation analyses, donor mapping and programme development in collaboration with UNOPS’s existing and potential partners, including national governments, the UN System, donors, and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). In addition, they liaise with these and other relevant stakeholders to identify partnership opportunities for UNOPS, based on the organization’s mandate and role as part of the UN system.
Integrated Partnerships Development Strategy
Partnerships Development and Stakeholder Engagement
Partner Relations and Inter-Agency Collaboration
Monitoring and Reporting
Project Management oversight, support and quality assurance
Team/ Unit Leadership
Knowledge Management and Innovation
1. Integrated Partnerships Development Strategy
Under the direction of the Country Director, and in collaboration with the Head of Programme lead the development of a comprehensive partnerships development strategy in line with UNOPS’s Strategic Plan, the regional strategy and the Multi Country Office Plan. This includes country context, analyses of the regional and national development and humanitarian landscape, identification of main partners, and strategic positioning of UNOPS in the potential operational niches identified while considering and recommending changes in in-house capacity, typology of projects and availability of internal tools and knowledge resources.
Collaborate closely with the Country Director and the Head of Programme in the development and execution of the MCO partnerships strategies.
Advise Office Senior Management Team on implementation of the partnerships strategy.
Advise and support Office Senior Management Team throughout the project development planning process, including definition of high-priority partners, countries, sectors and service areas.
Research and analyze specific donor strategies, programming priorities and political situations in order to identify potential funding opportunities appropriate to UNOPS’s strategy and mandate.
Drive a disciplined approach across the partnership's functions to project and programme development which balances costs, risk, revenues and beneficiary impact within the mandate and spirit of the UN and UNOPS’ Pricing Policy.
2. Partnerships Development and Stakeholder Engagement
Lead the partnerships team to develop, extend and maintain strong partnerships with key partners, including governments, UN agencies, donors, foundations, NGOs, and the private sector.
Work closely with the Head of Programme (HoP), Head of Support Services (HoSS), and technical experts at the country and regional level (gender & PSEA, environment, HSSE) to ensure new projects are developed by project managers and partnerships officers in tight coordination with programme and support services.
Develop and model the high standards of partnership positioning and development necessary to inspire and guide the partnerships officers in their work.
Work closely with communications to ensure the external positioning of UNOPS Office is aligned with the Office and Partnerships strategies.
Participate and lead in key partnership-building meetings and negotiations with donors and clients, ensuring that cost-effective and mutually beneficial terms are achieved for UNOPS’ services while ensuring systematic and timely follow-up on agreed actions.
Coordinate, advise, mentor and coach relevant partnerships and programme personnel at country, programme and project ensure aligned and coherent interactions with partners.
Connect and collaborate with other peer, regional and HQ levels of partnerships to stay in touch with good practices and share and build UNOPS capabilities in partnerships development.
Facilitate and/ or manage and lead meetings between Office management and key government representatives as and when required.
Plan and facilitate high-level meetings between UNOPS senior management and sub-regional/ country-level partners, including during key events such as conferences and other fora.
Support partners in examining available options for effective project implementation and achievement of results while promoting national ownership.
Showcase the Office’s capabilities and set Office standards for developing and distributing corporate communication materials, capacity statements and success stories which enhance clients’ understanding of the impact of various services provided and/ or delivered by UNOPS.
3. Partner Relations and Inter-Agency Collaboration
As delegated, participate in meetings with senior government counterparts on behalf of UNOPS and represent the Country Director in meetings and negotiations with partners as required.
Participate in inter-agency planning and cluster/sector/results group meetings for the UN System development and humanitarian plans.
Contribute at the sub-regional/ country level to the harmonization of policies, practices and approaches within the UN System, including the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).
4. Monitoring and Reporting
Ensure programmes/ projects developed are in line with the Results-Based Management (RBM) principles.
With technical inputs from relevant experts, ensure partnerships projects and programmes are developed with appropriate monitoring and evaluation frameworks that allow for effective oversight and evaluation of impact.
Perform routine maintenance and implementation of effective monitoring and evaluation systems of programme and project activities, in line with donor and UNOPS internal requirements, and provide advice and support to portfolio managers and teams to facilitate quality delivery.
Ensure up-to-date/ informative/ accurate reports are prepared and submitted on time related to partnerships development across the Office.
Ensure alignment of partnership development and project support activities with regional and UEMCO performance indicators, in coordination with SMT, lead the preparation and regular monitoring of a plan outlining how ERA and EA targets will be achieved by the MCO, providing periodic updates to the SMT on progress, risks, and corrective actions.
5. Project Management oversight, support and quality assurance
Provide strategic and operational oversight across the project lifecycle, ensuring that project plans, milestones, and deliverables are consistent with UNOPS policies, quality standards, and donor requirements. Facilitate effective coordination between programme, support services, and HQ units to enable timely decision-making.
Strengthen project assurance mechanisms by establishing and maintaining reporting and monitoring cycles (quarterly reviews, project boards, and progress updates), ensuring systematic quality checks, compliance with project management standards (PMM), and effective follow-up on management actions and audit recommendations.
Ensure proactive risk and issue management, supporting the HoP and Project Managers in identifying delivery risks, capacity gaps, and implementation challenges;
Promote quality assurance and continuous improvement by coordinating periodic reviews of key project documentation (project plans, reports, results frameworks), providing quality control and advisory support, and ensuring that lessons learned and best practices are captured and disseminated across the portfolio.
Ensure structured transition from engagement acceptance to project start-up, with clear accountability for documentation, budget validation, and partner communication during the first 90 days of project implementation.
6. Team/Unit Leadership
Provide clear leadership and direction to the Partnerships and Programme Unit, ensuring the team’s work is guided by the unit’s strategic priorities and annual work plan, and the establishment of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). Develop and monitor partnership and communication priorities to ensure effective collaboration. Align individual performance plans with unit objectives and conduct fair and timely reviews.
Lead by example, fostering collaboration, professionalism, and a culture of respect, inclusion, and zero tolerance for misconduct. Support and motivate team members through regular communication, coaching, and development opportunities to strengthen capacity and maintain quality standards in proposal writing and partnership management.
Work closely with the Head of Programme, Head of Support Services, and other units to ensure coordination, client satisfaction, and innovation in the delivery of partnership initiatives. When required, manage critical projects directly to ensure continuity and quality of results.
7. Knowledge management and innovation
Implement UNOPS standards, and utilize UNOPS tools and templates in effective management of partnership and project development activities within the team.
Contribute to the ongoing global research, development and implementation of best practice and innovative approaches to maximize performance and sustain achievements in project and partnerships development, including the re-design and / or localisation of tools, templates, dashboards, processes and systems for Office partnerships management.
Help build partnerships capacity and negotiation skills among project managers and partnerships officers.
Contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for planning and knowledge building within project and partnerships development.
Provide regular feedback on existing systems, tools and resources to ensure relevance to day-to-day operations.
Impact of Results
The effective and successful achievement of results by the Partnerships and Programme Support Advisor impacts the performance of the Country Office by maintaining a robust and diverse pipeline of project opportunities, which leads to sustainable and diversified growth of the UNOPS’ presence and strengthens the achievements of UNOPS management results and the fulfillment of its mandate.
Contract type: Individual Contractor Agreement (ICA)
Contract level: International Individual Contractor Agreement (IICA3/ICS11)