Title: Project Assistant

​Requisition ID: 4052
Grade: SB2 - Local support
Country: Austria
Duty Station: Vienna
Category: Local Support Personnel
Type of Job Posting: External Private Posting
Employment Type: NonStaff-Regular
Contract Duration: 3 months
Application deadline: 01-Jul-2024

Vacancy Announcement
TEMPORARY APPOINTMENT OF PROJECT PERSONNEL
Only nationals or permanent residents of the country of the duty station are considered eligible.

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is the specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability. The mission of UNIDO, as described in the Lima Declaration adopted at the fifteenth session of the UNIDO General Conference in 2013 as well as the Abu Dhabi Declaration adopted at the eighteenth session of UNIDO General Conference in 2019, is to promote and accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States. The relevance of ISID as an integrated approach to all three pillars of sustainable development is recognized by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will frame United Nations and country efforts towards sustainable development. UNIDO’s mandate is fully recognized in SDG-9, which calls to “Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation”. The relevance of ISID, however, applies in greater or lesser extent to all SDGs. Accordingly, the Organization’s programmatic focus is structured in four strategic priorities: Creating shared prosperity; Advancing economic competitiveness; Safeguarding the environment; and Strengthening knowledge and institutions.

Each of these programmatic fields of activity contains a number of individual programmes, which are implemented in a holistic manner to achieve effective outcomes and impacts through UNIDO’s four enabling functions: (i) technical cooperation; (ii) analytical and research functions and policy advisory services; (iii) normative functions and standards and quality-related activities; and (iv) convening and partnerships for knowledge transfer, networking and industrial cooperation. Such core functions are carried out in Divisions/Offices in its Headquarters, Regional Offices and Hubs and Country Offices.

The Directorate of SDG Innovation and Economic Transformation (IET), headed by a Managing Director, is responsible for the development of innovative UNIDO services in the areas of agro-industry and agribusiness, sustainability standards and fair production, and climate-relevant or climate-improving technologies. It is also, in collaboration with ODG, responsible for developing innovative technical cooperation concepts, identifying new sources and means of finance and entering new partnerships with a broad range of relevant stakeholders.

The Division of Agribusiness and Infrastructure Development (IET/AGR) supports Member States in their efforts to pave the way to sustainable rural development and a structurally transformed and modernized agribusiness sector. Capitalizing on the experience gained by UNIDO in this field over decades and on tried-and-tested and to-be-developed service modules, the Division will explore innovative approaches to maximise the potential that exists in agribusiness development, addressing emerging global trends, in particular food security, poverty alleviation and climate change. It will explore new ways to contribute to global efforts to reduce hunger, accelerate food systems transition, and generate income and employment, especially among women and youth. The Division provides technical cooperation services to assist the modernization of agriculture and agro-industry, especially in less-developed countries, ensuring that enterprises add value to primary agricultural production, substitute the imports of food and other value-added agricultural products, and participate effectively in local, regional and global value chains. Where needed, it will develop infrastructure and agro-industrial parks and capacities for agro-industrialization, value addition, quality assurance and food safety. It will also bring innovative approaches to Member States to fully benefit from carbon-neutral and biodiversity-enhancing agricultural and agro-industrial production and development opportunities in the green and blue bioeconomy.

The Agro-Innovation and Bioeconomy Unit (IET/AGR/AIB) promotes the development of innovative approaches to agricultural and agro-industrial production by looking at new products for industry, new processes of production, new sources of materials and energy from biomass, new schemes for sustainable production and new approaches to climate adaptation and the reduction of climate change. The Unit will contribute to addressing global challenges such as climate change, food and water shortages, environmental pollution, and loss of biodiversity – all in combination with economic development - by replacing fossil and mineral resources with renewable raw materials and through new technologies in production and processing of agriculture and aquaculture-based products.

Overall, the Unit will support agriculture and agro-industry in Member States in a transition from fossil and mineral-based production to a green and blue circular bioeconomy. Through partnerships with innovative firms, R&D departments and development partners, the Unit draws from the latest technology development in agricultural machinery, agro-processing and digitalization and renders adapted solutions to agro-industry development, emphasizing services to less developed countries. It will also engage with innovative carbon sequestration and biodiversity improvement schemes that help farmers and agro-industry firms to finance and apply new technologies of CO2 reduction and biodiversity improvement. It will also foster climate adaptation in agricultural and agro-industry production, using more sustainable technology and production schemes.

PROJECT CONTEXT

Business incubators to support entrepreneurship & MSME creation in Somalia (ID 200319)

The main purpose of the project is to create and improve economic opportunities and jobs for young women and men through the delivery of locally available technology based and innovation-led business incubation services. In particular, the project shall contribute to (general objective) “Create jobs and enable economic growth in the Somali Economy through the promotion of inclusive and suitable entrepreneurship development initiatives" and (specific objective) "Create and improve economic opportunities for young men and women through locally based and innovation-led business incubation services”.

The project will support three business incubators, in Somalia, to establish effective business incubation programme, raise the quality and standards of delivery of incubation programme as well as link these incubators for wider outreach to three distance service centers, in an active effort to ensure that all project benefits are far-reaching across the entire Somali peninsula. The project will ultimately ensure that not only business incubation and other entrepreneurship development services are provided by the project supported incubators but also, these incubators, shall become effective business innovation hubs by leveraging existing technologies available at Somali research centers or accessible though collaborations the project will facilitate with innovation and research centers abroad. Primarily the project will focus on providing conducive business environment for 180 beneficiaries who are either potential entrepreneurs with project ideas or existing start-up who needs facility for incubating their business. These services including technology tie-ups, infrastructural support, business mentoring and facilitating credit/investment linkages will ensure that significant number of them will be put in the conditions to prototype products, business models, and test innovations led business in Somalia. A key role of the project will be to facilitate linkages between these incubators and those innovation and technologies providers and drive these technology adaptations to the Somali market needs. In terms of access to finance, a critical feature of this project will also be the facilitation of linkages with various financing schemes available in Somalia, supported by other international partners, like WB, EU and UNIDO.

FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Under the supervision of the Project Manager, the consultant will provide support in the development and administration of technical cooperation programmes and projects as well as secretarial and administrative support and will be responsible for the following key functions:

Projects’ activities administrative support:

• Perform general administrative and secretariat tasks such as arrangements for meetings, missions, events, study tours, trainings, events and workshops, inc. engaging over the preparation of agenda’s, events’ background material, participants list. As applicable, on meetings online, at HQs or during missions, draft meeting minutes.
• Prepare/compile relevant documents and, when applicable, using SAP, initiate and follow-up on actions related to trainings, workshops, project events, study tours, procurement/purchase of equipment/goods and services, travel requests/claims, recruitment of experts, visa applications, and deal with all related inquiries in coordination with the project team and UNIDO HQs departments.
• Assist in or monitor exercises related to TC projects (e.g.: budget revisions, obligation reviews, re-phasing, extension or completion of projects, issuance of new project allotment documents/due sub-allotments, TC allocations and monitoring related exercises including disbursements, commitments and budget allocations and availability for the projects
• Process all payments through relevant accounts and liaise with project team in the country and HQ to clear all payments in a timely manner. Undertake all necessary administrative closure tasks and actions related to projects’ expenditures and related to the implementation of activities.
• Keep track of project budget expenditures; follow-up on status of contracts for the local project team, provide information on the project, draw the supervisor’s attention to problems encountered.
• Assist with onboarding of new project personnel in coordination with relevant HQs resource units, by organizing appropriate training sessions upon need and request, process UN LP or Certificate application, field office or HQs access badge, official email, visa or travel letters, access to projects’ files and projects’ file archive.
• Prepare and provide weekly payment progress status reports and update projects’ PMU and follow up where necessary at HQ and field level on all projects’ administrative related tasks identified been under the overall responsibility of the incumbent.

Projects’ reporting and projects’ data/information archiving:

• Help collect and compile all data and documents for bi-annual reports, annual reports, service providers’ reports and other reports as required and maintain comprehensive databases to be easily shared to project team and management (including, MS Teams projects shared folders, Open text and other UNIDO platforms).
• Assist in drafting regular and/or ad-hoc reports on project activities, update IRPF indicators on the PPM modules
• Establish and maintain all projects related file archives (both paper and electronic) and databases.
• In close collaboration with field team ensure the regular update of project equipment inventories (both paper and electronic asset management) and ensure appropriate us

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​​​​​​​Other tasks:

• Consult regularly to clarify the application of new financial and procurement rules and procedures, TC guidelines and other instructions
• Attend country level (online) inter-agency meetings related to operations and risk management coordination. Regularly report back to PM and relevel members of the projects’ PMU on meetings discussion, outcomes and deliberations relevant to in-country UNIDO projects’ operations.
• Carry out ad-hoc projects’ administrative assignments and research activities, as required.

MINIMUM ORGANIZATIONAL REQUIREMENTS

Education

Completed higher secondary education (high school diploma or equivalent), is required. Formal administrative/secretarial/clerical training or equivalent, is desirable.

Credit towards total working experience may be considered on a year by-year- basis, up to maximum of four years, for a higher degree education (including first university degree or equivalent diploma and/or master’s degree), in a relevant field to the post.

Experience, Technical and Functional Expertise

• A minimum of six (6) years of working experience in the related fields of the post, is required.
• Experience in office procedures and practices, preferably within the UN system or in a multicultural environment, is required.
• Experience in project administration, accounting, procurement and finance, providing support to managerial/professional staff and using secretarial/administrative skills to assist in the execution of project development and implementation of work, is desirable.
• Experience and proficiency in using Microsoft Office (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint), internet, is required.
• Experience with SAP or similar ERP software is desirable.

Languages

Fluency in written and spoken English is required. Fluency and/or working knowledge of another official UN language, is desirable.

REQUIRED COMPETENCIES

Core values
WE LIVE AND ACT WITH INTEGRITY: work honestly, openly and impartially.

WE SHOW PROFESSIONALISM: work hard and competently in a committed and responsible manner.

WE RESPECT DIVERSITY: work together effectively, respectfully and inclusively, regardless of our differences in culture and perspective.

Key competencies
WE FOCUS ON PEOPLE: cooperate to fully reach our potential –and this is true for our colleagues as well as our clients. Emotional intelligence and receptiveness are vital parts of our UNIDO identity.

WE FOCUS ON RESULTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES: focus on planning, organizing and managing our work effectively and efficiently. We are responsible and accountable for achieving our results and meeting our performance standards. This accountability does not end with our colleagues and supervisors, but we also owe it to those we serve and who have trusted us to contribute to a better, safer and healthier world.

WE COMMUNICATE AND EARN TRUST: communicate effectively with one another and build an environment of trust where we can all excel in our work.

WE THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX AND INNOVATE: To stay relevant, we continuously improve, support innovation, share our knowledge and skills, and learn from one another.

This appointment is limited to the specified project(s) only and does not carry any expectation of renewal.
Employees of UNIDO are expected at all times to uphold the highest standards of integrity, professionalism and respect for diversity, both at work and outside. Only persons who fully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for jobs at UNIDO.

All applications must be submitted online through the Online Recruitment System. Correspondence will be undertaken only with candidates who are being considered at an advanced phase of the selection process. Selected candidate(s) may be required to disclose to the Director General the nature and scope of financial and other personal interests and assets in respect of themselves, their spouses and dependents, under the procedures established by the Director General.

Visit the UNIDO website for details on how to apply: www.unido.org

NOTE: The Director General retains the discretion to make an appointment to this post at a lower level.

Notice to applicants:
UNIDO does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. If you have received a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Vacant positions within UNIDO are advertised on the official UNIDO website. Should you have any questions concerning persons or companies claiming to be recruiting on behalf of UNIDO and requesting payment of a fee, please contact: recruitment@unido.org