Background:
UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.
The Surging Women’s Employment Flagship Initiative (SWEI) in the Green, STEM, and Care Economies aims to increase women’s employment in the Arab States region by 5% by 2030 through innovative and collaborative approaches across governments, international financial institutions, the private sector, UN agencies, NGOs, and media.
This position is part of the EU-funded programme “Support to Women’s Employment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region through Gender-Responsive Private Sector Development”, a key component of the broader UN Women-led SWEI Flagship Initiative.
Reporting to the Director of Women’s Employment in the Green, STEM, and Care Economy and working under the overall direction of the Regional Director (RD) and close guidance of the Deputy Regional Director (DRD) who ensures coherence, integration and alignment within the Regional Strategic Note, and in close collaboration with thematic teams in the Regional Office for Arab States (ROAS), the Technical Lead and Programme Management Specialist will:
- Provide technical leadership and programme management for the UN Women-EU Programme “Support to Women’s Employment in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region through Gender-Responsive Private Sector Development;
- Lead the development of employment generation strategies, policies, and programmes for women’s employment through private sector growth in the Green, STEM, and Care Economy, including conducting independent analysis to inform policy recommendations;
- Direct labour market analysis, operational research, data validation, and analytical outputs, ensuring quality and strategic alignment with SWEI priorities;
- Oversee national and regional implementation of the programme, providing technical guidance and ensuring coherent delivery across participating countries;
- Lead region-wide knowledge and learning, including monitoring, reporting, and quality assurance of knowledge products;
- Build and manage strategic partnerships and lead resource mobilization efforts for programme sustainability and expansion.
With minimal supervision and broad direction from the Director, the incumbent exercises significant independent professional judgment in the design and delivery of the programme. The incumbent consults the supervisor on strategic, politically sensitive, or high-risk matters.
Key Functions and Accountabilities:
Programme Leadership and Change Management
- Provide overall technical and operational leadership for the EU-funded programme, ensuring alignment with SWEI’s strategic goals;
- Manage the day-to-day implementation of the programme, including oversight of EU and IFI partnerships;
- Lead change management processes to adapt programme strategies in response to contextual shifts, stakeholder feedback, and emerging opportunities;
- Design, develop, and implement a programme management plan that integrates EU-funded activities with broader SWEI initiatives at regional and national levels.
Technical Oversight and Quality Assurance
- Independently review and provide technical guidance on programme strategies, work plans, budgets, and knowledge products, exercising professional judgment to ensure strategic coherence and technical rigor;
- Ensure programme activities are evidence-based, gender-responsive, and results-oriented;
- Conduct regular programme reviews and provide real-time technical support to address implementation challenges;
- Align EU programme deliverables with SWEI’s monitoring, evaluation, and learning framework.
Stakeholder and Partnership Management
- Serve as the primary technical focal point for the EU delegation, IFIs, and other key partners under the programme, representing UN Women in technical discussions and negotiations;
- Build and strengthen technical collaboration with Country Offices, government entities, private sector partners, and civil society to ensure coordinated implementation;
- Lead dialogue and partnership-building to enhance programme impact and sustainability, cultivating strategic alliances technical counterparts across governments and development partners.
Monitoring, Evaluation, and Reporting
- Lead the development and implementation of a robust MEL system for the EU-funded programme, defining indicators, baselines, and targets in alignment with SWEI’s results framework;
- Ensure timely and accurate reporting to the EU and other stakeholders, in line with donor requirements and UN Women standards;
- Independently monitor financial performance and delivery against agreed targets, ensuring effective use of resources and recommending corrective action where delivery rates fall below threshold.
Knowledge Management, Learning, and Advocacy
- Conceptualize and lead the production of high-quality knowledge products, including case studies, policy briefs, and regional reports, ensuring alignment with UN Women’s knowledge management standards and contributing to global evidence on women’s employment;
- Design and facilitate learning and innovation across the EU programme, including cross-country exchange of best practices and South-South knowledge-sharing initiatives;
- Represent UN Women in relevant forums and advocate for gender-responsive private sector development under the EU-funded initiative.
The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Regional Office and the Organization.
Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: N/A. The incumbent operates as a Specialist Advisor without direct supervisory responsibilities. The incumbent may provide technical guidance and task-based direction to consultants, interns, or implementing partners engaged under the programme.
Competencies:
Core Values:
- Integrity;
- Professionalism;
- Respect for Diversity.
Core Competencies:
- Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
- Accountability;
- Creative Problem Solving;
- Effective Communication;
- Inclusive Collaboration;
- Stakeholder Engagement;
- Leading by Example.
Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework:
Functional Competencies:
- Excellent programme formulation, implementation, monitoring and evaluation skills;
- Ability to develop detailed operational plans, budgets, and deliver on them;
- Ability to synthesize program performance data and produce analytical reports to inform management and strategic decision-making;
- Excellent analytical skills;
- Excellent knowledge of Results Based Management;
- Strong knowledge of UN programme management systems;
- Ability to lead formulation of strategies and their implementation;
- Strong networking skills;
- Demonstrated ability to manage complex, multi-country donor-funded programmes with significant independent judgment.
Recruitment Qualifications:
Education and Certification
- Master’s degree or equivalent in Social Sciences, Political Science, Development, Public Administration, Gender and/or any related field is required;
- A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree;
- A project/programme management certification is desirable.
Experience
- At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in programme management, including programme design, programme coordination, monitoring and evaluation, donor reporting and capacity building, and/or any other related experience is required;
- Experience in managing EU projects is required;
- Experience working in a gender-related area is desirable;
- Experience in developing and implementing employment generation activities is required;
- Experience in setting priorities, budgets, work plans, participating in programme development, and programme writing is required;
- Experience in program development in sectors such as the green economy and trade-oriented programs is required;
- Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) and spreadsheet and database packages, and experience in handling web-based management systems is required;
- Experience in the use of a modern web-based ERP System, preferably Oracle Cloud, is desirable;
- Experience working in the Arab States regions is desirable.
Languages
- Fluency in English and Arabic is required;
- Knowledge of another official UN language such as French is desirable.
Statements :
In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.
Diversity and inclusion:
At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.
If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.
UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)
Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.
