UN Women: Programme Support Consultant, Home-Based, International Consultant

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.

Afghanistan is one of the world’s most complex emergencies, and the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. Afghan people are grappling with the impact of conflict, poverty, economic decline, and natural disasters. In this context, Afghan women and girls face unique vulnerabilities and require urgent support as gender inequality is interwoven with conflict dynamics and humanitarian needs. The consultant will be reporting to Title, and will be supported by Title, who will be the point of contact on the contract and payment issues.

UN Women has been in Afghanistan for two decades. UN Women’s programming approach is informed by analysis of the political, economic and humanitarian situation, risks to and capacities of partner organizations, and needs of Afghan women and girls. UN Women Afghanistan currently has five key programme priorities: (1) Integrated Programming and Localization, (2) Women’s movement building through core grant making; 3) Policy and Research; 4) Economic Resilience and Private Sector and 5) Coordination, Access and Humanitarian Response. UN Women Afghanistan operates through its main office in Kabul and five sub-offices located in the provinces of Balkh, Bamyan, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar. 

The Women’s Civil Society programme responds to this urgent situation. It aims to safeguard and strengthen Afghan women’s organizations as essential actors for the protection of women’s rights, gender equality and access to livelihoods. The project is fully aligned with the United Nations Strategic Framework for Afghanistan (2023–2027) and the UN Women Afghanistan Strategic Note (2023–2027), contributing to the joint priorities on Economic Opportunities and Resilient Livelihoods and Social Cohesion, Inclusion, Gender Equality, Human Rights and Rule of Law. 

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the WCSO Programme Manager, the Programme Support Consultant will provide operational support and guidance ensuring compliance, effectiveness, transparency, and integrity. The consultant works in close collaboration with the operations, programme and sub-office teams in the Regional Office and UN Women Afghanistan Office on daily operations functions. 

Description of Responsibilities /Scope of Work

The consultant will work under supervision of the WCSO Programme Manager of UN Women Afghanistan to ensure delivery of following tasks.

Coordinate Operational Support for the overall WCSO Programme

• Support oversight of annual budget for the programme including tracking expenditures and reconciliation of budget lines with actual expenditures. 
• Implement and oversee the project/award creation, budget set up and mapping between Quantum and RMS activities.
• Run report data in Quantum and implement revisions as needed with ACO Finance support.
• Provide substantive inputs to the management of programme financial resources while exercising proper financial controls.
• Provide input and administrative assistance on all major funding initiatives and problem-solving challenges to achieve the goals of the WCSO Project, including targeted financial results (delivery rates)
• Maintain and update financial trackers for the overall programme and provide a monthly snapshot to the Programme Manager. 
• Develop and present financial, budgetary operational status reports to stakeholders.
• Support preparation for internal and external audits as needed.

  Operational Support for Financial Management of WCSO Partners

  • Support the processing and tracking of WCSO partners installments in compliance with UN Women Financial Rules and Regulations, ensuring timely disbursement of funds. 
  • Support in maintaining and updating financial trackers for partners installments and expenditure monitoring. 
  • Participate in the financial verification of final reports of WCSO partners and assist in closing grants, including
  • reconciliation of expenditure and final balances. 
  • Assist in the coordination of financial data across WCSO partner agreements to support reporting requirements
  • Review and verify accuracy and relevancy of the grantee utilization plans, supporting documents, and other financial reports;

    Mentorship to WCSO Programme Unit on Operations. 

    • Train staff and mentor them on financial management and operational support regarding partner management.

      Provide any other support as requested by the supervisor.

      Consultant’s Workplace and Official Travel

      This consultancy is home-based assignment which will start from 1 February – 31 July 2026. The consultant will provide remote support to the WCSO Programme Unit as stipulated in the Scope of Work. The consultant may be requested to travel to UN Women Afghanistan or other location for official trainings/missions. Travel Authorization and arrangement will be managed by UN Women Afghanistan Country Office in compliant with The Duty Travel Policy

      Competencies :

      📚 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯! 🌍🤝 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗡𝗛𝗖𝗥, 𝗪𝗙𝗣, 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗙, 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗦𝗦, 𝗨𝗡𝗙𝗣𝗔, 𝗜𝗢𝗠 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀! 🌐

      ⚠️ 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰: 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐚 𝐣𝐨𝐛 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐍𝐎𝐖!

      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:

          • Good knowledge of operation, finance, procurement, human resources, ICT, and security systems and processes, particularly in the UN system is an asset;
          • Ability to provide advice and support;
          • Ability to contribute to the formulation and monitoring of management projects;
          • Ability to handle confidential information;
          • Negotiating skills; 
          • Good IT skills. 

            Education and Certification:

            • Master’s degree or equivalent in Business Administration or related field is required.
            • A first level of university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted.

              Experience:

              • At least 2 years of work experience in operations is required.
              • Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Work, Excel, Power Point, etc.) is required.
              • Experience in web-based management systems or enterprise resource planning (ERP) system similar to Quantum is required.
              • Work experience in the UN system is desirable.

                Languages:

                • Fluency in English is required.
                • Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.

                  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.