Senior Technical Advisor, Water, Environment and Climate Change Nexus – Kenya (Technical Specialist – Environmental) – Retainer Homebased(UNOPS)

Job Description

Together, we build the future UNOPS – an operational arm of the United Nations – supports the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by successfully implementing its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian, and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve peace and sustainable development. We are proud of our people. The UNOPS family brings together approximately 160 nationalities, represented by over 5,000 UNOPS personnel as well as some 7,800 personnel recruited on behalf of our partners. Spread across 80 countries, our workforce is rich in diversity and culture – with inclusion at its core. We understand the importance of balancing professional and personal demands and offer several flexible working options. Explore what we offer: https://bit.ly/3fpqivR

The following responsibilities are part of the embedded incumbent role:
1. Technical Support

1. To maintain climate action Environment, Climate Change, Water and Sanitation programs and projects efficiency and to ensure that services such as liaison with other offices on technical issues, preparation of necessary technical documents are provided in an effective and efficient manner in the office of the Principal Secretary, State Department of Environment and Climate Change
2. Develop technical guidance notes on priority topics in the ministry such as climate change adaptation and mitigation, water and sanitation and other cross-cutting themes such as circular economy, sustainable consumption and production to inform strategic positioning of the country through technical advisory to the PS and policy development/review.
3. Advise the PS national and global work on water pollution, basic sanitation, loss and damage, carbon credits, climate risks and impacts, vulnerability, resilience.
4. Enhance the Ministry’s coordination mandate to mobilize resources at the Principal Secretary’s level to achieve Kenya’s climate change action priorities through liaison with the NDC Partnership in-country facilitator to coordinate development partners.
5. Research and provide technical input on global and national policies to inform national and sub-national policy and technical advisory on cutting edge and relevant innovation on water and sanitation and the broader environmental sector topics.
6. Research and provide technical input on the nexus between climate change, water and sanitation to increase resilience and reduce impact of climate hazards in water sources and sanitation systems.
7. Lead drafting of technical reports of the Principal Secretary’s strategic engagements including field visits and meeting of minutes and following up on key action points of the visits/meetings
8. Support external communication by contributing to drafting of public/media information on projects and programs
9. Maintain records and databases of ongoing and incoming projects and consistently update the progress in coordination with technical staff.
10. Lead the development of high-level event/meeting briefs, drafting high level speeches and talking points for the Principal Secretary

Education/Experience/Language requirements

Education

• Bachelor’s degree preferably in water & Sanitation Engineering, Environmental & Biosystems Engineering, Development Studies, Environmental Science, Natural Resource Management, Environmental Law or any other related field from a recognized institution.
• Master’s degree or higher is an added advantage.

Experience
Required

• 5 years of experience in environmental and/or water policies, environmental and/or climate change aspects of demand-driven development programmes/projects is required.
• Experience in influencing development of adaptive policies, guidelines and regulations at national and/or sub-national levels.
• Excellent qualitative and quantitative analytical skills and the ability to rapidly analyse and incorporate diverse information from a range of sources into concise reports.

Asset

• Demonstrate ability to manage multiple technical and administrative tasks.
• Previous experience working with projects and with a range of stakeholders.
• Experience in management and delivery of multi-donor funded projects.
• Excellent communication skills; both verbal and written.

Language Requirement

• Proficiency in English is required.
• Fluency in Swahili is an advantage.

This is a retainer home-Based position, and therefore the incumbent will need to use his/her own laptop and software.

As this is a local position, in order to be eligible, the incumbent should be a national of Kenya or have a valid residence permit in the Country.

Contract type, level and duration

Contract type: ICA / ICS 10 retainer
Contract level: Local ICA 10
Contract duration: 12 months, 220 days, with possibility of extension depending on performance and on availability of funds.

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

Additional Information

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce.
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.