Chief , WASH (P-5) at UNICEF

How can you make a difference?

• The Chief WASH reports to the Deputy Representative Programme for general guidance and direction. The Chief is responsible for managing and supervising all stages of the WASH programme from strategic planning and formulation to the delivery of the WASH and climate resilience outcome and output results.  The Chief is also responsible for leading and managing the CO WASH team.  The Chief WASH is accountable for ensuring that the WASH outcome and output results are achieved according to plans, allocations, results based-management approaches and methodology, UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, standards of performance and accountability framework.
• Summary of key functions/accountabilities:
  • Managerial leadership
  • Programme development and planning
  • Programme management, monitoring and delivery of results
  • Advisory services and technical support
  • Advocacy, networking and partnership building
  • Humanitarian WASH preparedness and response
  • Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building
  • Managerial leadership
• Establish the annual work plan, determining priorities and performance measurements. Monitor workplan implementation, to ensure that WASH output results are achieved to schedule and performance standards.  Report critical issues to the Deputy and Representative for timely action.
• Establish the annual workplan outputs, activities and developmental priorities of the WASH section staff.  Provide timely guidance to enable the WASH section staff to perform their duties responsibly and efficiently.
• Manage WASH team building and motivation.  Signal potential conflicts and take preventive action, in coordination with Human Resources staff. 

Programme development and planning

• Oversee the preparation of the WASH inputs for the situation analysis.  Ensure that comprehensive and current data is used to inform WASH and climate-related policy and programme development, planning, management and implementation. Keep abreast of global, regional and national WASH and climate change developments, for maximum efficiency and effectiveness in WASH programme design, management and implementation.
• Collaborate with colleagues and partners to discuss national WASH and climate change priorities, resources, strategies and methodologies to ensure the most strategic use of the collective resources of external support agencies.
• Lead the development of the WASH and Climate resilience outcome and output results of the country programme (or CCPD) along with related background, strategic analysis and delivery strategies, ensuring alignment with the UNICEF’s Strategic Plan, UNICEF’s global WASH strategy and the country programme as well as government plans and priorities, and the role of other WASH external support agencies.  Lead the development of output-related indicators, baselines, targets and means of verification.  Lead the development of the WASH content of the CPAP. 
• Develop and manage a fund-raising strategy for WASH, aligned with the WASH and climate-related output results in the country programme, and lead interactions with senior staff of donor agencies.

Programme management, monitoring and quality control of results

• Prepare documentation for programme reviews and analytical statements on progress and constraints of WASH outcome and output results.
• Provide technical and operational support throughout all stages of programming processes for the achievement of the WASH output results.  Ensure effective collaboration with other UNICEF sectors, where needed.
• With other external support agencies, analyze national government WASH sector programmes and projects, with a focus on WASH outcomes (behaviors), using bottleneck analysis tools available in the sector (WASH-BAT, CSOs, SDAs). 
• Manage monitoring and evaluation of the WASH programme and its components, programme reviews and annual sectoral reviews with government and other partners and prepare reports for CO management and WASH sector coordination bodies.
• Monitor, report and certify the use of sectoral programme resources (financial, administrative and other assets), verify compliance with approved allocations, organizational rules, regulations/procedures and donor commitments, standards of accountability and integrity.
• Ensure timely donor reporting, negotiate any changes required to agreements with donor in a timely manner.  Ensure systems are in place for HACT compliance. 

Advisory services and technical support

• Participate in strategic discussions to influence national WASH and climate-related policies and strategies, including the reduction of inequalities, contributing to global sector learning.
• Advise senior officials in government, NGOs, UN agencies and WASH sector donors on WASH and climate-related policies, strategies and best practices.
• Lead the preparation of policy papers, reports, briefing notes and other strategic materials for use by management, donors, UNICEF regional offices and headquarters.
• Coordinate the use of technical experts from the Regional Office and HQ, as and where appropriate in the WASH programme, through remote support and on-site visits. 

Advocacy, networking and partnership building

• Build and strengthen strategic partnerships with government counterparts, UN agencies, donor agencies, WASH institutions, NGOs, research institutes and the private sector to stimulate coordination and collaboration.
• Oversee the analysis of national budgets for WASH, cost analysis and value-for-money studies, to advocate for improvements in sector efficiency. 
• Produce materials for WASH programme advocacy to promote awareness, establish partnerships and support fund-raising.
• Represent UNICEF in inter-agency discussions, ensuring that UNICEF’s position, interests and priorities are fully considered and integrated in planning and agenda setting.
• Interact with global and regional initiatives and partnerships for WASH. 

Humanitarian WASH preparedness and response

• Ensure the annual preparation/revision of UNICEF’s preparedness for WASH in emergencies. 
• Ensure the coordination arrangements for humanitarian WASH are in place, for instant robust coordination in case of an emergency. 
• Ensure that all UNICEF WASH staff are familiar with UNICEF’s procedures for responding in an emergency.
• In case of an emergency, ensure that UNICEF meets its commitments for WASH in the response and early recovery. 
• Support government to strengthen WASH emergency preparedness and response. 

Innovation, knowledge management and capacity building

• Organize and lead the development, implementation, monitoring and documentation of WASH action research and innovation (technical or systems), ensuring rigorous monitoring and wide sharing of results.
• Determine priorities for learning/knowledge products, covering innovative approaches and good practices, to support overall WASH sector development.
• Systematically plan, support and monitor the professional development of UNICEF WASH staff, to ensure our sector capacity remains up-to-date with latest developments.
• Organize the systematic assessment of WASH sector capacity gap analysis, in collaboration with government and other stakeholders, and support the design of initiatives to strengthen capacities systematically.

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

• An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: public health, social sciences, behavior change communication, sanitary engineering or another relevant technical field.
• A minimum of ten years of relevant professional experience in WASH and climate-related programmes for developing countries is required. At least one year of work in humanitarian situations, including one three-month mission deployment is required (with UN-Govt-INGO).
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergency is considered an asset
• Proven ability to effectively lead a team to deliver results is required.
• Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian or Spanish) or a local language is an asset.