Programme assistant, joint programme coordination– gender equality accelerator, n-ppsa5, sarajevo, bih

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.

Placing women’s rights at the center of all its efforts, UN Women leads and coordinates United Nations system efforts to ensure that commitments on gender equality and gender mainstreaming translate into action throughout the world. It provides strong and coherent leadership in support of Member States’ priorities and efforts, building effective partnerships with civil society and other relevant actors.

To respond to the demands of national partners, UN Women established its presence in 2008 in Sarajevo. Priorities of UN Women’s Country Office in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) are based on the 2026-2030 United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework signed between the Government of BiH and the United Nations system in BiH. Key priorities of UN Women in BiH under its 2026-2030 Strategic Note span four key priority areas: 1) ending violence against women; 2) supporting the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, especially through the implementation of United Nations Security Council resolution 1325 and ensuring that women are empowered to fully contribute to and lead in public and political life; 3) enhancing women's economic empowerment by working to create equal opportunities and access to resources, including by recognizing, reducing, and redistributing unpaid care and domestic work and promoting women’s entrepreneurship; and 4) strengthening women’s meaningful participation in decision-making and gender-responsive governance.

Within this framework, the Gender Equality Accelerator (GEA) represents a flagship joint initiative coordinated by UN Women in partnership with UNFPA, UNDP, and UNICEF. The GEA aims to accelerate transformative change on gender equality and women’s empowerment by supporting systems-level reforms and advancing institutional accountability across three interconnected pillars: (1) gender-responsive governance and leadership, (2) prevention of and response to gender-based violence, and (3) women’s economic empowerment. The programme is aligned with national reform efforts, EU integration priorities, and international frameworks including CEDAW and the 2030 Agenda. It prioritizes intersectionality, localization, and inclusive partnerships with government, civil society, and the private sector to advance structural change and deliver measurable progress on gender equality in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Scope of Work

1. Provide administrative and logistical support to the coordination and management of the GEA Joint Programme
   
   • Provide organizational and administrative support in the preparation of programme work plans, budgets, and proposals on programme implementation arrangements, including tracking the delivery of funds;
   • Provide administrative support to the executing partners/responsible parties on routine delivery and reporting of programme supported activities and finances;
   • Collect information from Joint Programme UN partners and pillar teams on planned and ongoing activities;
   • Provide administrative support for regular coordination with Gender Equality Mechanisms;
   • Provide administrative support for the audit of programmes/projects and support implementation of audit recommendations;
   • Identify sources and gather and compile data and information for the preparation of documents, guidelines, speeches and position papers, in collaboration with the Programme team.
2. Provide administrative support to the financial management of the Programme Unit:
   
   • Create projects in Quantum system, prepare budget revisions, revise project awards and status; and determine unutilized funds and the operational and financial close of a project;
   • Provide administrative support in monitoring and preparation of budget and the finances of programmes/projects, and in the preparation of FACE forms;
   • Prepare non-PO vouchers for development projects;
   • Process payment for consultants, as delegated;
   • Create requisitions in Quantum system for development projects; register good receipts in Quantum system.
3. Provide administrative support to the Programme governance structures:
   
   • Undertake all logistical, administrative and financial arrangements for the organization of workshops, events, missions and internal and external coordination meetings including the Inter-Pillar, Technical Advisory Group and Civil Society Advisory Group meetings;
   • Make travel arrangements for the Programme Team, including travel requisitions and claims;
   • Draft minutes in meetings, as delegated and maintain action trackers and follow-up with designated colleagues on agreed actions, inputs and deadlines, under the guidance of the supervisor;
   • Assemble briefing materials and prepare powerpoint and other presentations, in collaboration with the Programme team;
   • Organize and coordinate filing of documents; maintain contact and mailing lists and maintain an updated calendar of key Joint Programme activities, meetings, events, reporting deadlines and other milestones.
4. Provide administrative support to donor coordination, reporting and resource mobilization:
   
   • Organize, compile, and process documentation and information from donors, and programme team as inputs to various databases and documents.
   • Provide administrative and information management support for donor meetings, briefings and consultations.
5. Facilitation of knowledge building and knowledge sharing:
   
   • Provide administrative support to the organization of trainings for the office personnel and partners on programme and operations related issues.
6. The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities:

N/A

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:

• Knowledge of programme management;
• Ability to create, edit and present information in clear and presentable formats;
• Ability to manage data, documents, correspondence and reports information and workflow;
• Good financial and budgeting skills;
• Good IT skills.

Education and Certification:

• Completion of secondary education is required.
• Bachelor’s degree in business or public administration is desirable.

Experience:

• At least 5 years (with secondary school) or 2 years (with Bachelor’s degree) of progressively responsible experience in administrative or programme management/support is required.
• Experience in working in a computer environment using multiple office software packages is required.
• Experience in the use of ERP systems, preferably Oracle Cloud, is desirable.
• Experience in supporting a team is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Fluency in Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian is required.

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.