HIV and AIDS Regional Officer, East and Southern Africa

Location: South Africa

Main tasks and responsibilities of the position

S/he will be responsible for activities in the following 6 main areas:Recruitment, training, support and professional development:
- Supporting the recruitment and induction processes for NPOs in field offices inESA.
- Assisting in organising training for UNESCO field staff working on HIV and AIDS.
- Providing and/or organising technical support and mentoring for UNESCO fieldstaff working on HIV and AIDS.
- Providing support for HIV programming at regional level.

Programme and technical support
- Supporting the development of promising HIV work undertaken by UNESCO inESA, especially the work in the area of teacher preparation and protection.
- Supporting the promotion of the guidelines on education on sex, relationshipsand HIV/STI, developed by UNESCO with UNFPA and other partners, in ESA.
- Assisting in developing and supporting the implementation of a workablemonitoring and evaluation framework and practices for the education sectorresponse to HIV and AIDS, and ensuring timely country contributions to regularand UBW and other extrabudgetary reporting requirements.

Planning:
- Supporting the strategic planning for UNESCO engagement in HIV programmingin ESA.
- Identifying opportunities for UNESCO, and planning for in-house capacity buildingas necessary to take advantage of these opportunities.
- Assisting in developing action plans and concrete mechanisms of collaborationwith the Regional Economic Communities, such as SADC and the EAC

Representation and partner relations:
- Participating in appropriate regional forums and inter-agency meetings andthematic groupings as required
- Strengthening UNESCO’s role in the Regional AIDS Team for East and SouthernAfrica (RATESA), particularly in the prevention working group.
- Supporting increased participation by UNESCO field colleagues in UN countryteams and other national development processes.

Resource mobilization:
- Identifying funding opportunities and supporting proposal development

Liaison:
- Liaising with UNESCO structures, including the HIV coordination function in theSection on HIV and AIDS at UNESCO HQ; regional, cluster and field offices andinstitutes; HIV and AIDS Focal Points in East and Southern Africa.
- Liaising with other partners as necessary for the planning and implementation ofjoint programmes.

Qualifications

Education

- Advanced university degree (Masters) in a relevant field.

Professional experience

- 4-7 years of relevant post qualification experience

Competencies

The competencies required include:

- Strong experience and understanding of the region and solid developmentunderstanding
- Extensive professional knowledge and experience in HIV, with particular expertise inUNESCO’s key leadership and main partner responsibilities within the
of labour and familiarity with UNAIDS
- Excellent organizational, networking and partnership building skills , tact anddiscretion
- Experience in joint programming
- Experience in monitoring and evaluation
- A track record in resource mobilization and ability to manage budgets and report onimplementation
- Strong strategic, analytical skills
- Good communication skills, including writing skillsIn terms of personality, the post requires maturity, excellent interpersonal skills, tact anddiplomacy, ability to multi-task, prioritise and deliver to deadline, as well as work underpressure.

A key requirement is credibility and confidence, with strong representational and partnershipbuilding skills at country and regional levels, and with a wide range of partners (includingministries of education, UNAIDS and cosponsors, donors, civil society).

Language skills
- Fluency (oral and written) in French and English. Fluency in other regional languages wouldbe an advantage.

- Applications from people living with HIV are particularly welcome.

How to apply
To apply, please submit CV, a cover letter supporting your application, specifying which post you are applying for, and the names and contact details for three referees, to Nuria Chat n.chat@unesco.org

Closing date: 11 May 2009