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Project Coordinator BIOPAMA – Protected Areas Management

Vacancy #:   2627
Unit:   Protected Areas Programme PACO Regional
Organisation:   International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
Location:   West and Central Africa Regional Office in Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Reporting to:   Coordinateur du projet Gouvernance Régionale des Aires Protégées – PAPBio C2
Work percentage:   100%
Grade:   P2
Expected start date:   01 August 2018
Type of contract:   Fixed-term (12 months with possibility of renewal)
Closing date:   15 June 2018 (extended)
BACKGROUND
The Biodiversity and Protected Areas Management (BIOPAMA) programme aims to contribute to improving the long-term conservation and sustainable use of natural resources in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, in protected areas and surrounding communities. It is an initiative of the ACP Group of States financed by the European Union’s 11th European Development Fund (EDF), jointly implemented by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC). Building on the first five years of activities financed by the 10th EDF, BIOPAMA’s second phase provides tools for data and information management, services for improving the knowledge and capacity for protected area planning and decision making, and funding opportunities for specific site-based actions. www.biopama.org

Scope of the position

The position is to work with IUCN’s Regional Office for Western and Central Africa (PACO). It will be based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, under the direct supervision of the Coordinator of the Regional Programme for Protected Areas and Biodiversity. This position is responsible for reporting, financial management and overall management of the regional project BIOPAMA. This position will oversee all regional staff associated with BIOPAMA and will ensure cohesiveness of regional actions as well as linkages with global activities. This position will also be responsible for engagement and for ensuring good relations with the implementation partners and the hosts of the Regional Observatories at all times as well as for building synergieswith other regional initiatives that are relevant to the Observatories. The position entails regular interactions with peers from regional partners, national administrations, and regional organisations on complex issues. Regular interactions with external contacts on complex and policy issues. Intensive international and regional travels. Responsibility over work planning, budget and expenses.
JOB DESCRIPTION
SPECIFIC DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The Regional Coordinator is responsible for ensuring the effective and efficient implementation of BIOPAMA and other on-going projects/programmes within the Protected Areas and Biodiversity portfolio. More specifically

1. Project implementation: The post holder will 1) be responsible for the execution of regional component of BIOPAMA according to the Internal Agreement between IUCN-PACO and the Global Protected Area Programme of IUCN, and in full compliance with the donor contract and all associated procedures, guidelines and standards; Specific tasks include :

- Ensure the implementation of the project in accordance with the project documents, agreed work plans and IUCN procedures

- Oversee the establishment and running of the BIOPAMA protected areas Observatories for the Central and West Africa sub-regions, including the Action Fund

- Produce common yearly workplans to provide support to WAEMU, ECOWAS, RAMPAO, ECOFAC and RAPAC in agreement with their needs

- Supervise studies and analysis as required

- Coordinate the edition of the State of Protected Areas reports

- Coordinate the field support to the action fund beneficiaries

- Ensure that IUCN knowledge products and tools are provided to IUCN members and partners as needed, with the required support, in collaboration with IUCN PACO, global programs and commissions

- Ensure that the project and the program’s achievements are efficiently communicated to partners and to the conservation community. That BIOPAMA beneficiary’s communication strategy are effectively executed with support and contribution from BIOPAMA and PACO

- Inform on a permanent basis the PACO’s Protected Areas Program coordinator and PACO management team of all developments in the execution of the project

- Reach out to key stakeholders actors outside the sector of environment to secure their commitment for protected areas and biodiversity valorisation

2. Oversee the technical Management of the Action Fund for the PACO Region. The Regional Coordination assumes the responsibilities of Technical Manager of the Action Fund for the PACO Region. Specifically, he/she will:

- Ensure the diligent management of the Action Fund and work closely with the PACO’s Protected Areas Coordinator to ensure appropriate alignment of joint IUCN-JRC activities;

- Work closely with PACO’s Protected Areas Coordinator and the project Technical Officers to identify gaps emerging from the IMET and governance assessments;

- Work closely with the countries and PA agencies to ensure that funds are allocated to address management and governance deficiencies in the field that are identified through: (a) IMET; (b) governance and other relevant assessments; (c) reported limitations to implement existing management plans, and; (d) gaps and priorities identified by the RRIS

3. Represent effectively the IUCN and its partners:

- Assist with maintaining strong relationships with relevant IUCN partners, maintaining communications, efficient collaboration and a spirit of service to the project’s beneficiaries.

- Provide technical support to IUCN partners and project beneficiaries

4. Administrative and finance management:

- The post holder will ensure compliance with the donors’ and IUCN’s procedures.

- Conduct procurement process, interact with service providers, and monitor deliverables

- Liaise with PACO Finance Officers regarding compliance with donor’s contractual and financial requirements;

- Support the preparation and submission of financial reports to the donor by providing the finance unit with the relevant project/programme information on a timely basis;

- Support the Coordinator of the Regional Programme for Protected Areas and Biodiversity to regularly review, analyse and monitor the project financial reports and communicate any over/under expenditure observations to the Coordinator of the Regional Programme for Protected Areas and Biodiversity on a timely basis;

- Coordinate the procurement process of project assets and ensure all processes are in line with the IUCN Internal Control systems and donor requirements.

5. Monitoring and evaluation

- Develop the program’s full M&E regional framework in coordination with BIOPAMA’s global coordination and the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). Ensure the timely documentation of indicators. Ensure that all data pertaining to the program’s activities are collected and analysed at sufficient standard

- Ensure that the project develops and effectively implements an M&E framework, in line IUCN guidelines and procedures as well as that required by the donor

- Ensure that all the information related to the implementation of projects is adequately filed, organized and updated for easy access;

- Identify and use lessons to inform future practice;

- Document and share lessons and experiences, as appropriate

- Lead the contribution of BIOPAMA West and Central Africa to the learning and capitalisation strategy of the programme

- Contribute to building functional synergies with other projects

6. Fundraising

- Working closely with the other PACO staff to support the development of project proposals with a particular focus on leveraging additional funds related to Protected Areas initiatives.
REQUIREMENTS
  • Minimum of a post-graduate (M.Sc.) academic studies, preferentially Higher degree of specialised academic studies in environmental law, natural resource management, ecology - related discipline

• At least 5 years’ experience with project and program responsibility

• Demonstrated expertise and experience with protected area management, and specifically with the PAME framework.

• Strong communication and presentation skills and an ability to prepare appropriate and timely reports to a wide range of audiences and cultures.

• Extensive and practical knowledge of main environmental agreements and environmental policies

• Time management skills including an ability to work effectively under pressure and to meet deadlines.

• Awareness and an ability to acknowledge and respect different cultures, and to engage appropriately with people of different backgrounds.

• Fluent writing and speaking literacy in both English and French, A high level of competency in those languages is also required. An adequate level of fluency in another language of the region (e.g. Portuguese) would be an additional asset.

• Desired skills and experience

Extensive experience with protected area management systems, particularly management effectiveness.


• Experience in the development and implementation of capacity development programmes and training

• Experience in biodiversity and/or protected areas information management, ideally involving terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems, at national and/or regional levels.

• Some knowledge and experience in GIS and spatial analysis techniques, tools for on-line publishing of geospatial data and metadata would be an asset, as well as experience in the use of any of the component tools of the RRIS, i.e. PostGIS, GeoServer, GeoNode, Drupal

• General ICT knowledge and experience, internet user interfaces as well as spatial analysis and development of decision support tools, including experience in developing detailed user requirements in collaboration with stakeholders, translation of needs expressed by decision-makers into data and information/analysis needs to develop decision-support tools

• Demonstrated experience working through and in support of regional and national institutions

• An extensive existing network in the sector across the WCA region would be a great advantage.

• Demonstrated excellent interpersonal and networking skills, including the ability to work in a multi-cultural environment, and to establish effective working relationships both within and outside the organization with a diversity of stakeholders.

• Experience in communicating and collaborating with management agencies, academic institutions and local, national and regional stakeholders to achieve agreed collective outcomes

• General characteristics desired

Demonstrated commitment to achieving biodiversity conservation and livelihoods goals, in collaboration with others.


• Demonstrated high level skills in project planning, overseeing implementation and evaluating progress, including work planning, financial management, and monitoring and evaluation.

• Demonstrated ability to exercise good judgment, to think laterally and to resolve complex issues in a dynamic and changing environment.

• A team player who is able to contribute effectively to collaborative issues, and to demonstrate innovation and leadership, as appropriate.

• A good understanding of IUCN’s mission and a general attitude of being of service to others.
APPLICATIONS

Applicants are requested to apply online through the HR Management System, by opening the vacancy announcement and pressing the "Apply" button.

Applicants will be asked to create an account and submit their profile information. Applications will not be accepted after the closing date. The vacancy closes at midnight, Swiss time (GMT+1 / GMT+2 during Daylight Saving Time, DST). Please note that only selected applicants will be personally contacted for interviews.

Other job opportunities are published in the IUCN website: https://www.iucn.org/involved/jobs/


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