UNRWA, the largest United Nations operation in the Middle East with over 30,000 staff working across five areas of operation, is looking for highly committed personnel wishing to make a change.

If you are looking for a rewarding opportunity to make a tangible difference for one of the most vulnerable communities in the world, UNRWA would like to hear from you.

The Liaison Officer reports to to the Director UNRWA Representative Office in New York.

- Provides general support to the work of the Office in New York by attending and representing UNRWA at meetings, at UNHQ and elsewhere, and drafting concise analytical reports on contents of the discussions as appropriate to the Agency, and in particular as focal point and liaison in the following areas: UN Sustainable Development Group (UNSDG), Commission on the Status of Women, Department of Development Coordination (DCO), gender equality, youth and persons with disabilities.

- Assists in outreach and raising awareness of the situation of UNRWA and the Palestine refugees including by preparing, coordinating and supporting meetings and other events held for UN Member States and/or other stakeholders with a view to generate political and financial support for the Agency.

- Supports preparations for official meetings, visits and coordination and logistics related to events, including the yearly UNRWA Pledging conference.

- Assesses implications and makes recommendations to senior management on possible policies, strategies and other measures to address issues of concern and to advance mandated objectives and UN principles and values; monitors, and reports on outcomes.

- Engages regularly with the UN Common System colleagues and counterparts, Government representatives as well as other relevant parties as appropriate with a view to develop and maintain productive effective working relations.
Maintain up-to-date knowledge of events by monitoring relevant documents and reports, identifying problems and issues to be addressed and liaising with relevant stakeholders.

- Recruits and daily supervises of interns, including providing guidance and editing their work.

- Substitutes for the Senior Liaison Officer during his/her absence.

UN Core Values of Integrity, Professionalism and Respect for Diversity, and Core Competencies of Communication, Working with People and Drive for Results apply by default.

i. Relating and Networking
ii. Formulating Strategies and Concepts
iii. Planning and Organizing
iv. Deciding and Initiating Action
v. Analyzing

For guidance on how to prepare for competency-based interviews: https://careers.un.org/lbw/home.aspx?viewtype=AYI

Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) from an accredited educational institution in social sciences, economics, international relations, business or public administration, law, or humanitarian and development studies, political affairs, or related field.

A minimum of five years of progressively responsible and relevant experience in, political affairs, international affairs, diplomacy, human rights or related area is required

Unless already serving as an international staff member in the UN Common System, a candidate for an international post must have at least two continuous years of relevant international experience outside UNRWA, and outside the country(s) of which the candidate is a national or holds citizenship, a passport or a national identity number, is required.

Experience in political outreach, analysis and reporting is required.

Knowledge of the Palestinian question, including its refugee dimension, as well as familiarity with government and legislative processes, is desirable.

Familiarity with the United Nations system and practices is desirable

Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) from an accredited educational institution in social sciences, economics, international relations, business or public administration, law, or humanitarian and development studies, political affairs, or related field is required.

Excellent command of written and spoken English.

Working knowledge of other UN languages is an asset.

Evaluation of qualified candidates may include an assessment exercise which may be followed by competency-based interview.

Type of Contract and duration: 2 years, with the possibility of further extension.

The Liaison Officer may be required to travel in the Agency’s area of operations.

Applicants have to complete the Personal History Profile (PHP) in Inspira in order to be considered. The PHP should be completed with full relevant work experience as per the requirements in the Job Opening, in order to be considered.

UNRWA welcomes applications from qualified candidates with disabilities.

A roster may be created from the selection exercise, and successful candidates may become eligible for a temporary appointment to the same post or a similar post.

Equivalency:
Equivalency may apply.
NB: work experience alone or formal qualifications with no relevant work experience are not considered an acceptable combination.

UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions from UN member states, regional bodies, business foundations and individual contributions. The mission of UNRWA is to help Palestine refugees achieve their full potential in human development under the difficult circumstances in which they live.

For more details on UNRWA, please visit: https://www.unrwa.org/

Staff members are subject to the authority of the Commissioner-General of UNRWA and to assignment by him or her.

UNRWA is committed to achieving gender parity at all levels of staffing under the current UN-wide gender agenda and strongly encourages applications from qualified applicants from under-represented groups.

At UNRWA, the paramount consideration in the recruitment and employment of staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence and integrity, with due regard to geographic diversity. All employment decisions are made on the basis of qualifications and organizational needs. UNRWA is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. Reasonable accommodation for applicants with disabilities may be provided to support participation in the recruitment process when requested and indicated in the application.

UNRWA Considerations
UNRWA staff are expected to uphold the highest standards of efficiency, competence, neutrality, impartiality and integrity. This includes respect for and commitment to human rights, diversity and non-violent means of dealing with all kinds of conflict. Only persons who fully and unconditionally commit to these values should consider applying for UNRWA jobs. Candidates will not be considered for employment with UNRWA if they have committed violations of international human rights law, violations of international humanitarian law, sexual exploitation, sexual abuse, or sexual harassment, or if there are reasonable grounds to believe that they have been involved in the commission of any of these acts. Candidates who have committed crimes other than minor traffic offences may not be considered for employment. The Agency may disqualify applicants who have separated for reason of misconduct, who left a UN Agency while misconduct processes were pending, or who appear on the UN Sanctions List.
UNRWA is a non-smoking work environment.

Applicants are urged to follow carefully all instructions available in the online recruitment platform, inspira. For more detailed guidance, applicants may refer to the Manual for the Applicant, which can be accessed by clicking on “Manuals” hyper-link on the upper right side of the inspira account-holder homepage.

The evaluation of applicants will be conducted on the basis of the information submitted in the application according to the evaluation criteria of the job opening and the applicable internal legislations of the United Nations including the Charter of the United Nations, resolutions of the General Assembly, the Staff Regulations and Rules, administrative issuances and guidelines. Applicants must provide complete and accurate information pertaining to their personal profile and qualifications according to the instructions provided in inspira to be considered for the current job opening. No amendment, addition, deletion, revision or modification shall be made to applications that have been submitted. Candidates under serious consideration for selection will be subject to reference checks to verify the information provided in the application.

Job openings advertised on the Careers Portal will be removed at 11:59 p.m. (New York time) on the deadline date.