Special EU Advisor Open to Tier 3 applicants only

Tiered Approach: 

In line with the commitment to safeguard capacity and support personnel already in the Organization, a majority of UNDP/UNCDF/UNV vacancies are advertised using a toered application process whereby:

• Tier 0: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV IP staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments, whose contracts will be terminated or not renewed during 2026 
• Tier 1: Other UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed term (FTA) appointments (defined as \"internal\" candidates).
• Tier 2: UNDP/ UNCDF/ UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA), personnel on regular PSA contracts, and Expert and Specialist UN Volunteers.
• Tier 3 or no tier indicated: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates.

Please make note of the Tier(s) indicated in the vacancy title, if any, and ensure that you satisfy the eligibility to apply.

Background

The institutions of the European Union constitute important partners for UNDP's RBEC (Regional Bureau for Europe and the CIS) across the multiple areas of governance, poverty, employment, climate, digital and financing programmes and counts amongst the most significant of RBEC's multilateral partners.  As other Member States increase their engagement with RBEC, the imperative of similarly scaling the partnership with the EU institutions has increased across the region. The EU is also a crucial partner in crisis management and recovery in which UNDP in the region supports governments and the UN Country Teams, often in cooperation with the EU.

The countries served by the RBEC, with offices in New York and Istanbul and presences in 18 countries and territories, have close and diverse relations with the EU, ranging from enlargement countries: countries in the Western CIS and South Caucasus and countries in Central Asia and a project office in Cyprus.

The RBEC region is composed of Albania, Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cyprus (project office), Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kosovo (as per UNSCR 1244), Kyrgyzstan, Montenegro, Moldova, North Macedonia, Serbia, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.  RBEC and its Country Offices work closely with their counterparts in the EU institutions of DGENEST, FPI, DGECHO, INTPA, DGREGIO, EEAS, the European Parliament and Council.  The Special EU Advisor will play a crucial role in advising RBEC internally and communicating and engaging the EU partners externally to further expand the partnership.

Beyond these EU institutions, RBEC has also cultivated operational relationships with leading European financial institutions, including the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), amongst others. These partners play a key role in bringing financing at scale and expanded options to the EU-UNDP partnership.  RBEC hosts an International Financial Institution (IFI) advisor in Brussels to liaison with counterparts and render support to RBEC's country offices.

The Brussels-based EU development ecosystem is also comprised of multiple policy actors and fora, EU MS officials, think tanks and research institutions, with whom RBEC also maintains close relationships to inform debates and dialogues on issues of priority to both RBEC and the EU.

The Special EU Advisor will position RBEC to respond to a rapidly evolving EU partnership landscape shaped by three major dynamics: the EU's deepening strategic and financial commitment to Ukraine,  UNDP's Ukraine programme is RBEC's requiring close high-level coordination with major donors/stakeholders in Brussels; the EU's shift toward Team Europe and Global Gateway approaches to which its partners are adapting; and the central importance of RBEC's 10 EU accession countries, where UNDP's leadership in governance, rule of law and electoral support is critical to helping governments achieve key political and institutional milestones over the next five years.

The role of the Special EU Advisor is based in Brussels, and he/she will be a member of the RBEC Senior Management Team (SMT) chaired by the Assistant Secretary-General and Director of RBEC.  A close working relationship will be established with the RBEC Strategic Partnerships and Communications Team (SPC) based in Brussels, New York and Istanbul, to ensure a close connection with new and ongoing EU partnerships at the country office level which the SPC team supports.  As this position is based in Brussels and will also work and collaborate closely with the staff representing UNDP's corporate interests as managed by the Bureau for External Relations and Advocacy (BERA).

UNDP adopts a portfolio approach to accommodate changing business needs and leverage linkages across interventions to achieve its strategic goals. Therefore, UNDP personnel are expected to work across units, functions, teams, and projects in multidisciplinary teams in order to enhance and enable horizontal collaboration.
 

Duties and Responsibilities

1) Advise the Senior Management Team (SMT) and Resident Representatives (RRs) on new and emerging development and funding trends in the European Union- and affiliated- institutions:

• Advise the SMT and RRs on strategic RBEC engagement opportunities with senior-level EU officials with key EU departments and units, including the European Commission (DGENEST, FPI, DGECHO, INTPA, DGREGIO, EEAS and others).
• Collaborate with RBEC RRs and the SPC team to inform on the messaging and positioning of RBEC towards the EU institutions in Brussels, based on local EU priorities and programming.
• Undertake systematic quality and assurance of country-level proposals to the EU to ensure strategic presentation to the EU counterparts, drawing on the substantive revisions and support of RBEC's Strategy & Planning, Partnerships and Communication, and Country Support teams.
• Undertake regular analysis with the SPC Team to advise the RBEC SMT and country offices.
• Work in collaboration with the Bureau of External Relations and Advocacy which positions and liaises with EU functions to advocate and secure resources for all relevant UNDP activities to ensure advocacy and communications work is complementary to overall corporate EU engagement.

2) Provide leadership in positioning RBEC's value proposition within the region on development issues that are central to regions priorities, including peace and security, EU accession, and climate change:

• Engage early and regularly with the key EU institutions to present RBEC solutions and programmes (regional and country-level) addressing European priorities and concerns.
• Convene and oversee the planning and preparations for specific high-level engagements with EU- and policy actors and ensure that the format, content and messaging are delivered in a timely manner and for impact for the participants.
• Engage extensively in the existing EU development policy formats, representing RBEC at opportunities presented also by think-tanks, academia and CSO.
• Develop and propose new events and opportunities for collaboration with the EU institutions and wider development policy ecosystem by leveraging UNDP's RBEC's regional expertise and broad country presence across the region and with a view to co-creating solutions locally.
• Engage at senior level with the EU's strategic initiatives related to the RBEC region, including the Ukraine Facility, Moldova Facility, WB Growth Plan and Reform Agenda, the EU-Central Asia Strategy, and more, with a view to presenting UNDP's value proposition on these to the EU counterparts.  

3) Manage regular communications, visibility, reputational risk for the EU-RBEC partnership and knowledge dissemination: 

• Oversee the design and implementation of the RBEC-EU Communications Strategy that ensures that RBEC's partnerships results with the EU are socialized widely and engaging counterparts and officials at the highest levels.
• Advise RBEC country office senior management on communications with the EU institutions, helping ensure that local efforts to communicate EU-funded results and initiatives with RBEC will have maximum impact in terms of audience selection and messaging.  
• Engage early and systemically with EU counterparts and country offices to manage and contain any risks that may arise as related to partnerships with the EU institutions.
• Actively participate in global practice networks on EU partnerships and other knowledge networking forums and share relevant information with UN agencies. 

4) Advise the Senior Management Team and RBEC Resident Representatives in navigating the new partner modality landscape of the EU, including on Team Europe and the Global Gateway to effectively position UNDP with EU partners.  

• Provide RRs with strategic advice on engagement in relation to specific countries and programmes with a view to RBEC establishing a solid track record on partnerships with European development actors.
• Engage directly with EU Member States and their development actors (GiZ, AFD, Enabel, AICS, AECID and others) to promote opportunities for partnership with RBEC programmes at the country level.
• Organize regular strategic briefings to the SMT and Country Offices on partnerships with the EU institutions and providing practical advice on engaging with the EU institutions and their expectations.
• Identify and advise on RBEC's positioning in the areas of the Global Gateway priorities of digital, clean energy, climate, transport and health with a view to informing specific solutions and offers.   

Other duties: The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for efficient functioning of the organizational unit.

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: None

Competencies

Core: Full list of UNDP Core Competencies can be found here.   

1) Achieve Results:

LEVEL 4: Prioritize team workflow, mobilize resources, drive scalable results/strategic impact.

2) Think Innovatively:

LEVEL 4: Easily navigate complexity, encourage/enable radical innovation, has foresight. 
3) Learn Continuously:

LEVEL 4: Create systems and processes that enable learning and development for all. 

4) Adapt with Agility:

LEVEL 4: Proactively initiate/lead organizational change, champion new systems/processes. 
5) Act with Determination:    

LEVEL 4: Able to make difficult decisions in challenging situations, inspire confidence. 

6) Engage and Partner:

LEVEL 4: Construct strategic multi-partner alliances in high stake situations, foster co-creation.  
7) Enable Diversity and Inclusion:

LEVEL 4: Create ethical culture, identify/address barriers to inclusion.  

People Management: UNDP People Management Competencies can be found in the dedicated site. 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

1) Business Direction & Strategy 

• Strategic Thinking: Develop effective strategies and prioritised plans in line with UNDP's mission and objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, opportunities and potential risks; link the general vision to reality on the ground to create tangible targeted solutions; learn from a variety of sources to anticipate and effectively respond to both current and future trends; demonstrate foresight.

2) Partnership Management

• Emerging Partnerships: Ability to engage with emerging partners, develop and manage a strategy and develop approaches to developing and managing these new strategic partnerships. 
• Multi-stakeholder engagement and funding: Knowledge and ability to forge multi-stakeholder partnerships, and remove any obstacles to resource mobilization and multi-stakeholder funding platforms. 

3) Digital & Innovation

• Innovation Ecosystem Curation: Ability to identify key players in an ecosystem, engage with them and mobilise them to build a community and over time a movement around a common mission that can bring about changes at the system level; ability to give sense of purpose and build trust, develop programmes of activities and platforms to build and strengthen relationships.

4) Business Management: 

• Portfolio Management: Ability to select, prioritise and control the organization's programmes and projects in line with its strategic objectives and capacity; ability to balance the implementation of change initiatives with regular activities for optimal return on investment; knowledge and understanding of key principles of project, programme, and portfolio management. 

5) Business Direction and Strategy:

• Systems Thinking: Ability to use objective problem analysis and judgement to understand how interrelated elements coexist within an overall process or system, and to consider how altering one element can impact on other parts of the system

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Fluency in English is required.  
• Working knowledge of languages spoken in the RBEC region is an added advantage. 

Experience:

• Minimum of 15 years (with master's degree) or 17 years (with bachelor's degree) of experience in intergovernmental or multinational organisations such as the European Union and the United Nations or related.
• Experience of working with senior levels in the European institutions, such as the EU Commission, the Parliament, Council or broader EU ecosystem, is desirable.
• Experience at leadership-level in external relations, partnerships, and resource mobilization, is desirable.
• Demonstrated ability to prepare and present analyses on political-, development and/or thematic trends of the EU, is desirable.
• Experience in leading- or advising- on EU-funded programmes, preferably in the RBEC region, is desirable.  

Equal opportunity

As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. 

UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all.

Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority

UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. 

Right to select multiple candidates

UNDP reserves the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement.  We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with UNDP at the same grade level and with similar job description, experience and educational requirements.

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