Junior National Urban Planner

Job ID/Title:Junior National Urban Planner
Brand :UN-HABITAT
Application Deadline:16-Apr-15
Duty Station :Ramallah
Languages Required :Arabic,English,   
Duration of Initial Contract :6 months
Expected Duration of Assignment :6 months

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Background:
Special Human Settlements Programme for the Palestinian People
Governments at the 19th Session of the UN-HABITAT Governing Council, adopted by consensus resolution 19/18 calling on UN-HABITAT to establish a Special Human Settlements Programme for the Palestinian People (SHSPPP) and a Technical Cooperation Trust Fund (TCTF). The long-term development objective of the SHSPPP is to improve the human settlements conditions of the Palestinian People and in so doing contribute in a modest way to reaching peace, security and stability in the region. During the recent 23rd Governing Council, a new resolution was adopted, requesting UN-HABITAT "to further focus its operations on planning, land and housing issues in view of improving the housing and human settlement conditions of Palestinians, addressing the urbanisation challenges, supporting the building of a Palestinian State, humanitarian action and peace-building, in the areas where there are acute humanitarian and development needs, identified through technical assessments by UN-HABITAT in coordination with all concerned parties";

Project Details
One of the programme components is entitled as “Planning Support to the Palestinian Communities in Area C”.  The overall goal of this component is improved resilience of Palestinian communities in Area C through sustainable local development, building rights and access to basic services. Beneficiaries are Palestinian communities in Area C (circa 300,000 residents), the Ministry of Local Government and other line ministries, as well the entire Palestinian planning community. The project is funded by the French Government and is currently implemented by UN-Habitat. This programme component also aims at implementing the Palestinian Authority’s Strategic Action Plan “Planning Support to Palestinian Communities in Area C”, which was prepared with support of UN-HABITAT.  The Strategic Action Plan assumes that there is no formal transfer of the planning authority in Area C to the Palestinian Authority. Until then, Israel maintains the formal obligation under international law to take care of the needs of the Palestinian community in Area C. It is the Palestinian Authority's prerequisite to support Palestinian communities in responding to their needs and ensuring the development of sustainable communities in Area C, which is a vital and integral part of the Palestinian territory and of the overall development of a Palestinian State.
Key stakeholders in the project are the Ministries of Local Government and Planning; Village Leaders and their Communities in Area C; Technical Staff and Management of other donor and aid organizations engaged in programmes with the Ministry and in Area C and UN-Habitat’s key NGO partner, Israeli Authorities through UNSCO.
 
The National Urban Planner will work under the overall supervision of the International Chief Technical Advisor /  and the direct supervision of the International Urban Planner/Project Manager.
He/she will be part of UN-HABITAT's Support Team to urban planning related projects. He/she will take the lead on specific expected results assigned to him/her.
He/she will build up and maintain a network of local organizations and professionals working on planning related matters, liaise with relevant counterparts with the Palestinian Authority, sister Agencies and project partners on project activities, as requested by the Project Manager.

Description of Responsibilities:
Functions / Key Results Expected
The overall goal of the aforementioned programme:
-Work closely with the Department of Planning in the Ministry of Local Government
-Network with all relevant stakeholder (through regular meetings, workshops and conferences)
-Assisting in the implementation of small scale pilot projects for herding communities in Masafer Yatta, Hebron Governorate.
-Placemaking and detail project designing, including Bill of Quantities for implementation of the pilot projects.
-Support the Department of Planning in the Ministry of Local Government.
-Follow up with planning approval process of Masafer Yatta Local Outline Plans.
-Work closely with IPCC in preparing the publication of Masafer Yatta planning documents.
-Support other activities upon request from Chief Technical Adviser and Project Manger.
-Effective involvement of women and youth in all participatory activities related to this project through the implementation of a specific gender strategy.
 Impact of Results
The Junior National Urban Planner will support the Project Manager in proper knowledge management with regard to urban planning issues in the occupied Palestinian territory, and strengthen information flow between UN-HABITAT HQ and local HABITAT partners through representation, liaison, networking, and attendance at meetings, workshops and conferences.
 
Responsibilities  
-The Urban Planner will contribute in particular to the small scale project implementation.
-The Urban Planner is expected to be able to efficiently address and adapt to unique project challenges.
-The Urban Planner should be an active resource for the interpretation of complex planning limitation in Area C and project specific restrictions.
-The Urban Planner should be seeking new opportunities to keep themselves and the planning team current and above standards. The individual should have a general understanding of ongoing projects in the office and actively seek opportunities to mentor sites design development.
-The Urban Planner should be helping with the implementation of the “Planning Support Programme to Palestinian Communities in Area C”;
-The Urban Planner should be working closely with the Management and Technical Team of the implementing partners.
-The Urban Planner should provide day-to-day administration of the planning practice.
-The Urban Planner is responsible for the successful execution of the defined objectives and plan.
-The Urban Planner is responsible to monitor and maintain an appropriate level of accountability.
-The Urban Planner is expected to organize and conduct field visits on regular basis.
 
Competencies :
 Competencies
-Commitment to Continuous Learning: Keeps informed of new professional developments; actively seek to develop oneself professionally and personally; contribute to the learning of colleagues and subordinates; show willingness to learn from others; seek feedback to learn and improve;
-Communication: strong conceptual skills combined with a proven ability to write technical and normative documents addressing a variety of audiences;
-Teamwork: must be able to operate in multicultural teams in a flexible manner;
-Accountability: should be able to perform her/his duties under pressure and with deadlines.
-Excellent planning skills.
-Good analytical skills, which means the ability quickly to identify the key subject(s) in complex and dynamic situations
-Good creative skills, that translate problems into opportunities and generate pragmatic proposals
-Good motivation and collaborative skills
-Experience with capacity building activities (teaching, consulting, programs similar to this one)
-Experience with facilitating inter-institutional cooperation, stakeholder involvement and working with teams
-Good oral and written communication skills; proficiency in spoken and written Arabic and English, while oral communication skills in Hebrew would be considered a great asset.
 
 
Qualifications :
Education:
-University degree  preferably in urban planning or related field
Experience:
- Minimum of two (2) years working experience on urban planning and or landscape designing,  and development issues,
- Previous experience  working with UN is an asset.
Other  Requirements:
-Command of and availability of technical tools (i.e. Arch GIS, CAD drawing software, etc.)
-Proficient in website and internet applications, database management, Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), image and publishing software (Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, etc.).
-Valid driving license.
 

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IMPORTANT NOTE
The contract will be administered by UNDP-PaPP on behalf of UN-HABITAT's Special Human Settlements Programme for the Palestinian People.

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