Background

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a UN agency that works in about 170 countries and territories, helping eradicate poverty, reduce inequalities and exclusion, and build resilience. It thereby helps them sustain progress and achieve Sustainable Development Goals. In Ukraine, UNDP operates in three programme priorities: Democratic Governance and Inclusive Social Fabric, Inclusive and Sustainable Economic Recovery and Growth, and Sustainable Environment and Energy Transformation. Since the start of the hostilities in 2014 and the full-scale invasion in 2022, UNDP in Ukraine has been present on the ground, through its hubs around the country, supporting regional and local authorities and civil society partners in their emergency response and crisis management.

Lessons from the past years informed the development of UNDP’s Country Programme Document (2025-2029) and the scale-up of UNDP’s area-based work in Mykolaiv in partnership with the Government of Denmark. The programmatic pillars of reconstruction, returns, resilience and reforms, are focused on ensuring community recovery and creating conditions for the return to a development pathway in Ukraine.

Addressing the country’s complex reconstruction and recovery requires a holistic, systems-based response that empowers all parts of society - including government, local authorities, the private sector, and citizens - with the capacity and resources to respond effectively. To ensure a whole-of-society approach, the framework offers an integrated, participatory, and inclusive methodology to advance recovery in communities most affected by the war.

In this context, the Youth Engagement Associate will strengthen local dialogue and trust-building by fostering inclusive participation of young women and men in decision-making and recovery planning. Through supporting youth networks, civic activism, and volunteerism, the incumbent will enhance community resilience and social cohesion in war-affected areas. 

Regular duty trips to partner hromadas throughout Mykolaiv oblast will be required to ensure effective outreach, coordination, and monitoring of youth-led initiatives.

Duties and Responsibilities

Contribute to and support local dialogue and trust-building within communities, with a special focus on engaging young women and men and fostering interaction between them and local authorities through joint decision-making, public consultation, and hearings, especially in communities most affected by the war and displacement.

• Support the establishment of local platforms for networking, knowledge sharing, and partnership building with youth and volunteer networks, national and local authorities, non-governmental, private sector and international development organizations or projects.
• Support advocacy effort to ensure the participation of youth CSOs, leaders, and networks in meetings and consultations with regional and local administrations, departments of state institutions and city/town councils, including but not limited to community engagement mechanisms supported by UNDP; promote establishment and building capacities of youth CSOs for the monitoring of local policies, budgets and development of respective advocacy plans.
• Support organizing and carrying out regular regional and local consultations on youth inclusion and youth-led recovery planning and its implementation in partner oblasts and provide substantive inputs for the preparation and publishing of analytical reports as needed.
• Assist efforts geared towards supporting the authorities at local, district and oblast levels to implement youth-oriented communication strategies and public awareness approaches.

Contribute to the development of civic activism and a culture of volunteerism among young people.

• Contribute to the recovery, development and overall sustainable functioning of student self-government bodies, youth councils, youth-led CSOs, youth activists, and other relevant youth-oriented stakeholders through capacity-building initiatives that enhance local capacities to monitor the fulfilment of local development programs, projects and strategies and their adaptation to current realities in relation to the preservation and strengthening of the social fabric, inclusion, and local recovery in broad sense.
• Support the activities of social, cultural, volunteer networks and informal interest groups at the community level, including but not limited to local recovery planning and response to the war through a range of tools and mechanisms (including managing grants).
• Facilitate and provide full support to development of the educational institutions’ curriculum and recommendations on extra-curriculum activities in schools to promote tolerance education, self-governance and proactive engagement into civil life.
• Identify, synthesize and document best practices and lessons learned that are generated from the project and implementing partners. 

Ensure the mainstreaming of gender equality and women’s empowerment considerations in the field of expertise; promote a safe and enabling environment free of discrimination and abusive behaviour corporate standards.

• Assist with ensuring the project contributes to the promotion of gender equality by reaching, involving, and benefiting both women and men.
• Use the principles of gender-responsive communications in line with the UNDP corporate standards.
• Be aware of relevant gender issues and concerns in the field of expertise.
• Support the promotion of team culture of gender equality and zero tolerance to any sexual misconduct in the team through leadership and personal example.
• Demonstrate respect for gender equality in professional interactions, identify and address sexism and gender discrimination.
• Assist with informing and briefing personnel and partners about corporate sexual harassment and sexual exploitation and abuse policies.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization.

     Institutional Arrangement

The Youth Engagement Associate works under the direct supervision of the Youth Engagement and Volunteers Analyst. 

Competencies

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Required Skills and Experience

Min. Education requirements:

•     Secondary Education is required.
•     University degree (bachelor´s degree) in Social Sciences, Political Sciences, Psychology, Youth Work, or other relevant areas will be given due consideration, but it is not a requirement.

Min. years of relevant work experience:

 •     A minimum of 6 years (with secondary education) or 3 years (with University degree) of progressively responsible project experience in youth work and engagement or other related fields.

Experience, Knowledge, and Skills:    

•     Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel) and advance knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages, experience in handling of web-based management systems.
•     Ability and willingness to travel to the field sites in Mykolaiv oblast (Ukraine) on regular basis.

Desirable Criteria   

 •     Demonstrated experience in organizing and monitoring workshops, roundtables and similar activities aimed at facilitating community dialogues, especially those promoting the inclusion of young people from vulnerable or marginalized groups.
•     Proven experience in supporting the implementation, delivering training or facilitating community-based projects focused on youth and volunteers’ engagement.
•     Previous experience working within or in collaboration with youth infrastructure such as youth centers, youth councils, youth led civil society organizations or other relevant organizations.
•     Prior experience working with UN/UNDP or other international and national civil society organizations.

Required Language(s):     Fluency in Ukrainian and English is required.
 

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.

Scam alert

UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.