Background:

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

Women’s political participation is one of UN Women’s primary areas of work, recognizing the role of women’s equal participation in politics in strong and stable democratic processes and inclusive societies. It is covered under the Entity’s Strategic Plan 2026-2029 Impact Area 1 –Women’s leadership and participation in Decision-Making” and across its three Systemic Outcomes of the Strategic Plan 

The UN Women Haiti Country Office is based in Port au Prince, Haiti and works alongside over 20 other UN agencies in the country. Under its Strategic Note (SN) 2024 - 2027, UN Women Haiti focuses on delivering on four interlinked programme areas underpinned by UN Women’s Strategic Plan 2026-2029 in line with international normative frameworks: i) Governance and Participation; ii) Women’s Economic Empowerment climate resilience; iii) Ending Violence against Women and Girls; iii) Women, Peace, security and Humanitarian Action. 

Since 2025, Haiti was engaged in two political processes: a referendum process which was canceled after the new draft constitution was engendered with the support of UN Women, and elections initially planned in November 2025, now postponed in August 2026. UN Women, in coordination with UN partners is supporting these processes through the Financial contribution allocated by the Women Political Participation division (HQ).

Under the guidance and direct supervision of the Country Representative and in close collaboration with the Regional Policy Specialist  as well as the Leadership and Decision-Making team based in HQ, the Policy Specialist will ensure the successful implementation of the ongoing work in the country especially during the transition period, and establish and strengthen partnerships to ensure the election process is gender responsive and protective against electoral violence. This includes supporting the Country Office’s ongoing  programming including: i) representation  within the United Nations coordination committee for the ongoing political process; ii) support the effective application of the gender quota in line with the recommendations of the UN Needs Assessment Mission deployed in November 2024; iii) strengthen the capacities of a core group of women leaders who will be involved in the process; iv) support political dialogue; and v) resource mobilization.

Scope of Work:

1. Oversee Implementation of a governance strategy for the country including normative initiatives

• Manage the development and implementation of an integrated strategy for the delivery of technical assistance, policy advocacy and programme support in Haiti
• Coordinate programme implementation in collaboration with stakeholders at country level, at the regional and HQ levels
• Represent UN women in all meetings relating to the development of a gender profile and ongoing political process
• Develop, implement, and monitor capacity building initiatives in the context of the planned elections in Haiti.
• Conduct capacity building and substantive sessions through in-person trainings, induction, workshops, 
• Implement Women’s Political Participation (WPP) programmes aligned with corporate direction and messaging, and in compliance with UN System wide policies. 
• Provide substantive support by strengthening national institutions of development of a gender profile and engagement on gender audits and gender budgeting.

2. Support Haiti coordination mandate on Women’s Political Participation:

• Provide substantive support on WPP to UN entities in mainstreaming gender into joint programmes on electoral assistance and WPP more broadly (including Peace Building Fund projects) and strategic documents (CCA/UNSDCF).
• Guided by relevant UN policy frameworks, support gender mainstreaming into joint programming on electoral assistance.
• Coordinate high-level advocacy on WPP within relevant inter-agency task forces and support timely and quality inputs as needed to inform Senior Management’s participation in high-level meetings and other relevant task teams. 
• Build, leverage, and maintain alliances and strategic partnerships for the advancement of WPP, the civil society groups and networks, academics, and other non-governmental organizations. 
• Work closely with and provide advice to regional/ national bodies and interagency groups that influence national policies related to women’s political participation and where necessary represent UN-Women.

3. Manage advocacy, knowledge building, and sharing for Women’s Political Participation.

• Provide thematic support to the Deputy Representative and the representative 
• Provides policy recommendations and guidance to strategic planning and positioning on WPP;
• Contribute substantively and lead existing thematic and gender equality networks to better connect UN Women and partners;
• Manage research, development, and presentation of analytical reports, research papers, briefing notes, background papers, summaries, correspondence on WPP; 
• Identify promising practices, technical expertise, and strategic opportunities.
• Ensure technical skills and knowledge are shared within office.

4. Manage partnerships building and resource mobilization for Women’s Political Participation in the country

• Finalize relevant documentation on donors and potential opportunities for resource mobilization;
• Analyze and research information on donors, prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation, identification of opportunities for cost sharing;
• Provide technical support to colleagues in mobilizing resources for the implementation of WPP;
• Research and analyze information on donors; prepare substantive briefs on possible areas of cooperation;
• Manage donor relations with WPP and programmatic expectations. 

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

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

• Excellent knowledge of Women’s Political Participation (including issues related to democratic development, electoral assistance, campaigns, legal frameworks, political parties, legislatures, local government);
• Strong knowledge of Haiti and the region;
• Knowledge of the UN System;
• Excellent networking skills;
• Ability to interact with donors, identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising;
• Ability to perform qualitative and quantitative policy research;
• Ability to advocate and provide policy advice;
• Excellent analytical skills;
• Ability to write policy papers, speeches, briefings;
• Strong knowledge of programme development, implementation, results based management and reporting.

Recruitment Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

• An advanced university degree (master’s or equivalent) in political science, gender studies, law, human rights, international relations or other social science fields is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree

Experience:

• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in designing and managing programmes and advocating gender equality and WPP, ideally with some experience in developing countries, is required.
• Experience in programme, policy analysis, and strategic planning is required.
• Experience working with, and building partnerships with governments, donors and civil society organizations internationally and in the field is required.
• Experience working with international organizations preferably in the UN is desirable.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) spreadsheet and database packages, and experience in handling web-based management systems is required.
• Experience in the use of a modern web-based ERP System, preferably Oracle Cloud, is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in French is required.
• Working knowledge of English is desirable.
• Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).

Statements :

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.