Background

Persons with disabilities in Montenegro continue to face systemic barriers that limit their full and active participation in social, economic, and political life. Despite the country’s ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) in 2009, the current legal framework and practices remain rooted in a fragmented, medicalized approach that acts as a bottleneck to equitable access to entitlements and services, perpetuating inequality, exclusion, and inefficient use of public resources. 

At the root of these challenges lies the outdated medical model of disability determination, which focuses on diagnosis rather than the interaction between individuals and their environment, and support needs. This narrow approach excludes many people whose disabilities do not fit standard medical categories. Beneath this are persistent institutional weaknesses. More than fifty commissions currently operate across five sectors—social protection, employment, pension and disability insurance, education, and war veteran protection—each applying different criteria. This fragmentation leads to inconsistent decisions, duplication of effort, and excessive administrative costs. The absence of a unified digital infrastructure and a national e-Registry of persons with disabilities further limits data collection, evidence-based policymaking, and coordination among institutions. These structural inefficiencies are reinforced by outdated public attitudes that perceive disability as a deficiency rather than a rights issue. 

Furthermore, the fragmented system of numerous separate cash benefits available to persons with disabilities further complicates the exercise of basic rights for persons with disabilities and their family members. These benefits are administered by different institutions using unaligned eligibility criteria and procedures. The benefit amounts are not based on the actual additional costs of living with a disability, resulting in significant disparities and inadequate support. The administrative complexity also places a heavy burden on both beneficiaries and social welfare staff. For instance, a recipient of travel assistance must visit a social welfare centre up to 12 times per year to access the benefit, illustrating the inefficiency and inaccessibility of the current model.

To address these deep-seated issues, the Government of Montenegro, with technical support of UNDP and financial support from the European Union, implemented the National Disability Determination Reform Project in period 2020–2025. The project achieved important results that laid the foundation for a modern, unified and human-rights-based system. A new legal framework for disability assessment was developed and adopted in October 2025, marking a historic step toward a fairer, simpler and more transparent process. The new Law on Unified Disability Assessment introduces a new approach to disability determination, focused on assessing the interaction between an individual’s impairment and environmental barriers to determine the support required to ensure equal participation. In parallel, seven sectoral laws in the fields of social protection, employment, pension and disability insurance, war veteran protection, and education were harmonized to ensure consistency across all areas of governance. A national definition of persons with disabilities, fully aligned with the UN CRPD, has been integrated into the legal framework, replacing outdated and stigmatizing terminology. This contributes to strengthening the understanding of disability as a human rights issue rather than a medical condition, and to transforming societal attitudes towards persons with disabilities. Institutional reform has also been advanced through the establishment of the Institute for Disability Assessment, a specialized national body that will replace more than fifty existing commissions and deliver a single decision applicable across all sectors. The project supported the preparation of the Institute’s founding acts and bylaws, defined its organizational structure and procedures, and provided support for adaptation and equipping of premises, including procurement of necessary hardware equipment.

These achievements represent a turning point for disability rights in Montenegro: as of July 2026, the unified disability assessment system will allow persons with disabilities to access their rights through a single assessment procedure, significantly reducing administrative burdens while improving accuracy, fairness, and targeting of public resources. 

However, to fully realize the potential of these advancements, further steps are required. The adoption of supporting legal frameworks and the establishment of the Institute for Disability Assessment are just the initial stages of this transformation.  Therefore, through the second phase of the Project titled Support to the Reform of Disability Assessment and Introduction of the Inclusive Allowance (the Project), UNDP is supporting the Ministry of Social Welfare, Family Care and Demography to fully operationalize the new system by developing and strengthening the institutional and digital capacities of the Institute and introducing the Inclusive Allowance, ensuring equitable and needs-based financial support for all persons with disabilities.

Reforming the disability determination system is a national priority embedded in Montenegro’s Reform Agenda and central to the modernization of the social protection system. It directly supports the country’s EU accession commitments under Chapter 23 (Judiciary and Fundamental Rights) and Chapter 19 (Social Policy and Employment) including obligations under the Reform Agenda, as well as fulfilling its obligations under the UN CRPD. At the same time, it contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly SDG 1 on ending poverty, SDG 10 on reducing inequalities, SDG 5 on gender equality, and SDG 16 on building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions.

Duties and Responsibilities

Within this framework, the project will engage a Project Associate to provide comprehensive support to the respective Project Analyst in all programmatic, administrative and technical aspects of project implementation. The Project Associate will also provide support in coordination of all other activities within the projects of Human Development and Social Inclusion Cluster (HDSI Cluster) with a focus on strengthening the inclusion of persons with disabilities across relevant policies and programmes.

Under the direct supervision of the Project Analyst for Disability Determination Reform and overall supervision of the Team Leader for Human Development and Social Inclusion in UNDP Office in Montenegro, the incumbent will carry out the following main tasks:

Provide support to implementation/delivery of all aspects of the respective projects’ annual workplans:

• Provide support to the Project Analyst on all programmatic, administrative, and technical aspects of projects.
• Develop various work plans for the components of the assigned projects and be responsible for their implementation.
• Provide support to the Project Analyst on all programmatic aspects including by contributing to strategic inputs and ensuring disability and gender responsive policy planning and reporting, institutional capacity building.
• Support the vendors and the stakeholders to deliver timely and in quality manner. Coordinate activities with the line stakeholders - the line Ministries, institutions ensuring timely and successful implementation of the activities defined by the Project document. 
• Promote coordinated actions among the stakeholders, networking and smooth communication flow between all the actors for optimal results. 
• Provide technical inputs and advise on preparation/implementation of project documents/activities, including definition of information requirements, data gathering and analysis.
• Support the Project Analyst in the preparation of various regular reports such as narrative/programmatic progress reports, updates, etc.
• Support the Project Analyst in coordination and information exchange with all clusters in the Office to ensure synergies within the country office programme.
• Support the Project Analyst in development and implementation of projects’ communication and visibility plans to effectively promote project and its achievements to relevant stakeholders, including the media, government, private sector, academia, and the general public, using diverse and innovative communication channels and tools.
• Support knowledge building and knowledge sharing through participation in the trainings for the operations/project staff and sound contribution to knowledge networks and communities of practice.

Provide support to implementation of day-to-day Project duties/activities:

• Contribute to the preparation of all necessary project documents/plans.
• Implementation of action plans and assigned tasks including the field visits, as applicable, to monitor progress on a regular basis, including regular reporting to the Project Analyst.
• Assist in identifying relevant sources of expertise for project/activity implementation.
• Timely raise and inform Project Analyst on any issue that may arise during the project implementation and advice on potential adjustments of actions and procedure in light of changing requirements and needs.
• Provide logistical and coordination support for project-related meetings, events, and study visits.
• Provide support to implementation of procurement related activities in line with UNDP rules, regulations and policies.
• Support the coordination and implementation of timely recruitment and deployment of experts to support implementation of projects.
• Support the Project Analyst in the formulation and update of project risks, issues, monitoring, evaluation as well as targets and results and provision of regular updates in Quantum.
• Draft correspondence, minutes of the meeting, interviews, evaluations, feedbacks, inputs, etc., in accordance with the standard office procedures and practices and ensure appropriate follow-up; 
• Liaise with all relevant national and international stakeholders and partners, including UN agencies.
• In cooperation with the Communications Unit, assist in promotion of the project’s visibility.

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 Project Associate will be under the direct supervision of the Project Analyst for Disability Determination Reform and overall supervision of the Team Leader for Human Development and Social Inclusion. The incumbent will be based in UNDP Country Office in Podgorica.

Competencies

Core Competencies:

• Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
• Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements 
• Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
• Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible 
• Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
• Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination 

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies 

Business Management 

• Communications:
  • Communicate in a clear, concise and unambiguous manner both through written and verbal communication; to tailor messages and choose communication methods depending on the audience. 
  • Ability to manage communications internally and externally, through media, social media and other appropriate channels. 
• Project Management:
  • Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
• Customer Satisfaction/Client Management:
  • Ability to respond timely and appropriately with a sense of urgency, provide consistent solutions, and deliver timely and quality results and/or solutions to fulfil and understand the real customers' needs.
  • Provide inputs to the development of customer service strategy.
  • Look for ways to add value beyond clients' immediate requests.
  • Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.

External Relations and Advocacy General 

• Event Planning and Execution:
  • Ability to plan, manage and execute public events to ensure that they support and amplify individual communications and advocacy initiatives, as well as UNDP's overall brand and mandate.

Business Direction and Strategy

• Effective Decision Making:
  • Take decisions in a timely and efficient manner in line with one’s authority, area of expertise and resources and taking into consideration potential wider implications. 

2030 Agenda: Prosperity

• Inclusive Growth:
  • Social Inclusion 

2030 Agenda: People

• Gender:
  • Gender Equality and Institutional Transformation

Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Secondary education is required;
• University Degree (Bachelor’s Degree) in Social Sciences, preferably in Public Administration, Political Science, Law, Public Policy or a related field will be given due consideration but is not a requirement.

Experience:

• Minimum 7 years (with secondary education) or 4 years (with Bachelor´s Degree) of relevant project coordination working experience.

Required Skills:

• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc), advanced knowledge of spreadsheet and database packages.

Desired Skills:

• Experience in working in the area of inclusion of people with disabilities. 
• Experience in developing project proposals.
• Experience in project coordination, reporting and project monitoring and evaluation.
• Experience in working in the area of institution building and strategic planning. 
• Experience in working on projects implemented in cooperation with international organizations, government institutions, private sector entities, or civil society organizations.
• Experience in incorporating gender equality into projects. 

Required Languages:

• Fluency in English and Montenegrin 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

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