Mission and objectives

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes and advocates at the local, national, and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation. IFAD-supported projects promote prosperity, food security and resilience by connecting rural poor people to the finance, markets, technology and knowledge they need to address their biggest challenges. We catalyse public and private investments, advocate for policies that empower rural people and their institutions, and promote innovation in order to achieve lasting, systemic change for rural communities in every region of the world. Throughout our work, we emphasize the importance of inclusion and equity, focusing special attention on gender and groups that are often overlooked, like youth, Indigenous Peoples and persons with disabilities. We strive to foster an organizational culture built around these values. Furthermore, as a results-driven organization, we conduct rigorous monitoring and evaluation to assess our impact and scale up what we know works. That’s one of the reasons we are a top-rated development organization. IFAD is the only UN agency exclusively dedicated to transforming agriculture, rural economies and food systems. We invest in the millions of people who are most at risk of being left behind: poor, small-scale food producers living in rural areas.

Context

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency dedicated to eradicating rural poverty and hunger. It does so by investing in rural people. IFAD finances programmes and projects that increase agricultural productivity and raise rural incomes and advocates at the local, national, and international level for policies that contribute to rural transformation. The Department of Country Operations (DCO), under the leadership of an Associate Vice-President, is responsible for the overall programme of loans and grants of the Fund and is composed of five (5) regional divisions, the African Agricultural Transformation initiative (AATI), the Private sector operations Division (PSD) and the South-South and triangular Cooperation Unit (SSTC). This position is located in the APR division (Islamabad, Pakistan) and the incumbent works under the direct supervision and management guidance of the Country Director of the Pakistan Country Office. For 48 years, IFAD has been investing in poor rural women and men in Pakistan, with a focus on enabling vulnerable populations to adapt their livelihoods to climate change, improving value chains and market access for small-scale producers, and empowering marginalized groups economically and socially. The country programme has successfully demonstrated comprehensive models for poverty alleviation by combining social mobilization, livelihood development, and financial inclusion. IFAD Pakistan. IFAD’s Pakistan portfolio is the largest in IFAD financing among all the IFAD-assisted countries with total financing of over US$ 1 billion. It is managed by the IFAD Country Office located in Islamabad, Pakistan, led by the IFAD Country Director. The country programme currently includes five ongoing projects: 1. Southern Punjab Poverty Alleviation Project (SPPAP) 2. Economic Transformation Initiative Gilgit-Baltistan (ETIGB) 3. Gwadar-Lasbela Livelihoods Support Project Phase II (GLLSPII) 4. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Rural Economic Transformation Project (KP-RETP) 5. Sindh Coastal Resilience Project (SCRP). The Programme Management Specialist (UNV) will support the IFAD Pakistan Country Office in programme coordination, portfolio monitoring, mission findings follow up, knowledge management and liaison with project stakeholders. The position will contribute to strengthening implementation support, documentation, reporting and coordination across IFAD financed projects in Pakistan. The incumbent will provide technical and coordination support to programme activities related to rural development, climate resilient livelihoods, rural enterprise promotion and inclusive value chain development. The assignment is designed to complement the work of the Country Office by providing additional capacity for coordination, analysis and knowledge management, while offering the UN Volunteer an opportunity for professional learning, exposure to IFAD operations, and contribution to development initiatives.

Task Description

Under the supervision of the Pakistan Country Director, the incumbent will: • Portfolio Implementation and Programme Support.  Support implementation of IFAD’s country programme activities and contribute to alignment of project interventions with national priorities.  Support preparation of technical inputs, background notes and analytical materials related to agricultural development, rural livelihoods and poverty reduction initiatives.  Support selected activities related to project design and preparation, including background research, technical documentation, data consolidation and stakeholder consultations under the guidance of IFAD staff.  Support the implementation and monitoring of IFAD financed projects in Pakistan to ensure effective delivery of results and alignment with IFAD policies and procedures.  Support supervision, implementation support, project completion and portfolio review missions through coordination, documentation, analytical support and follow-up of agreed actions under the guidance of IFAD staff.  Assist in tracking portfolio performance indicators and contribute to identifying implementation issues for discussion with the country team and Project Management Units (PMUs).  Provide coordination and technical support to PMUs in follow up of project activities, reporting requirements and implementation related tasks  Support efforts to strengthen climate resilience, sustainable natural resource management and inclusive rural economic development across the IFAD portfolio. • Effective and Efficient Coordination, Partnership, and Knowledge Management.  Support coordination and communication with government institutions, development partners, civil society organizations and other stakeholders involved in rural development and poverty reduction initiatives.  Assist in maintaining communication and information exchange with counterparts and partners to support collaboration, coordination and knowledge sharing across programme activities.  Support preparation of briefing materials and participate in relevant technical and policy meetings, workshops and events related to IFAD supported activities, as requested by the Country Office.  Assist the Country Office to analyse evidenced based recommendations from projects to link the realities on the ground and the voices of the poor with the policies and programmes of the government.  Provide regular updates and information to the Country Director on relevant technical discussions and contribute to knowledge management and information sharing through preparation of summaries, presentations, briefing notes and internal updates. • Others.  Undertake other tasks as assigned by the Country Director to support the effective implementation of IFAD’s country programme in Pakistan.

Competencies and values

• Planner, organiser and time manager. Understands corporate objectives, effectively planning activities and projects well in advance and adjusting to changing circumstances. Adherence to deadlines under time constraints and pressure, ability to coordinate and manage complex workflows from in-house and external teams • Performer. Ability to work independently and under pressure to meet deadlines. Commitment to personal performance and self-development. • Teamwork. Capacity to foster teamwork and establish harmonious working relationship in a multicultural environment. Establishes good working relationship with clients and colleagues in a multicultural environment. • Effective communicator. Works effectively with others to meet mutual goals, builds networks, listen and communicates effectively to engage others. Strong communication and interpersonal skills. • Analytical competence. Demonstrate strong analytical skills with good accuracy and attention to detail and ability to research and synthesize qualitative and/or quantitative data from a variety of sources and filter out key insights and recommendations. • Initiative and good judgment. Good sense of proactive initiative taking and good judgement. • Computer skills. Good working knowledge of Windows-based computing (Word, Excel, Power point etc.), and electronic communication is required. • Ethics. Knowledge and understanding of IFAD Code of Conduct, Discipline and Anti-harassment, Anti-corruption provisions and applicable rules/guidelines are required

Living conditions and remarks

As this is a national UNV assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. UNV Field Unit will help you open a Pak rupee bank account with Standard Chartered Bank or any other local bank at your duty station. Assignment remarks: This is a national UNV assignment, and a Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) of PKR 183,920 is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Life health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents), as well as final repatriation (if applicable) and resettlement allowance for satisfactory service.