National Programme Coordinator

About UN-Habitat

The United Nations Human Settlements Programme, UN-Habitat, is the agency for human settlements. It is mandated by the UN General Assembly to promote socially and environmentally sustainable towns and cities. The UN-Habitat Afghanistan country office is part of the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (ROAP). The position is in Kabul provinces, Afghanistan.

Learning from the experience in the last 30 years and recognizing the realities of the current context in the country, UN-Habitat in Afghanistan designs and implements projects in settlements of all sizes, putting the needs of people first, targeting the most vulnerable and meeting local needs by focusing on area-based and community-driven outputs. The portfolio currently covers projects ranging from humanitarian responses to supporting recovery and meeting basic human needs. UN-Habitat collaborates closely with the UN country team as well as with technical and financial partners in Afghanistan, in alignment with the UN Strategic Framework for Afghanistan (UNSFA) and the Humanitarian Needs and Response Plans (HRNP).

Afghanistan is experiencing a continuous humanitarian crisis, with over half a million people in the need of humanitarian assistance. Many people are displaced due to climate change, internal displacement or massive returns from neighbouring countries, and many have sought refuge in the relative safety of cities, which are growing rapidly. The number of people living in unplanned, underserviced and informal settlements, including in risk prone areas, is increasing and living conditions as well as access to services is inadequate. The unfolding crisis in Afghan cities, which is accelerated by climate change impacts and natural disasters, is occurring in a context of underlying vulnerabilities, including infrastructure deficits, insecure livelihoods and pervasive tenure insecurity. Most at risk are displaced people in informal settlements, with women, disabled and ethnic minorities being particularly vulnerable.

UN-Habitat applies a participatory and community-driven approach, using participatory spatial planning and action planning processes to enable communities to identify and implement priority service and  infrastructure investments to support their socioeconomic recovery processes and creating an enabling environment for durable solutions. UN-Habitat's community-cantered “People's Process” is a proven and effective approach to reduce vulnerability at scale in the Afghan context. UN-Habitat builds upon its long tradition of partnering with communities in informal settlements to create sustainable and safe settlements, improve living conditions and adequate livelihood opportunities to those most in need and is, due to its mandate, strongly advocating and implementing area-based approaches.

About the Project:

Since the Taliban takeover of government on 15th of August 2021 and given the increasing numbers of internally displaced people (IDPs), the operational and programmatic context for the UN system in Afghanistan has changed significantly. The level of programmatic and institutional risk is much higher. The provision of basic needs and preserving livelihoods are critical for reducing the rapidly growing demand for humanitarian aid and emergency relief. The gradual progress that has been made over the last 20 years including gains in human rights, education, gender equality, health, social protection, and livelihoods are at risk of being lost, especially for women and other vulnerable groups. These factors not only impact the economy, human security, and social cohesion, but are also potential drivers of further conflict and violent extremism.

Learning from the experience in the last 30 years, and recognizing the realities of the current context, the UN in Afghanistan has outlined the need for an integrated, innovative and highly agile approach, one that puts people first, targets the most vulnerable and meets local needs by focusing on saving livelihoods and improving living conditions, including those in areas of high returns from neighboring countries such as Pakistan and Iran.

The Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (STFA) has been established to serve as an inter-agency mechanism to enable donors to channel their resources and coordinate their support to the people of Afghanistan and the UN joint programs developed under it, including projects implemented by UN-Habitat.

Under the STFA funded project, a recent focus has been put on creating an enabling environment for displacement affected communities (DFA), including in areas of high returns, such as in the North. While Durable Solutions for returnees is an important entry point, climate change and women empowerment are among the main areas of focus for the STFA, in addition to the below four key pillars,

(i)                Provision of essential basic services and infrastructure: the rehabilitation of essential infrastructure and services is key to establishing and maintaining liveable conditions in vulnerable areas,

(ii)              Community livelihoods and local economic activities: the revitalization of local economies is an important dimension of the ability of communities to cope in the current environment while also addressing the drivers of the vulnerabilities they face,

(iii)            Disaster and climate resilient critical infrastructure: due to years of environmental degradation and dependence on agriculture and natural resources for sustenance, Afghan communities are highly prone to intense and recurring natural hazards such as flooding, earthquakes, snow avalanches, landslides, and droughts, and

(iv)             Community planning for resilience and social cohesion: to protect development gains, ABADEI interventions will support the development of community-led needs-based socio-economic assessments and recovery plans that promote reconciliation and prevent conflict, improve access to justice, support alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, and protect the rights of women and girls.

Job Summary

The National Program Coordinator, based in Kabul, will be responsible for the day-to-day planning and coordination of project activities in the field. He/she will spend up to 50% of his time on duty visiting project locations, monitoring project activities, and applying lessons across projects and project locations and ensuring the efficient and effective implementation of projects. He/she will provide technical and operational support at the project locations and ensure that project teams deliver outputs according to the workplan and results framework.

Reporting Relationships

The National Porgramme Coordinator will report directly to the National Program Manager (Kabul).

Duties & Responsibilities

• Prepare project workplans and review and revision as required in consultation with the Provincial Team Leaders and project partners; develop and adjust work plans and strategies based on project progress, lessons learned, changing contexts, and feedback from stakeholders.
• Manage staffing and project resources at project locations in consultation with the Provincial Team Leaders.
• Ensure that project activities are implemented as planned, project milestones are met, and targets completed as per the workplan and results framework; address any operational, logistical, or technical challenges that arise and develop solutions collaboratively.
• Ensure co-ordination and consultation with project partners and stakeholders as well as with other UN-Habitat programs at provincial level.
• Coordinate the flow of project information between the provincial project teams and project management in Kabul.
• Facilitate exchange of ideas and experiences between provincial project teams through open consultation to ensure linkages and coherence between the technical, operational, and social aspects of the program. 
• Support monitoring, evaluation and reporting through data to assess project performance and inform decision-making.
• Regularly assess project risks and constraints; develop and implement mitigation strategies.
• Monitor the security situation in project areas and provide relevant guidance to project staff.
• Support and facilitate the establishment of community-based organizations inc. LICS in the different regions and facilitate good relations with community-representatives and members.
• Supervise the processes of action planning and project selection in collaboration with community representatives in coordination with the Provincial Team Leaders.
• Ensure the timely submission of project progress reports by the Provincial Team Leaders.
• Monitor the progress of project activities closely and evaluate the progress towards the achievement of target regularly.
• Represent UN-Habitat in coordination forums at national and provincial level as adequate.
• Carry out other tasks assigned by the National Program Manager and the International Programme Manager

Job Requirements

Competency

Professionalism: Ability to identify and resolve budgetary problems and identify sources for data collection. Shows pride in work and in achievements; demonstrates professional competence and mastery of subject matter; is conscientious and efficient in meeting commitments, observing deadlines and achieving results; is motivated by professional rather than personal concerns; shows persistence when faced with difficult problems or challenges; remains calm in stressful situations. Takes responsibility for incorporating gender perspectives and ensuring the equal participation of women and men in all areas of work.

Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise; is willing to learn from others; places team agenda before personal agenda; supports and acts in accordance with final group decision, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Client Orientation: Considers all those to whom services are provided to be “clients” and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view; establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect; identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions; monitors ongoing developments inside and outside the clients’ environment to keep informed and anticipate problems; keeps clients informed of progress or setbacks in projects; meets timeline for delivery of products or services to clients

Qualification & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree with 12 years of relevant work experience OR Master’s degree with 5 years qualifying work experience is required.
• Strong experience working with the UN, including UN-Habitat, is required.
• Previous work experience in project implementation, coordination, and/or management is required.
• Good knowledge and skills in project operations and/or coordination, as well as proficiency in the use of computer packages and internet for project work and communication is required. 

Language:

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the advertised post, fluency in oral and written English is required. In addition, fluency in a local language is required.

Submission Guideline

Interested Afghan National Candidates should submit the following required documents.

1.A cover letter that shows how your qualifications and experience meet the VA requirement. 2.Update P11 form for individual contractor (IC) that contains all your information to the

(hr-kbl-hab@un.org) indicating on the SUBJECT line the vacancy number of the position, please note that applications received after the closing date (05 July 2025) will not be given consideration. Only short-listed candidates whose applications respond to the above criteria will be contacted for an interview.

Note: Subject line must be: (VA 2025-06-249) or your application may not be considered.

Submission Email: hr-kbl-hab@un.org  

For more details about UN-HABITAT and UN-HABITAT Afghanistan Country Programme refer Website: www.unhabitat.org and www.unhabitat.af

Functional Area

Project Management

Countries

Afghanistan

Provinces

Kabul

Submission Email

hr-kbl-hab@un.org

Attachments

P11 -English.doc

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