Spatial Planner

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 located in Kabul, supporting projects across Afghanistan, but focusing on Kunduz and Baghlan (NE region) 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 (HNRP).

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.

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 neighbouring 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.

Job Summary

While the spatial planner will support UN-Habitat’s efforts across the country, a specific focus will be on the STFA-funded joint programme in North-East Afghanistan, supporting Participatory Action for Integrated Developmental Assistance to Areas of Return.

The Spatial Planner will support the (area-based, cross-sectoral) “spatial planning approach” UN-Habitat advocates and implements, inc. the support for identification of adequate and most impactful locations for the implementation of essential services and infrastructure projects at provincial level for different UN-Habitat projects and provide spatial planning technical advice to different teams for decision-making. He/she will also provide technical assistance on spatial planning and basic services to DS partners and stakeholders where applicable and assist the Provincial Team Leader to ensure that infrastructure projects under the DS program are implemented according to schedule and the applicable standards.

Reporting Relationships:

The Spatial Planner will report directly to the National Programme Manager(s) with close supervision of the International Programme Manager with collaboration with other team members and project partners

Duties & Responsibilities

• Support participatory settlement/urban needs assessment reports and spatial plans for target neighbourhoods for UN-Habitat projects in Afghanistan. 
• Support the different projects in the identification, design, planning and implementation of essential services and infrastructure projects at provincial level and for the UN-Habitat main office, including the integration of gender-sensitive approaches.
• Support participatory, community driven processes and Community Action Planning (CAPs) for prioritized, costed, and climate-adaptive infrastructure/community initiatives based on spatial planning considerations.
• Provide technical assistance on urban/spatial planning and basic services to DS partners and stakeholders as applicable for the joint programme in NE and other projects.
• Assist the Provincial Team Leaders in the development and implementation of project workplans, as well as monitoring and quality control of infrastructure projects.
• Support the co-ordination and consultation with DS partners and stakeholders in consultation with the Provincial Team Leader.
• Support technical guidance documents underlining the role of spatial planning for re-integration and population growth, climate adaptation, gender mainstreaming, and community engagement as applicable. 
• Provide inputs to joint program monitoring and evaluation reports.
• Contribute to the development of new ideas, concepts, innovations and approaches for the delivery of DS program at provincial level, advocating for spatial planning as a tool for coordination of sectoral interventions.
• Advance any other spatial profiling related work assigned by program teams.
• Carry out any other tasks assigned by the Provincial Team Leader, National Program Manager or the International Program Manager

Job Requirements

Competencies

Professionalism: Ability to identify sources for data collection as needed for spatial planning. 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.

Communication: Speaks and writes clearly and effectively; listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately; asks questions to clarify and exhibits interest in having two-way communication; tailors’ language, tone, style and format to match audience; demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

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 decisions, even when such decisions may not entirely reflect their own position; shares credit for team accomplishments and accepts joint responsibility for team shortcomings.

Qualifications:

1.   Education:

a.   A bachelor’s degree in architecture, Urban Planning, Urban Design Urban Studies, related fields with 6 years of relevant work experience are required including in emergency/ post-crises or conflict settings

2.   Experience:

·        Minimum 6 years of experience in managing and coordinating field activities, particularly in post-conflict/developing country contexts, 2 years relevant experience with master’s degree, if possible working experiences with the UN.

Previous work experience in community-based development programs is highly desired.

·        Demonstrated expertise in participatory planning, community infrastructure, gender mainstreaming, and climate adaptation.

·        Knowledge of relevant settlement design software like AutoCAD, Adobe package, 3D modelling software like Sketchup. Knowledge of GIS is an added value.

·        Previous work experience in settlement planning and/or infrastructure rehabilitation and development is required.

·        Proficiency in the use of computer packages and internet for project work and communication is required.

·        Previous work experience in community-based development programs is required.

3.   Skills:

a.   Ability to manage multiple priorities under pressure in politically and culturally sensitive environments.

b.   Excellent problem-solving, conflict resolution, and communication skills.

c.    Willingness to travel extensively in challenging conditions.

4.   Language:

English and French are the working languages of the United Nations Secretariat. For the post advertised, fluency in oral and written English and a Local/National Language of the duty station is required.

5.   Other: 

Build support with project partners and relevant stakeholders as needed ensure high-quality and timely achievement of relevant activties and targets;  support UN-Habitat's contribution to multi-stakeholder / interagency coordination and advocacy forums; Support 'learning by doing' capacity development efforts throughout the programme period with programme partners for improving local safety and security, especially for women, youth and marginalised urban groups; Support coordination with other partners’ programmes in target cities

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 2025-06-250) 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

Architecture

Urban Planing

Countries

Afghanistan

Provinces

Kabul

Submission Email

hr-kbl-hab@un.org

Attachments

P11 -English.doc

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