1. Background

Mozambique is a highly susceptible country to risks and disasters. According to Global Climate Risk Index (2014), Mozambique falls in third place amongst the African countries that are most vulnerable to disasters such as, floods, droughts, tornados, epidemics, earthquakes, of small magnitude, among the most frequent and recurrent disasters.

A variety of factors contribute to the high vulnerability of Mozambique against the natural threats, namely (i) its location along the Rift Valley (one of the regions with the highest seismic activities), (ii) the vast coastal area with about 60 percent of the population and the country’s largest school network of about 2470 km (bordering one of the most active cyclonic basins southwest of the Indian Ocean), (iii) the extensive hydrographic network that guarantees food subsistence and livelihood for the majority of the Mozambican families, with nine (9) rivers of international importance flowing in the Indian Ocean, above average rainfall- largely due to tropical depressions or cyclones – and poor management of dams either in the national territory or in the countries where the rivers cause large floods that occur regularly in Mozambique.

In this sense, The United Nations for Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) in Mozambique is carrying out since 2002 pilot demonstration activities in different districts in the form of building models adapted to floods, cyclones, drought and earthquake conditions, in order to positively influence national strategy formulation and policy-making. It advocates for a prevention approach, through Adaptive Architecture and Planning; in the response, it advocates for sustainable relief and reconstruction as opposite to emergency funds exclusively channelled for short-term solutions.

Also, the activities of UN-Habitat have progressively come to include policy-support, the revision of building codes, the support in construction of community and disaster adaptive public buildings in cities and communities in Mozambique. Its portfolio includes national, local and community level activities, as well as the cooperation with, several UN agencies, such UNICEF, WFP, UNHCR, IOM and others.

With the purpose of the integration of technical resilience measures in the construction and reconstruction of school infrastructures in cyclone-prone areas, UN-Habitat will support the Ministry of Education and Culture-DIEE in the preparation, technical supervision, analysis, and quality assurance of the assessment of vulnerable educational infrastructures, as well as in the hiring process for construction companies and supervision firms for the resilient building component of educational infrastructure. Additionally, regulartechnical assistance to be provided in the supervision of works, supporting contractors in the implementation of rehabilitation and upgrading activities, and strengthening the technical capacity of Ministry of Education and Culture (MEC), DPE, and SDEJT. The entire rehabilitation process includes the integration of environmental and social safeguards.

Recognizing that disasters disproportionately affect women, girls, persons with disabilities, and vulnerable populations, and that reconstruction efforts must prioritize safety, dignity, and accessibility, UN-Habitat is committed to integrating gender sensitivity, PSEA, and disability inclusion into all aspects of its work. This commitment is particularly critical in the context of resilient infrastructure development in disaster-prone regions like Mozambique.

  1. Objectives

The National Project Manager will be based in Maputo and will support UN-Habitat with effective projects activities implementation within UN-Habitat Country Programme Project Portfolio with focus on projects related with Disaster Risk Reduction and Early Recovery Post-Cyclones. The main purpose of thisassignment is to provide overall technical guidance support to the management and implementation of the projects towards achieving the objectives and results with quality and on time. The Project Manager will ensure that all activities are conducted with a strong focus on gender sensitivity, PSEA, and disability inclusion, promoting safe, inclusive, and accessible reconstruction.

  1. Duties, Tasks and Responsibilities

Under the overall supervision of the Head of Programme for Mozambique based in Maputo, within Regional Office for Africa – ROAf, and coordination with Disaster Risk Reduction & Early Recovery Coordinator of UN-Habitat Mozambique, the National Project Manager shall:

  1. Ensure the effective project management of the assigned projects by maintaining the delivery of appropriate technical, operational, financial and administrative outputs, while tracking the project progress through monitoring, evaluation and reporting;
  • Managing and coordinating the implementation of the respective activities based on the relevant project documents, including, as needed, supervision and guidance of other project staff, consultants and experts with a view to achieving project results while ensuring gender equality, PSEA, and disability inclusion;
  • Provide technical expertise and strategic guidance to all project assuming quality control of interventions/deliverables and on time while making sure that all deliverables are designed to be inclusive.
  • Developing comprehensive/detailed project work-plans that include all project activities and roles and responsibilities of the stakeholders and setting-out corresponding milestones;
  • Monitoring the progress of implementation of project activities and key event schedules observing the work-plans and set deadlines including monitoring of the financial resources while also monitoring the implementation of gender, PSEA, and disability inclusion measures;
  • Mobilizing goods and services to support project activities, including drafting ToRs and works/product requirements and specifications;
  • Ensuring adherence of project activities to the existing financial, procurement and administrative processes that are in line with prevailing UN-Habitat and UNDP rules and regulations and, at the same time, observing the project timelines;
  • Preparing project progress reports (progress against planned activities, update on risks issues, expenditures…) and ensuring timely submission of the reports to the relevant instances including specific sections on gender-related activities, PSEA measures, and disability inclusion efforts;

 

  1. Maintaining collaborative working relationships amongst key project partners, donors and internal team through effective communication, consultation and reporting;
  • Maintaining strong relationships with the donors, implementing and other relevant partners and thematic group; (eg. Education Cluster, Shelter Cluster, MEC, MOPHRH)
  • Maintaining regular coordination and quality assurance of expert inputs and products as well as among project partners to ensure coherence and complementarity of projects and activities ensuring that all partners are aware of and adhere to gender, PSEA, and disability inclusion standards;
  • Identifying opportunities for deepening the cooperation and recommending adequate approaches to dealing with different stakeholders based on information on all relevant stakeholders gathered during projects’ implementation;
  • Maintaining regular communication on relevant project issues with the local counterparties, consultants and experts and ensuring timely delivery of all agreed outputs;
  1. Aligning the project with UN values and UN-Habitat priorities globally and at country level.
  • Ensure the principles of gender equality, protection from sexual exploitation and abuse, democratic governance, social inclusion and disaster resilience are effectively reflected in all projects activities;
  • Ensure that accessibility for persons with disabilities is reflected in all project activities, especially in the resilient reconstruction of public building as school and hospitals;
  • Consult regularly with Head of Programme, Coordinators/Chief Technical Adviser, projects and programs on related activities where synergies are possible;
  • Strive to engage groups and communities in project activities that affect them ensuring that engagement is inclusive and accessible to all;
  • Communicate project goals and activities clearly to team, stakeholders and the wider public.
  • When necessary, perform all required tasks for the smooth implementation of all activities at country level, with overall expertise, transparency and compliance to UN-Habitat mission and vision within strategic plan and country programme development while upholding the values of gender equality, PSEA, and disability inclusion

 

Ensure that all community consultations and engagement processes are inclusive and accessible to women, girls, and persons with disabilities.

  1. Qualifications/Experience/Skills

Competencies

Professionalism: Expert knowledge and understanding of practical disaster risk reduction architectural/engineering and adaptation. Ability to identify issues, analyses and participate in the resolution of issues/problems. Knowledge or understanding of countries in transition (especially Mozambique) and adaptation related challenges and priorities. Ability to conduct data collection and technical assessment using various methods, including field missions and interviews. Conceptual analytical and evaluative skills to conduct independent research and analysis. Ability to apply judgment in the context of assignments given, plan its own work and manage conflicting priorities. Shows pride in work and in achievements; 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;

Teamwork: Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals; provides 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.

Planning and Organizing: Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies; identifies priority activities and assignments; adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work; foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning; monitors and adjusts plans and actions as necessary; uses time efficiently.

Judgment/ Decision-making: Identifies the key issues in a complex situation, and comes to the heart of the problem quickly; gathers relevant information before making a decision; considers positive and negative impacts of decisions prior to making them; takes decisions with an eye to the impact on others and on the Organization; proposes a course of action or makes a recommendation based on all available information; checks assumptions against facts; determines the actions proposed will satisfy the expressed and underlying needs for the decision; makes tough decisions when necessary.

Corporate Competencies: Demonstrates commitment to UN-Habitats’s mission, vision and values; Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability.

Education, Experience and Other Skills

  • Graduated in Architecture, Territorial Planning, Civil Engineer or related areas;
  • At least 10 years of working experience;
  • Working experience with resilience, disaster risk reduction/disaster risk management.
  • Working experience in cooperation and development agencies;
  • The candidate must possess experience working with public institutions and local governing bodies, specifically in the realm of public and urban development across various provinces at a national level;
  • The candidate should have experience in project management and coordination of multidisciplinary supervision teams for large-scale projects.
  • The candidate should be fluent in writing and speaking Portuguese and have good writing and speaking skills of English;
  • Knowledge of Microsoft Office (Excel, Word, Project and Powerpoint), ArchiCAD, Autodesk, Adobe Package amongst others relevant software to perform the duties and responsibilities.
  • Proven experience as a trainer for communities and relevant stakeholders in the resilient reconstruction of public infrastructure is an advantage;
  • Demonstrated understanding of gender equality principles, PSEA, and disability inclusion and their application in development projects.
  • Experience in implementing gender-sensitive, PSEA-compliant, and disability-inclusive measures in humanitarian or development contexts is highly desirable.”
  • Experience in facilitating inclusive community consultations and training sessions, ensuring accessibility for all and knowledge of accessibility standards and best practices for persons with disabilities
  • Locally immediate availability a major asset;
  1. Contacts and Submission

For the interested candidates, please share your CV to the below address with the following subject: “Candidate for the vacancy of Senior Architect – National Project Manager”

Date for submission of application: 28th of March 2025

Electronic address for submission of application: unhabitat-moz@un.org