The UN General Assembly, and all its 193-member countries, in September 2015 adopted a global development vision entitled Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This 2030 Agenda was designed as a plan of action for people, planet and prosperity. It lays out 17 new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets, to stimulate global action over the next 15 years on issues critical to humanity and the planet. India committed to these SDGs at the September 2015 UN Summit and the SDGs officially came into force on 1st January 2016. The Government of India has actively engaged in mainstreaming the SDGs in its work from early 2016. NITI Aayog, the National Institution for Transforming India, has been entrusted with the responsibility of coordinating the efforts on SDGs with ministries and states, indicative of “whole of government” approach. NITI Aayog has prepared an Action Agenda (3 Years) and is preparing medium term perspective plan (7 years) and long term (15 years) goals for the country through a 15-year vision document for a period up to 2030, which will be co-terminus with Sustainable Development Goals. NITI Aayog has also developed the Output Outcome Monitoring Framework – OOMF. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has prepared the draft National Indicator Framework (NIF) consisting of 306 indicators. Based on 62 high priority indicators, NITI Aayog has prepared an SDG India Baseline Index in the year 2018 in which the State of Punjab is in the category of ‘Performer’. NITI Aayog is now in the process of publishing the SDG India Index Baseline Report 2.0 for the year 2019.
The UNDP India Country Programme Document CPD (2018-2022) signed with the Government of India (GoI) aims at transformative change and development impact at scale. In line with this, UNDP has initiated active support to many state governments in mainstreaming SDG’s within their schemes and programmes as a part of an UN system wide to SDG roll out for visioning and planning in India. UNDP has done some pioneering work on localizing SDGs in States like Uttarakhand, Haryana, Assam, Madhya Pradesh and North East. The focus of the agency is to support the States in Localisation & Integration and to provide technical capacity in the implementation framework for SDGs. In view of India’s commitment to the 2030 Agenda, the Economic and Statistical Organisation (ESO), Department of Planning has come up with vision document focusing on sectoral growth aligned with SDGs and is in the process of developing State Indicator Framework also. State level consultations are underway to align the global goals with the planning process of the State.
To implement the ambitious targets set for itself in SDG VISION 2030, the Government of Punjab is partnering with UNDP to establish SDG Coordination Centre (SDGCC) under Punjab State Board for Economic Policy and Planning reporting to the Department of Planning. UNDP is putting together a team of experts to be a part of the PMU in SDGCC and work closely with relevant government departments, technical agencies, UN agencies, civil society organization and academic institutions to provide the requisite impetus to the state government’s initiative in rolling out the SDGs. The team is expected to catalyse the actions around achieving the Global Goals by 2030 by performing the role of a think tank and solutions provider to the State.
The services of a Programme Associate are required to support project planning, budgeting and implementation of project management activities to ensure smooth functioning of the SDGCC. The associate is also expected to assist the SDGCC Project Head to collaborate with government departments, UN agencies and other stakeholders
to achieve the deliverables identified for the SDGCC.
Summary of Key Functions
Duties and Responsibilities
Under the supervision of the SDGCC Project Head, the incumbent will –
Knowledge and Skills
· Promotes and enforces ethics and integrity and creates precedence in good practice
· Demonstrates corporate knowledge and sound judgment
· Self-development, ability to take initiative, adopt a corporate approach to complex situations
Creates and promotes an enabling environment for open communication.
Functional Competencies
· Effective organizational and problem-solving skills and ability to manage a large volume of work in an efficient and timely manner
· Ability to establish priorities and to plan, coordinate and monitor (own) work
· Ability to work under pressure, with conflicting deadlines, and to handle multiple concurrent projects/activities
· Good spoken and written communication skills, including ability to prepare clear and concise reports
· Sound coordination skills and knowledge of IT-based platforms
· Ensure compliance of rules and procedures of Government and UNDP
· Document innovative strategies and new approaches
Demonstrate ability to identify problems and proposes solutions
Educational Qualifications
Master’s degree in public policy/ Economics/Business Economics/ Public Administration/ Public Finance/ Commerce/ Business Administration/ Management
Experience
· At least 3 - 5 years’ of relevant experience in one or more of the following areas: -Programme Management, Policy Formulation, Financial Management, Public Procurement, Operations, Monitoring and Evaluation, Business Outreach, Administration.
· Excellent written and oral Communication skills and knowledge of Computer Skill sets including Internet and Office
· Experience in handling of web-based management systems
Prior experience working on SDGs will be preferred
Language Requirements
Fluency in written and oral English is a must. Knowledge of Punjabi and Hindi will be an asset.
Remuneration package is INR 77,809 per month (taxable). UNDP also offers additional benefits which include medical insurance coverage and limited pension reimbursement for contract holder and encourages work life balance.
UNDP strives to have a workforce which reflects diversity and gender balance, and applies an equal opportunities approach. All selection is on merit
Important applicant information
All posts in the SC categories are subject to local recruitment.
Applicant information about UNDP rosters
Note: 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.
Workforce diversity
UNDP is committed to achieving diversity within its workforce, and encourages all qualified applicants, irrespective of gender, nationality, disabilities, sexual orientation, culture, religious and ethnic backgrounds to apply. All applications will be treated in the strictest confidence.
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Contract Duration: 12 months (renewable for 2 more years based on performance and funds availability
This vacancy is archived.