Project Analyst-Gender and Safeguards [Open to internal and external applicants]

Tiered Approach

In line with the commitment to safeguard capacity and support personnel already in the Organization, a majority of UNDP UNCDF/UNV vacancies are advertised using a tiered application process whereby:

• Tier 0: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV IP staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments, whose posts will be abolished, or contracts will be terminated or not renewed during 2026.
• Tier 1: Other UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding permanent (PA) and fixed-term (FTA) appointments
• Tier 2: UNDP/UNCDF/UNV staff holding temporary appointments (TA), personnel on regular PSA contracts, and Expert and Specialist UN Volunteers
• Tier 3 or no tier indicated: All other contract types from UNDP/UNCDF/UNV and other agencies, and other external candidates

Please make note of the Tier(s) indicated in the vacancy title, if any, and ensure that you satisfy the eligibility to apply.

Background

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UN's global development network, an organization advocating for change and connecting countries to knowledge, experience, and resources to help people build a better life. UNDP Cambodia Country Office (CO) works in partnership with the Royal Government of Cambodia (RGC), non-government organizations, civil society organizations, community-based organizations, multilateral aid agencies, bilateral donors, and the private sector to accelerate the achievement of Cambodia Sustainable Development Goals (CSDGs) and other national development priorities as set out in the Pentagonal Strategy for realizing the national vision 2050.

In Cambodia, the UNDP Country Programme Document 2024-2028 (CPD) identified three transformational shifts as priorities for support during the next 5 years. The first shift is toward an economic growth model that accelerates inclusive growth, economic diversification, and human development. The second shift involves championing just energy transition, climate action, and nature-based solutions as the foundation for national wealth, well-being, and resilience to shocks. The third shift is towards strengthening institutions, civic space, and participation as enablers for inclusive growth, access to rights, and equal opportunities for all, whilst ensuring that society at large is using the full potential of digital transformation. The CPD is aligned to national priorities and policies, particularly Cambodia’s Vision 2050 and the Pentagonal Strategy-Phase 1 2024-2028.

The Cambodia Early Warning for All (EW4All) project, under Shift 2, is designed to advance UNDP’s climate resilience agenda and contribute to the broader UN commitment to ensure that every person on Earth is protected by life-saving early warning systems by 2027. This initiative aligns with the UN Secretary-General’s global call to strengthen early warning capacities as a critical measure to safeguard communities from escalating climate risks.

Cambodia remains highly vulnerable to climate-related hazards, including floods, droughts, and extreme weather events that continue to threaten lives, livelihoods, and hard-won development gains. The EW4All project responds directly to these challenges by supporting national efforts to build a more resilient, inclusive, and anticipatory disaster risk management system. The EW4All seeks to establish an effective Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (MHEWS) that ensures timely, accessible, and actionable warnings for the most vulnerable populations across four target provinces: Ratanakiri, Kratie, Stung Treng, and Banteay Meanchey.

Approved in February 2025, the project takes a comprehensive, system-wide approach to strengthening Cambodia’s early warning capabilities. It focuses on enhancing governance and coordination, improving disaster risk knowledge, upgrading observational and monitoring systems, and strengthening dissemination mechanisms and early action protocols. The initiative will address critical gaps throughout the early warning value chain and build on existing national platforms, including the Platform for Real-time Impact and Situation Monitoring (PRISM) and the Cambodia Disaster Loss and Damage Information System (CamDi).

The project aligns with Cambodia's National Action Plan on Disaster Risk Reduction (NAP-DRR) for 2024-2028. It is implemented under UNDP's Direct Implementation Modality (DIM) in close coordination with key national institutions, including the National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM), Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology (MoWRAM), and the Ministry of Environment (MoE), UN agencies including United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), World Food Programme (WFP), and International Telecommunication Union (ITU), intergovernmental agencies (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent-IFRC and Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System-RIMES), and NGOs including People in Need (PIN) and Action Aid Cambodia

Duties and Responsibilities

The Project Analyst-Gender and Safeguards reports to the Project Manager and is responsible for supporting day-to-day operations and ensuring quality assurance in project implementation. The incumbent works closely with relevant ministries and partners to support the planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of project activities.

The incumbent will collaborate closely with:

• The Social and Environmental Standards Expert to receive technical guidance on safeguards implementation and coordination approaches.
• The Project Associate to ensure effective operational and administrative support.
• The Project Analyst-M&E to support monitoring and reporting on safeguards compliance and coordination activities.
• Responsible Parties implementing the three project outputs to facilitate effective coordination and safeguard compliance.

The Project Analyst-Gender and Safeguards may be invited to attend Project Board meetings to report on cross-output coordination challenges or safeguard issues requiring Board’s attention.

The Project Analyst-Gender and Safeguards serves as the cornerstone of the project's coordination function within the project structure. This position ensures coherence across the three project outputs, prevents duplication of efforts, and facilitates sharing information between Responsible Parties, while also ensuring that environmental and social safeguards, as well as gender considerations, are fully integrated throughout all project activities.

Specific responsibilities include:

Perform day-to-day management/coordination of the projects:

• Under the overall guidance from the Project Manager, work with assigned Responsible Parties to coordinate the execution of the work plan to achieve the targets, including working with the teams to implement and achieve the targets;
• Support to Develop annual work plans and budget and ensure that the proposed activities are aligned with overall project objectives, country programme, and strategic plan;
• Monitor the implementation of the activities by partners, and provide guidance and inputs to them as required;
• Coordinate and contribute to the preparation of reports and other documents, writing up demarcated sections and editing overall to ensure structural sequencing and flow;
• Support to develop terms of reference for all required consultancies and personnel, and participate in the procurement processes;
• Coordinate with different partners to prepare Letters of Agreement, Memorandum of Understanding, Low-Value Grants, etc.;
• Contribute to the preparation of Board meetings and other meetings relevant to the EW4All initiatives, contribute to preparation of minutes and other documentation, and ensure that recommendations made by the Project Board are addressed;
• Coordinate evaluations, audits and spot-checks, as needed;
• Develop an annual work plan and budget and ensure that the proposed activities are aligned with overall project objectives, country programme, and strategic plan;
• Coordinate the execution of the work plan to achieve the targets, including working with the teams to implement and achieve the targets;

Coordinate activities among partners and other stakeholders:

• Establish and maintain structured coordination mechanisms between the three project outputs delivered by Responsible Parties, including government institutions (NCDM, MoWRAM, and MoE) and UN agencies/NGOs (UNDRR, RIMES, WFP, People in Need, IFRC, and Cambodian Red Cross);
• Facilitate and monitor monthly coordination meetings within each output (internal coordination), and convene quarterly inter-output coordination meetings, along with bi-annual resource allocation reviews, to ensure systematic information sharing without operational overload;
• Develop and implement integrated planning cycles that combine procurement schedules, training programmes, and stakeholder engagement activities across outputs to prevent duplication and maximize efficiency;
• Establish and monitor shared resource management protocols with clear procedures for equipment sharing, joint procurement opportunities, and coordinated technical expertise deployment;
• Create and maintain unified communication frameworks to ensure consistent messaging and stakeholder engagement approaches whilst respecting each output's technical specialization;
• Identify potential areas of duplication or conflict between outputs and facilitate resolution through appropriate coordination mechanisms;
• Document and share best practices, lessons learned, and innovations across outputs to promote cross-fertilization of ideas and approaches;
• Coordinate and contribute to periodic project reporting processes by producing timely progress reports—quarterly, semester, and annual performance reports, both internal and external, as per UNDP and donors’ requirements.

Gender, Environmental, and Social Safeguards Management:

• Lead the implementation of the project's Environmental and Social Management Plan/Framework (ESMP/ESMF) and other Safeguards instruments, ensuring full compliance with UNDP Social and Environmental Standards (SES) policy and other applicable legal and institutional frameworks (including national law);
• Monitor progress in the development and implementation of all SES-related plans, ensuring that UNDP's SES policy requirements are fully met, including those in the project's Funded Activity Agreement (FAA) with the Green Climate Fund;
• Manage and coordinate all SES-related plans and their implementation across all project activities and Responsible Parties;
• Serve as the Grievance Redress Mechanism (GRM) focal point for receiving, registering, and coordinating responses to grievances;
• Validate and, as needed, update the project's Social and Environmental Screening Procedure (SESP) at appropriate intervals, and update other SES instruments as necessary and in line with the FAA;
• Ensure full disclosure of SES instruments with concerned stakeholders, in line with UNDP SES policy;
• Identify, avoid, mitigate, and manage environmental and social risks throughout project implementation, particularly for activities involving small works (repairs and upgrades to safe spaces, provision of latrines, handrails, ramps, solar panels, and drilling of small wells for water monitoring);
• Work closely with the Project Officer-M&E to ensure reporting, monitoring, and evaluation encompass the project's safeguards, including reporting to UNDP as appropriate;
• Implement and monitor the Indigenous Peoples Plan (IPP) for project beneficiaries, ensuring meaningful consultation and engagement with indigenous communities in project sites, particularly in Ratanakiri, Kratie, and Steung Treng provinces;
• Ensure that safeguards and gender considerations are integrated into the training of Women Livelihood Groups (WLGs) and other community-based structures involved in early warning dissemination.

Facilitating knowledge management and sharing:

• Ensure regular assessment of strategy, implementation, and action plans to identify key areas for improvement and guide future project plans;
• Exercise sound judgment in all project communications, ensuring they meet the needs of different audiences including government and private sector stakeholders, etc.;
• Manage stakeholder expectations and participate in communication activities to inform stakeholders of progress and issues;
• Establish and maintain a friendly internal communication system to ensure smooth communication among and between the project partners;
• Support the process of knowledge creation and dissemination related to national, regional, and global know-how in the areas of project focus, including sustainable development;
• Help build the knowledge base, data, and support analytics to deliver a NAP DRR, EW4All roadmap, and operational case to the Government;
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of the programme knowledge networks and practices, and development of knowledge products; and
• Participate in meetings with global Project Management Unit (PMU), governments, and national and international forums.

The incumbent performs other duties within their functional profile as deemed necessary for the efficient functioning of the Office and the Organization

Competencies

Core competencies

• Achieve Results: LEVEL 1: Plans and monitors own work, pays attention to details, delivers quality work by deadline
• Think Innovatively: LEVEL 1: Open to creative ideas/known risks, is pragmatic problem solver, makes improvements
• Learn Continuously: LEVEL 1: Open minded and curious, shares knowledge, learns from mistakes, asks for feedback
• Adapt with Agility: LEVEL 1: Adapts to change, constructively handles ambiguity/uncertainty, is flexible
• Act with Determination: LEVEL 1: Shows drive and motivation, able to deliver calmly in face of adversity, confident
• Engage and Partner: LEVEL 1: Demonstrates compassion/understanding towards others, forms positive relationships
• Enable Diversity and Inclusion: LEVEL 1: Appreciate/respect differences, aware of unconscious bias, confront discrimination

Cross-Functional & Technical competencies

Business Direction & Strategy

• Strategic Thinking - Develop effective strategies and prioritised plans in line with UNDP’s mission and objectives, based on the systemic analysis of challenges, opportunities and potential risks; link the general vision to reality on the ground to create tangible targeted solutions; learn from a variety of sources to anticipate and effectively respond to both current and future trends; demonstrate foresight.

Business Management

• Results-based Management - Ability to manage the implementation of strategies, programmes, and projects with a focus at improved performance and demonstrable results. Knowledge and understanding of relevant theories, concepts, methodologies, instruments, and tools.
• Project Management - Ability to plan, organize, prioritize and control resources, procedures and protocols to achieve specific goals.
• Partnerships Management - Build and maintain partnerships with wide networks of stakeholders, Governments, civil society and private sector partners, experts and others in line with UNDP strategy and policies.
• Monitoring and Evaluation: 2030 Agenda: People 2030 Agenda: Engagement and Effectiveness Required Skills and Experience Education: Experience: Desired skills Required Languages Equal opportunity As an equal opportunity employer, UNDP values diversity as an expression of the multiplicity of nations and cultures where we operate and, as such, we encourage qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply for roles in the organization. Our employment decisions are based on merit and suitability for the role, without discrimination. UNDP is also committed to creating an inclusive workplace where all personnel are empowered to contribute to our mission, are valued, can thrive, and benefit from career opportunities that are open to all. Sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse of authority UNDP does not tolerate harassment, sexual harassment, exploitation, discrimination and abuse of authority. All selected candidates, therefore, undergo relevant checks and are expected to adhere to the respective standards and principles. Right to select multiple candidates 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. Use of AI by candidates Applicants are invited to read UNDP’s guidance for candidates on using AI responsibly in UNDP recruitment and selection Scam alert UNDP does not charge a fee at any stage of its recruitment process. For further information, please see www.undp.org/scam-alert.
  • Ability to systematically monitor results of strategies, programmes, and activities with a view to make sure that they are being implemented effectively; Ability to provide managers and key stakeholders with regular feedback and reporting on the consistency or discrepancy between planned activities and programme management and results.
  • Ability to make independent judgment of the management and results of strategies, programmes and activities based on set criteria and benchmarks, keeping in mind the needs and concerns of client, current and upcoming.
  • Knowledge and understanding of monitoring and evaluation frameworks, concepts, methodologies, systems, processes, and tools. Ability to make an independent judgement based on set criteria and benchmarks. Ability to anticipate client's upcoming needs and concerns.
  • Gender - Gender-responsive Disaster Risk Reduction and Management
  • Effectiveness - Social and Environmental Standards
  • Advanced university degree (master’s degree or equivalent) in Gender Studies, Social Sciences, Development Studies, Public Policy, Environmental/Social Safeguards, Disaster Risk Management, Early Warning System, Climate Change Adaptation, or related fields is required. OR
  • A first-level university degree (bachelor’s degree) in the areas mentioned above, in combination with an additional two years of qualifying experience, will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree.
  • A field of study (master’s or bachelor’s) directly related to the subject area of Disaster Risk Management or Early Warning System will be an added advantage.
  • Applicants with a Master’s degree (or equivalent) in a relevant field of study are not required to have professional work experience.
  • Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) are required to have a minimum of two (2) years of relevant professional experience in project coordination, monitoring, and reporting or implementation support within development programmes/ projects.
  • Experience in project management, including design, implementation, coordination, monitoring, and evaluation of development projects;
  • Experience in stakeholder engagement, and facilitating multi-stakeholder collaboration;
  • Experience in gender mainstreaming and working with indigenous communities in Cambodia;
  • Experience in implementing environmental and social safeguards, preferably within climate change adaptation or disaster risk management and early warning projects;
  • Experience working with UN, UNDP, donor agencies, and other international development organizations, donor agencies;
  • Demonstrated experience and knowledge of UNDP Social and Environmental Standards (SES) or similar safeguards frameworks of other international organizations.
  • Fluency in Khmer and English is required.
  • Working knowledge of indigenous languages would be an advantage.