Overview
The Political Affairs Officer provides substantive and technical support to the Light Coordination Mechanism (LCM) and related activities within the Department of Peace Operations. The role involves gathering and analyzing information, coordinating with entities, and monitoring political developments.
Key Responsibilities
- Gathers, selects and analyses information regarding training and capacity-building providers, police-contributing countries, and field missions.
- Coordinates with UN entities and Member States to identify police training and capacity-building needs and facilitates activities to meet those needs.
- Maintains up-to-date knowledge of events by monitoring relevant documents and reports, identifying problems and issues to be addressed and liaising with relevant stakeholders.
- Keeps abreast of latest trends and developments in the area of assignment and provides inputs on issues to senior officials and colleagues in missions and elsewhere in the Secretariat.
- Monitors national and regional level political developments and provides advice to field mission/UN agencies active on the ground.
- Provides technical and substantive back up in the implementation of mandates.
- Maintains contacts with other sectors of the UN, other international organizations and governments on coordination and policy matters.
- Monitors actions taken by intergovernmental groups, UN organisations, government and non-governmental organizations.
- Participates in fact-finding and other missions to countries within assigned area of responsibility.
- Participates in provision of secretariat services to Security Council, General Assembly, subsidiary organizations, negotiating bodies, conferences, meetings, and /or special missions.
- Prepares meetings of the SG/DSG/USG with officials from countries under the Organization's purview.
- Performs other related duties as required such as coordinating activities related to budget and financing.
Required Experience
A minimum of five years of progressively responsible experience in political science, international relations, law, disarmament, security, development management, conflict resolution or related area is required. Experience with coordination, facilitation and deconfliction of UN and Member State training and capacity-building activities in support of Police contributing-countries and peacekeeping mission needs is required. At least three years of experience in training, specializing in military or police peacekeeping training standards is desirable. At least one year working in a United Nations peacekeeping mission is desirable.
Qualifications
An advanced university degree (Master's or Doctorate degree, or equivalent) in political science, international relations, international economics, law, public administration or other related fields is required. A first-level degree (Bachelor's degree or equivalent) in the specified fields of studies with two additional years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
