Associate Civil Engineer At UNOPS

Kenya Multi-Country Office (KEMC)

UNOPS KEMC helps partners achieve their project goals in sectors including: governance, education, health, the environment, grant management and rural development.

UNOPS Kenya Multi-Country Office (KEMC) has over twenty years of experience working in East Africa, including large scale infrastructure projects. With a flexible and responsive presence throughout the region, UNOPS is able to scale up rapidly, through various mechanisms into high risk areas which have proven to be beneficial to partners.
Background Information – Job-specific

The Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) of the US Department of State is actively engaged in Kenya’s efforts to professionalize its national police service. These efforts will make Kenya’s law enforcement agencies more capable of performing their duties and support the counter-terrorism operations in the region.

One of the capacity development interventions is the INL/ Kenya project that aims to improve infrastructure facilities for the Crisis Response Team (CRT), a key unit in Kenya’s security response. INL/ Kenya signed a Letter of Agreement with the UNOPS- Kenya Multi Country Office to undertake the construction and remodelling works. The project site is located in Ruiru, approximately 30 km from Nairobi in the northeast.

** Functional Responsibilities

The incumbent will be responsible for the following substantive tasks. The tasks would involve the following but not limited to:

1. General construction Supervision and Management
2. Reporting and Administrative Support
3. Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing
4. General construction Supervision and Management
5. Support the Supervisor in the supervision of the Contractor’s construction activities.
6. Provide support for the maintenance of QA/QC reports throughout the implementation, including stage testing and verification of activities completion sign offs and the preparation and collection of data as input for completing of hand over documentation and O&M plan
7. Support the project team in monitoring of performance of quality, quantity and timeliness of construction works;
8. Assist the project team in checking quality of work done and contents of all necessary documentations;
9. Reporting and Administrative Support
10. Ensure accurate and timely reporting of progress of works
11. Support the project team in inspection of the quality of the construction materials,works and documentation.
12. Support the project team in ensuring that works documentation is kept according to the stipulated format.
13. Maintain the cooperation with the project team and contractor
14. Participate in site coordination meetings with the contractor, project team and other stakeholders as necessary
15. Knowledge Building and Knowledge Sharing
16. Assist with projects evaluation process; highlight challenges associated with the project and feedback into a continuous improvement cycle.
17. Contribute to training and knowledge transfer to national/contractor personnel including advice on good construction and engineering practices, environmental management practices, and appropriate health and safety standards during construction.
18. Contribute to the dissemination and sharing of best practices and lessons learned for development planning and knowledge building.
19. Participate in the relevant Communities of Practice, actively interact with other Engineers and the Engineering community to share case studies, lessons learned and best practice on the Knowledge System

Final Product

Assist in ensuring project design and construction quality is high, observing all local/international and UN standards applicable and all relevant health and safety procedures are adhered to.

** Education

• A secondary school certificate or equivalent qualification is required;
• A Technical/Professional Diploma or equivalent in Civil & Structural Engineering from an accredited institution is an asset and may be accepted in lieu of respective years of experience ;
• A Bachelor’s Degree in Civil & Structural Engineering from an accredited university is a distinct advantage and may be accepted in lieu of respective years of experience
  .

** Experience

• A minimum of four (6) years of relevant working experience in construction is required;
• A minimum of four (6) years of relevant working experience in Civil and Structural Engineering Design is required;
• A minimum of three (3) years Field experience is required;
• A minimum of one (1) year of experience using AutoCAD is required.

** Languages

Fluency in English (writing, reading and speaking) is required.

** Competencies

Integrity and Inclusion: Treats all individuals with respect; responds sensitively to differences and encourages others to do the same. Upholds organizational and ethical norms. Maintains high standards of trustworthiness. Role model for diversity and inclusion.

Leading self and others: Acts as a positive role model contributing to the team spirit. Collaborates and supports the development of others. For people managers only: Acts as positive leadership role model, motivates, directs and inspires others to succeed, utilizing appropriate leadership styles.

Partnering: Demonstrates understanding of the impact of own role on all partners and always puts the end beneficiary first. Builds and maintains strong external relationships and is a competent partner for others (if relevant to the role).

Results Orientation: Efficiently establishes an appropriate course of action for self and/or others to accomplish a goal. Actions lead to total task accomplishment through concern for quality in all areas. Sees opportunities and takes the initiative to act on them. Understands that responsible use of resources maximizes our impact on our beneficiaries.

Agility: Open to change and flexible in a fast paced environment. Effectively adapts own approach to suit changing circumstances or requirements. Reflects on experiences and modifies own behavior. Performance is consistent, even under pressure. Always pursues continuous improvements.

Solution focused: Evaluates data and courses of action to reach logical, pragmatic decisions. Takes an unbiased, rational approach with calculated risks. Applies innovation and creativity to problem-solving.

Effective communication: Expresses ideas or facts in a clear, concise and open manner. Communication indicates a consideration for the feelings and needs of others. Actively listens and proactively shares knowledge. Handles conflict effectively, by overcoming differences of opinion and finding common ground.

** Additional Considerations

• Please note that the closing date is midnight Copenhagen time
• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only those candidates that are short-listed for interviews will be notified.
• Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• Work life harmonization – UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands. We have a progressive policy on work-life harmonization and offer several flexible working options. This policy applies to UNOPS personnel on all contract types
• This is a local post. As such, it is only open to Kenyan Nationals.
• This position is based in a family duty station.
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few Mandatory Courses (around 4 hours) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS.
• The incumbent is responsible to abide by security policies, administrative instructions, plans and procedures of the UN Security Management System and that of UNOPS.

It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential recruits/interns.
Recruitment/internship in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.

** Contract type, level and duration

Contract type: Local Individual Contractor Agreement (LICA) Contract level: LICA 6/ ICS 6
Contract duration: Ongoing ICA – ‘Open-ended, subject to organizational requirements, availability of funds and satisfactory performance.’

For more details about the ICA contractual modality, please follow this link:
https://www.unops.org/english/Opportunities/job-opportunities/what-we-offer/Pages/Individual-Contractor-Agreements.aspx

** Background Information – UNOPS

UNOPS is an operational arm of the United Nations, supporting the successful implementation of its partners’ peacebuilding, humanitarian and development projects around the world. Our mission is to help people build better lives and countries achieve sustainable development.

UNOPS areas of expertise cover infrastructure, procurement, project management, financial management and human resources.

Working with us

UNOPS offers short- and long-term work opportunities in diverse and challenging environments across the globe. We are looking for creative, results-focused professionals with skills in a range of disciplines.

Diversity

With over 4,000 UNOPS personnel and approximately 7,000 personnel recruited on behalf of UNOPS partners spread across 80 countries, our workforce represents a wide range of nationalities and cultures. We promote a balanced, diverse workforce — a strength that helps us better understand and address our partners’ needs, and continually strive to improve our gender balance through initiatives and policies that encourage recruitment of qualified female candidates.

Work life harmonization

UNOPS values its people and recognizes the importance of balancing professional and personal demands.