Danish Embassy Jobs – Senior Adviser – Water Sector Adviser

Organisation: Danish
Embassy (DANIDA)
Project: Joint Water and
Environment Sector Support Programme Uganda
Duty Station: 
Ministry of Water and Environment/Directorate of Water Resources Management,
Kampala, Uganda
Reference number: DK-50991-2013/UGA.03-W

About US:
The Joint Water and Environment
Sector Support Programme (JWESSP) has commenced with a six months inception
phase from September 2013 to April 2014. The Water Sector
Adviser will therefore
collaborate with two Danida recruited advisers as well as with advisers recruited
by other Development Partners and the Government of Uganda.
About Joint Water and Environment Sector Support Programme:
The Government of Uganda (GoU)
and Development Partners (DPs) are implementing a
Joint Water and Environment
Sector Programme Support (JWESSP) over the 5-year period
2013-2018. The programme is a
continuation of a similar programme running from 2008 to
2013 and will support the GoU’s
effort to eradicate poverty in Uganda. In line with the mandate of the Ministry
of Water and Environment (MWE) and the merging of the two subsectors, this new
programme also incorporates support to environment and natural resources (ENR)
sub-sector. It is also intended to further harmonise and align DP support to the
sector by establishing one, co-ordinated and flexible sector programme, which
DPs will be able to “buy in” to and support components or elements
that comply with their respective policies and strategic areas of support.
Job Summary: The adviser
will support the sector in achieving its objectives by supporting the MWE management
in effectively and efficiently using the resources made available for the
sector, while contributing to improvement of alignment, harmonisation,
accountability, and transparency as well as supporting the coordination and
liaison function with a focus on capacity development. The Senior Water Sector
Adviser will have two areas of focus in supporting the MWE at large, with the
aim of strengthening the sector’s overall performance. The first focus area
will be the three sub-sectors within the Directorate of Water Development
(DWD), namely; Rural Water and Sanitation, Urban Water and Sanitation, and
Water for Production, in fulfilling their mandate. The second focus will be
support to the MWE liaison and capacity development functions, which include
the Directorates of Environment Affairs (DEA) and Water Resources Management
(DWRM).
Key Duties and Responsibilities:
The scope of work of the Water
Sector Adviser will include advisory services to DWD and
MWE at large, with the aim of
strengthening the sector’s overall performance. Emphasis will
be on the three sub-sectors of
Rural Water and Sanitation, Urban Water and Sanitation, and Water for
Production. It will include but not be limited to:
1. Improved sector performance
The Water Sector Adviser shall
contribute to strengthening the sector’s role in poverty
reduction by supporting DWD/MWE
in its efforts to:
  • Improve
    sector planning, implementation, monitoring and reporting, with a special
    focus on employing a Rights Based Approach in i) the identification and
    reduction of socioeconomic disparities and gender inequalities; and ii)
    the relevance and reliability of data and the information systems in which
    they are used;
  • Continuously
    improve the institutional, organisational, staffing and managerial
    structures of sector institutions, with the aim of enhancing their
    contributions to sector performance;
  • Maintain
    and/or establish sector funding mechanisms that are well functioning, transparent
    and accountable, and aligned to government rules and procedures;
  • Refine
    and implement the sector’s decentralisation policies, including the
    separation of functions such as implementation; regulation; policy-making;
    O&M and monitoring;
  • Actively
    involve users/consumers in the planning, financing, management and
    monitoring of water and sanitation facilities;
  • Enhance
    sector transparency and accountability at all levels, leading to a
    tangibly increased share of resources that actually benefit the
    end-user/consumer;
  • Strengthen
    the overall sector coordination and liaison function;
  • Support
    MWE in preparing inputs to the Joint Budget Support Framework/Joint Assistance
    Framework (JAF) planning and monitoring process for provision of budget support
    to the GoU;
  • Implementation
    of the sector capacity development strategy.
2. Harmonisation and Alignment
The Water Sector Adviser shall assist
DWD /MWE in:
  • Strengthening
    and consolidating SWAP arrangements, based on the Sector Investment Plan
    (SIP) as the point of departure for continuously increased alignment and harmonisation
    of contributions from JWESSP as well as non-JWESSP partners;
  • Identifying
    strategic dialogue issues for the Joint Sector Reviews and Joint Technical
    Reviews, as well as policy and strategic issues for discussion in the
    WESWG;
  • Developing
    procedures for integrating JWESSP resources in the planning, budgeting, implementation
    and reporting systems of MWE and its directorates, while ensuring that confidence
    from development partners and other stakeholders remains intact;
  • Developing
    internal DWD/MWE support mechanisms for i) coordinating the utilisation of
    JWESSP resources and ii) preparing comprehensive work plans, budgets and
    reports – based on departmental inputs – for presentation to the WESWG and
    required sub working groups as well as development partners;
  • Support
    the system of the WESWG and its sub-working groups, for interaction
    between government and JWESSP development partners, which allows strategic
    dialogue and informed decisions on work plans, budgets and reports, while
    discouraging outside involvement in tasks that are part of DWD/MWE’s
    management responsibilities;
  • Improving
    uniform reporting systems that satisfy both government and development partners;
  • Liaise
    closely with the Water Sector Adviser for the Directorate of Water
    Resources Management (SA-DWRM).
3. Strengthening the involvement of the private sector and civil
society and the regulatory function of DWD over water utilities
The Water Sector Adviser will
provide support and advice to DWD/MWE on the following issues relating to the
private sector and civil society:
  • In
    liaison with the Operation and Maintenance Adviser, carry out promotion
    and training of private operators in small towns, rural growth centres and
    rural gravity flow schemes, hereunder the private sector organisations for
    operation and maintenance of private sector managed systems;
  • Support
    to NGOs/civil society organisations through the Uganda Water and
    Sanitation NGO Network (UWASNET) Secretariat to leverage own funding, by
    empowering them to address development partners and access funds for
    sector activities directly from them;
  • Support
    to NGO/civil society through UWASNET Secretariat in their watchdog role,
    as well as in strengthening the role of the user in monitoring and
    influencing how sector resources are used at the local level;
  • Supervision
    and regulation of water authorities/utilities.
Qualifications, Skills and Experience:
  • The
    applicant should possess a master’s degree or corresponding qualifications
    in subjects relevant to the water and sanitation sector, management and/or
    public sector restructuring and reform;
  • Profound
    experience in comprehensive water and sanitation sector reform, including institutional
    reform and enhanced involvement of the private sector and civil society,
    or equivalent experience of institutional reforms in other sectors, where
    institutional reform of the public sector is combined with private sector
    and civil society involvement;
  • Strong
    experience in capacity development within public institutions;
  • Extensive
    work experience from central governments and/or donors;
  • Strong
    experience from developing countries and, preferably, Eastern Africa;
  • Fluency
    in written and spoken English;
  • Experience
    in catchment-based planning and implementation;
  • Experience
    in employing a Rights Based Approach to planning and implementation.
  • Good
    analytical skills, outgoing and robust with a pragmatic approach and
    appreciation of the dynamics in a politically managed organisation;
  • Ability
    to work as part of an interdisciplinary team with relations to different
    ministries and stakeholders.
Terms of employment: The
contract period is three years, with the third year pending budgetary
approval.  Attractive remuneration
package reflecting family status. Contribution to a pension scheme,  health insurance and reimbursement of school
fees. Free housing. Grant for relocation.
How to Apply:
Information about the mandatory
application procedure can be found at: www.danidajob.dk. Reference number DK-50991-2013/UGA.03-W
should be stated in the application.
Preliminary interviews and
personal evaluation: week 47 (18-19 November 2013). Mercuri Urval will conduct
a personal evaluation of selected candidates.
Language test: The Ministry of
Foreign Affairs has decided that all candidates called in for interview –
except for those to whom the relevant language is mother tongue – shall be
language tested in Denmark in the working languages of the duty station (i.e.
English).
Presentation to the
appointments committee: 20 November 2013.
Decision: A decision is
expected shortly after 20 November 2013.
Deadline: 24th October 2013 at 12 noon (CEST).

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