Administrative Assistant, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, N-PPSA6 3 views

Background:

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security.

UN Women exists to advance women’s rights, gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls. As the lead UN entity on gender equality, we shift laws, institutions, social behaviours and services to close the gender gap and build an equal world for all women and girls. We keep the rights of women and girls at the centre of global progress–always, everywhere. Because gender equality is not just what we do. It is who we are.

UN Women Country Office in the Kyrgyz Republic was established in 2012 to support the Government and other national stakeholders in implementing international and national commitments on gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls, including the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, UN Security Council resolutions on women, peace and security, and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Guided by the UN Women Strategic Plan and the Country Strategic Note, and operating within the framework of the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) 2023–2027, the National Gender Equality Strategy until 2030, and the National Action Plan on UNSCR 1325, the Country Office leverages its triple mandate of normative support, UN system coordination and operational activities to deliver coherent and impactful results.

UN Women Kyrgyzstan implements a programme that promotes women’s leadership and meaningful participation in all spheres of public and private life; eliminates all forms of violence against women and girls; advances women’s full, equal and effective participation in the peace and security agenda and in all aspects of decision-making; strengthens financing for gender equality; and expands women’s economic empowerment. The Country Office also prioritizes gender-responsive humanitarian action, disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation, and increasingly applies innovation and systems approaches in line with the SDG transformation agenda. UN Women Kyrgyzstan works as a learning and knowledge-sharing organization and promotes an open, collaborative spirit with partners, ensuring synergies across programme interventions, fostering strong and inclusive partnerships, and maintaining a client-focused, results-oriented approach fully consistent with UN Women policies, rules and procedures. 

Reporting to Country Representative, the Administrative Assistant supports the office operations by performing a variety of standard administrative processes ensuring high quality and accuracy of work. The Administrative Assistant promotes a client, quality and results-oriented approach. The Administrative Assistant works in close collaboration with the Operations, Programme and projects teams to ensure consistent service delivery and to resolve complex administration related issues and information delivery.

Scope of Work:

1- Provide general administration and operations support to the CO in compliance with UN Women rules, regulations, policies, and procedures: 

• Organize shipments, customs clearance arrangements, and prepare documents for UN Women shipments (received/sent); 
• Arrange travel and hotel reservations, prepare travel authorizations, process requests for visas and Daily Subsistence Allowance (DSA), identity cards and other documents; 
• Provide administrative support to conferences, workshops, retreats; 
• Provide administrative support to maintenance of premises and common services; and
• Maintain filing system ensuring safekeeping of confidential materials, as necessary.

2- Coordinate and organize assets management and procurement processes:

• Monitor and maintain office stationery supplies including maintenance of stock list of stationery, distribution of stationery and keeping a log of distribution; 
• Coordinate assets management in the office, prepare and submit periodic inventory reports, coordinate physical verification of inventory items;  
• Provide inputs to the preparation of procurement plans for the office and monitor their implementation; 
• Generate procurement related reports; research and draft responses to enquiries; 
• Review procurement requests and initiate procurement procedures for office and project equipment, supplies and services; 
• Organize procurement activities and processes, including preparation and conduct of Request for Quotations, Invitations to Bid or Requests for Proposals, the opening and evaluation of tenders; 
• Coordinate contract negotiations, prepare request for award of contract for the review and approval of relevant authorities, as required; 
• Prepare Purchase Orders (PO) and contracts in and outside Quantum system, create vendor profiles in Quantum system; 
• Review procurement processes conducted by projects; submissions to the Procurement Review Committee. 

3- Coordinate and organize administrative Human Resources services:

• Provide information and guidance to management and personnel on HR strategies, rules, and regulations;
• Maintain and update position data in Quantum, including association of positions to chart of accounts (COAs), COA information, and follow-up with Finance on payroll issues for contracted personnel;
• Create and upload vacancy announcements and organize interview panels; 
• Maintain up-to-date staffing lists, personnel files, and related HR reports;
• Manage attendance and leave for all personnel (FTA, SC, SSA), including monthly attendance sheets, and maintain leave records and balances for national FT/SC holders;
• Provide HR administrative support to international and national staff, including renewal of UNLPs and visas, contract extensions, administration of national benefits and allowances, and home leave entitlements;
• Support recruitment and administration of national and international consultants under the Special Service Agreement (SSA) modality;
• Support implementation of the office learning plan and follow up with all personnel on completion of mandatory trainings;
• Coordinate and support orientation/induction sessions for newly hired staff;
• Prepare staffing and personnel-related reports and draft responses to HR-related enquiries for clearance by the Operations Manager.

4- Provide Executive support to the head of office 

• Provide high-quality executive support to the UN Women Country Representative, including calendar management, scheduling, and coordination of travel and accommodations.
• Handle and screen calls with discretion and maintain an up-to-date roster of Country Office contacts.
• Provide support for meetings, events, and workshops, including organization, participation as needed, preparation of minutes/summaries, and compilation of briefing materials.
• Facilitate effective communication and information flow between the Country Representative’s Office and other UN Women offices, ensuring timely responses to inquiries and correspondence.
• Draft and format routine correspondence and maintain well-organized electronic and hard-copy filing systems for easy document retrieval.
• Support external relations and partnership activities by facilitating interactions with partners and coordinating logistical arrangements for high-level visits and missions.
• Provide translation and interpretation support in Russian, English, and Kyrgyz for meetings, documents, and communications as required.

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

Supervisory/Managerial Responsibilities: N/A 

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

• Ability to administer and execute administrative processes and transactions
• Ability to perform work of confidential nature and handle a large volume of work
• Strong knowledge of administrative rules and regulations
• Strong IT and web-based management systems skills
• Ability to extract and interpret data

Minimum Qualifications:

Education and Certification:

• Completion of secondary education is required. 
• Bachelor’s degree in business administration or related fields is desirable.

Experience:

• At least 6 years with secondary education or 3 years with bachelor’s degree of progressively responsible experience in administration, procurement, HR, or logistic support service is required.
• Experience in the usage of computers and office software packages (MS Word, Excel, etc.) is required.
• Experience in the use of a modern web-based ERP System, preferably Oracle Cloud, is desirable.

Languages:

• Fluency in English is required.
• Fluency in Kyrgyz required is required.
• Knowledge of another official UN language is desirable (French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish).

Statements :

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.