JOB DESCRIPTION

Result of Service Comprehensive and timely legal advice provided to the relevant stakeholders throughout the period of consultancy.

Work Location Hybrid(Bonn Office and Home-based)

Expected duration October 2025 to December 2026(part-time)

Duties and Responsibilities Background: Desertification, along with climate change and the loss of biodiversity were identified as the greatest challenges to sustainable development during the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Established in 1994, the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management. The Convention seeks to support countries to address Desertification, Land Degradation, and Drought (DLDD). (www.unccd.int) Duties and Responsibilities: The consultant is required to, inter alia, provide legal and governance advice to support 1) the Executive Secretary / on operations of the UNCCD Secretariat; 2) the intergovernmental negotiation process and the implementation of the Convention. The consultant will provide assistance with the preparation of legal advice on a wide range of organizational and institutional issues, including

• Assistance on the interpretation and application of UN and UNCCD rules and regulations, policies and procedures.
• Provide legal advice in the negotiation and interpretation of legal instruments, such as agreements, memoranda of understanding, host country agreements, or other legal materials relevant to the work of the Organization.
• Support the development of contracts and other legal instruments such as host government agreements in line with UN and UNCCD rules and regulations.
• Advise on substantive legal, procedural and process-related questions of considerable complexity in the context of the Conference of the Parties (COP).
• Legal research on institutional matters, involving, inter alia, engagement with governments, inter-governmental organizations, non-governmental and private sector entities.
• Provide legal advice on UN and UNCCD rules and procedures as concerns administrative and human resources requirements.
• Provide legal advice on internal justice cases, including by examining claims by or against the Organization and its officials.
• Perform extensive legal research and analysis for the preparation of legal opinions, studies, reports or correspondence.
• Participate in diplomatic conferences, as needed, and in agreement with the Executive Office, to provide legal support and advice on party issues as related to UNCCD, and the COP in particular.
• Contribute to review and design new, or different innovative applications of, legal instruments, policy, guidelines, etc.
• In addition to the above, the Consultant will be required to generally assist with other legal work as required.

Qualifications/special skills

• Advanced university degree (Master”s degree or equivalent degree) in international law is required. A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
  • Ten years of progressive experience in law, including legal analysis, research and writing is required. Experience in the area of public international law is desirable.
  • At least five (5) years in an international environment, preferably in a United Nations common system organization or other intergovernmental organization, is desirable.
  • Experience with multilateral processes in similar bodies/conventions and in providing substantive support to government or intergovernmental bodies, including subsidiary bodies thereof, is desirable.
  • Ability to work with utmost discretion in handling sensitive and confidential matters;
  • Knowledge of UN policies and procedures, including Administrative and Human Resources, procurement procedures and the Financial Regulations and Rules would be an advantage.
  • Familiarity with the UN privileges and immunities as per the General Convention and the Standard Basic Assistance Agreements would be an advantage.

Languages

• For the post advertised, fluency in English is required. Knowledge of French and or Arabic is desirable. Knowledge of another official United Nations language is desirable.

Additional Information Only individuals who can act as independent, individual economical operators are qualified to apply. Individuals who can provide their services only on account of an institution or enterprise are not eligible under this procedure. Individuals engaged under a consultancy or individual contract will not be considered “staff members” under the Staff Regulations and Rules of the United Nations Secretariat and will not be entitled to benefits provided therein (such as leave entitlements and medical insurance coverage). Their conditions of service will be governed by their contract and the General Conditions of Contracts for the Services of Consultants and Individual Contractors. Consultant and individual contractor is responsible for determining tax liabilities and for the payment of any taxes and/or duties, in accordance with local or other applicable laws. For remote consultancies, the selected candidate will be required to have a laptop or desktop PC (with Windows 10 or newer) or Mac (with the latest MacOS update), as well as a reliable, high-speed internet connection. An Office 365 license will be provided by the UNCCD to enable the candidate to access official emails, SharePoint, OneDrive and other office applications, such as Word and Excel. Further computer requirements: An antivirus application which receives regular updates; Browsers must be a newer version with regular updates enabled; Regular Windows 10 updates should be enabled with Windows laptop or PC. In addition, a mobile phone will be required to enable Multifactor Authentication (MFA) through SMS or the Authenticator App.

No Fee THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.