Administration Assistant / Travel Management

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.

UNOPS strategy for Afghanistan is aimed at providing maximum support to the Government and people of Afghanistan though the delivery of projects and services in line with the government’s own priorities. The UNOPS Afghanistan Operation Center (AFOC) has been established as an organizational mechanism to deliver a range of projects for which UNOPS has been designated as the implementation agency. At present, UNOPS AFOC is implementing a number of projects in a range of sectors including infrastructure (roads and schools) development, capacity building to various ministries, and environmental protection, among others, on behalf of the Government of Afghanistan and the donor community.

Under the overall guidance and daily supervision of the HR Specialist, the Administration Assistant shall perform the following duties and responsibilities, but not limited to:

• Provision of a wide-range of travel, booking and visa services for AFOC in compliance with PQMS related to entitlement travel and official duty travel for staff members, non-staff and personnel and complemented with accurate monitoring, tracking and reporting;
• Assist in all domestic and international bookings for air travels in coordination with vendor(s) for travel management services as well as appropriate coordination with WFP/UNHAS, UNAMA and other chartered-flight carriers approved by the UN Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS);
• Validate and conduct an independent research on flight options/routes through the most direct and economical route according to the travel policy and find alternatives that would result to cost-savings for the Organization in terms of soliciting promotions and frequent-flyer rewards from air carriers and transport operators;
• Ensure that all related documentations and pre-requisites are complied with and checked against established policies and practices;
• Receive, check and process Travel Authorization (TA), booking request forms, Movement of Personnel (MOP), and other travel-related requirement and register each activity accordingly in the available travel tracking systems either online or otherwise;
• Prepare, submit and follow-through on requests for new issuance and/or renewals of visas from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and other embassies, as necessary;
• Maintain an updated contact list of counterparts for travel services, ministry offices and other UN agencies;
• In coordination with the traveller, check and verify document requirements including eligibility, DSA payments, travel claim reimbursements and security clearances, among others;
• Raise purchase orders for all travel-related activities and payments and facilitate monthly reconciliation of accounts with Finance Section;
• Perform protocol-related activities when required particularly for new arrivals, visitors, delegations and other similar arrangements while coordinating with various units for hotel, guesthouse or village accommodation, transport arrangements and security briefings;
• Facilitate dispatching of documents and/or items with courier services when required;
• Closely liaise with staff and personnel on travel status concerning entitlements, routes, rebooking, cancellations and payments, among others;

a.     Education/Experience/Language

• Secondary Diploma required. A Bachelor’s Degree in Administration, or related transport fields an asset;
• At least 4 years of relevant experience in travel administration and operations essential;
• Relevant certificates in GDS (Galileo, Amadeus, etc.) a distinct advantage;
• Proficiency in the use of computer systems and MS Office particularly Word and Excel required;
• Experience in systems particular to purchase orders, invoicing, and related financial transactions for reconciliation of accounts a distinct advantage;
• Previous experience from the UN/UNOPS or development organizations an asset;
• Knowledge of UN/UNOPS rules and regulations preferred;
• Excellent command of the English language (oral, writing and presentation).

b.     Key Competencies

• Demonstrates integrity by modeling the UN’s values and ethical standards;
• Displays cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality and age sensitivity and adaptability;
• Treats all people fairly without favoritism;
• Integrity and professionalism in performing routine and core functions;
• Proficiency in computer systems and applications, and knowledge of ERP systems on HR and Finance (payroll and purchasing)
• Knowledge of UN Rules and Regulations for various types of personnel;
• Ability to work long hours and under pressure in a stressful and multi-cultural environment;

• Capable of working with others in a participatory and capacity building manner;
• Strong communications skills and ability to work in a team to achieve organizational goals;
• Good analytical skills; resourcefulness and initiative;
• Self-motivated, versatile and adaptable to different cultures and people;
• Willingness to take on added responsibility and to build team morale and consensus;
• Strong organizational skills, and an ability to multi-task and prioritize work schedules with limited time frames;

• 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
• UNOPS seeks to reasonably accommodate candidates with special needs, upon request.
• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post
• 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.