Chief Technical Specialist

The Chief Technical Specialist will provide high-level technical guidance, strategic direction, and oversight for the implementation of UNDP’s urban resilience portfolio in Central Asia. The role involves supporting the design, implementation, and scaling of initiatives related to urban resilience, disaster risk reduction, and climate adaptation, ensuring alignment with international frameworks and regional priorities.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic and technical leadership across the urban resilience portfolio, supporting the design, implementation, and scaling of both ongoing and new initiatives at regional, national, and city levels
• Provide expert technical and policy advice across all portfolio components, including establishment and strengthening of regional and sub-regional collaborative mechanisms for urban resilience and disaster coordination
• Ensure portfolio initiatives align with international best practices, regional and country priorities, and global frameworks including the Paris Agreement, Sendai Framework, and 2030 Agenda
• Work closely with Project Managers and portfolio leads to ensure strategic coherence, technical quality, and integrity across projects
• Contribute to preparation of annual progress reports, knowledge products, and technical documents
• Provide technical inputs and recommendations for portfolio activities in coordination with key partners including UNDP Country Offices and regional institutions
• Promote a cohesive and integrated portfolio approach by coordinating and aligning technical components and outputs across projects
• Provide technical direction and hands-on guidance to project teams, supporting problem-solving and enhancing portfolio performance
• Lead development and refinement of integrated approaches to climate and disaster risk assessment, urban planning, and regional resilience-building
• Introduce, adapt, and mainstream innovative methodologies and approaches for urban and regional resilience-building
• Continuously identify and integrate emerging innovations, tools, and methodologies to strengthen urban resilience
• Promote adoption and scaling of new technologies, data-driven tools, and planning approaches for urban planning and disaster risk management
• Support and guide design and implementation of urban resilience and earthquake awareness initiatives for key stakeholders
• Facilitate exchange of knowledge and best practices between project countries and international partners
• Support establishment and strengthening of regional collaborative mechanisms for urban resilience and disaster coordination
• Work with regional stakeholders to enhance coordination platforms and promote collaborative approaches to climate risks and urban resilience
• Strengthen strategic engagement with Japan and other development partners through knowledge exchange and coordinated communications
• Undertake regular field missions to programme countries to oversee implementation and provide technical support
• Perform other duties as necessary for efficient functioning of the Office and Organization

Requirements

• Advanced degree (Master´s degree or equivalent) in Development, Governance, Urban and Regional Planning, Disaster Resilience, Environmental Planning, Environmental Science, Engineering, Climatology, Economics, or related field is required, OR a first-level university degree (Bachelor’s degree) in the above mentioned fields in combination with additional two years of qualifying experience will be given due consideration in lieu of the advanced university degree
• Minimum 5 years (with Master’s degree) or 7 years (with Bachelor’s degree) of proven track record experience in project/programme management, especially in the areas of urban resilience, disaster risk reduction, disaster coordination, earthquake preparedness, climate change, urban/environmental planning, land use and physical planning
• Working experiences on urban development, earthquake preparedness, disaster coordination, as well as disaster risk reduction and climate change issues, particularly on mainstreaming efforts in the region of Europe and Central Asia
• Deep subject‑matter expertise in DRR, climate adaptation, and seismic risk – demonstrated experience advising on policy and operations, including design/piloting of innovative adaptation, DRR, and earthquake awareness/preparedness measures
• Regional coordination & mechanism-building – experience establishing/strengthening regional and sub‑regional collaboration for urban resilience and disaster coordination
• Strong communication skills, including demonstrated written and presentation skills and the capacity to relate to both internal and external constituencies of the project
• Demonstrated ability to work well in multidisciplinary teams and manage complex tasks
• Research in environment, earthquake preparedness, disaster coordination, natural resources management, climate change adaptation, urban planning, urban resilience or other relevant fields is an asset
• Experience managing projects of UN, development partners or other international organisations is an asset
• Experience in technical oversight in the areas of climate change adaptation, earthquake preparedness, resilience, disaster coordination and disaster risk management, urban studies such as urban resilience/planning, or other relevant fields is desirable
• Fluency in English and Russian is required
• Knowledge of another Central Asian language will be considered as an asset

Skills

• Project Management
• Programme Management
• Urban Climate Resilience
• Disaster Risk Reduction
• Disaster Coordination
• Earthquake Preparedness
• Climate Change Adaptation
• Urban Planning
• Environmental Planning
• Land Use Planning
• Seismic Risk Management
• Policy Advising
• Regional Coordination
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Technical Oversight
• Research
• UN Project Management
• Development Partner Coordination
• Written Communication
• Presentation Skills

Languages

English, Russian