UNOPS

The Asia Pacific Regional Office, based in Bangkok, Thailand, provides strategic leadership and oversight for UNOPS operations across 17 countries, ensuring high performance, operational excellence, and alignment with organizational goals. Operations currently span Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Pacific Islands. Across these countries, we work closely with key stakeholders to strengthen partnerships and maximize impact through five main operating units: Afghanistan (AFCO), Myanmar (MMCO), South Asia Multi-Country Office (SAMCO), East Asia and Pacific Multi-Country Office (EAPMCO), and the Asia Regional Health Cluster (ARHC). Through these entities, we provide agile, client-focused service delivery across diverse sectors - including infrastructure, health, procurement, and project management - supporting the implementation of sustainable development solutions across the region.

UNOPS Myanmar is one of UNOPS’ leading offices in Asia, acting as the fund manager for some of the largest development programmes in the country. In addition, UNOPS is the Principal Recipient for the Global Fund in Myanmar and for the Global Fund’s regional artemisinin-resistance initiative towards the elimination of Malaria, which works to accelerate progress toward malaria elimination in the Greater Mekong sub-region. UNOPS provides procurement, infrastructure, and project management services to a wide range of organizations in the country, including international development partners, other UN agencies, NGOs, and INGOs. UNOPS plays a critical role in ensuring that the quality of services provided to its partners meets stringent requirements of speed, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness.

LIFT is embarking on a new strategic period for 2024-2028. The LIFT 2024-2028 Strategy builds on the achievements of LIFT's experience as well as recent adaptations and learning in the face of a changing and dynamic context. The new Strategy outlines an approach to tackle structural drivers of poverty and vulnerability, while also considering immediate interventions to secure and maintain Myanmar's previous development gains. LIFT has proven itself as a key delivery partner across Myanmar’s changing contexts – ranging from post-Nargis recovery, economic and rural development at a time of transition, and relief support during COVID-19. LIFT is managed by the United Nations Office for Projects Services (UNOPS) and has received funding from 16 international donors. The current donors are the United Kingdom, the European Union, Switzerland, Australia, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, and Denmark.

LIFT is embarking on a new strategic period for 2024-2028. The LIFT 2024-2028 Strategy builds on the achievements of LIFT's experience as well as recent adaptations and learning in the face of a changing and dynamic context. The new Strategy outlines an approach to tackle structural drivers of poverty and vulnerability, while also considering immediate interventions to secure and maintain Myanmar's previous development gains. LIFT has proven itself as a key delivery partner across Myanmar’s changing contexts – ranging from post-Nargis recovery, economic and rural development at a time of transition, and relief support during COVID-19. LIFT is managed by the United Nations Office for Projects Services (UNOPS) and has received funding from 16 international donors. The current donors are the United Kingdom, the European Union, Switzerland, Australia, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, and Denmark.

Under the direct supervision of the Programme Management Specialist (Fund Board and Financial Inclusion), the Programme Management Senior Officer will play a substantive technical and programmatic role in advancing LIFT’s financial inclusion portfolio. The position will provide analytical depth, sectoral insight, and strategic support across initiatives focused on microfinance, inclusive finance mechanisms, and domestic capital mobilisation, contributing to the overall quality, coherence, and effectiveness of LIFT’s interventions.

The role is designed to strengthen LIFT’s capacity to engage with complex financial inclusion ecosystems by supporting the development, refinement, and adaptive management of inclusive finance approaches that respond to evolving market dynamics, conflict-affected operating environments, and the needs of underserved populations. This includes providing technical input on service delivery models, partner approaches, and portfolio-level learning to enhance outreach, resilience, and sustainability of financial inclusion outcomes.

The Programme Management Senior Officer will provide analytical depth, sectoral insight, and strategic support across initiatives focused on microfinance, inclusive finance mechanisms, and domestic capital mobilisation, contributing to the overall quality, coherence, and effectiveness of LIFT’s interventions.

Education

• Master’s degree preferably in Finance, Accounting, Public Administration, Business Administration, International Development, Social Sciences, or other relevant field is required.

• A Bachelor’s degree in the above fields with an additional two years of relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of the Master’s degree.

Required:

• Minimum of two (2) years of experience in grant or project management, financial management, contract oversight, or fund administration within development or humanitarian contexts.

• Demonstrated ability to analyse and interpret financial and project data to support operational and management decisions.

• Demonstrated experience in stakeholder coordination and engagement.

• Advanced Excel skills: Pivot tables creation and management, lookups, data cleaning and financial analysis.

• Strong analytical and quantitative skills.

Desirable:

• Experience working with UNOPS, UN agencies, donors, or international NGOs (INGOs).

• Experience working with Microfinance Institutions, Financial Inclusion strategies.

• Experience in the Myanmar and/or Thai contexts.

• Experience contributing to knowledge management, learning, or process improvement initiatives.

• Proficiency in Google Workspace (Sheets, Slides, Drive, Docs) for collaborative data management and reporting; familiarity with Looker Studio for data visualisation - including dashboard creation. 

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post. 
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here. 
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• All UNOPS personnel are responsible for performing their duties in accordance with the UN Charter and UNOPS Policies and Instructions, as well as other relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda. 
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.