RCO Coordination Officer (Brunei, Singapore)

Update

The UN Multi-Country Office (MCO) for Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam, based in Putrajaya, Malaysia, comprises two agency groupings supporting Singapore and Brunei's development needs:

Team Singapore (5 agencies with formal mandates for the City State): OHCHR, UNDP, UN-Habitat, WHO, UNESCO.
Team Brunei (9 agencies with respective mandates): UNICEF, UNDP, UNODC, UN Women, UN-Habitat, WHO, UNDRR, UN ESCAP, ILO.

Around 20 non-resident, regionally based MCO agencies may also support both countries upon government invitation or via regional/global initiatives. Singapore hosts several specialized UN facilities; the UN has no physical presence in Brunei.
The MCO is led by a UN Resident Coordinator (RC), supported by a dedicated RC Office (RCO). The RCO's standing team covers six core competencies: strategic planning, M&E, communications and advocacy, partnerships, environment, and economics.
As high-income, net contributing countries, Singapore and Brunei are atypical operating contexts—unlike Malaysia, neither is covered by a UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF). Still, the MCO works to advance the UN's core mission of inclusive, sustainable development and the SDGs. Support to date has centered on high-level technical assistance and policy advice, delivered remotely and through periodic missions, though some UN Country Team agencies are now exploring dedicated in-situ programming, especially in Brunei.
The RCO aims to strengthen this approach. This UNV assignment will help establish a stronger coordination function, develop UN Country Analysis (CA) reports to guide future UN interventions and advocacy, and potentially support drafting strategic framework documents governing overall UN support (akin to a summary UNSDCF).
The UN Volunteer will be based in the RCO in Putrajaya, with frequent travel to Singapore and Brunei—particularly the latter, given emerging areas of shared interest—under the guidance of the Head of RCO and the Senior Economist.
RCO structure: the RC sets overall strategic direction. Reporting to the RC are three senior technical roles—Head of RCO, Senior Economist, and Environmental Specialist—plus an Executive Assistant providing administrative support. The Head of RCO supervises the Communications and Partnerships Specialists; the M&E Specialist also sits within the RCO. The RCO Coordination Officer reports directly to the Senior Economist.

This assignment is part of a UNV-funded initiative bringing fresh talent into UN programmes from countries currently unrepresented among UN Volunteers—helping ensure global volunteering reflects the world it serves, while giving UNVs hands-on experience with leading UN partners. The initiative targets Brunei nationals.

The objectives of this assignment are to enable the RC to better represent the UN to and in, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam; and to enhance and more effectively coordinate UNCT development support in the two countries. This is made up of three sets of distinct tasks:
(1) Provide an enhanced coordination and representation functions for Singapore and Brunei Darussalam:
- Act as a reference point for the respective national government partners and enable consultation with all stakeholders.
- Facilitate liaison with the UN RCO and UNCT agencies, helping to coordinate UN agency support including projects (working with Government, private sector, and civil society counterparts).
- Undertake (with support from the Comms Specialist) communications and advocacy as required.
(2) Undertake research to enable production of a rapid (succinct) Country Analysis (RCA) report for Brunei, and to update the pre-existing Singapore RCA. And potentially later, help devise basic strategic framework (SF) documents.
Note that Country Analysis (CAs) reports are prepared for all UN programme countries, offering authoritative assessments of development progress three angles (SDGs, human rights and Leave No One behind), and present key priorities and possible entry points for UN interventions. Their primary role is to support compilation of UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Frameworks (UNSDCFs). Recognizing the limited UN footprint, rapid CAs (RCAs) for Singapore and Brunei adopt a rapid and highly focused exercise, with the final reports being 15-20 pages long). Nevertheless, they adopt a standard CA structure:
- Introduction and purpose
- Situational analysis (economic, social, environmental, governance)
- National development strategy and policy directions
- Moving forward: Opportunities and threats
- Future insights and UNCT focus areas
Note that any future basic strategic frameworks (SFs), would set out joint programming objectives, and UN delivery and advocacy efforts for the respective countries.
(3) Help to coordinate standing UN processes for both states, drawing on support from the RCO and wider UNCT, including:
- The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Human Rights.
- The Voluntary National Review (VNR) of SDG Progress.
- Visits from other UN Special Rapporteurs, Experts, and Envoys.
Efforts under each process would include serving as the UN focal point for national partners and enabling their effective consultation and participation; and liaising with relevant UN entities on the key arrangements and requirements.