Senior Project Manager
UNOPS
Job Highlight
>Based in Kampala, Uganda, the Senior Project Manager (SPM) is responsible for delivering the day-to-day operations of the project. The Senior Project Manager acts on behalf of the Project Board to manage the project on an ongoing basis during the Implementation Stage. The main responsibility of the Senior Project Manager is to ensure that the project outputs are delivered within the specified project tolerances of time, cost, quality, scope, risk and benefits. He/she is expected to meet the organization’s performance and delivery goals.
The Senior Project Manager has the authority to assign, as per the Project Plan, work packages to Team Managers (where appropriate) and approve deliverables produced by them.
The Senior Project Manager is responsible for creating the Implementation Plan, using the Project Initiation Document (PID), Legal Agreement and having a thorough understanding of the terms, conditions, and the respective roles and responsibilities of the partners/stakeholders, to ensure the project outputs are capable of meeting the business cases for both UNOPS and the partner. The success of the project and hence of the Senior Project Manager will be based on the defined Success Criteria.
Under the supervision of the Head of Programme, the SPM will be the senior UNOPS officer in Uganda and will thus be expected to take on certain representational functions for the organisation. S/he may also be assigned to manage other projects in Uganda.
About the Region
The UNOPS Africa Regional Office, based in Nairobi, Kenya, oversees the delivery of over 250 projects across 40 countries, with a focus on fragile and conflict-affected settings. Supported by more than 1,000 personnel across five multi-country offices—spanning North, West, Central, Eastern and Southern Africa, and the Horn of Africa—the office advances national priorities through strategic initiatives in Climate Action, Health, Infrastructure, Peace and Security, Middle-Income Country Support, and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The Regional Office provides strategic leadership, operational support, and oversight in key areas including Partnerships, Communications, Management and Oversight, Infrastructure and Project Management, Health and Safety, and Security. By promoting excellence in project delivery, fostering knowledge sharing, and driving continuous improvement, the office contributes to sustainable infrastructure, transparent resource management, and a better quality of life for communities across the continent.
About the Country/Multi-Country Office
East & Southern Africa Multi-Country Office (ESAMCO) sub-region currently consists of an established Operation Centre in Nairobi/Kenya which manages a portfolio of engagements in multiple countries in East and South Africa. These countries include Kenya, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, Eritrea and several island states. ESAMCO focuses on Infrastructure, Procurement, Project Management, HR and Transactional Services, and Fund Management services in those countries. Our goal is to support countries, help people in need and enable our partners through delivering on our mandate of infrastructure, procurement and project management in the countries East and South Africa..
About the Project Office
About the Project
The Reconstruction of Bridges along the Humanitarian Corridor and the Digitalization of the Bridge Maintenance System project is designed to enhance humanitarian access in Uganda’s climate-vulnerable and refugee-hosting regions, specifically West Nile, Sebei, and Bugisu. The project focuses on the reconstruction of critical bridge infrastructure to mitigate the isolation of both refugee and host populations by restoring connectivity to essential services, including health care, education, and markets.
The project directly operationalizes Japan’s commitment, made at the 2023 Global Refugee Forum (GRF), to implement the Humanitarian–Development–Peace (HDP) Nexus in displacement-affected settings. It delivers a multi-faceted impact by ensuring equitable access to essential services and markets for both refugee and host communities, strengthening Uganda’s economic integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and East African Community (EAC) frameworks—particularly across key trade corridors—and fostering social cohesion while enhancing stability in fragile, refugee-hosting areas.
The project will deliver two key outputs:
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Rehabilitation of three bridges—Ayi, Kochi 2, and Woi—located in Maracha, Koboko, and Yumbe districts, respectively, within the West Nile sub-region.
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Development of an Electronic Bridge Management System (eBMS), implemented through technical assistance to the Ministry of Works and Transport (MoWT) and district local governments to upgrade existing bridge asset management systems to an electronic platform. This will initially focus on the West Nile sub-region and, within the project implementation period, extend to the Sebei and Bugisu sub-regions.
The project has a duration of three years (36 months), inclusive of a 12-month Defects Notification Period, and is funded by the Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Job Specific Context
The position is embedded within the Reconstruction of Bridges along the Humanitarian Corridor and the Digitalization of the Bridge Maintenance System project, implemented in Uganda’s climate-vulnerable and refugee-hosting regions of West Nile, Sebei, and Bugisu. The project aims to enhance humanitarian access and restore connectivity for refugee and host communities by rehabilitating critical bridge infrastructure and strengthening institutional capacity for bridge asset management.
The role contributes to the delivery of two core project components: (i) the rehabilitation of three strategic bridges—Ayi, Kochi 2, and Woi—located in Maracha, Koboko, and Yumbe districts in the West Nile sub-region; and (ii) the development and rollout of an Electronic Bridge Management System (eBMS) through technical assistance to the Ministry of Works and Transport and district local governments. The eBMS will modernize existing bridge asset management systems, initially in West Nile, with expansion to the Sebei and Bugisu sub-regions during the project period.
The position operates within a multi-stakeholder environment involving national and local government institutions and supports the operationalization of the Humanitarian–Development–Peace (HDP) Nexus, in line with commitments made by the Government of Japan at the 2023 Global Refugee Forum. The role also contributes to broader objectives related to equitable access to services, regional economic integration under the AfCFTA and EAC frameworks, and social cohesion in fragile, displacement-affected areas.
The position is expected to provide sustained technical and/or operational support throughout the project lifecycle, in close coordination with the Ministry of Works and Transport and district-level counterparts.
Role Purpose
The Senior Project Manager is responsible for creating the Implementation Plan, using the Project Initiation Document (PID), Legal Agreement and having a thorough understanding of the terms, conditions, and the respective roles and responsibilities of the partners/stakeholders, to ensure the project outputs are capable of meeting the business cases for both UNOPS and the partner. The success of the project and hence of the Senior Project Manager will be based on the defined Success Criteria.
The SPM will be the senior UNOPS officer in Uganda and will thus be expected to take on certain representational functions for the organisation. S/he may also be assigned to manage other projects in Uganda.
Functions / Key Results Expected
Summary of functions / Key Results Expected
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Project Delivery and Performance
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Procedures
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Monitoring and reporting
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Stakeholder engagement
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Quality assurance
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Knowledge management and innovation
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Personnel management
Project Delivery and Performance
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Plan the overall project activities (project implementation plan), maintain a detailed project work plan, monitor project performance, and exercise adaptive management as appropriate to ensure delivery of the project outcomes
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Embed sustainability dimensions including social and gender inclusion, environmental and economic aspects into project life span
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Manage the production of the required outputs, taking responsibility for overall progress and use of resources and initiating corrective action where necessary
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Ensure that quality of work packages and deliverables complies with the quality requirements defined in the Implementation Plan
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Liaise with any external suppliers or account managers
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Manage acceptance and delivery of work packages
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Monitor project progress ensuring that work packages are being executed properly
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Control project and work packages changes
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Accept goods, services or works delivered by suppliers
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Lead contract management duties including supplier performance evaluation
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Identify and manage in a timely manner, potential risks (including environmental and social safeguard risks) and issues and advises mitigating measures to senior management/ Project Board so that maximum benefit to partner(s) and other stakeholders is achieved; regularly update the project’s Risk Register and ensure that appropriate risk management measures are put in place
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Identify and report to the supervisor potential business opportunities for UNOPS
Procedures
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Comply with all organizational policy and specifically the Project Management Manual
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Prepare/adapt all relevant plans for approval by the Project Board
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Manage the reporting obligations defined in the Legal Agreement(s) and in the Implementation Plan
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Ensure maintenance of the project files and lessons learned are recorded
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Manage budgets, cash flow and obligations to ensure that deliverables are met and payments to contractors and personnel are received on time
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Understand and manage UNOPS overheads, allocable charges, and related corporate charges as they apply to the project
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Understand the unique structures of the UN and budget appropriately for personnel
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Manage expenditures against the budget (based on accurate financial reports)
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Where the senior Project Manager has no delegation as a committing officer, s/he retains these responsibilities and will monitor and instruct/request others to carry out the relevant commitments and disbursements
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For project closure purposes, provide a formal handover of the project to the closure manager
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Support project audit activities, including planning, preparation and coordination during the audits and follow up on audit observations/recommendations
Monitoring and Reporting
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Prepare and issue regular project and/or financial reports in accordance with Partner and UNOPS requirements for reporting
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Regularly review project status, evaluating performance criteria (scope, cost, schedule and quality)
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Maintain diaries and progress reports as required by the organization’s standard procedures
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Provide routine oversight and analysis of delivery data within the dashboard system
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Ensure all project team members track and regularly update milestones and targets for the duration of projects’ life span
Stakeholder Engagement
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Develop stakeholder profiles and facilitate the formulation of stakeholder engagement strategies
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Establish solid working relationships with the Project Board (Executive, Senior Users and Senior Suppliers), client and key stakeholders
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Enable the formulation of project communications plans. Coordinate internal project communications. Monitor the effectiveness of project communications
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Coordinate stakeholder engagement and communication, ensuring effective timing and interdependency management of communications.
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Ensure stakeholders are aware of project activities, progress, exceptions and are in a position to accept handover outputs
Quality Assurance
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Work with internal stakeholders to ensure projects comply with audit requirements
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Work with procurement/purchasing staff to ensure effective interface with suppliers’ quality systems
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Coordinate quality reviews of project documents and deliverables
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Provide quality control for management outputs (project documents, reports, etc.)
Knowledge Management and Innovation
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Encourage routine and effective capacity building activities are conducted in order to build the long-term and sustainable capacity of staff
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Actively interact with other Project Managers and the wider PM community to share case studies, lessons learned and best practices
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Contribute to the oversight of lessons learned procedures, ensuring that lessons learnt are shared in a timely and appropriate manner. Participate in the relevant Communities of Practice
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Research and logging of lessons learned throughout the project life span
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Provide feedback to Practice Groups on policy, supporting guidance with an aim towards continuous improvement of UNOPS policies
Personnel Management
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Lead and motivate the project management team
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Ensure that behavioural expectations of team members are established
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Ensure that performance reviews are conducted fairly, accurately and timely
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Select, recruit and train a team as required and taking into account gender parity and diversity objectives
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Ensure safety and security for all project personnel and comply with UNDSS standards
IV. Impact of Results
The Senior Project Manager directly impacts on achievement of project results by adhering to project management methods and strategies, reducing risks, cutting costs and improving success rates. This consequently reinforces the visibility and image of UNOPS as an effective service provider in project services and management and strengthens its competitive position as a partner of choice in sustainable development and project services.
Skills
Education Requirements
Required
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Master’s degree (or equivalent qualifications and experience) in Civil Engineering, Architecture, Project Management, or other relevant discipline is required
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A combination of Bachelor’s degree with an additional 2 years of relevant work experience may be accepted in lieu of the education requirements outlined above
Certification:
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Certification in Project Management (PRINCE2, PMP, etc.) is an asset
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Complete the UNOPS PMM, UNOPS PMM Infra perspective and oneUNOPS Projects training within (3) months from joining UNOPS
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Professional certification from an accredited institution (PEng., CEng., etc) is an asset
Experience Requirements
Required
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A minimum of 7 years’ experience in Implementing and managing infrastructure projects, preferably bridges is required
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Excellent written and oral communication skills in English.
Desired
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Experience in an Electronic Bridge management System is an asset
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Experience in contract management is an asset
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Knowledge of FIDIC contracts is an asset
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Technical acumen, with the ability to understand and speak to technical project plans and documents
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Experience in planning and applying Health & Safety procedures is an asset
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Experience in developing Procurement strategies is an asset
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Proficient in Microsoft Project and Schedule Analysis is an asset
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Experience in developing countries or post conflict environments is an asset
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Experience in writing reports, performing data analysis, and writing technical documents is an asset
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Knowledge of quality assurance methodologies is an asset
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Experience in risk management is an asset
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Experience working in multicultural teams is an asset
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Experience in managing teams is an asset
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Strong analytical capabilities with the ability to manage tasks associated with the development of projects
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Strong Problem Solving Skills
Language Requirements
| Language | Proficiency Level | Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| English | Fluent | Required |
To apply for this job please visit careers.unops.org.