Organization Mission

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.

UNOPS Sri Lanka is part of the Sri Lanka Multi Country Office in the Asia Region. The Office provides technical, operational and administrative support to multiple countries in the Asia Region, including India, Pakistan and Bangladesh and Nepal to enable these country offices to deliver their project more efficiently and effectively. As part of this support, the UNOPS Office in Sri Lanka also provides programmatic support in the areas of project management, communications, reporting and partnership development.

In Sri Lanka, UNOPS operates within the overall framework of the UN Sustainable Development Framework (UNSDF) and is working with UN Agencies to better support the Government of Sri Lanka within the focus areas of the UNSDF. UNOPS Sri Lanka currently manages infrastructure projects in health, solid waste management and supports public institutions governance.

Context

The UN Volunteer will be part of the project team within the UNOPS South Asia Multi-Country Office (SAMCO) in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and will serve as the infrastructure implementation lead for the project.

The assignment supports the European Union-funded project “Fostering Sustainable Economic Recovery through Improved Biodiversity and Sustainable Waste Management”, implemented by UNOPS with technical support from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The project aims to improve biodiversity protection and sustainable waste management through infrastructure investments, institutional strengthening, and community engagement in selected areas of Sri Lanka. The UN Volunteer will lead the delivery of project infrastructure, including supervising site construction works, working closely with government counterparts, the European Union, GIZ, local authorities, and other stakeholders.

Key Responsibilities

The Construction Management Lead Engineer provides technical leadership across all stages of infrastructure delivery – from planning and design review to supervision, quality assurance and handover. The incumbent oversees engineering teams, contractors and consultants to ensure projects are delivered on time, within budget, to specification and in compliance with UNOPS’ quality and health, safety, social and environment (HSSE) standards.

1. Planning and Implementation
● Lead the planning and technical implementation of infrastructure activities in alignment with UNOPS standards and project objectives. Lead infrastructure planning in environmentally sensitive landscapes, ensuring climate resilience, biodiversity conservation and sustainability principles are integrated throughout the asset lifecycle.
● Conduct and oversee site investigations, including topographic surveys, geotechnical assessments and feasibility studies.
● Review and validate design documentation, drawings, technical specifications and tender dossiers to ensure quality, constructability and compliance with regulations.
● Provide expert technical advice to the project manager and stakeholders on all engineering-related matters.
● Contribute to developing detailed project work plans, identifying dependencies, and defining clear milestones, deliverables and risk mitigation strategies.
● Coordinate environmental assessments, permitting processes and consultations with government agencies and technical specialists.

2. Construction Supervision and Quality Management
● Lead and coordinate day-to-day supervision of contractors and consultants to ensure compliance with approved designs, contracts and technical specifications.
● Implement and monitor Quality Assurance/ Quality Control (QA/QC) systems and procedures. Conduct inspections and verify construction outputs.
● Ensure consistent application of UNOPS health, safety, social and environment (HSSE) standards across all project sites and immediately address any non-compliance.
● Oversee the preparation and execution of site safety plans, method statements and risk assessments.
● Monitor progress against construction schedules and budgets, proactively identifying risks, delays and potential cost overruns and implementing approved corrective measures.
● Support the project manager in the administration of contracts and ensure adherence to FIDIC or equivalent conditions of contract.
● Facilitate stakeholder and contractor coordination meetings to ensure alignment of plans, progress and resource allocation.
● Ensure construction activities minimize environmental impacts and comply with approved environmental and social management measures.

3. Monitoring, Progress Control and Contract Administration
● Track project implementation against approved work plans, performance targets, and contractual obligations.
● Conduct regular site visits to verify progress and quality. Ensure timely certification of work completed.
● Maintain comprehensive project documentation, including daily site records, inspection reports, test results and photographic evidence.
● Support the preparation and verification of Interim Payment Certificates (IPCs), variation orders, extensions of time, and claims.
● Report any deviations from plans and specifications and propose technical and operational solutions.
● Ensure all contract obligations are documented, monitored and met by contractors, consultants and implementing partners

4. Reporting and Documentation
● Prepare detailed and timely site progress reports, summarizing contractor performance, resource utilization, safety incidents, and mitigation actions.
● Submit monthly and ad-hoc progress reports to the project manager, providing analysis of risks, constraints and opportunities.
● Contribute to project close-out documentation, including handover reports, as-built documentation, and lessons-learned summaries.
● Support HSSE reporting and investigations. Compile incident reports and provide recommendations for preventive actions.

5. Capacity Building and Team Building
● Supervise junior engineers, site supervisors and other technical personnel to ensure consistent application of engineering best practices.
● Facilitate learning and capacity-building activities for UNOPS personnel, contractors and local authorities on construction supervision, HSSE and quality management.
● Foster adherence to the UNOPS Code of Conduct on-site, and ensure gender, inclusion, and sustainability principles are embedded in all project activities.
● Promote long-term sustainability of infrastructure assets through capacity building of local authorities and communities, including operation and maintenance planning.

6. Knowledge Building and Sharing
● Support the organization, facilitation and delivery of training and learning sessions on project management and construction management.
● Participate in knowledge-sharing initiatives and Communities of Practice (CoPs), contributing insights and lessons learned.
● Conduct research on infrastructure- and project management-related topics and contribute to the drafting of reports, summaries and briefing notes

Required Skills and Experience

Required
● Relevant experience is work in building construction, site supervision or infrastructure project management or similar fields.
● Experience in quality control, monitoring and reporting within construction projects is required.
● Demonstrable proficiency in the use of collaboration and productivity tools (e.g. MS Office, G-Suite, etc) and web-based management systems is required.

Desired
● Experience delivering infrastructure projects in environmentally sensitive or protected areas, including national parks, forests or ecotourism sites.
● Experience in sustainable and climate-resilient infrastructure design, including nature-based solutions and low-carbon construction.
● Experience with waste management infrastructure, including Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), composting facilities, biogas systems or other circular economy infrastructure.
● Experience managing construction contracts financed by international development organizations (UN, EU, World Bank, ADB, GIZ or similar).
● Experience coordinating Environmental and Social Impact Assessments (ESIA/EIA), environmental permitting and stakeholder consultations.
● Experience supervising multiple construction sites and multidisciplinary engineering teams.
● Experience engaging government agencies, local authorities and local communities throughout infrastructure planning and implementation.
● Experience working in multicultural environments or UN system organizations is an asset.

Core Competencies

● Integrity &Inclusion
● Results Oriented
● Solution Focused
● Effective Communication
● Leading Self and Others
● Agility
● Partnering
● Strategic Perspective

Living Conditions

Sri Lanka is an island nation located off the south coast of India. It’s home to an estimated population of over 21 million people. It is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multi- religious country. It is a tropical country with moderate temperate and high humidity all throughout the year. The climate is fairly temperate all throughout the year but humidity is usually high. From March to April the temperature averages around 32 degrees Celsius (88 degrees Fahrenheit). The only major change in the Colombo weather occurs during the monsoon seasons from May to August and October to January when heavy rainfalls occur. Colombo is situated in the Western Province of Sri Lanka and is the commercial capital of the country. The city is located on the west coast of the island, adjacent to the administrative capital, Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte. Bandaranaike International Airport is located 35km from Colombo and is served by the main international airlines. Sri Lanka currently has stable and safe living environment. Cost of living is relatively high with increased food and accommodation costs. The UN Volunteer will be based in Colombo, Sri Lanka (during the construction period, the UN Volunteer will be relocated to the field location). Colombo is the administrative centre and offers a range of accommodation, transportation, medical, banking and other services. Sri Lanka is classified as a Family Duty Station. The security level in Colombo is UNDSS Level 1 (Minimal).