Project Management Support Specialist (Local Law)

Overview

This role supports Albania’s land administration reform, with the aim of strengthening property rights, legal certainty, land governance, and transparency, and contributing to the country’s EU accession efforts. The position provides legal analysis and advisory support to help ensure project activities align with national laws and EU regulations, while supporting capacity building for national institutions.

Responsibilities

Under the supervision and guidance of the Senior Project Manager, the Project Management Support Specialist will support implementation of project activities, including:

Legal Analysis

• Assess existing national laws, regulations, and policies relevant to project activities.
• Provide an overview of the legislative base related to identified processes and data flows.
• Identify potential legal gaps, risks, and compliance issues.
• Where necessary, propose judicial amendments.

Legal Updates

• Monitor developments related to property rights, the state cadastre, and land parcel management.
• Track changes in national laws, regulations, and best practices.
• Adapt strategies to address emerging legal risks and maintain alignment with current standards.

Alignment with EU Regulations, Standards and Integration

• Analyze relevant EU regulations, standards, practices, and requirements related to property rights and land parcel management/administration.
• Ensure project activities and outputs align with EU acquis and support Albania’s harmonization objectives.

Technical and Quality Support

Provide legal analysis and advisory support to support design and development of proposed solutions, including:

• Evaluate legal gap analysis, including addressing data protection and privacy concerns.
• Analyze legal barriers to cadastral processes to facilitate transition to modern, efficient service delivery mechanisms.
• Provide legal advice and support for the Business Process Review, including assessing, optimizing, and strengthening the efficiency and transparency of the State Cadastre Agency’s business processes and service delivery mechanisms through the Land Administration Business Value Chain (BVC) for cadastral services.
• Support digitisation, and the update and improvement of cadastral maps components.
• Support the Land Parcel Identification System (LPIS) component.

Risk Assessment and Mitigation

• Support the project manager with preliminary risk assessments from a regulatory perspective.
• Recommend proactive solutions to address identified risks that could impact project viability.

Due Diligence and Documentation

• Prepare a due diligence checklist.
• Document legal advice and compliance activities as requested by the supervisor.

Scope of Advice

• Advice provided is limited to necessary local law advice in the context of project implementation and the matters listed above.
• Issues related to other legal matters must be referred to the UNOPS Legal Group.

Requirements

Education

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) preferably in law or a closely related area with 7 years of relevant experience OR
• Master’s degree (or equivalent) in any of the above or related fields with 5 years of relevant experience.

Experience

• At least 5 years of experience in legal analysis and advising on national laws, with specific emphasis on property rights and land administration.
• Familiarity with Albania’s legal system and national regulations.
• Demonstrated knowledge of the Albanian property legal framework.
• Technical understanding and ability to bridge the gap between technical cadastral operations (e.g., geodetic mapping, registration records) and legal requirements.

Language

• English: Fluent (Required)
• Albanian: Fluent (Required)

Preferred Qualifications

• Expertise in data protection and privacy laws (e.g., GDPR or local data protection regulations).
• Knowledge of information security regulations and best practices for protecting sensitive data and systems.
• Experience providing legal advisory on EU accession.

Compensation & Benefits

• Contract type: ICA - LICA - Specialist - Retainer
• Contract level: LICA 10

Location

• Duty station(s): Home based, Tirana

Additional Information

• UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.
• UNOPS will not request candidates to make payments of any kind during the recruitment process.
• Applications must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement; late applications will not be considered.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the selection process, which may include various assessments.

Contract Duration

• Retainer assignment (up to 20 days within 1 year), with the possibility of extension subject to satisfactory performance and availability of funds.

Position Details

• Position Title: Project Management Support Specialist (Local Law)
• Job Category: Project & Programme Management
• Seniority Level: Mid Level
• ICS Level: ICS 10
• Posting Start Date: 19-Oct-2026
• Posting End Date: 02-Nov-2026

Terms and Conditions

• 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, completion of mandatory courses (around 4 hours) in your own time is required before providing services; refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during the contract, and candidates are not compensated for completing courses.
• 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, and must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) consistent with UN core values.
• UNOPS conducts background checks on all potential personnel; recruitment is contingent on results.