I. Overview

Through USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA), the United States (U.S.) sponsors qualified U.S. citizens for employment in the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Program.

These fully funded JPO positions strengthen the capacity of UNICEF and further encourage U.S. citizens to become active members of the international community. After completing their JPO assignments, a number of JPOs successfully compete for positions at UNICEF and in other international and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

II. General Information

Title: Emergency Officer

Organization/Office: UNICEF/Emergency

Duty Station: Kinshasa, DRC

Start Date Required: As soon as possible

Duration: Two years

The USAID/BHA sponsored JPO will be an employee of UNICEF, not of the U.S. Government.

III. Duties, Responsibilities, and Output Expectations

Under the supervision of the Chief Emergency, the JPO will be responsible for the technical contribution to the development, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the emergency interventions to advance the survival and well-being of children and mothers and affected communities in an emergency situation. The JPO will also be responsible of reports writing, project field visits and programme implementing partners’ support.

Emergency Preparedness

1. Provides professional assistance in risk analysis to identify emergency-prone conditions/situations and contribute to early warning and timely emergency preparedness.
2. Assists in the formulation of plans of action in preparation and response to emergencies. Gathers information on best practices in emergency situations for the preparation of contingency plans. Monitors compliance of all sectors with emergency plans of action.
3. Identifies formal and informal sources of information. Collects, interprets, and analyses all available data on the evolving emergency situation and its implications to the emergency operation. Keeps the effective flow of information and communication crucial for the planning and implementation of emergency measures. Identifies availability of resources in emergency prone areas.
4. Assists in organizing and conducting staff training for the office’s capacity building in emergencies preparedness and response. Provides briefing, as required. Participates in other emergency training workshops in the region, and contributes to enhancement of the emergency preparedness and response capability of the office staff.

Emergency Response

1. In the event of an emergency, promptly assists in implementing the initial operational tasks relating to emergency assistance. Immediately collects reliable information to verify the nature and extend of the emergency with staff, government officials, other UN agencies or local organizations and media. Follows up to ensure that the office is provided with effective telecommunications facility and staff security assistance in an emergency, as necessary.
2. Assists supervisor with assessment of local emergency and security situation. Visits the location to conduct an initial rough assessment of the magnitude of the crisis and its implications for children, mothers and the community. Assists with the assessment of the validity of the emergency preparedness plan and ability of the office vis-à-vis the current crisis as well as immediate and additional needs. Provides input in and contributes toward determining priorities and an appropriate intervention by UNICEF. Coordinates with other partners to make a rapid assessment covering priority areas as defined by the Core Commitment for Children in Emergencies. Establishes contact with community groups, government, UN agencies, media and other partners to keep the country office of emergency situations.
3. Follows up with the timely delivery of assistance and procurement of supplies and monitors the appropriate and effective use of UNICEF resources. Identifies problems and constraints in project delivery.

Emergency Project

1. Participates in the implementation of plans of action and workplans for emergency project. Undertakes field visits to emergency project areas, to assess local conditions and monitor project progress. Carries out project administration. Prepares inputs for appeals and updates related to emergencies.
2. Collects and analyses lessons learnt from UNICEF’s emergency operations experience and contributes towards adoption of the best practices and standards for longer-term emergency interventions. Assists in identifying longer-term requirements of the emergency intervention/operations.
3. Works with other colleagues to make sure that disaster prevention, mitigation, preparedness and response strategies are mainstreamed in the country office’s workplans. Assists in the preparation of sectoral input for the country programme documents, plan of action, annual work plans, and other related documents of the office’s Emergency Preparedness and Response. Provides technical input in the preparation of the Situation Analysis and the Country Programme document, as required.

Impact of Results

Considering the complexity and the multifaceted nature of humanitarian crises in DRC, more innovative risk-informed strategies and efficient work processes are required for rapid delivery of emergency supplies, better cash flow and physical asset management, rapid deployment of experienced staff and setting up strong internal control mechanism. The Emergency section at UNICEF is seeking donor support for the funding of a JPO position for 2022-2023 that will provide critical support to humanitarian action and emergency preparedness in the UNICEF DRC country office.

This fully funded JPO position will strengthen the capacity of UNICEF country office dealing with humanitarian crises. The JPO will support the Emergency team’s ability to ensure the technical excellence and quality of timely humanitarian action in the country. The JPO will ensure effective analysis of available data regarding the evolving emergency situation in the country, support research, and advocacy. He/she will provide quality assurance and strengthened capacity-building support for humanitarian reporting in the section, as well as improved knowledge management and section planning for DRC.

Overall, the funding of this position will provide much-needed support for the organization’s strengthened commitment to principled humanitarian action and resilience through strengthening country’ capacity for timely, effective, and reliable humanitarian and resilience programming and timely emergency response.

This in turn contributes to enhancing the ability of UNICEF to fulfill its mission to deliver on time the assistance to vulnerable children and their families affected by humanitarian crisis.

IV. Supervision

The JPO will be supervised by Chief Emergency.

V. Qualifications and Experience

Education:

A university degree in one of the following fields is required: in the areas of policy, social sciences, development, international affairs, communications, or relevant technical field.

Work Experience:

A minimum of two years of relevant professional experience in one or more of the following areas is required: reporting, communications, and advocacy experience including on humanitarian/emergency issues or contexts.

Languages:

Fluency in French and English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.

Additional Desired Technical Skills:

• Relevant experience in a UN system agency or organization is considered an asset;
• Experience in Humanitarian affairs or emergency preparedness and response;
• Experience in developing and presenting pieces of training;
• Developing country work experience and/or familiarity with emergencies is considered an asset.

UN Competencies:

Core Values attributes

• Care
• Respect
• Integrity
• Trust
• Accountability

Core competencies skills:

• Nurtures, Leads and Manages People
• Demonstrates Self Awareness and Ethical Awareness
• Works Collaboratively with others
• Builds and Maintains Partnerships
• Innovates and Embraces Change
• Thinks and Acts Strategically
• Drives to achieve impactful results
• Manages ambiguity and complexity

Functional Competencies:

• Persuading and influencing
• Applying technical expertise
• Learning and researching
• Planning and organizing

Workforce Diversity:

The United Nations believes that an inclusive culture attracts the best talent and encourages all qualified applicants, regardless of gender, disability, sexual orientation, cultural or religious backgrounds, to apply.

VI. Learning Elements

Training and Learning Plan

• Participation in a JPO Induction Programme in New-York
• Guidance and advice in relation to training opportunities within the field of expertise
• Use of yearly JPO training funds for internal/external training opportunities
• Participation in the Mentoring, Coaching, and Career Counseling and Career transition programmes
• Encourage field mission and/or stretch assignment during and after the 2nd year

In addition, the JPO will benefit from the following specific learning opportunities in the receiving office:

• Emergency preparedness and response training
• UNICEF Core Commitments for Children training

VII. Background Information

The fundamental mission of UNICEF is to promote the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything the organization does — in programs, advocacy, and in operations. The equity strategy, emphasizing the most disadvantaged and excluded children and families, translates this commitment to children’s rights into action. For UNICEF, equity means that all children have an opportunity to survive, develop and reach their full potential, without discrimination, bias, or favoritism. To the degree that any child has an unequal chance in life — in its social, political, economic, civic, and cultural dimensions — her or his rights are violated. There is growing evidence that investing in the health, education, and protection of a society’s most disadvantaged citizens — addressing inequity — not only will give all children the opportunity to fulfill their potential but also will lead to sustained growth and stability of countries. This is why the focus on equity is so vital. It accelerates progress towards realizing the human rights of all children, which is the universal mandate of UNICEF, as outlined by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, while also supporting the equitable development of nations.

Due to the context of DRC with political instability and recurrent health emergencies, UNICEF staff members are frequently exposed to high levels of day to day, cumulative stress, including those stressors related to their workload as well as the demands related to living and working in highly unstable and insecure environments. The Emergency section works closely with other programme and operations sections to ultimately ensure that lives are saved and the rights of children and women are protected as defined in the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs) which is aligned with internationally accepted standards. The Emergency section recognizes the importance of working with all sections to address underlying causes of vulnerability to disasters, fragility, and conflict through support in response to humanitarian crises and through regular programming.

Strategic office context:

The Emergency section is seeking donor support for the funding of a JPO position for 2022-2023 that will reinforce emergency preparedness and early warning and provide immediate relief and protection to vulnerable populations facing acute humanitarian crisis, especially children and women. Key humanitarian issues in the DRC, include (i) conflicts and population displacement; (ii) natural disasters, (iii) food insecurity and malnutrition, (iv) health epidemics, (v) human right abuses and (v) sexual and gender-based violence. Overall, the funding of this position will provide much-needed support for the organization’s strengthened commitment to undertake agile, flexible and decentralized humanitarian action that address the vulnerabilities of children, women and their households to the multiple emergencies in the DRC, builds community resilient structures and capabilities, and fosters linkages to development systems.