UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.

At UNICEF, we are committed, passionate, and proud of what we do for as long as we are needed. Promoting the rights of every child is not just a job – it is a calling.

UNICEF is a place where careers are built: we offer our staff diverse opportunities for professional and personal development that will help them reinforce a sense of purpose while serving children and communities across the world. We welcome everyone who wants to belong and grow in a diverse and passionate culture, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

Visit our website to learn more about what we do at UNICEF.

For every child, the right to Safety

How can you make a difference?

Under the supervision of the Regional Chief of Emergencies (REA), and in close collaboration with the Deputy Regional Director and Regional Director, you provide strategic and technical leadership to support emergency preparedness, response, humanitarian access, localization, and child rights in emergencies across the West and Central Africa Region.
You support Country Offices in undertaking risk analysis, preparedness planning, emergency response design and implementation, humanitarian coordination, resource mobilization, and advocacy. The position contributes to strengthening regional emergency capacity and ensuring that humanitarian actions principled, risk-informed, locally led, and aligned with UNICEF's Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action (CCCs).

Emergency Preparedness
1. Supports Country Offices in developing, reviewing and updating risk analyses, contingency plans, preparedness measures and Emergency Preparedness Platform (EPP) actions. Monitors emerging humanitarian risks and trends across countries of coverage and provides strategic recommendations to strengthen preparedness and anticipatory action.
2. Supports the formulation and implementation of emergency preparedness and response plans, ensuring coherence with regional priorities, CCCs, and humanitarian principles. Monitors progress and provides technical guidance to Country Offices on preparedness and response actions.
3. Provides policy and programme advice to Country Offices and Regional Management on emergency preparedness, humanitarian response, risk-informed programming, humanitarian-development-peace nexus approaches and operational readiness.
4. Leads the collection, analysis and dissemination of emergency information,
situation monitoring, humanitarian trends and risk analysis from countries of coverage. Contributes to regional situation analyses, management updates, briefing notes and decision-making processes.
5. Designs and coordinates emergency preparedness and response trainings, simulations, workshops, communities of practice and capacity development initiatives for UNICEF personnel and partners across the region.

Emergency Response & Coordination
6. In emergency situations, supports Country Offices and Regional Management in the coordination of emergency response efforts, surge planning, activation procedures and implementation of humanitarian interventions. Participates in rapid assessments, response missions and emergency deployments as required.
7. Provides technical support to Country Offices in needs assessments, response planning, prioritization and monitoring of humanitarian interventions, ensuring that programmes address the needs of vulnerable children, adolescents, women and communities.
8. Supports Country Offices and senior management in emergency operations oversight, programme management, reporting, resource allocation and performance monitoring to ensure effective and accountable humanitarian action.
9. Serves as the Regional Focal Point for Humanitarian Access and Localization. Provides strategic guidance, oversight and technical support to Country Offices for the development, rollout, monitoring and institutionalization of country-level Humanitarian Access and Localization Strategies and Action Plans.
10. Supports the preparation of humanitarian appeals, donor proposals, briefing packages, updates and reports. Contributes to resource mobilization efforts and donor engagement related to emergency preparedness, response, resilience and recovery programming
11. Maintains strategic coordination and collaboration with UN agencies, NGOs, donors, regional organizations and other stakeholders to strengthen preparedness, humanitarian response and recovery efforts across the region.
12. Represents UNICEF, as delegated, in humanitarian coordination forums, regional working groups, inter-agency mechanisms and strategic discussions related to emergency preparedness, response, access, localization and recovery. Keeps Regional Management informed of key humanitarian developments, risks, opportunities and policy discussions.
13. Supports the planning and facilitation of Regional Crisis Management Team (RCMT), Emergency Technical Team (ETT), Task Forces and other emergency coordination mechanisms, including the preparation of briefing materials, action trackers and follow-up actions

If you would like to know more about this position, please review the complete Job Description here: Download File JD_Emergency Specialist, P-4, FT, #64133.pdf

To qualify as a champion for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

Education: Advanced University degree in one of the following fields:social sciences, public administration, law, public health, nutrition, internationalrelations, business administration or other related disciplines. Preferably a combination of management, administration, and relevant technical fields.
Work Experience: Minimum eight years of progressively responsible professional work experience at the national and international levels in programme/project development, planning, implementation, monitoring, evaluation and administration.
Skills: capacity building, resource mobilization, risk analysis, information management, humanitarian coordination.
Language Requirements: Fluency in English and French is required.

Desirables:

1. Language: Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, Russian or Spanish) or a local language
2. developing country experience, emergency response management training, surge deployment, emergency preparedness
3. Relevant experience at country level, particularly in development, fragile settings and humanitarian contexts.
4. Specialized training/experience in emergency response management highly desirable.

For every Child, you demonstrate...

UNICEF's Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust and Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values

UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships
(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness
(3) Drive to achieve results for impact
(4) Innovates and embraces change
(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity
(6) Thinks and acts strategically
(7) Works collaboratively with others
(8) Nurtures, leads and manages people

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF promotes and advocates for the protection of the rights of every child, everywhere, in everything it does and is mandated to support the realization of the rights of every child, including those most disadvantaged, and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, minority, or any other status.

UNICEF encourages applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of gender, nationality, religious or ethnic backgrounds, and from people with disabilities, including neurodivergence. We offer a wide range of benefits to our staff, including paid parental leave, breastfeeding breaks and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process. If you require any accommodation, please submit your request through the accessibility email button on the UNICEF Careers webpage Accessibility | UNICEF. Should you be shortlisted, please get in touch with the recruiter directly to share further details, enabling us to make the necessary arrangements in advance.

UNICEF does not hire candidates who are married to children (persons under 18). UNICEF has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UNICEF, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination based on gender, nationality, age, race, sexual orientation, religious or ethnic background or disabilities. UNICEF is committed to promote the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles. Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check, and selected candidates with disabilities may be requested to submit supporting documentation in relation to their disability confidentially.

UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance.  Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station is required for IP positions and will be facilitated by UNICEF. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Should you be selected for a position with UNICEF, you either must be inoculated as required or receive a medical exemption from the relevant department of the UN. Otherwise, the selection will be canceled.

Remarks:

As per Article 101, paragraph 3, of the Charter of the United Nations, the paramount consideration in the employment of the staff is the necessity of securing the highest standards of efficiency, competence, and integrity.

UNICEF is committed to fostering an inclusive, representative, and welcoming workforce. For this position, eligible and suitable male candidates are encouraged to apply.

Government employees who are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government positions before taking up an assignment with UNICEF. UNICEF reserves the right to withdraw an offer of appointment, without compensation, if a visa or medical clearance is not obtained, or necessary inoculation requirements are not met, within a reasonable period for any reason.

UNICEF does not charge a processing fee at any stage of its recruitment, selection, and hiring processes (i.e., application stage, interview stage, validation stage, or appointment and training). UNICEF will not ask for applicants' bank account information.

Mobility is a condition of international professional employment with UNICEF and an underlying premise of the international civil service.

Humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority within UNICEF's Strategic Plan. UNICEF is committed to stay and deliver in humanitarian contexts. Therefore, all staff, at all levels across all functional areas, can be called upon to be deployed to support humanitarian response, contributing to both strengthening resilience of communities and capacity of national authorities.

All UNICEF positions are advertised, and only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process. An internal candidate performing at the level of the post in the relevant functional area, or an internal/external candidate in the corresponding Talent Group, may be selected, if suitable for the post, without assessment of other candidates.

Additional information about working for UNICEF can be found here.

Emergency Specialist, P-4, FT, #64133, Regional Services Div., Dakar, Senegal-WCARO