Humanitarian Affairs Officer

Organizational Context

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Ethiopia works to bring together humanitarian actors for a coherent response to emergencies. OCHA's mission is to mobilize and coordinate effective, principled humanitarian action to alleviate suffering, advocate for the rights of those in need, and promote preparedness. Operating in a complex environment marked by conflict, drought, and displacement, OCHA Ethiopia focuses on lifesaving needs and strengthening coordination, information management, and advocacy.

Job Purpose

This role supports OCHA Ethiopia's Coordination and Information Management Unit (CIMU) in implementing its 2026-2027 priorities. The UN Volunteer will translate CIMU's focus on generating analysis, simplifying coordination, building field-connected services, and safeguarding principled action into practical activities. The position involves close collaboration with OCHA colleagues, clusters, inter-agency groups, and national/local partners to integrate cross-cutting issues like localization, accountability to affected people (AAP), gender, and disability inclusion into humanitarian response efforts. The role also supports leadership functions and strengthens linkages between coordination, analysis, and external engagement.

Responsibilities

The UN Volunteer will coordinate and strengthen the mainstreaming of localization, community engagement, AAP, gender, disability inclusion, PSEA, and climate-related crises across CIMU products and processes. This includes facilitating cooperation among in-country capacity teams, improving templates and guidance to systematically reflect cross-cutting issues, and providing analytical support for data utilization in needs analysis and response monitoring. The role involves coordinating the integration of these issues within the National ICCG and other inter-agency fora, providing backstopping to area-based coordination structures, and mapping/engaging key local stakeholders to enhance their participation. Additionally, the volunteer will develop practical approaches for collective AAP and community engagement, maintain standardized field support packages, and support capacity-strengthening activities for OCHA colleagues and partners. The position also includes tracking progress, preparing updates for leadership, and providing support for briefing preparation and stakeholder engagement.

Work Experience

A minimum of three years of relevant experience in humanitarian affairs, coordination, programme support, or community engagement is required. Experience should include demonstrated work in at least two of the following areas: accountability to affected people (AAP), localization, gender in humanitarian action, disability inclusion, protection mainstreaming, or partner capacity strengthening. Experience supporting inter-agency coordination, preparing analytical products, strengthening sub-national coordination, liaising with local NGOs, and using data for decision-making is highly desirable.

Skills

Key competencies include Client Orientation, Communication, Planning and Organizing, Professionalism, and Working in Teams. Additional expertise areas include community development, advocacy, public information, emergency preparedness, and crisis response. The role requires strong analytical and coordination skills, with a focus on integrating cross-cutting humanitarian principles.

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