Senior Liaison Officer, P-5, Fixed-Term, Sudan Country Office, based in Nairobi, Kenya

The Senior Liaison officer reports to the Representative of the CO. The Senior Liaison officer will receive logistical and coordination support from the Sudan Temporary Outpost in Kenya (STOK), and work in close collaboration with EMOPS, MENARO, ESARO, WCARO, and SCO leadership supporting the Sudan L3 Crisis Response.

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. 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 personal and professional development that will help them develop a fulfilling career while delivering on a rewarding mission. We pride ourselves on a culture that helps staff thrive, coupled with an attractive compensation and benefits package.

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

For every child, protection. 

Sudan, surrounded by the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Libya and South Sudan, has been confronted with a war which broke out in April 2023 with massive impacts in the country itself, as well as spillover affects to its neighboring countries and beyond. Sudan is by size the third biggest country in Africa, with a diverse population of around 48 million people. Sudan’s children make up half of the total population. Of these, 14 million children are in dire need of humanitarian support, 5 million are forcefully displaced (including 4 million internally displaced, and 1 million seeking refugee across borders), close to 4 million are acute malnourished, 17 million are not in school, and millions exposed to abuse, violence and exploitation.

Find out more: https://www.unicef.org/sudan/

How can you make a difference? 

To qualify as an advocate for every child you will have…

Minimum requirements:

• Education: An advanced university degree in one of the following fields is required: social sciences, international relations, government and public relations, public or social policy, sociology, social or community development, or another relevant technical field.
• Work Experience: A minimum of ten years of professional development experience that combines technical and managerial leadership in development cooperation at the international level, some of which served in developing countries is required.
• Language Requirements: Fluency in English is required.

Desirables:

• Relevant professional experience in any UN system agency or organization is considered as an asset.
• Familiarity with emergency.
• Knowledge of another official UN language or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.

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

The UNICEF competencies required for this post are…

(1) Builds and maintains partnerships (Level 3)

(2) Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (Level 3)

(3) Drive to achieve results for impact (Level 3)

(4) Innovates and embraces change (Level 3)

(5) Manages ambiguity and complexity (Level 3)

(6) Thinks and acts strategically (Level 3)

(7) Works collaboratively with others (Level 3)

(8)  Nurtures, leads and manages people (Level 3)

Familiarize yourself with our competency framework and its different levels.

UNICEF is here to serve the world’s most disadvantaged children and our global workforce must reflect the diversity of those children. The UNICEF family is committed to include everyone, irrespective of their race/ethnicity, age, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, socio-economic background, or any other personal characteristic.

We offer a wide range of measures to include a more diverse workforce, such as paid parental leave, time off for breastfeeding purposes, and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities. UNICEF strongly encourages the use of flexible working arrangements.

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. UNICEF is committed to promoting the protection and safeguarding of all children. All selected candidates will 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.

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’s active commitment to diversity and inclusion is critical to deliver the best results for children. For this position, eligible and suitable female 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.

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.