Humanitarian Operations Senior Officer (Anticipatory Action Officer)

UNOPS supports partners to build a better future by providing services that increase the efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of peace building, humanitarian and development projects.  Mandated as a central resource of the United Nations, UNOPS provides sustainable project management, procurement and infrastructure services to a wide range of governments, donors and United Nations organizations. The New York Portfolios Office (NYPO) supports the United Nations Secretariat, as well as other New York-based United Nations organizations, bilateral and multilateral partners in the delivery of the UNOPS mandate in project management, infrastructure management, and procurement management.

The Sustainable Development Cluster (SDC) supports diverse partners with their peacebuilding, humanitarian and development operations. It was formed by combining the following portfolios: Grants Management Services, UN Technology Support Services (UNTSS), and the Development and Special Initiatives Portfolio.  It provides services to partners' programmes that are designed, structured, and managed with a global perspective and primarily serving partners that are headquartered in New York.  SDC has a footprint of approximately 125 countries. 

UNOPS has signed an agreement with the United Nations to implement defined activities in support of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) is a global humanitarian fund with a long-time funding target of $1 billion annually. It is one of the fastest and most effective ways to support rapid humanitarian response for people affected by natural disasters and armed conflict. CERF receives voluntary contributions year-round to provide immediate funding for life-saving humanitarian action anywhere in the world.

CERF Anticipatory Action (AA) frameworks enhance the efficiency of humanitarian aid by delivering life-saving assistance ahead of predictable emergencies, thereby enhancing communities’ resilience to better withstand shocks, and reducing their humanitarian impact. CERF-supported AA frameworks are predominantly for getting ahead of predictable climate-shocks funding complements CERF's core functions by using early warning systems to trigger rapid, pre-arranged financing based on forecasts, in support of UN-led anticipatory action plans. As of August 2024, CERF supports 18 AA frameworks for climate shocks in the form of droughts, storms and floods and for cholera across 15 countries.  

Purpose and Scope of Assignment 

The project is seeking to recruit a Humanitarian Operations Senior Officer (Anticipatory Action Officer) to support OCHA’s work in anticipatory action. Since this is a growing area of work within the organization, we are recruiting for a position that will be working with CERF.  The Humanitarian Operations Senior Officer needs to be self-motivated and be able to thrive in an international, multidisciplinary team. The right candidate has the skills to work independently and with a team to guide anticipatory action processes across a diverse audience, takes initiative where needed, and demonstrates problem-solving skills. 

They will be embedded in the CERF Programme Unit, which has developed the following value statement: 

“The CERF secretariat is the steward of hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for life-saving humanitarian action each year and we recognize the magnitude of this task. We take pride in our work and strive for professionalism, speed and efficiency, always putting people affected by humanitarian emergencies first and supporting country teams. Within the programme unit and beyond, we value diversity and show empathy, respect and kindness. We assume positive intent (API) and care about others’ well-being. We value teamwork and collaboration, looking left and right to help each other and flexibly back each other up. We share information in full transparency, and we share our diverse knowledge and expertise. Each team member is responsible for their own area of work, which they are empowered to lead and coordinate. Each team member is encouraged to voice their views and opinions and to provide inputs for decision-making, especially when this contradicts the majority view. It is ok to disagree, but we do so thoughtfully, listening to each other’s arguments and trying to find the best solution. We always look for ways to learn, innovate and improve the way we work. Everybody who wants comes together in a weekly huddle to talk about what goes well and what doesn’t and to talk about things other than work.”

The incumbent of this position will be personnel of UNOPS under its full responsibility. 

The incumbent will report to the Humanitarian Operations Specialist under the overall direction of the Anticipatory Action Lead in the Programme Unit of the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) secretariat. 

The incumbent will be responsible for the following duties but not limited to:

• Support the development of new anticipatory action frameworks (action plan, crisis timeline, trigger mechanism based on predictive data analytics, etc.), contribute specific expertise and dedicated knowledge to the revision and improvement of existing frameworks, and provide expertise through research, analysis, presentation and facilitation. ensuring that frameworks align with OCHA’s criteria and objectives and that triggers are based on rigorous data analysis.
• Provides expertise and knowledge to monitor specific Anticipatory Action frameworks, including whether trigger conditions have been met based on data analysis, and facilitates the activation of Anticipatory Action frameworks when agreed triggers have been reached. This includes  the development or review of CERF applications (projects and budgets), ensuring that activities are anticipatory in nature and in line with CERF’s life-saving criteria, and ensuring that projects can be approved immediately and money disbursed quickly.
• Contributes specific deliverables to the learning workstreams for specific anticipatory action frameworks, including surveys, data analysis, evaluations, process learning and monitoring.
• Provides guidance and develops specific deliverables (e.g., frameworks, templates, guidance, data analyses, monitoring tools) for OCHA’s early action work and leads on selected workstreams, such as cholera or El Niño/La Niña
• Conducts data analyses underpinning CERF’s work on anticipatory and early action, contributing to the decision-making on pre-agreed financing and funding allocations.
• Contributes their Anticipatory Action expertise and knowledge to OCHA’s overall Anticipatory Action workstream, including disaster risk financing and the development of policy, standards, reports, data analysis, background papers, presentations. 
• Perform other duties as may be reasonably required and in line with the incumbent’s scope of services above.

Work implies frequent collaboration with the following: 

• Personnel at all levels within OCHA/UNOPS in New York, Geneva, country and regional offices as needed
• Counterparts in other UN agencies, NGOs and research institutions
• Work potentially includes travel to countries with humanitarian contexts or for surge support, workshops, seminars, trainings, etc.

*FEMALE CANDIDATES ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO APPLY

*Others: Even though the duty is indicated as New York, USA, consideration will be given to allow the position to be home-based depending on the incumbent's personal situation. For home-based positions, a location-specific fee scale is applied in determining the contractor's fee.

• Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures,  languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities.
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process.  If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

Terms and Conditions 

• 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. In addition, all personnel must demonstrate an understanding of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a manner consistent with UN core values and the UN Common Agenda.
• It is the policy of UNOPS to conduct background checks on all potential personnel. Recruitment in UNOPS is contingent on the results of such checks.