JOB DESCRIPTION

D

Non Family with Residential Location

Non Family with Residential Location

Dakar, Senegal

PR5

Professional

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

2025-07-23

August 8, 2025

Deputy Representative

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
Direct supervision and guidance is received from the Representative. Advice and operational support may also be provided by the Director/Deputy Director of the Bureau and by other senior staff in the Bureau and in the support Divisions at Headquarters. The incumbent will also refer to policies, standards, rules and regulations which are in force within UNHCR.

Regular contacts with the Representative and staff at Headquarters and in the field, to consult, discuss operational issues, and to seek common grounds for solutions on activities and programmes of importance to UNHCR and with persons on matters of great importance to UNHCR’s programmes. These contacts may include heads of national/ international organizations, embassies, UN agencies, and high officials/ ministers in the national government. UNHCR is well integrated into the UN Resident Coordinator System.

Decisions taken directly influence the design and operation of all of UNHCR’s activities in the country of accreditation. Proposals will have a substantive effect on UNHCR’s policy on a wide range of issues in the country programmes. Errors lead to significant damage to UNHC’s major objectives in terms of time, quality, and money in the country and will have a major negative impact on the safety of refugees and other forcibly displaced and stateless persons. The Office’s overall credibility and the safety of its staff may also suffer.

All UNHCR staff members are accountable to perform their duties as reflected in their job description. They do so within their delegated authorities, in line with the regulatory framework of UNHCR which includes the UN Charter, UN Staff Regulations and Rules, UNHCR Policies and Administrative Instructions as well as relevant accountability frameworks. In addition, staff members are required to discharge their responsibilities in a manner consistent with the core, functional, cross-functional and managerial competencies and UNHCR’s core values of professionalism, integrity and respect for diversity.

Duties
– Provide legal protection advice and guidance on matters of doctrine and policy to Representative, the Heads of Offices and protection staff in the country.
– Provide advice and support to offices in the country operation on specific issues/problems faced related to asylum, refugee protection and assistance, including access to territory, access to RSD and asylum procedures, non-refoulement adequate reception and the implementation of durable solutions, including developing a Protection Management Framework for each national office.
– Provide legal and programme related advice and guidance to offices in the country on developing and maintaining fair and effective asylum regimes in accordance with international standards and norms, especially with regard to national asylum/refugee legislation and the building of local protection capacity.
– Provide legal and programme related advice and guidance on matters relating to the issue of asylum and migration to the Representative and offices in the country with particular emphasis on the problems of trafficking and smuggling.
– Provide guidance and leadership related to the implementation of the Age, Gender Diversity Mainstreaming (AGDM) Participatory Assessments in sub-region and ensure the follow up on any identified gaps related to the reception and integration systems and structures in the region with relevant stakeholders.
– Keep abreast of and analyse trends and key issues related to legal protection and assistance in the country, including preparing strategy and position papers with policy recommendations on specific protection, assistance and durable solutions related issues relevant to the country.
– Directly supervise Protection and Programme sections and develop operations plan in accordance with the organizational policies and operational strategies.
– Assist the Representative in the promotion of UNHCR strategic goals and objectives in the country, monitoring of the overall progress towards achieving them and in managing the Representation country office.
– Ensure that appropriate security measures are in place to protect staff, and that the country operation complies with UN MOSS/MORSS staff security rules, guidelines and procedures.
– Serve as OIC of the Country Office when the Representative is on mission or leave.
– Any other duties as may be required or assigned by the Representative.
– Represent UNHCR in the meetings and fora related to the functions.
– Enforce local compliance with UNHCR’s global protection, programme, finance and human resources and security policies and standards.
– Authorize payments as per the organization’s Delegation of Authority Plan (DOAP) and in accordance with UN/UNHCR rules and procedures.
– Modify operational projects and reallocate funds, within the approved budgets and in respect of donor earmarking.

– Lead risk assessments and discussions with team(s) to proactively manage risks and seize opportunities impacting objectives. Ensure that risk management principles are integrated in decision-making both at strategic and operational levels. Allocate resources for planned treatments with resource requirements in Strategic Plans. Ensure that risks are managed to acceptable levels and escalate, as needed. If a Risk Owner, designate the Risk Focal Point and certify that the annual risk review is completed and ensure that the risk register is updated during the year, as needed.
– Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For P5 – 12 years relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or 11 years relevant experience with Graduate degree; or 10 years relevant experience with Doctorate degree

Field(s) of Education
Business Administration; International Relations; Law;
Political Science; Social Science; Human Resources Management;
or other relevant field.

Certificates and/or Licenses
HCR Learning Prog; HCR Managing Operatns Lrng Prg;
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
– High level of skill in management of broad programmes, political decision making and negotiating.
Desirable
– Completion of UNHCR training programmes, such as Protection Learning Programme, Operations Management Learning Programme.
– Knowledge of geo-political realities and their socio-cultural implications.

Functional Skills
*MG-Field Operations Management
*UN-UN/UNHCR Inter-agency Policies, Standards, Programmes, and Partnerships
*UN-UN/UNHCR Mandate and Global Strategic Priorities
*PG-Programme Management (programme cycles and reporting standards)
UN-Analysis of geo-political realities and their socio-cultural implications
*MG-Political Decision Making
(Functional Skills marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Language Requirements
For International Professional and Field Service jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English.
For National Professional jobs: Knowledge of English and UN working language of the duty station if not English and local language.
For General Service jobs: Knowledge of English and/or UN working language of the duty station if not English.

All UNHCR workforce members must individually and collectively, contribute towards a working environment where each person feels safe, and empowered to perform their duties. This includes by demonstrating no tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse, harassment including sexual harassment, sexism, gender inequality, discrimination and abuse of power.

As individuals and as managers, all must be proactive in preventing and responding to inappropriate conduct, support ongoing dialogue on these matters and speaking up and seeking guidance and support from relevant UNHCR resources when these issues arise.

This is a Standard Job Description for all UNHCR jobs with this job title and grade level. The Operational Context may contain additional essential and/or desirable qualifications relating to the specific operation and/or position. Any such requirements are incorporated by reference in this Job Description and will be considered for the screening, shortlisting and selection of candidates.

The ideal candidate must possess at least a decade of relevant mixed programme/operations experience in demanding emergency contexts dealing with intricate security and sustainable response issues, involving diverse refugee, internally displaced, and stateless populations. As the candidate will be responsible for representing UNHCR at the UN Programme Management Team (PMT) and several other fora for which excellent communication skills are essential. The incumbent must have diplomatic skills and the ability to courageously take quick decisions. In that sense, understanding of Programme and operations management principles is essential.

The candidate is expected to lead consultative processes for application of the organizations criteria and policies for the selection of implementing partners; good coordination practices; very familiar with UNHCR standard procedures related to the Results Based Programme (RBM) management; application of UNHCR’s corporate tools (e.g., COMPASS, Global Focus, Focus Client). Apart from excellent functional competencies, the incumbent would also be expected to possess proven managerial and leadership skills. Demonstrated experience working with or at a Regional Bureau would be an advantage.

Previous involvement in an operation at senior level with a strong advocacy agenda and excellent interpersonal skills for interaction with high-level government authorities, UN sister agencies, and NGOs are also required.
The candidate should also have experience in implementing area-based and localization approaches, multi-stakeholder partnerships and HDP nexus approaches, as well as relevant experience of Accountability to Affected Populations in remote contexts. Given the evolving operational context in Burkina Faso, the ideal candidate must also possess demonstrated expertise in working across the programmatic aspects of HDP nexus, with a focus on resilience-building and durable solutions. S/He must have a great experience in engaging with a diverse range of stakeholders, including development actors, private sector entities, and government counterparts. The candidate should have confirmed experience contributing to strategic planning processes such as the MYMP, the HNO-HRP, the UNSDCF, etc. S/He should be well-informed about the positioning and engagement modalities of UNHCR in these processes. Previous experience with UNHCR in complex internal displacement operations is highly desirable. Proficiency in both French and English (oral and written) is mandatory.

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Operational context

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations:

To view occupational safety and health considerations for this duty station, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Nature of Position:

Under the direct supervision of the Representative, the Deputy Representative will provide strategic and operational guidance and advice to UNHCR staff and implementing partners regarding the implementation of the Burkina Faso’s MYMP protection and solutions strategies (2022-2026) within available resources. In line with UNHCR’s policies, standards, rules and regulations, s/he will supervise all Heads of Sub and Field Offices and will ensure coordinated and harmonized programmatic, operational and sustainable response approaches at all levels and throughout the UNHCR Operations Management Cycle and the UNHCR Burkina Faso’s MYMP Strategy which crucially require working with local partners, including with affected communities, governmental institutions, and the private sector. S/he will ensure that programme management is approached as per UNHCR’s Strategic Directions, Global Strategic Priorities (GSPs), Global Compact for Refugees (GCR), corporate positions on SDGs.

The incumbent is expected to work and keep regular/daily contacts with the Representative and staff at in the field as well as Operations’ colleagues at the Regional Bureau for WCA region, to consult, discuss programmatic and operational issues, and to seek common grounds for solutions on activities and programmes of importance to UNHCR in Burkina Faso and with stakeholders on matters of great importance to UNHCR’s programmes. These contacts may include also heads of national/ international organizations, embassies, UN agencies, and high officials/ ministers in the national government.

Burkina Faso is facing a multifaceted crisis, with increasing displacement due to conflict, insecurity and political instability in the Central Sahel region. This situation has led to one of the fastest-growing displacement crises globally, with over 2 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) as of 31 March 2023 and 42,000 refugees and asylum-seekers seeking international protection in out-of-camp settings. This is in addition to over 190,000 Burkinabè refugees in neighbouring countries and approximately 2.2 million persons at risk of statelessness.  Forced displacements, both primary and secondary, as well as commuting, pose additional threats to IDPs, over 80% of whom are women and children heavily reliant on largely insufficient humanitarian assistance. In 2025, the protractedness of forced displacement within and across borders has escalated markedly due to insecurity but the government and host communities, often already facing socio-economic challenges, have shown remarkable solidarity in accommodating displaced populations. However, the increased pressure on resources and services has significantly amplified vulnerabilities among the affected populations UNHCR serves. The operating environment is thus characterized by significant challenges, including limited access to some areas due to insecurity, fragile infrastructure, and under-resourced social services. Insecurity has disrupted livelihoods, education, and healthcare services, leaving millions in need of urgent humanitarian assistance. As per the Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) 2025, 5.9 million people required humanitarian assistance while the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) 2025 aimed to address the acute and urgent needs of 3.7 million people.

In 2025, with this evolving operational context, UNHCR’s response has shifted from an emergency-focused approach to one that prioritizes resilience-building and durable solutions. This evolution reflects the growing recognition that durable solutions are essential to addressing the protracted nature of displacement in Burkina Faso and that addressing the root causes of displacement and promoting self-reliance for both displaced and host communities are essential to achieving sustainable outcomes. The new operational priorities require a holistic approach that integrates humanitarian assistance with development efforts. UNHCR’s engagement in the Humanitarian-Peace-Development Nexus and the search for durable solutions with development actors is a priority for the operation, and so is the inclusion of refugees in national protection systems and development plans. UNHCR’s focus on Burkina Faso now includes strengthening local systems, enhancing social cohesion, and promoting economic opportunities for displaced populations. To achieve these objectives, the operation must engage a broader range of partners, including development actors, private sector stakeholders, and local governments, to mobilize the necessary resources and expertise for long-term solutions. The evolving context necessitates a strategic shift in external relations to secure diversified and sustainable funding streams and to promote UNHCR’s role in resilience and development-oriented initiatives.

Living and Working Conditions:

Burkina Faso has very basic infrastructures, including in the health sector.  In Ouagadougou, there are more than 20 health clinics, but only 7 recommended by the UN System. Epidemics and other disease outbreaks are common in the operational area.

Ouagadougou is a non-family duty station, and you are eligible for R&R for every eight weeks. Banking services available include more than five international banks among which two are recommended by the UN System (United Bank of Africa and Ecobank).

Hot and dry desert environment with high daylight temperature fluctuations.

In the field, due to security-borne restrictions, the office has built four guest houses for staff on short missions. Due to its limited capacity, staff are not advised to permanently reside.

Housing in Ouagadougou is mainly individual houses and are easily available.  But most buildings are not well maintained and need repair.  Electricity is very expensive, and a backup generator is recommended.

Additional Qualifications

Skills

PR-Analysis of laws and practice relevant to human rights

Bachelor of Arts: Business Administration, Bachelor of Arts: Human Resources Management, Bachelor of Arts: International Relations, Bachelor of Arts: Law, Bachelor of Arts: Political Science, Bachelor of Arts: Social Science

Certifications

HCR Learning Program – UNHCR, Programme Management (PM) 1 – UNHCR

Annual Budget OL in Operation/Office, Number of Persons of Concern Served, Number of Workforce in Operation/Work Setting, Workforce to Supervise, Working with Persons of Concern: Asylum Seekers, Working with Persons of Concern: Internally Displaced Persons, Working with Persons of Concern: Refugees, Working with Persons of Concern: Stateless

Competencies

Accountability, Analytical thinking, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Empowering & building trust, Judgement & decision making, Leadership, Managing performance, Managing resource, Organizational awareness, Planning & organizing, Stakeholder management, Strategic planning & visions, Teamwork & collaboration

https://icsc.un.org/Home/SalaryScales

Compendium

Add. 2 to the Bi-Annual 2025 Compendium – Part B

Additional Information

This position doesn”t require a functional clearance