UNICEF : SSRRE 2025-2026: MENA – Representative
JOB DETAIL
UNICEF works in some of the world’s toughest places, to reach the world’s most disadvantaged children. To save their lives. To defend their rights. To help them fulfil their potential.
Across 190 countries and territories, we work for every child, everywhere, every day, to build a better world for everyone. And we never give up.
For every child, dedication.
The Representative serves as the accredited representative of UNICEF in the country and reports to the Regional Director for general direction and oversight. The Representative is responsible for establishing dialogue with the Government to develop the framework of cooperation in the country and for working closely and collaboratively with the Government and national institutions, stakeholders and partners, to develop the Government-UNICEF Country Programme of Cooperation in active support of efforts to advance children’s rights as established under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, other international treaties/frameworks, the SDGs, and UN intergovernmental bodies. The Representative is also responsible for liaising and develop a dialogue with the De facto Authorities (Ansar Allah) who control Northern Yemen including Sanaa where the Representative is based. This politically complex environment requires the Representative to be politically astute and have a vision to continue to constantly review UNICEF’s posture.
As head of a medium size Country Office, the Representative is responsible for providing leadership and vision to the UNICEF Country Office team in managing and leveraging resources for the achievement of results and realization of the rights of children. The Representative leads and oversees the various programme sectors and operations teams ensuring delivery of quality results in accordance with UNICEF’s Strategic Plans, standards of performance and accountability framework, ethics and integrity. The complex environment means that that the Representative has to be able to understand a humanitarian, resilience and developmental response.
The Representative is accountable for upholding UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability, and ensuring the establishment and maintenance of a non-discriminatory, inclusive and nurturing working environment for all staff and personnel, to enable them to effectively and efficiently deliver high-quality results for children.
How can you make a difference?
The Representative’s key functions and accountabilities include:
- Developing and planning the Country Programme
- Leading and managing the Country Office
- Understanding a very complex political environment and steering UNICEF between the two authorities
- Monitoring and quality control of the Country Programme
- Representation and external relations at global/regional and national level
- Delivering high quality results for children, including in a complex operating environment
- Support to the Resident Coordinator and UN Country Team to advance the UN Cooperation Framework
- Leading resource mobilization efforts and nurturing and strengthening partnerships
- Leading innovation, knowledge management and capacity building
- Safety, security and well-being of staff, programmes and organizational assets
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Qualifications:
- An Advanced University Degree in social sciences, international relations, government and public relations, public or social policy, sociology, social or community development or other related fields, is required.
- A minimum of 15 years professional development experience that combines intellectual and managerial leadership in development cooperation at the international level, strong experience in emergency contexts.
- Relevant professional experience in any UN system agency or organization is an asset.
- Fluency in English is required. Knowledge of another official UN language or local language of the duty station is considered as an asset.
Person Profile:
Dynamic leader with excellent interpersonal skills and collaborative leadership style. Experience in managing large office in a conflict environment . flexibility, capacity to work under pressure, diplomacy and deep understanding of the humanitarian principles are required for this position. Experience in international fundraising. Experience in leading and managing communications, media relations, public advocacy & partnerships, with high level government officials including Presidents, Prime Ministers and CEOs Results-driven and people-oriented management approach with strong ability to influence, negotiate, and build networks and partnerships while improving/ rebuilding systems, streamlining and simplifying processes. Excellent political, diplomatic and organizational development skills, combined with a proven ability to succeed in a complex political, diverse and multicultural environment. Strong capacity to work effectively in inter-agency and cross-sectoral leadership teams. Strong capacity to distill and translate multifaceted and critical issues for organizational attention within the country, the region and at HQ levels. Experience in/knowledge of the UN system and knowledge of UNICEF’s work would be an asset. Strategic and global thinking and analytical ability
Country Typology:
- Country Income Level: Yemen is a low-income country and a transitional programming context.
- Duty Station: Sana’a (E, non-family duty station)
- Office Size: 324 FT staff (56 IP, 118 NO, 150 GS)
- Annual Budget: $400-$500 million
- Good for first-time Representative: No. Yemen is one of the most politically (internally and externally) and geographically complex and insecure operational settings in the world. It requires a Representative with a broad range of contextual experience managing large offices with multiple duty stations. A Representative with proven experience in partnership management at a senior level is also mandatory.
- Schooling: Not applicable
Brief country context:
With the country approaching the terrible milestone of a decade of devastating conflict, the impact of war on Yemen’s 18 million children is profound. With over 10 million children living in deprivation, a poverty rate of more than 80 percent, stunting at 49 percent, 4.5 million children out-of-school, some two million child IDPs, and one-in-three marriages involving child brides, the no war-no peace political stalemate between the de facto authorities in Sana’a and the internationally recognized government in Aden remains the single biggest barrier to children and families being able to rebuild their lives.
In this context, in one of the most difficult places on earth to be a child, UNICEF continues to invest in national and community-based systems, focusing on children’s survival, growth and development. UNICEF Yemen partners with a wide range of humanitarian actors and the public sector at all levels, focusing on reaching the most deprived communities through multi-sectoral responses in health, nutrition, WASH, education, social and child protection. This includes managing a cash assistance programme that reaches one-third of the population several times a year.
UNICEF’s Core Values of Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability and Sustainability (CRITAS) underpin everything we do and how we do it. Get acquainted with Our Values Charter: UNICEF Values
For every child, you demonstrate…
Core Values
- Commitment
- Respect
- Integrity
- Trust
- Accountability
- Sustainability
Competencies
- Builds and maintains partnerships (level III)
- Demonstrates self-awareness and ethical awareness (level III)
- Drive to achieve results for impact (level III)
- Innovates and embraces change (level III)
- Manages ambiguity and complexity (level III)
- Thinks and acts strategically (level III)
- Works collaboratively with others (level III)
- Nurtures, leads and manages people (level III)
To view our competency framework, please visit here.
Remarks
The effective date of appointment for the successful candidate is expected to be in November 2025
This position is classified as “rotational” which means the incumbent is expected to rotate to another duty station upon completion of their tour of duty.
UNICEF is committed to diversity and inclusion within its workforce, and encourages all candidates, irrespective of gender, nationality, religious and ethnic backgrounds, including persons living with disabilities, to apply to become a part of the organization.
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 also adheres to strict child safeguarding principles. All selected candidates will, therefore, undergo rigorous reference and background checks, and will be expected to adhere to these standards and principles.
UNICEF appointments are subject to medical clearance. Issuance of a visa by the host country of the duty station, which will be facilitated by UNICEF, is required for IP positions. Appointments may also be subject to inoculation (vaccination) requirements, including against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid). Government employees that are considered for employment with UNICEF are normally required to resign from their government 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.
