UNHCR : Senior External Relations Assistant – Nairobi

  • Location:
  • Salary:
    negotiable / YEAR
  • Job type:
    FULL_TIME
  • Posted:
    2 weeks ago
  • Category:
    Partnership and Resource Mobilization
  • Deadline:
    22/11/2025

JOB DESCRIPTION

Hardship Level

B

Family Type

Family

Family Type

Family

Residential location (if applicable)

Grade

GS5

Staff Member / Affiliate Type

General Service

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

Remote work accepted

No

Target Start Date

2025-01-01

Deadline for Applications

December 3, 2024

Standard Job Description

Senior External Relations Assistant

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships
The Senior External Relations Assistant normally functions under the direct supervision of External Relations Officer or another professional staff depending on staffing structure of the Office. The incumbent assists in the management of external relations activities of the Office. He/she plays a key role in organising the visits of foreign delegations, donors, press and media, providing regular briefings and drafting reports/materials for external partners. He/she may also receive advice and operational support from the External Relations/Public Information Units at the Country Office /HQ.

Advertisement

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
– Draft briefing notes, press releases, bulletins, reports, newsletters and prepare any other public information material, as required
– Facilitate and accompany visits of foreign delegations, partner NGOs, donors and the media to refugee camps
– Draft and translate routine correspondence and texts.
– Assist with developing and implementing UNHCR’s social media strategy conceptualize and pitch stories for UNHCR’s global website.
– Ensure that public information materials including fact sheets, information brochures, briefing materials from the Branch Office, etc. are available.
– Organize visibility events (e.g. World Refugee Day) and liaise with partners, refugees and local communities on implementation.
– May be required to assist in compilation of weekly, monthly, annual/quarterly thematic reports, situations reports etc.
– Review media daily and ensure the office is kept informed of local developments.
– Provide information on UNHCR’s activities to external partners.
– Respond to non-complex media queries and incoming correspondence.

– Support the identification and management of risks and seek to seize opportunities impacting objectives in the area of responsibility. Ensure decision making in risk based in the functional area of work. Raise risks, issues and concerns to a supervisor or to relevant functional colleague(s).
– Perform other related duties as required.

Minimum Qualifications
Education & Professional Work Experience
Years of Experience / Degree Level
For G5 – 2 years relevant experience with High School Diploma; or 1 year relevant work experience with Bachelor or equivalent or higher

Field(s) of Education
Not applicable

Certificates and/or Licenses
International Relations, Journalism Political Science
Communication Media
(Certificates and Licenses marked with an asterisk* are essential)

Relevant Job Experience
Essential
Not specified

Desirable
Previous experience in UN/UNHCR.
Completion of UNHCR learning programmes or specific training relevant to functions of position.
Knowledge of another relevant UN language.
HQ and Field experience with UNHCR or with other humanitarian organizations

Functional Skills
TI-Interpretation
IT-Computer Literacy
CO-Drafting and Documentation
(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.

Desired Candidate Profile

Strong organisational and administrative skills as the incumbent will be expected to organize missions and events on behalf of the Kenya office; ability to coordinate external relations meetings, missions and to step in on behalf of the team when required to draft documents and fill in chartfields for funding grants. Demonstrated technical skills in MS Word/Excel/PPT and other software skills will be an added advantage.

Required languages (expected Overall ability is at least B2 level):

,

,

Desired languages

,

,

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:

Kenya remains the fifth largest host country in Africa and the thirteenth biggest asylum country in the world. The total number of refugees and asylum seekers in Kenya stands at approx. 800,000, in addition to some 8,000 stateless persons. UNHCR Kenya Operation maintains three main offices as follows: Representation Office in Nairobi, Two sub-offices in Kakuma and Dadaab. A Joint Refugee Service Centre has also been established, operated jointly with the Department of Refugee Services, to provide all protection services to affected populations in Nairobi.

In line with the Global Compact for Refugees (GCR) and the 2023-2026 UNHCR Kenya Multi-Year Strategy, the operation will continue to focus on further expanding the protection of refugees and promoting solutions as well as to continue working on the activities/targets partially by partners and through direct implementation and in close coordination with other stakeholders.

Advertisement

The Senior External Relations Assistant will report to the External Relations Officer and work closely with all the units in the Representation Office and will support the two field locations. In addition to the duties listed in the Job Description/ToR, the incumbent will also; Provide functional administrative support to colleagues- organizing missions, travel for donors and missions to the field office, Supporting the unit in organizing donor briefings, analyzing data using MS systems for various reports, developing graphics for reports and proposals, planning and organizing special events, conferences and meetings.

The incumbent will be adept at managing and maintaining our files, ensuring the Unit has appropriate processes in place.

Living and Working Conditions:

 

Additional Qualifications

Skills

CO-Drafting and Documentation, IT-Computer Literacy, TI-Interpretation

Education

Certifications

Communication – Other, International Relations – Other, Journalism – Other, Media – Other, Political Science – Other

Work Experience

Competencies

Accountability, Client & results orientation, Commitment to continuous learning, Communication, Organizational awareness, Teamwork & collaboration

UNHCR Salary Calculator

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

Compendium

Additional Information

Functional clearance

This position doesn’t require a functional clearance

Level of Education: Bachelor Degree .o

Work Hours: 8

Experience in Months: No requirements