Background:

UN Women, grounded in the vision of equality enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, works for the elimination of discrimination against women and girls; the empowerment of women; and the achievement of equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action and peace and security. 

UN Women is committed to the achievement of equality between women, men, boys and girls as partners and beneficiaries of humanitarian action and resilience. In May 2015, UN Women engaged in Gender in Humanitarian Action and in 2017 created the Humanitarian Action and crisis Response Office to consolidate its advocacy, coordination and capacity development role for the integration of gender equality across humanitarian action. UN Women Humanitarian response includes three areas of work, namely disaster risk reduction and mitigation, humanitarian response and early recovery dealing with Women’s Leadership, Empowerment, Access and Participation (LEAP) and Resilience. The impact of conflict is often measured by casualties: Women and girls face heightened risks due to displacement and the breakdown of normal protection structures and support. 

As part of its Disaster Risk Reduction and Resilience work (DRR), the UN Women Regional Office for West and Central Africa, focusses on prevention and resilience building by ensuring that new and existing disaster risks are mitigated by putting women’s agency and voice at the center of disaster risk reduction efforts. UN Women facilitates and promotes the integration of gender equality and women's empowerment through Coordination and Leadership; Capacity Development; Mainstreaming Gender into Data, Analysis, and Advocacy and Targeted programming.

UN Women commits to strengthening the humanitarian-development-peace nexus by ensuring that humanitarian responses address root causes of vulnerability, build resilience, and support inclusive recovery and peacebuilding, with women and girls at the center.

UN Women collaborates closely with UN system partners, national institutions and civil society organizations to ensure accountability and coherence in addressing gender equality in humanitarian action and DRR. UN Women works with gender equality institutions and organizations, from grassroots to intergovernmental bodies, to strengthen their position and capacity as champions for gender equality in humanitarian action, resilience and beyond. 

About the portfolio/ thematic area

Globally, humanitarian needs have continued to rise sharply, driven by conflict, climate shocks and deepening protection crises. In West and Central Africa, overlapping crises have pushed humanitarian needs to unprecedented levels, with the number of people forcibly displaced or stateless in the region reached a record 12.7 million in 2025.

Women, girls and children constitute the majority of those affected by displacement and humanitarian needs in the region, representing approximately 80 % of the forcibly displaced population. 

Under the direct supervision of Regional Policy Adviser on Peace, Security and Humanitarian Action, and with minimal day-to-day oversight, the Regional Humanitarian Action and Resilience Specialist leads UN Women’s humanitarian and DRR technical programming across the West and Central Africa region. The incumbent exercises significant independent professional judgment in designing regional strategies, providing authoritative technical guidance to multiple Country Offices, and representing UN Women in inter-agency humanitarian coordination mechanisms. The Specialist manages complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives across approximately 24 countries in the region, navigating politically sensitive and rapidly evolving humanitarian contexts. The incumbent consults the supervisor on strategic, politically sensitive, or high-risk matters affecting organizational positioning or resource commitments

Competencies :

Core Values:

• Integrity;
• Professionalism;
• Respect for Diversity.

Core Competencies:

• Awareness and Sensitivity Regarding Gender Issues;
• Accountability;
• Creative Problem Solving;
• Effective Communication;
• Inclusive Collaboration;
• Stakeholder Engagement;
• Leading by Example.

Please visit this link for more information on UN Women’s Values and Competencies Framework: 

Functional Competencies:

• Strong knowledge and experience related to current policies and practices in the fields of gender equality, protection and humanitarian action, DRR and coordination; 
• Strong knowledge of the region
• Strong networking skills
• Ability to interact with donors, identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising
• Ability to perform qualitative and quantitative policy research
• Ability to advocate and provide policy advice
• Strong analytical skills;
• Ability to write policy papers, speeches, briefings;
• Strong knowledge of programme development, implementation, results-based management and reporting

Recruitment Qualifications : 

Education and certification: 

• Master’s degree or equivalent in human rights, gender, international relations, international development, international law or other social science fields is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.
• A project/programme management certification (such as PMP®, PRINCE2®, or MSP®) would be an added advantage.

Experience: 

• At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in designing and managing humanitarian or DRR programmes, with a particular focus on gender and protection in emergencies and resilience is required.
• Technical experience in inter-agency coordination, preferably protection cluster coordination, and/or ProCap/GenCap in a natural disaster setting is required.
• Experience in policy analysis and strategic planning is required
• Experience working with, and building partnerships with governments, donors and civil society organizations internationally and in the field is required.
• Experience working with the UN is desirable.
• Experience working in the region is desirable.

Language Requirements:

• Fluency in French and English (both oral and written) is required ;
• Knowledge of the other UN official working language is desirable.

Statements :

In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment.

Diversity and inclusion:

At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need.

If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application.

UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Women’s policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (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.)

Note: Applicants must ensure that all sections of the application form, including the sections on education and employment history, are completed. If all sections are not completed the application may be disqualified from the recruitment and selection process.