Partnerships Officer

In Latin America and the Caribbean, UNOPS operates across 23 countries, delivering high-impact solutions that drive sustainable development. UNOPS focuses on building and improving resilient infrastructure—including roads, bridges, public facilities, sanitation systems, and housing—to enhance quality of life and foster inclusive growth. UNOPS also supports public health by procuring essential medicines and medical equipment, ensuring broader access to healthcare services. By strengthening institutional capacities, UNOPS promotes transparent, efficient, and equitable public management. As a trusted partner to governments and development stakeholders, UNOPS aligns its interventions with national priorities, helping countries advance the Sustainable Development Goals through practical, results-driven support.

Based in Panama City, Panama, the UNOPS Office of the Regional Director (ORD) for Latin America and the Caribbean provides strategic leadership and coordination across the region, enabling effective delivery of UNOPS’ mandate. Through portfolio oversight, integrated risk management, and the mobilization of expertise and resources, the ORD ensures regional coherence and operational excellence. The office supports country teams in aligning activities with organizational goals, strengthening the impact and efficiency of development efforts. It also leads regional positioning and representation in high-level forums, advancing visibility and engagement with key stakeholders. In close collaboration with other regional offices and headquarters, the ODR fosters cross-regional learning, promotes innovation, and drives strategic initiatives that contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Partnerships Officer supports the day-to-day implementation of partnership development and project development activities within the Office of the Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean. Working in coordination with country offices, regional teams and relevant headquarters counterparts, the position contributes to the identification and initial assessment of potential business opportunities, the preparation of project proposals and partnership documentation, and the coordination of information and inputs required for the development of new engagements.

The role focuses on conducting research and analysis on partner priorities, funding opportunities, and development needs; preparing partner profiles, background materials and project development documents; maintaining accurate information on prospective partners and opportunities; and following up on the progress of initiatives within the regional resource mobilization pipeline. Through effective coordination, analytical support, and timely delivery of assigned activities, the Partnerships Officer contributes to the ORD's efforts to facilitate new partnerships and support the development of UNOPS' regional portfolio.

• Experience in similar roles in Latin America is a competitive advantage.

• Only candidates whose applications demonstrate advanced proficiency in both English and Spanish will be shortlisted.

The Partnerships Officer supports and contributes to the development of new projects, partnership development, resource mobilization, and the strategic positioning of UNOPS. The Partnerships Officer plays an active role in identifying and developing business opportunities, cultivating relationships with partners and donors, advancing the resource mobilization pipeline, and supporting key stakeholders.

Positioning and Project Development

• Identify and analyze potential project and business opportunities aligned with UNOPS' mandate, strategic priorities and areas of comparative advantage.
• Analyze development priorities, government programmes, donor strategies, investment priorities and emerging needs to identify opportunities for UNOPS engagement and positioning.
• Assist in developing expressions of interest, concept notes, capacity statements, proposals, logical frameworks and other project development documents for prospective engagements.
• Coordinate with internal teams and prospective partners to clarify project requirements, develop project concepts and formulate initial project requests.
• Develop high-level estimates of project scope, effort and costs and consolidate the technical, financial and contextual information required for project development. .
• Prepare substantive partner profiles, opportunity assessments, background analyses, briefing notes, talking points and presentations for project development discussions, strategic meetings and missions.
• Participate in discussions with prospective partners and stakeholders and ensure systematic follow-up of opportunities, commitments and agreed next steps.
• Maintain and analyze information on prospective projects, opportunities and partner intelligence to support the development and prioritization of the project pipeline.

Partnerships and Resource Mobilization

• Identify, map and assess funding and partnership opportunities with governments, UN entities, bilateral and multilateral donors, international financial institutions, multilateral development banks, foundations, NGOs, civil society and the private sector.
• Contribute substantively to the implementation of the UNOPS partnership and resource mobilization priorities, including the identification, qualification and advancement of opportunities through the pipeline.
• Assist in developing and maintaining a structured overview of key partners, donor priorities, funding cycles, funding mechanisms, partnership modalities and emerging funding opportunities.
• Build and maintain effective working relationships with existing and prospective partners and support targeted engagement based on identified opportunities and shared priorities.
• Prepare and coordinate inputs for donor and partner meetings, strategic missions, consultations and other resource mobilization activities.
• Follow up on partnership opportunities (as assigned) from initial identification through project formulation and, where relevant, engagement approval.
• Assist in gathering and providing inputs to support the negotiation and refinement of project and partnership documentation in collaboration with relevant internal stakeholders.
• Coordinate the preparation and consolidation of project documentation, budgets, legal agreements and other information required for the development and review of new engagements.
• Contribute to the quality assurance of new engagements by reviewing the completeness, consistency and quality of information and facilitating the required internal reviews, clearances and approvals.
• Monitor and analyze the resource mobilization pipeline, identify bottlenecks and opportunities, and provide regular updates and recommendations to the supervisor.

Knowledge Building and Sharing

• Support the organization, facilitation and delivery of training and learning sessions on partnerships.
• Participate in knowledge-sharing initiatives and Communities of Practice (CoPs), contributing insights and lessons learned.
• Conduct research on partnerships-related topics and contribute to the drafting of reports, summaries and briefing notes.

Required

• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) with 2 years of relevant experience OR
• A master's degree (or equivalent) in any discipline with 0 years of relevant experience is required.

Required

• Relevant experience is work in international development, involving support of partnership and programme development plans, project development and proposal writing, establishment of partnerships with UN agencies, international development organizations, governments, foundations or private-sector organizations, or related areas.
• Experience working directly with internal and external partners, including governments and international donors is required.
• Experience in professional proposal writing is required.

Desired

• Good knowledge of Google Suite tools and experience in handling web-based management systems is desired.
• Experience of working in multicultural environments or UN system organizations in a developing country is desired.
• Experience in development or humanitarian contexts is desired.

• UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes.
• UNOPS will at no stage of the recruitment process request candidates to make payments of any kind.
• Applications to vacancies must be received before midnight Copenhagen time (CET) on the closing date of the announcement. Applications received after the closing date will not be considered.
• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the selection process, which may include various assessments.
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of a wide range of nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. We strive to sustain and strengthen this diversity, fostering an inclusive working environment where all personnel are treated with respect and have equal access to opportunities.
• UNOPS evaluates all applications based on the skills, qualifications and experience outlined in the vacancy announcement. We are committed to a fair and transparent selection process and welcome diverse perspectives, including those of women, indigenous and racialized communities, individuals of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations, and persons with disabilities.
• We are committed to enabling all candidates to perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require support or reasonable accommodation to complete any assessment, please inform our human resources team upon receiving your invitation.
• UNOPS has zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA), sexual harassment, and other forms of abusive conduct, including discrimination, abuse of authority, and harassment. To uphold these standards, background checks are conducted for all final candidates to help ensure that individuals with a history of such conduct are not hired. By applying for a position with UNOPS, candidates acknowledge and consent to these verification processes.
  

• For staff positions only, UNOPS reserves the right to appoint a candidate at a lower level than the advertised level of the post.
• For retainer contracts, you must complete a few mandatory courses (they take around 4 hours to complete) in your own time, before providing services to UNOPS. Refreshers or new mandatory courses may be required during your contract. Please note that you will not receive any compensation for taking courses and refreshers. For more information on a retainer contract here.
• For more details about the contract types, please click here.
• 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.