Assistant Programme Officer

Deadline for Applications

October 11, 2026

Hardship Level

E (most hardship)

Family Type

Non Family with Residential LocationDanger Pay

Residential location (if applicable)

Nairobi (CO), Kenya

Grade

NOA

Staff Member / Affiliate Type

National Professional Officer

Reason

Regular > Regular Assignment

Target Start Date

2026-10-01

Standard Job Description

Assistant Programme Officer

Organizational Setting and Work Relationships

The Assistant Programme Officer may be based in HQ, field/regional bureau, and would normally receive guidance from more senior programme staff in the operation/bureau/division and may supervise a small team of local staff. The incumbent may refer to UNHCR’s Programme Manual (Chapter IV), UNHCR's corporate and regional strategic priorities, operation plans and other relevant institutional rules and regulations for further guidance.

The Assistant Programme Officer will support the provision of programmatic guidance and support with regard to the implementation of protection and solutions strategies within available resources. The incumbent will play a role in coordinating with the other sections/units to ensure harmonized programmatic approaches at all levels and throughout the UNHCR Operations Management Cycle. S/he will work in line with the overall UNHCR directions which crucially require working with partners, including with forcibly displaced and stateless persons, governmental institutions and the private sector, ensuring 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 in line with the multi-functional team (MFT) approach as defined within the Program Manual, ensuring the participation of relevant stakeholders in all phases of the Program Management Cycle.

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

• •Support in assessing and analysing the needs of forcibly displaced and stateless persons in a participatory manner, using an Age, Gender and Diversity (AGD) perspective as basis for planning.
• •Provide support on programmatic aspects of developing multi-year protection and solutions strategies and annual plans with corresponding priorities taking into account corporate priorities.
• •Support Results Based Management and programme capacity in light of evolving requirements, programming approaches and gaps.
• •Assist the planning process in compliance with planning parameters outlined in the Programme Manual and the planning instructions.
• •Contribute to the review and analyse of plans, mid-year and year-end reports of UNHCR offices in the region, ensuring quality assurance and compliance with established policies, guidelines, procedures and standards.
• •Assist with the provision of overall direction to broaden partnerships with key stakeholders in order to maximize the protection and solutions response for forcibly displaced and stateless persons.
• •Contribute to the successful application of the framework for implementing with partners, including the effective implementation of the policy on selection and retention of partners, management of partnership agreements, risk-based project performance monitoring, and risk-based project audits, among others.
• •Contribute to ensure consistent and coherent monitoring approaches, tools and systems within the Area of Responsibility (AoR), in line with global standards and polices.
• •Actively contribute to UNHCRs programming of community of practice and continuously contribute to improvements of programming tools and processes.
• •Identify potential gaps and problems and in cooperation with other relevant sections recommend appropriate solutions to ensure the efficient implementation of programme activities.
• •Assist in a timely and effective follow-up of internal and external audits observations and recommendations that relate to programmatic issues.

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
• Years of Experience / Degree Level
• For P1/NOA - 1 year relevant experience with Undergraduate degree; or no experience with Graduate degree; or no experience with Doctorate degree

• Field(s) of Education
• Economics

Business Administration

• Social Sciences
• or other relevant field.

• Certificates and/or Licenses
• Not specified

• Relevant Job Experience
• Essential
• Demonstrated experience in programme management including familiarization with the OMC and sound knowledge Results Based-Management. Demonstrated experience in field operations, sound knowledge on the centrality of protection in programming, Joint Needs Assessments and the principles of targeting.

• Desirable
• Demonstrated experience in coordination within an inter-agency context and other actors, in a refugee or humanitarian context. Sound experience in program management training and capacity building activities.

• Functional Skills
• PG-UNHCR's Programmes
• PG-Results-Based Management
• PG-Stakeholder management and coordination with Implementing Partners (Gov/NGO/Corporate)
• PG-Programme Management (programme cycles and reporting standards)
• (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

The Candidate demonstrates progressive professional experience in programme management within UN agencies or comparable large international institutions, with demonstrated exposure in complex or hardship operations characterized by high workload intensity, tight deadlines, and frequent operational shifts.

Demonstrated hands-on experience using enterprise programme and ERP systems, such as PROMS, COMPASS, or cloud-based ERP platforms. Proven ability to use Microsoft Office tools (Excel, Word, PowerPoi