Access Officer, seconded to UNOCHA, Goma, DRC, P3  

This position is exclusively open to Swiss citizens. Candidates who do not fulfil this condition will not receive response.

Brief Description of Emergency Outbreak/Upsurge and the Consequences for OCHA

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to face one of the world’s largest and most complex humanitarian crises, driven by armed conflict, epidemics, recurrent displacement and protection risks. The eastern provinces of North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri remain the epicentre of the crisis, where ongoing conflict, the expansion of AFC/M23 territorial control and the presence of multiple armed actors have significantly complicated humanitarian operations. The declaration of an Ebola outbreak in Ituri Province has added a major public health emergency to an already overstretched humanitarian context. The risk of further transmission into conflict-affected and hard-to-reach areas, including territories under the control or influence of de facto authorities, requires sustained humanitarian coordination, preparedness and access engagement to ensure the timely implementation of surveillance, case management, logistics, community engagement and other life-saving interventions. At the same time, humanitarian actors continue to face significant operational constraints, including insecurity, administrative impediments, restrictions on humanitarian movements, and the increasing complexity of engaging multiple authorities across areas of control. These challenges require sustained humanitarian diplomacy, access negotiations and civil-military coordination to preserve humanitarian space and facilitate principled humanitarian action. Within this context, OCHA plays a critical role in supporting humanitarian leadership through coordination, humanitarian access, negotiation and operational analysis. Strengthened humanitarian access and civil military coordination capacity is essential to engage national and de facto authorities, support humanitarian partners in overcoming operational constraints, facilitate cross-line and crossborder humanitarian movements where required, and ensure coherent coordination of the Ebola response alongside broader humanitarian operations. The deployment of a dedicated CimCoord Access Officer (P3) will significantly strengthen OCHA’s ability to anticipate and address access constraints, support evidence-based decision-making, and enable timely and effective humanitarian action in one of the most complex operating environments globally.

OCHA’s Role and Key Challenges:

In the face of escalating humanitarian needs, the Ebola outbreak and an increasingly complex operational environment, OCHA plays a critical role in facilitating humanitarian coordination, humanitarian access and principled engagement with all relevant stakeholders. Humanitarian operations in eastern DRC are increasingly affected by insecurity, administrative impediments, movement restrictions and the presence of multiple de facto authorities, requiring sustained humanitarian diplomacy, negotiations and civil-military coordination to preserve humanitarian space and enable life-saving assistance. Strengthening OCHA’s humanitarian access and civilmilitary coordination capacity is therefore essential to support effective engagement with national and de facto authorities, facilitate humanitarian movements, address operational constraints and provide strategic analysis to humanitarian leadership. The deployment of a dedicated Humanitarian Affairs Officer (P3) will enhance OCHA’s ability to coordinate humanitarian access efforts, support the Ebola response within the broader humanitarian operation, and ensure timely, principled and coordinated assistance to affected populations in one of the world’s most challenging humanitarian contexts.

Main Partners and Stakeholders in the Field:

• OCHA: Humanitarian Coordinator, Deputy Head of Office, Access Working Group, Inter-Cluster Coordination Group (ICCG), Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), sub-national coordination structures and OCHA field offices.

• Government Authorities and De Facto Authorities: National, provincial and local authorities, including relevant civilian and security authorities, to facilitate humanitarian access, coordination and principled humanitarian action.

• United Nations Agencies: WHO, UNICEF, WFP, UNHCR, IOM, UNFPA and other UN entities engaged in humanitarian response, preparedness and emergency coordination.

• Humanitarian Partners: International and national NGOs, MSF, Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement organizations, cluster/sector coordinators and humanitarian consortia operating in affected areas.

• Access and Civil-Military Actors: Humanitarian Access Working Groups, UN-CMCoord focal points, security actors and relevant liaison mechanisms supporting humanitarian access and movement facilitation.

• Community Representatives: Community leaders, civil society organizations, religious leaders and other local stakeholders to strengthen humanitarian acceptance and facilitate community engagement.

• Donors and Diplomatic Partners: Donor representatives and diplomatic missions to support humanitarian advocacy and facilitate principled humanitarian access where appropriate.

• Regional and Cross-Border Stakeholders: Relevant authorities and humanitarian coordination mechanisms involved in cross-border and cross-line humanitarian operations, as required. The CimCoord Access Officer will maintain effective engagement with these stakeholders to strengthen humanitarian access, support humanitarian diplomacy, facilitate coordination and enable timely, safe and principled humanitarian operations in complex operational environments.

Long-Term Plan After SBP Deployment Ends:

The declaration of an IASC System-Wide Scale-Up and OCHA’s Corporate Emergency for the Ebola outbreak has significantly expanded the scope and intensity of coordination and humanitarian access requirements. The outbreak is unfolding within one of the world’s most complex humanitarian settings, where active conflict, multiple de facto authorities, population movements and access constraints require sustained humanitarian diplomacy, negotiations and civil-military coordination. Continued dedicated capacity is essential to support humanitarian access negotiations, engagement with national and de facto authorities, humanitarian diplomacy, civil-military coordination, and strategic operational analysis in support of both the Ebola response and the broader humanitarian operation. The Humanitarian Affairs Officer will continue to strengthen humanitarian access coordination mechanisms, support the Humanitarian Access Working Group and other inter-agency coordination platforms, facilitate coherent engagement with humanitarian partners and authorities, and contribute to contingency planning and operational preparedness. The position will also help institutionalize good practices and strengthen the capacity of existing national and sub-national coordination structures, while ensuring that humanitarian access considerations remain fully integrated into the overall emergency response. As the Ebola outbreak evolves and the Corporate Emergency is progressively scaled down, OCHA will work towards transitioning these responsibilities to existing coordination structures where operationally feasible. However, given the current operational complexity and the requirements of the IASC Scale-Up, sustained surge capacity remains essential to preserve humanitarian access, maintain coordinated operations, and enable the timely delivery of life-saving assistance.

Main Tasks and Duties to be Executed:

• Support the development and implementation of humanitarian access strategies, including the National Humanitarian Access Working Group strategy, to facilitate safe, sustained and principled humanitarian operations, particularly in areas under the control or influence of de facto authorities.

• Support humanitarian engagement and negotiations with national and provincial authorities, de facto authorities, military actors, community leaders and other stakeholders to address humanitarian access constraints, preserve humanitarian space and facilitate humanitarian operations.

• Lead civil-military coordination efforts and provide technical guidance to humanitarian partners on humanitarian notifications, movement facilitation, humanitarian principles, humanitarian diplomacy and civil-military interaction.

• Monitor, analyse and report on humanitarian access trends, conflict dynamics, population movements, administrative impediments and operational risks, and provide timely recommendations to OCHA leadership and humanitarian partners.

• Develop and maintain stakeholder mapping, engagement strategies and analytical products, including briefing notes, negotiation packages, talking points and policy recommendations to support senior management decision-making and advocacy.

• Represent OCHA in humanitarian access, civil-military coordination and inter-agency coordination mechanisms at national and sub-national levels, fostering effective collaboration among humanitarian actors, authorities and de facto authorities.

• Lead and support humanitarian access assessments, field missions and operational analyses, and coordinate information sharing to strengthen evidence-based decision-making and humanitarian response.

• Prepare high-quality analytical products, including access assessments, situation reports, mission reports, briefing materials and strategic recommendations for OCHA senior

• management, the Humanitarian Coordinator and humanitarian partners.

• Contribute to strategic planning, contingency preparedness, advocacy initiatives and operational frameworks to strengthen humanitarian access, emergency preparedness and coordinated humanitarian action.

• Provide technical guidance and capacity building to OCHA staff and humanitarian partners on humanitarian negotiations, access management and civil-military coordination, while promoting institutional learning through the identification and dissemination of lessons learned and good practices.

Expected Outcome of the Deployment:

• Humanitarian access is strengthened through sustained engagement and negotiations with national authorities, de facto authorities and other key stakeholders, enabling safe, principled and timely humanitarian operations.

• Civil-military coordination and humanitarian diplomacy are enhanced, contributing to improved movement facilitation, reduced operational constraints and greater respect for humanitarian principles.

• Humanitarian access risks and operational constraints are systematically analysed, providing timely strategic advice and recommendations to OCHA leadership and humanitarian partners.

• Coordination and information sharing among humanitarian actors are strengthened, particularly in areas under the control or influence of de facto authorities, improving operational coherence and response effectiveness.

• OCHA leadership is supported by high-quality analytical products, strategic briefings and operational recommendations that inform decision-making and humanitarian advocacy. • Humanitarian partners benefit from strengthened technical guidance on humanitarian access, negotiations and civil-military coordination, contributing to more effective humanitarian operations.

Specific Required Skills:

• Professional Experience: A minimum of 5–8 years of progressively responsible experience in humanitarian affairs, humanitarian access, civil-military coordination or humanitarian coordination in complex emergencies. Experience in humanitarian negotiations, stakeholder engagement and inter-agency coordination in conflict settings is required.

• Experience in public health emergencies or disease outbreak response is desirable.

• Specialized Knowledge: Strong knowledge of humanitarian principles, international humanitarian law, humanitarian access and civil-military coordination. Training in humanitarian negotiations, access management or UN-CMCoord is an asset.

• Coordination and Analytical Skills: Proven ability to engage with government authorities, de facto authorities, security actors and humanitarian partners, and to produce high-quality analytical reports, briefing notes and strategic recommendations.

• Language and Technical Skills: Fluency in English and French is required. Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications, particularly Word, Excel and PowerPoint. •

• Interpersonal Skills: Excellent communication, negotiation and networking skills, with the ability to work independently and under pressure in complex and rapidly evolving environments.

• Field Experience: Experience in humanitarian coordination or humanitarian access at the field level is highly desirable. Experience in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or similar conflict-affected contexts is a strong asset.

• SSAFE training required / SSAFE trainings regularly organized by UNDSS in Goma

Overall Security Situation

Variable according to locations. Goma is currently classified as “substantial.”

Duty Travel

Travel will be expected from Goma to other provincial capitals in Eastern DRC (Bunia, Bukavu, Kalemie) and occasionally to deep field locations. All travel costs will be covered by the CO. The incumbent may travel within DRC between 15 and 25 per cent of his total deployment time.

Medical Requirements (e.g. Vaccinations)

yellow fever, typhoid and hepatitis vaccination recommended.

Medical Facilities Available

UN MONUSCO Level III Hospital, local private clinics, and the ICRC-supported surgery ward in Ndosho Hospital.

Living Conditions

Goma offers comfortable living conditions, and supermarkets and restaurants are available. The security situation is, however, unstable due to ongoing conflict in the vicinity of the town or demonstrations in town.

BoM and duration: asap (after mutual agreement) for 6 months

Duty station: Goma, DRC (Non-Family duty station)

Miscellaneous

For reasons of duty of care (increased risks due to other privileges and immunities) and to avoid conflicts of interest and potential bias, employees and their accompanying persons who hold dual or multiple citizenships shall, as a matter of principle, not be assigned to countries of which they are nationals.

Deadline for application: 10.09.2026

Contact/Application:

Please send your application, including a short description of your motivation, to:

Odette Mauron

Field Resources H

[email protected]