UNOPS

The UNOPS Africa Regional Office, based in Nairobi, Kenya, oversees the delivery of over 250 projects across 40 countries, with a focus on fragile and conflict-affected settings. Supported by more than 1,000 personnel across five multi-country offices—spanning North, West, Central, Eastern and Southern Africa, and the Horn of Africa—the office advances national priorities through strategic initiatives in Climate Action, Health, Infrastructure, Peace and Security, Middle-Income Country Support, and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). The Regional Office provides strategic leadership, operational support, and oversight in key areas including Partnerships, Communications, Management and Oversight, Infrastructure and Project Management, Health and Safety, and Security. By promoting excellence in project delivery, fostering knowledge sharing, and driving continuous improvement, the office contributes to sustainable infrastructure, transparent resource management, and a better quality of life for communities across the continent.

Based in Nairobi, UNOPS East and Southern Africa supports sustainable development across 14 countries, including Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Somalia, Tanzania, Zambia, Zanzibar, and Zimbabwe. Since 1995, UNOPS has expanded its footprint in Kenya, delivering services in project management, infrastructure, procurement, and financial management. Across the region, the office implements diverse, partner-funded initiatives that respond to national priorities. In Mozambique, this includes delivering specialized equipment (EU), supporting health services (UNICEF), promoting agro-processing (KOICA), and advancing peacebuilding efforts through a Multi-Donor Fund. UNOPS also supports agricultural input distribution and the Northern Crisis Recovery Project, both funded by the World Bank. In Malawi, efforts include developing Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) centres in partnership with the EU and the British Council. These initiatives reflect UNOPS’ commitment to strengthening national capacities, enhancing service delivery, and supporting progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region.

The Technical Services Unit (TSU) engages in multidisciplinary design, peer review, assessments and advisory work, and manages relationships with other technical stakeholders. The Unit is based in Nairobi, but services projects across the globe.  Retainer personnel are home-based.  The Technical Services Unit (TSU) currently provides design services for infrastructure works to Project Managers in addition to consulting services such as assessments, feasibility studies and advisory services on a wide range of infrastructure types.  The team also offers multidisciplinary design review services for projects designed elsewhere.  The unit offers these multidisciplinary services in English and French.

The TSU currently has 17 permanent and 100+ retainer personnel, including architects, civil engineers, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, quantity surveyors, GIS and specialist infrastructure advisors (for climate, sanitation and hygiene, dams, ICT, safeguards, biomedical works, etc.) and CAD technicians, as well as support personnel.  Current projects are underway / imminent in Niger, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, CAR, Ghana, Kenya, Ethiopia, Somalia, Malawi, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Zambia and Mozambique. In addition, the unit supports a range of projects outside Africa, for example, in Haiti, Ukraine, Afghanistan and Papua New Guinea.

The TSU is a business unit within the Multi-Country Office and operates under the direction of the Director of the East and Southern Africa Multi-Country Office. The team is expanding its strategic and technical climate and climate finance expertise as part of its wide-ranging support to projects and partners globally.

The Climate Finance Senior Advisor will provide strategic and technical support to the Technical Services Unit and its partners in responding to opportunities in the climate and climate finance space.   These may comprise project managers of existing or forthcoming projects, donor and government partners, as well as the TSU personnel themselves.

Required

• A Master’s degree or equivalent in climate change, environmental economics, finance, international development, public policy or a related field, with 10 years of relevant experience, is required

• A Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in any of the above or related fields with 12 years of relevant experience is required

Required

• A minimum of 10 years of relevant experience in climate finance, development finance or related sectors.
• Demonstrated experience working with international climate finance mechanisms and multilateral funds, such as the Green Climate Fund, Global Environment Facility, Adaptation Fund or Climate Investment Funds.

Desired

• Experience engaging with governments, regional institutions, development banks, donors or climate finance institutions is highly desirable.
• Proven experience in stakeholder engagement, project development and technical advisory work.
• Familiarity with UN or international development institutions is an asset.

• 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.