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.

Since 1999, the Central Africa Multi-Country Office (CAMCO), headquartered in Kinshasa, DRC, has partnered with UN agencies, international organizations, and governments in 15 Central African nations. CAMCO provides fund management, technical assistance, and capacity-building across critical sectors—infrastructure, health, education, governance, procurement, and environmental protection—while working with national and local authorities to secure local ownership and sustainable impact. The diverse portfolio spans rural-community empowerment, road rehabilitation, and peace consolidation in the DRC and CAR through Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) programmes, alongside wide-ranging procurement and human-resource services. Recent initiatives include drinking-water systems in Cameroon, mining-sector capacity-building, health-system support in the DRC, and infrastructure development in Madagascar, funded by a broad array of international partners. Together, these projects advance regional stability, resilient infrastructure, and improved livelihoods throughout Central Africa.

UNOPS has been selected as the main implementing partner on an ongoing peace project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The bilateral programme "Fund for Peacebuilding - FCP " (Fond de Consolidation pour la Paix), which has been supported by the German Government through the KfW (German Devoleppement Bank) Development Bank since 2007, is intended to continue to help promote lasting peace, particularly in Kinshasa with PVJ (Prévention contre la Violence Juvénile) activities and in the eastern DR with FCP. The project rationale is centered around supporting the peace efforts and initiatives in Eastern DRC through social infrastructures to: 1. Facilitate access to social services and economic opportunities for the beneficiaries, and 2. Use the infrastructure as a way to build and/or reinforce peace and social cohesion within communities and regions, which will ultimately provide further economic and social opportunities for the targeted regions. For the Prevention of Juvenile Violence component in Kinshasa, the focus is on preventing youth violence and strengthening social cohesion through improved youth infrastructure, vocational training, support for entrepreneurship, and access to social services and community activities.

The Senior Associate Construction Management Engineer supports the implementation and oversight of infrastructure projects through the provision of technical expertise, quality assurance, and effective site management. The incumbent ensures that construction activities are executed according to design specifications, schedule, safety and environmental standards. The role involves close coordination with contractors, design consultants and internal stakeholders to facilitate on-time, on-budget and high-quality delivery of infrastructure works. 

Required

• Secondary school (or equivalent) with 7 years of relevant experience OR
• Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in Civil Engineering, Construction Management or related disciplines with 3 years of relevant experience is required.

Desired

• A recognized professional certification or membership in a civil, structural or construction engineering association, at the national or international level, is desirable.

Required

• Relevant experience is work in building construction, site supervision or infrastructure project management or similar fields.
• Experience in quality control, monitoring and reporting within construction projects is required.
• Demonstrable proficiency in the use of collaboration and productivity tools (e.g. MS Office, G-Suite, etc) and web-based management systems are required.

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.
• Experience in project documentation, report writing and technical communication is desired.

• Please note that UNOPS does not accept unsolicited resumes. 
• Please note that 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. 
• Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and advance to the next stage of the selection process, which involves various assessments. 
• UNOPS embraces diversity and is committed to equal employment opportunity. Our workforce consists of many diverse nationalities, cultures, languages, races, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities. UNOPS seeks to sustain and strengthen this diversity to ensure equal opportunities as well as an inclusive working environment for its entire workforce. 
• Qualified women and candidates from groups which are underrepresented in the UNOPS workforce are encouraged to apply. These include in particular candidates from racialized and/or indigenous groups, members of minority gender identities and sexual orientations, and people with disabilities. 
• We would like to ensure all candidates perform at their best during the assessment process. If you are shortlisted and require additional assistance to complete any assessment, including reasonable accommodation, please inform our human resources team when you receive an invitation.

• 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.