Humanitarian Affairs Associate, Panama City, Panama

General

Description of assignment title: Humanitarian Affairs Associate

Assignment country: Panama

Duty stations: Panama City

Work location: On UN premises

Expected start date: 09/12/2026

Duration: 12 months(with possibility of extension)Long-term benefits and allowances

Sustainable Development Goal: 16. Peace, justice and strong institutions

Host entity: UNOCHA

Modality: Onsite

Type: International

Volunteer category: Associate UCoS from Apr2026

Work schedule: Full-time

Number of Assignments: 1

Details

Mission and objectives:

• OCHA is part of the United Nations Secretariat responsible for bringing together humanitarian actors to ensure a coherent response to emergencies. OCHA's mission is to coordinate the global emergency response to save lives and protect people in humanitarian crisis advocating for effective and principled humanitarian action by all and for all. OCHA core functions are: Coordination, Advocacy, humanitarian assistance, Policy, Humanitarian Financing, Information Management.

Context:

• The role of the OCHA Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean (ROLAC) is to support and assist the governments, national and regional disaster management entities, UN Resident Coordinators, UN agencies and humanitarian organizations to improve overall preparedness and response mechanisms for natural and human-induced disasters or protracted crises. The regional office is the first line for response to emergencies in the region. Additionally, OCHA ROLAC manages the Regional Pooled Humanitarian Fund with funding envelopes for Haiti and Colombia; supports the allocation, monitoring and reporting on CERF funds; strengthens humanitarian access and civil-military coordination tools; and develops coordinated anticipatory action frameworks to address predictable climatic shocks. In particular, the UNV would support ROLAC´s work in the Caribbean including support for disaster preparedness, forecasting, anticipatory action and response in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Barbados and eastern Caribbean.

Task description:

• Under the direct supervision of the Head of the Coordination Unit, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:
• Contribute to strengthening the efforts of the OCHA´s mandate by supporting the work with the different units (coordination, analysis/communications, and information management).
• Provide logistical and substantive support in the development of workshops and seminars at country and regional levels.
• Support convening coordination meetings, prepare documents, hold premeetings, taking notes and follow up on agreements.
• Support the elaboration of PPTs and help on presentations, when required.
• Support the development, review, and editing of key messages, talking points, donor reports, weekly humanitarian situation reports, humanitarian situation, and response presentations, as well as other documents required within the framework of OCHA Colombia's programmatic activities.
• Contribute to the preparation of various unit products specially during the preparedness, seasons and response including analysis notes, reports and inputs for information products, establishing necessary links with field coordination colleagues and other relevant key actors.
• Other activities as required.
• During the first month of the assignment, the UN Volunteer will work closely with his/her direct supervisor to finalize an agreed-upon work plan. The work plan should outline key objectives and activities and include regular check‑ins with the supervisor to review progress and receive performance

Eligibility criteria

Age: 18 - 80

Required experience: 1 month

Donor priorities:

• .

Nationality: Candidate must be a national of a country other than the country of assignment.

Additional eligibility criteria:

• This assignment is funded by the Government of Korea and therefore specific criteria apply:
• - Candidates must be Korean nationals. Fluency in Korean is required.
• - Candidates must be between 22 and 29 years of age at the time of application.
• - Candidates who have already served as UN Youth Volunteer funded by the Government of Korea are not eligible to apply (former UN University Volunteers are eligible).
• - Serving UN Volunteers will not be considered for other UN Volunteer assignments until they reach three (3) months before the end of contract date of their current UN Volunteer assignment. This provision applies equally to first and subsequent contracts.
• - Candidates may apply to a maximum of three assignments and indicate the order of preference in the 'Additional remarks' field when filling in the application form.
• - Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. The selection will be done by the UN Host Entity at the level of the country of assignment.
• APPLICATION DEADLINE: 19 July 2026
• +++ UN Volunteer entitlement calculator: https://app.unv.org/calculator +++

Assignment requirements

Relevant experience:

• 1 month

Languages:

• English, Level: Fluent, Required
• Spanish, Level: Working knowledge, Required

Required education level:

• Bachelor's degree in political science, sociology, law, international relations or another related field

Competencies and values:

• ☒ Accountability
• ☒ Adaptability and Flexibility
• ☒ Client Orientation
• ☒ Commitment and Motivation
• ☒ Commitment to Continuous Learning
• ☒ Communication
• ☒ Creativity
• ☒ Ethics and Values
• ☒ Integrity
• ☒ Planning and Organizing
• ☒ Professionalism
• ☒ Respect for Diversity
• ☒ Technological Awareness
• ☒ Working in Teams

Skills and experience:

• Demonstrated interest or experience (up to three years) in:
• Humanitarian affairs in a complex emergency environment

Area(s) of expertise:

• Communication, Community development, Crisis and emergency response

Driving license:

• -

Other information