Climate Change and Environment Officer, Kigali, Rwanda

General

Description of assignment title: Climate Change and Environment Officer

Assignment country: Rwanda

Duty stations: Kigali

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: 13. Climate action

Host entity: FAO RWA

Modality: Onsite

Type: International

Volunteer category: Specialist UCoS from Apr2026

Work schedule: Full-time

Number of Assignments: 1

Details

Mission and objectives:

• The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) works to end hunger and all forms of malnutrition, sustainably manage natural resources, and build resilient agrifood systems. FAO's work is guided by its Strategic Framework 2022-2031 and subsequent Country Program Framework and structured around the "Four Betters": better production, better nutrition, better environment, and better life, leaving no one behind. In Rwanda, FAO supports Government efforts to transform food systems in line with national development priorities, including the Vision 2050, the National Strategy for Transformation (NST2), the Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTA 5), and Rwanda's commitments under the UN Food Systems Summit pathways and the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF).

Context:

• Rwanda has prioritized the transformation of its food systems as a response to climate change and environmental degradation, aiming to strengthen climate resilience, improve agricultural productivity, protect natural resources, improve food security and nutrition, and promote inclusive, low carbon, and environmentally sustainable growth. In support of this agenda, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rwanda (FAO Rwanda) works closely with the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI), the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB), the Ministry of Environment (MoE), the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), decentralized entities, development partners, civil society, the private sector, and the United Nations Country Team (UNCT). Within this context, the United Nations Associate Volunteer (UNAV) will support stakeholder engagement, resource mobilization, including the development of concept notes, and funding proposals in response to call for proposals, designing communication and advocacy materials, Power Point Presentations, organizing stakeholder consultations and policy dialogue, and coordination with the UN Country Teams , as well as the implementation, monitoring and reporting of FAO supported projects and programmes, ensuring alignment with national priorities and the integration of cross cutting issues such as gender equality, youth empowerment, nutrition, climate action, and digitalization.

Task description:

• Under the direct supervision of the Senior Program and Food Systems Policy Advisor, the UN Volunteer will undertake the following tasks:
• Programming and Policy Alignment:
• Provide high-level analytical, coordination, and knowledge support to strengthen Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Rwanda's strategic positioning on climate and environmental priorities, with a focus on policy coherence and climate finance readiness
• Contribute to analytical assessments ensuring FAO interventions are fully aligned with national and global frameworks, including National Strategy for Transformation 2, Stra-tegic Plan for Agriculture Transformation 5, and the United Nations Sustainable Devel-opment Cooperation Framework 2025-2029 with particular attention to climate resili-ence and sustainable food systems.
• Develop strategic briefing notes and policy-oriented analytical products to inform senior management engagement with government institutions and development partners on climate resilience and sustainable food systems.
• Lead the identification and prioritization of investment opportunities in climate-smart agriculture, sustainable land management, and food systems transformation, ensuring alignment with national development priorities.
• Provide technical inputs to concept notes and pipeline development for major climate finance mechanisms, including the Global Environment Facility, Green Climate Fund, and Adaptation Fund.
• Strengthen the climate rationale of programme proposals through robust evidence gen-eration and alignment with Rwanda's Nationally Determined Contribution and adapta-tion priorities.
• Stakeholder engagement and coordination:
• Facilitate high-level engagement with government counterparts, development partners, civil society, private sector actors, and UN agencies to advance climate-resilient and en-vironmentally sustainable food systems
• Coordinate and support multi-stakeholder platforms and policy dialogue processes relat-ed to climate action, environmental sustainability, and food systems transformation.
• Resource Mobilization and Partnership Development
• Lead the strategic identification and mapping of climate and environmental financing op-portunities relevant to FAO Rwanda portfolio
• Develop and contribute to high-quality concept notes and project proposals aligned with donor priorities and FAO's comparative advantages in climate-smart agriculture, agri-environmental solutions, and food systems transformation.
• Strengthen FAO's positioning within joint programmes and climate-related initiatives through effective partnership coordination.
• Support evidence-based donor engagement processes, including data consolidation and partner coordination.
• Programme and project implementation support:
• Provide technical oversight and coordination support for the implementation of pro-grammes related to climate-smart agriculture, environmental sustainability, and resilient food systems.
• Monitor programme performance, track results, and contribute to high-quality reporting on climate and environmental outcomes.
• Ensure programme and project activities' alignment with national policies, strategies, and commitments.
• UN System and Joint Programming Support
• Support FAO's engagement in UN coordination mechanisms, including UN Country Team processes, thematic working groups, and joint initiatives on climate change, envi-ronment and resilience.
• Contribute to joint programme design, results frameworks, and reporting in line with UN INFO and results-based management standards.
• Ensure FAO inputs are coherent with the UNSDCF 2025-2029 and aligned with the UN principle of "Leave No One Behind."
• Monitoring, Learning, and Knowledge Products:
• Monitor climate and environment-related intervention through synthesis of programme results, identification of emerging trends, and documentation of lessons learned to inform adaptive programming.
• Contribute to the development of high-quality knowledge products including policy briefs, analytical reports, and presentations showcasing FAO's strategic contributions to climate action and environmental sustainability in Rwanda
• Document and promote innovative approaches, including landscape-based interventions and food systems-climate linkages, for internal learning and external visibility
• Integration of Cross-Cutting Priorities
• Ensure systematic integration of gender equality, youth inclusion, environmental safe-guards, and digital innovation across all climate and environment programming and pro-posals
• Ensure that climate and environmental interventions effectively contribute to inclusive, resilient, and sustainable food systems, in alignment with FAO's Four Betters—Better Production, Better Nutrition, Better Environment, and Better Life

Eligibility criteria

Age: 18 - 80

Required experience: 3 years

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 27 years of age at the time of application.
• - Candidates who have already served as UN Volunteer Specialist funded by the Government of Korea are not eligible to apply (former UN University and UN Youth 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:

• 3 years

Languages:

• English, Level: Fluent, Required

Required education level:

• Bachelor's degree in Agriculture, Environmental Sciences, Climate change, Sustainable Development, International Development, or a related field

Competencies and values:

• Adaptability and Flexibility
• Commitment and Motivation
• Ethics and Values
• Integrity
• Planning and Organizing
• Professionalism
• Respect for Diversity
• Working in Teams

Skills and experience:

• Demonstrated experience in:
• Climate change, environmental management, natural resources, or sustainable agricul-ture programmes, and food systems.
• Proven track record in designing and/or implementing climate-resilient agriculture or environmental sustainability projects
• Monitoring, evaluation, and reporting, including results-based management frameworks
• Skills in:
• Project design, concept note development, and proposal writing for cli-mate/environment funding
• Strong stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills, with the ability to work across government, UN and private sector
• Strong analytical skills to support evidence-based programming and climate rationale development
• Ability to conduct policy analysis and alignment with national strategies and interna-tional frameworks.

Area(s) of expertise:

• Agriculture, Development programmes, Energy and environment

Driving license:

• -

Other information