Public Health and Partnership Officer

Benefits

Additional Information

Deadline for Applications June 28, 2026 Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based) B Family Type (not applicable for home-based) Family Staff Member / Affiliate Type UNOPS LICA2 Target Start Date 2026-07-01 Terms of Reference General Background and Operational Context - Ethiopia Ethiopia continues to face complex humanitarian challenges driven by conflict, climate shocks and regional instability. The country hosts over 1 million refugees, mainly from South Sudan, Somalia, Eritrea and Sudan, making it Africa's second-largest refugee-hosting country. Additionally, there are significant number of internally displaced due to conflict and climate-related events such as droughts and floods. The country is highly vulnerable to climate change, with displaced populations and host communities experiencing its health-related impacts firsthand. Ethiopia's health system is overstretched, and the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) presents a major challenge, especially given that donor funding for NCDs remains extremely limited. Humanitarian health responses have traditionally focused on communicable diseases and acute emergencies, leaving significant gaps in NCD care and mental health services. Despite these challenges, Ethiopia maintains an open-door policy for refugees. However, the operational context is marked by encampment-based management and limited access to essential services. In response, UNHCR's 2025-2029 strategy emphasizes inclusion into national systems, climate action and sustainable public health programming. Key priorities include strengthening access to primary health care, NCD management, mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS), and nutrition services for both refugees and host communities. UNHCR holds the global mandate to assist governments in providing international protection and durable solutions for refugees worldwide. In Ethiopia, UNHCR, together with the Ministry of Health and partners, ensures that refugees have equal access to comprehensive primary health care and life-saving medical services at the same standard as Ethiopian nationals. Health facilities and community health programmes are supported both in refugee settlements and host communities across the country. Despite these efforts, refugees in Ethiopia, especially those in urban areas, face financial barriers when accessing primary health care and hospital services. UNHCR's primary focus includes advocating for the inclusion of refugees in national strategies such as health insurance schemes and social protection programmes. To achieve this, a health system strengthening approach in collaboration with Ethiopian national authorities and with technical support from WHO is essential to ensure refugees' inclusion in the country's health response strategies. In terms of durable solutions, Ethiopia is at an important crossroad with significant advancements being made at national and local levels to foster a policy environment conducive to the inclusion of refugees and a 'solutions from the onset' approach to new emergencies, whereby national services, such as health, are being reinforced to cater to the needs of both refugees and members of the host communities alike. The momentum for support towards this transition process in Ethiopia is thus substantial and it is of key importance to deliver on the responsibility sharing, as outlined in the Global Compact on Refugees. Taking the above context into account, UNHCR is now launching a new 3-year partnership to strengthen non-communicable disease (NCD) care for refugees and host communities in Ethiopia. The partnership will focus on integrating NCD prevention and care into Ethiopia's national primary healthcare system and addressing NCDs through a holistic approach that includes mental health and nutrition, under an overall framework of supporting the transition from parallel humanitarian health services to inclusive national systems. As part of the partnership there will also be focus on promoting environmentally sustainable healthcare infrastructure and supply chains. 2. Purpose and Scope of Assignment The Partnership Coordination Officer will act as the main focal point in the UNHCR Country Office in Ethiopia and focus solely on implementation of the new partnership, entitled "Sustainable Refugee Health: Transitioning towards an inclusive and climate-resilient health system response to NCDs in Ethiopia". Under the supervision of the Senior Programme Coordinator in the UNHCR Country Office in Addis Ababa, the Partnership Coordination Officer, in close collaboration with among others field-based public health staff, programme officers and relevant RB and HQ colleagues, will be responsible for providing technical support, coordination, planning, advocacy, monitoring and reporting for the implementation of the partnership in Ethiopia. The role will ensure alignment with national frameworks, UNHCR Ethiopia's Multi-Year Strategy and the logframe of the

Your Match

How well this role fits your profile.

Company Intel

What employees say

Worked at unhcr? Share your experience