Introduction
Established in 1951, IOM is a Related Organization of the United Nations and the leading UN agency in the field of migration. Working closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners, IOM promotes humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It saves lives and protects people on the move, drives solutions to displacement, and facilitates pathways for regular migration, while providing services and advice to governments and migrants.
IOM is committed to fostering a respectful, inclusive and supportive workplace where all employees can thrive professionally and feel valued. By creating such an environment, IOM aims to better harness the full potential of migration and strengthen its support to people on the move.
IOM invites candidates from diverse backgrounds to apply and provides reasonable accommodation throughout the recruitment process when required. Learn more about IOM’s workplace culture at IOM workplace culture | International Organization for Migration
Applications are welcome from first- and second-tier candidates, particularly qualified female candidates as well as applications from the non-represented member countries of IOM. For all IOM vacancies, applications from qualified and eligible first-tier candidates are considered before those of qualified and eligible second-tier candidates in the selection process.
For the purpose of this vacancy, the following are considered first-tier candidates:
- External female candidates
- Candidates from the following IOM Member States that are not represented among staff members in the Professional and higher categories: Bahamas, Barbados, Comoros, Congo (the), Cook Islands, Dominica, Federated States of Micronesia, Grenada, Guinea-Bissau, Holy See, Iceland, Israel, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Namibia, Nauru, Palau, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Solomon Islands, Suriname, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tuvalu, Vanuatu
Second tier candidates include:
All external candidates, except candidates from non-represented member states of IOM.
Organizational Context and Scope
Under the overall supervision of the Director of the Department for Humanitarian Response and Recovery (DHRR) and direct supervision of the Deputy Director, Department of Humanitarian Response and Recovery, the Chief, Preparedness and Humanitarian Response Division (PHRD) will be responsible and accountable for managing and leading the effective and timely implementation of IOM’s Preparedness and Humanitarian Response portfolio globally in line with the new IOM Strategic Plan.
The PHR Division leads IOM’s institutional efforts to advance a coherent, systemic and whole-of-organization approach to crisis preparedness and humanitarian response, in line with the IOM Strategic Plan 2024–2028. It consolidates and enhances IOM’s capacities to anticipate, prepare for and respond to crises in a principled, timely and effective manner. The Division works across the humanitarian-development-peace nexus to both reduce the impacts of crises before they occur and ensure that when crises strike, affected populations receive coordinated, high-quality and accountable support. It spearheads the institutionalization of preparedness and anticipatory action as enablers of transformational change, equipping IOM, Member States and partners with tools to understand, identify and address risks related to human mobility. At the same time, it ensures robust operational leadership and support for the delivery of humanitarian assistance that meets the needs of crisis-affected populations, in line with IOM’s humanitarian policy, the Principles for Humanitarian Action, and with the normative and policy work of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee.
The Division provides strategic and technical support to IOM’s Regional and Country Offices on preparedness planning, anticipatory action, crisis response design and implementation, and monitoring. It leads the coordination of emergency resources mobilization and surge capacity efforts, ensuring the rapid scale-up of operations during crisis and supports alignments with the Humanitarian Program Cycle (HPC) at the global and country levels. It serves as the institutional home of IOM’s global thematic units in Preparedness, Surge Capacity, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH); Shelter and Settlements, Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM), as well as Cash-Based Interventions. Furthermore, it also hosts the Global Shelter, Land and Site Coordination (SLSC) Cluster in support of IOM’s commitments to Inter-Agency Standing Committee coordination structures and to collective, coordinated humanitarian action.
