UNICEF

Security Specialist (P-3) — UNICEF (Pemba, Cabo Delgado)

Cabo Delgado NGOs & DevelopmentQuota: NACIONAL

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Salary: Negotiable

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About the role

The essential: Security Specialist (P-3) with a 2-year fixed-term contract at the UNICEF field office in Pemba (Cabo Delgado), with primary responsibility for northern Mozambique and national surge support — applications are open until October 14, 2026, at 23:55 (Maputo time), through the official UNICEF careers portal.

About UNICEF in Mozambique

UNICEF works in over 190 countries and territories to save children's lives, defend their rights, and help them fulfill their potential, from early childhood through adolescence. It is an organization where careers are built: staff have access to diverse opportunities for professional and personal development, with competitive compensation and benefits.

In Mozambique, humanitarian action is a cross-cutting priority of UNICEF's strategic plan, which is committed to staying and delivering programs in humanitarian contexts. The position is based in the Pemba field office, Cabo Delgado province, in a region where a nuanced understanding of the security environment is a key requirement for the role.

Who we are looking for

We are looking for a security professional with hands-on experience. A person who stays calm when circumstances change, turns information into actionable analysis for decision-makers, and explains risks in clear language.

If you have already built working relationships with governments, UN agencies, NGOs, and communities, and have a habit of documenting and sharing lessons learned, this role fits your background.

Day-to-day responsibilities

Advise UNICEF leadership on security duties, support risk management processes, and maintain core security documentation, ensuring compliance with UN and UNICEF security policies and procedures.
Monitor the security situation in northern Mozambique and provide operational support to UNICEF field activities — incident response, emergency preparedness, and ensuring staff are informed, trained, and equipped to operate safely.
Produce analysis on security dynamics, access constraints, and contextual developments to support program planning and decision-making in hard-to-reach and high-risk areas.
Maintain effective coordination with UNDSS, UN agencies, authorities, NGO partners, and other security actors to strengthen information sharing, humanitarian access, and operational continuity.
Promote practical tools, learning initiatives, and capacity-building measures to enhance the security readiness of UNICEF teams and partner teams.

On a day-to-day basis, you will report to the Chief of Field Office in Pemba for operational matters and, for overall supervision, to the UNICEF Representative in Mozambique.

What we offer

Contract: fixed-term appointment (2 years), level P-3, based in Pemba with national surge travel when required.
Benefits: competitive UNICEF compensation and benefits package, including paid parental leave and reasonable accommodation for persons with disabilities.
Environment: inclusive, international organization guided by CRITAS values — care, respect, integrity, trust, accountability, and sustainability — and by 8 core competencies that structure the work.
Position profile: International Professional (IP) position — mobility is a condition of employment and, where applicable, host country visa issuance is required (UNICEF provides support in this process); selected government officials normally must resign from government service before taking up office.
Salary: to be negotiated with UNICEF (not disclosed).

How to apply

Channel: official UNICEF careers portal (PageUp). Open the official job posting — Job No. 595875, reference #00113729 — at jobs.unicef.org and click "Apply now". Create an account on the platform and submit your profile; applications are processed in English.

Deadline: October 14, 2026, at 21:55 (UTC), which corresponds to 23:55 Maputo time. The job was published on September 23, 2026.

Process: only shortlisted candidates will be contacted to proceed to the next stage of selection.

Anti-fraud: UNICEF does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment, selection, or hiring process and does not request bank account details from candidates.

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What the company is looking for

Minimum requirements (official UNICEF announcement)

Education: Master's degree or equivalent (Advanced University Degree) in Criminology, Political Science, Public Administration, International Development, Security Studies, International Relations, Risk Management, Security Risk Management, Conflict Analysis, Intelligence Analysis, Diplomatic Studies, Conflict and Security, or another related field.
Work experience: at least 5 years of relevant work experience in Security, Security Risk Management, Security Operations, Incident Response, Access Management, Humanitarian Security, Security Analysis, or related fields.
Skills: demonstrated experience in decision-making, change management, risk planning, security documentation, security reporting, and security training, with the ability to support effective security risk management and operational resilience.
Languages: fluency in English is required.

Desirable (as per vacancy announcement)

Knowledge of another official UN language (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian, or Spanish) or a local language.
Demonstrated experience in UN security, international security, humanitarian emergencies, conflict-affected environments, and humanitarian negotiations — previous work experience in Mozambique is highly desirable.
Relevant country-level experience, particularly in development, fragile contexts, and humanitarian settings.

Core values and competencies: UNICEF's Core Values — Care, Respect, Integrity, Trust, Accountability, and Sustainability (CRITAS) — underpin everything the organization does.

The 8 competencies required for this post: (1) build and maintain partnerships; (2) demonstrate self-awareness and ethical awareness; (3) drive to achieve impactful results; (4) innovate and embrace change; (5) manage ambiguity and complexity; (6) think and act strategically; (7) work collaboratively with others; (8) nurture, lead and manage people.

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