Associate Joint Operations Officer

Host entity: MONUSCO

Volunteer type: International

Areas of expertise: Administration, Emergency preparedness, crisis response, Information technology and telecommunications

Application deadline: 29/10/2026

Mission and objectives

MONUSCO/MONUC was established in 1999 under the auspices of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO). SCR 2277 (2016) requests MONUSCO to support efforts of the Government of DRC towards the protection of civilians, through a comprehensive approach involving all components of MONUSCO, including through reduction of the threat posed by Congolese and foreign armed groups and of violence against civilians, including sexual and gender-based violence and violence against children to a level that can be effectively managed by the Congolese justice and security institutions; and to support Stabilization through the establishment of functional, professional, and accountable state institutions, including security and judicial institutions. The project aims at a better understanding of the most serious violations of human rights law and international humanitarian law in DRC and supports the leadership of the Mission through informed policy and decision making on future vetting of security forces through risk assessment and mitigation, joint planning for MONUSCO operations, as well as advocacy efforts.

Assignment context

The assignment is non-family in a hardship duty station. The post is based in the Field Office’s Joint Operations Centre (FOJOC) and is working directly with the Head of Field Office as well as with the Joint Operations Centre at the Kinshasa HQ. The FOJOC has a mix of civilian and uniformed staff and lead on situational awareness and support to operational coordination at Field Office level.

Task description

Under the direct supervision of the JOC Team Leader in the respective duty station, the duties of the Associate Joint Operations Officer will include but are not limited to the following:
• Prepare consolidated reports, including daily briefs and daily situation reports, based on inputs received from mission components and other relevant sources;
• Draft and disseminate special incident reports (flash reports) and associated updates;
• Represent the Field Office Joint Operations Centre (FOJOC) and provide situational update briefings in meetings;
• Support operational coordination and crisis response;
• Act as focal point at the JOC for the SAGE database; Act as FOJOC Officer in Charge (OiC), leading the integrated JOC team, in the absence of the Team Leader;
• Facilitate and support Field Office Crisis Management Team meetings;
• Support Head of Office (HoO) in planning and conduct of field office operations;
• Support Under the direct supervision of the JOC Team Leader in the respective duty station, the duties of the Associate Joint Operations Officer will include but are not limited to the following:
• Prepare consolidated reports, including daily briefs and daily situation reports, based on inputs received from mission components and other relevant sources;
• Draft and disseminate special incident reports (flash reports) and associated updates;
• Represent the Field Office Joint Operations Centre (FOJOC) and provide situational update briefings in meetings;
• Support operational coordination and crisis response;
• Act as focal point at the JOC for the SAGE database; Act as FOJOC Officer in Charge (OiC), leading the integrated JOC team, in the absence of the Team Leader;
• Facilitate and support Field Office Crisis Management Team meetings;
• Support Head of Office (HoO) in planning and conduct of field office operations;
• Support Early Warning and Response tasks;
• Preparation of visual briefings using Power Point and Power BI;
• Liaise with civilian and uniformed mission components for situational awareness, crisis management and field office operations.

Skills and experience

• Experience in taking notes, writing minutes of meetings and writing reports is required.
• Experience with operational coordination is desirable.
• Ability to work fast while maintaining diligence and attention to detail is required.
• Experience with Ms Office, including Outlook, Teams and PowerPoint (creating PPT presentations including maps) is required.
• Experience with the UN Sage system and data analytics tools, such as PowerBI or similar, is desirable.

Competencies and values

• Accountability
• Adaptability and flexibility
• Judgement and decision-making
• Planning and organizing
• Professionalism

Living conditions

The Democratic Republic of Congo is the second largest country in Africa, and as a result is quite diverse.

Living conditions therefore vary between MONUSCO duty stations, with all usual amenities present in the capital Kinshasa, but only very basic conditions in remote duty stations in the provinces, where, for instance, there may be no guarantee of public power supply nor running water. The ability to live and work in difficult and harsh conditions of developing countries is essential.

Accommodation is very expensive in both Kinshasa and Lubumbashi. Supermarkets exist in the large towns (e.g. Bukavu, Kisangani), but consumer items are generally very expensive (as everything is imported). For food, local markets offer a much cheaper alternative.

All MONUSCO duty stations are considered non-family duty stations, except for Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and Entebbe which are now considered family duty stations, and most are currently under UN Security Phase III (“relocation phase”: internationally-recruited staff are temporarily concentrated or relocated to specified sites/locations). In addition to insecurity related to the relatively volatile political situation as well as various conflict situations, certain places are subject to increasing street and residential crime, including in Kinshasa and Goma.
Some degree of medical service is provided in all MONUSCO duty stations. Certain vaccinations are mandatory for MONUSCO personnel to enter the DRC, while others are compulsory for all other incoming persons. It is possible for incoming MONUSCO personnel, including UN Volunteers, to be asked to provide proof of some or all vaccinations, though this is unlikely. All UN Volunteers must ensure that they are up-to-date with all appropriate vaccinations, which should be clearly and properly endorsed in the International Certificate of Vaccination (“carte jaune”). Malaria is present virtually throughout the DRC, and it is therefore recommended to take prophylaxis.

The unit of currency is the Congolese Franc. The US dollar is the other preferred currency. It may be impossible to exchange traveller’s checks away from the capital city. Credit cards are usually accepted in major hotels only in Kinshasa. In larger towns and cities (e.g. Kinshasa, Goma, Bukavu, Kisangani), UN Volunteers are recommended to open US Dollar bank accounts, while in other places, banks may be absent (including ATMs) and VLA payments will be processed in cash. UN Volunteers have the possibility to send part of their allowances to a bank account abroad.

In addition to French, there are four major spoken languages in DRC, namely Lingala, Kikongo, Tshiluba and Swahili.

Full eligibility requirements, conditions of service and application instructions are available on the official UNV platform.