Associate Political Affairs Officer

About the role

The Office of the Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa (OSE‑HoA) seeks an Associate Political Affairs Officer to support political analysis and coordination across the Horn of Africa region. Reporting to the Principal Political Affairs Officer, the incumbent will work on monitoring, reporting and providing policy advice to UN agencies and partner organisations.

Key responsibilities

• Gather, select and analyse information from press and communications on political developments in the Horn of Africa.
• Maintain up‑to‑date knowledge of events affecting assigned countries and thematic mandates.
• Provide timely inputs and advice to senior officials, field missions and UN agencies.
• Monitor actions of intergovernmental groups, UN bodies, NGOs and support the IGAD‑UN partnership.
• Classify and store data on potential disputes in computerized databases.
• Participate in fact‑finding missions within the assigned area.
• Support gender mainstreaming and the integration of Women, Peace and Security (WPS) and Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) across the Office’s work.
• Prepare meetings of the Special Envoy with host‑country officials.
• Produce data visualisations (graphs, charts, tables) to inform planning and reporting.

Required profile

• Strong knowledge of political dynamics in the Horn of Africa.
• Ability to analyse and interpret political information for decision‑making.
• Experience in coordinating with UN entities, international organisations and governments.
• Commitment to gender mainstreaming and WPS/YPS principles.

Required skills

• Database management and information classification.
• Data visualisation and basic analytical tools.

What we offer

• Opportunity to work within a UN‑mandated office supporting regional peace and security.
• Professional development in political affairs and conflict prevention.