General
Description of assignment title
WASH Specialist (Karachi)
Assignment country
Pakistan
Duty stations
Karachi
Work location
On UN premises
Expected start date
18/05/2026
Duration
12 months
(with possibility of extension)Long-term benefits and allowances
Sustainable Development Goal
6. Clean water and sanitation
Host entity
UNICEF
Modality
Onsite
Type
National
Volunteer category
Expert UCoS from Apr2026
Work schedule
Full-time
Number of Assignments
1
Details
Mission and objectives
Pakistan was the sixth country in the world to sign and ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child, less than one year after it was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1989. However, children and adolescents living in Pakistan still face acute challenges. UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan to accelerate progress for children, work to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and help children realize their rights under the Convention on the Rights of Children. This will be made through, among others things, strong partnerships with provincial authorities, teachers and health professionals, frontline workers and social mobilisers, communities and families, and of course the children and adolescents themselves. In particular, UNICEF will work so that: Every child survives and thrives — being in good health, immunised, protected from polio and accessing nutritious food. Every child learns. Every child is protected from violence and exploitation, and registered at birth. Every child lives in a safe and clean environment, with access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation.
Context
This position is being filled to provide technical, programmatic, and capacity-building support to strengthen the design, implementation, monitoring, and scaling of climate-resilient and inclusive WASH interventions aligned with UNICEF’s child rights–based approach. UNICEF supports the Government of Pakistan in achieving SDGs and advancing children’s rights through partnerships with government institutions, communities, and stakeholders. The WASH Programme focuses on: • System strengthening • Expanding access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene • Climate-resilient WASH services The programme emphasizes gender-responsive, disability-inclusive, and child-friendly services, alongside climate adaptation and community engagement.
Task description
Reporting directly to the Provincial WASH-CEE Specialist, the incumbent will provide programmatic and technical support in development and implementation of WASH programme in line with integrated approach: • Support preparation of annual work plans, budgets, and implementation roadmaps for the WASH component and develop monitoring frameworks and tools aligned with programme indicators • Support programming to ensure all WASH services and facilities are safe, inclusive, gender-responsive, disability-inclusive, and aligned with UNICEF’s child rights–based approach and global sector standards • Support development and implementation of safely managed and climate resilient WASH service models • Provide technical support to improve WASH infrastructure and services in schools, health facilities and ensure facilities meet minimum service standards for water supply, sanitation, handwashing, MHM, and disability inclusion • Support strengthening evidence-based behaviour change strategies in line with office-wide integrated community development approach • Conduct regular field visits to ensure quality assurance and provide technical backstopping. Support data analysis, reporting, and documentation of results and lessons learned and contribute to donor reporting and programme reviews • Document best practices, innovations, success stories, case studies and technical briefs for replication and scale-up and support knowledge-sharing workshops and learning events Other support, as required, to programme areas including sector coordination and stakeholder engagement • Support coordination with relevant provincial departments, district authorities, and development partners • Represent UNICEF WASH in technical working groups at provincial and district levels when required and facilitate convergence between WASH and other sectors within the integrated approach
Eligibility criteria
Age
18 – 80
Required experience
7 years
Nationality
Candidate must be a national, legal resident or hold refugee status in the country of assignment.
Assignment requirements
Relevant experience
2 years
Languages
English, Level: Fluent, Desirable Urdu, Level: Fluent, Desirable
Required education level
Master’s degree in Public Health, Environment, Social Sciences, Development Studies, or related field. Additional qualification or experience in climate, environment or public health is an added advantage.
Competencies and values
• Excellent writing and communication skills • Ability to work independently and as part of a team • Knowledge of the current climate change trends and its impact on WASH is desirable
Skills and experience
working in WASH programming and climate-related field with a humanitarian and/or development organization Knowledge of child rights and gender equality principles, gender sensitive programming in WASH Experience in conducting research and analysis on WASH projects Prior experience with UN agencies or international organizations is an asset
Area(s) of expertise
Community development, Development programmes, Social work
Driving license
–
Other information
Volunteerism is understood as a wide range of activities undertaken of free will, for the general public good, for which monetary reward is not the principal motivating factor.
Living conditions and remarks
As this is a national UNV assignment, the UN Volunteer will be responsible for arranging his/her own housing and other living essentials. UNV Field Unit will help you open a Pak rupee bank account with Standard Chartered Bank or any other local bank at your duty station. Assignment remarks: This is a national UNV assignment, and a Volunteer Living Allowance (VLA) of PKR 183,920 is provided monthly to cover housing, utilities and normal cost of living expenses. Life health and permanent disability insurance are included (health insurance for up to 3 dependents), as well as final repatriation (if applicable) and resettlement allowance for satisfactory service.
Inclusivity statement
United Nations Volunteers is an equal opportunity programme that welcomes applications from qualified professionals. We are committed to achieving diversity in terms of gender, care protected characteristics. As part of their adherence to the values of UNV, all UN Volunteers commit themselves to combat any form of discrimination, and to promoting respect for human rights and individual dignity, without distinction of a person’s race, sex, gender identity, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, age, language, social origin or other status.
Reasonable accommodation
UNICEF offers reasonable accommodation for UN Volunteers with disabilities. This may include, for example, accessible software, travel assistance for missions or personal attendants. We encourage you to disclose your disability during your application in case you need reasonable accommodation during the recruitment process and afterwards in your assignment.
Note on Covid-19 vaccination requirements
In addition to duty station-specific vaccine requirements, appointments are subject to confirmation of fully-vaccinated status against SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19) with a World Health Organization (WHO)-endorsed vaccine, which must be met prior to taking up the appointment. It does not apply to UN Volunteers who will work remotely and are not expected to work on or visit UNICEF premises, programme delivery locations or directly interact with communities UNICEF works with, nor to travel to perform functions for UNICEF for the duration of their contracts.
Scam warning
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