What we are looking for

NRC is looking for a Protection from Violence Specialist to join the Ukraine mission. The role holder will be responsible for the technical development of the protection from violence core competency, strategic direction, and quality assurance. The Specialist plays a key role in supporting NRC broader engagement towards promoting the Protection of Civilians and the Centrality of Protection.

If you are an influential, diplomatic, and collaborative leader; who holds a track record of fostering a collaborative environment and building and leading engaging and effective teams; with strong interpersonal, networking, and stakeholder management skills; and the ability to build constructive relationships with external parties then this is the role for you!

What you will do

Strategic Leadership: Developing the Protection strategy, including technical guidance and macro-logical frameworks. Fundraising: Developing and revising funding proposals, budgets, and donor reports.  Technical Quality: Identifying trends in technical standards and donor priorities. Providing technical direction and project implementation support.  Learning: Ensuring key learnings are extracted and incorporated. Strengthening Protection monitoring and evaluation tools and systems and supporting programme learning.  Coordination and Representation: Represent NRC in external coordination forums/ liaise and collaborate with authorities and other key stakeholders. Capacity Building: Providing training and building capacity of technical staff and external stakeholders. We highly encourage you to learn more about the role: . 

What you will bring

Senior management experience in a humanitarian/recovery context. Law, social sciences, or similar educational background.  Civilian self-protection programming expertise. Protection monitoring, analysis and advocacy expertise Individual protection assistance (cash for protection) exposure. Complex and volatile context exposure. Ukraine context exposure and knowledge, pertaining to displacement and humanitarian needs. English fluency, both written and verbal 

What makes this position attractive?

NRC’s Protection from Violence core competency comprises efforts to prevent, mitigate, and respond to violence, coercion, and deliberate deprivation in contexts affected by conflict and other situations of violence. In Ukraine, NRC places particular emphasis on proactive protection programming, aiming to anticipate threats and strengthen the capacity of local actors to lead effective protection responses. The main components of Protection from Violence programming implemented by NRC in Ukraine are community-led protection responses, specialised individual protection support, protection analysis, and advocacy The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) has been working in Ukraine since 2014. Following the escalation of conflict in February 2022, NRC rapidly scaled up its operations across Ukraine and neighbouring countries. As a principled humanitarian actor, NRC is a strong advocate for protection and the rights of displaced people, as well as an active member of the humanitarian community in Ukraine. We support local capacities and people who remain close to the frontline with emergency response, seeking to contribute to self-reliance where possible. Our focus is on communities that are hard to reach. As a displacement agency, we pay particular attention to people displaced by the conflict. We work across the nexus - contributing to early recovery in the most war and displacement affected communities, focusing on integration of internally displaced persons and returnees, and ensuring displaced people’s needs are addressed in recovery and development efforts.  In 2024, we supported close to 300,000 people across all of Ukraine through the provision of protection from violence; information, counselling, and legal aid; education; shelter; water and sanitation; livelihoods; and multi-purpose cash assistance interventions. NRC works in areas with high severity of needs in the east, south and north of the country.  We increasingly work with local actors, ranging from local NGOs, but also with local authorities, the private sector, academia, etc., among others, to ensure the sustainability of our response.  This is an opportunity to join one of the most respected humanitarian actors in Ukraine that has a strong reputation with donors, embassies, clusters, and peer agencies, and the chance to work with a diverse portfolio of donors and partners.  Meaningful work, with a high-quality integrated programme that responds to the diverse needs, priorities, and concerns raised by beneficiary communities.  Female candidates are strongly encouraged to join our work culture that empowers every employee to share ideas and take responsibility.

What we offer

Kyiv, Ukraine duty station. 12-month contract (with the possibility of extension, based on funding, requirements, and performance). 40% travel, approximately. Grade 9 in NRC’s Salary Scale, with accompanying terms and conditions. NRC offers a competitive compensation and benefits package. NRC is an equal opportunities employer and aims to have staffing diversity in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, nationality, and physical ability. We think outside the box, encourage ideas, and give responsibility to all employees at all levels. You will have many opportunities to be heard and take the initiative. . 

Important information about the application process

Internal candidates: - To apply log in with your official NRC email address or click on Opportunity Marketplace. When creating your profile, include your full name as per your passport. Apply by completing all the system-required fields of your experience, employment history, and education in your application. Ensure to attach your latest CV. Submit your application and CV in English. Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. NRC is dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, so if you’re excited about this role and you meet most, but not all the requirements, we encourage you to apply anyway. Applications that do not meet the minimum standards in terms of experience or qualifications will generally not be considered. Unsolicited applications not related to this specific job advertisement will not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. We receive many applicants for each vacant position. Unfortunately, we do not have the resources to give detailed feedback to applicants who have not been shortlisted. For any queries, please email us at 

 to see NRC in action.

NRC has been present in Ukraine since 2014. We have stepped up our efforts since the escalation of the conflict. By collaborating with our partners, we’ve supported over one million people affected by the ongoing war.

We are looking for people who are passionate about helping refugees and people forced to flee. Are you one of those people? If you are, NRC offers you the opportunity to:

Do demanding and professional work, often in challenging contexts. Join a work culture that empowers every employee to share ideas and take responsibility. Be part of a welcoming and supportive community committed to human dignity.