Australia Assists: Expression of Interest for Various Roles - El Nino Response

Work on a global humanitarian program contributing to saving lives and alleviating suffering.

Australia Assists is an Australian Government program that deploys skilled humanitarian specialists to support multilateral agencies, governments, civil society and communities to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and conflict. Australia Assists’ Goal is to: Save lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity during and in the aftermath of conflict, disasters and other humanitarian crises, and strengthen preparedness for the occurrence of such situations. The program’s Objective is: Targeted deployment of humanitarian expertise that meets the priorities and needs of Australia's multilateral, bilateral and civil society partners and advances Australia's international humanitarian priorities.

For more information please visit our website.

The Opportunity:

• Location: Indo-Pacific Region - Remote support may also be required
• Duration: [TBC – e.g. 1–6 months per deployment], with availability to deploy at short notice (within 3–4 weeks)
• Contract type: Employment or Consultancy Agreements where applicable, with guaranteed inclusion to the Australia Assists Humanitarian Roster.

Submitting an EOI and being assessed as suitable may result in inclusion in a pool of potential suppliers; however, this does not guarantee paid work or engagement. Future assignments will be offered as opportunities arise.

The Role:

A very strong El Niño is now established in the Pacific and is forecast to persist into early 2027, alongside a positive Indian Ocean Dipole. Together these are expected to drive drought, water shortages, heat stress, food insecurity, fire and disease risk across much of the Indo-Pacific, while increasing the risk of localised flooding and tropical cyclones elsewhere. These hazards will compound existing vulnerabilities, and impacts are likely to persist well after the El Niño event peaks.

Through this EOI, we seek experienced technical specialists in:

• Water, Sanitation and Hygiene
• Drought Response and Management
• Hydrology and Hydrogeology
• Climate Resilience and Climate Services
• Food Security and Nutrition
• Climate Smart Agriculture and Livelihoods

Successful candidates will join our deployment roster. Roster members may be deployed to support partner governments, regional bodies, UN agencies and civil society organisations to:

• Rapidly scale anticipatory action and preparedness as well as possible response and early recovery
• Protect water, food and livelihood security for affected communities
• Embed climate risk information and resilience into response and recovery, so short-term action reduces longer-term vulnerability
• Strengthen local and national capacity through mentoring, co-design and knowledge transfer

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide technical advice and surge support to host partners in the deployees area of expertise
• Undertake rapid assessments and analysis to inform anticipatory action, response and early recovery planning
• Support coordination with national systems and cluster/sector mechanisms, and across sectors
• Strengthen local and national capacity through mentoring, training and co-delivery
• Ensure cross-cutting priorities (GEDSI, Climate Resilience, Localisation, First Nations) are integrated in all work
• Produce timely technical products, reports and recommendations
• Other tasks as specified in the tailored TOR

Selection Criteria

All applicants must demonstrate:

• Minimum 8 years' relevant technical experience, including preferably at least 2 years in disaster risk reduction, humanitarian, resilience or development contexts in low- and middle-income countries.
• Demonstrated experience applying technical expertise in drought, water scarcity, climate-related emergencies, disaster response, recovery, resilience programming or other relevant technical fields.
• Proven ability to work with and through national governments, local authorities, communities and local partners, with a strong commitment to localisation.
• Demonstrated experience in assessment, planning, implementation, monitoring and coordination of humanitarian, disaster response, recovery or resilience initiatives.
• Experience using evidence, data, monitoring systems, forecasting, risk analysis or technical assessments to support preparedness, decision-making and response activities.
• Experience working in remote, resource-constrained and culturally diverse settings, including in the Pacific and/or Southeast Asia.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder engagement skills, including the ability to translate technical information into practical guidance for decision-makers, communities and non-technical audiences.
• Relevant tertiary qualifications and technical expertise related to the nominated area of specialisation.
• Desirable: previous El Niño, drought or climate-related emergency response experience; experience working with National Disaster Management Offices (NDMOs), government technical agencies, UN agencies, coordination mechanisms or cluster systems.

Applicants are only required to address the selection criteria relevant to their nominated technical area(s).

There may be a need for other technical specialists beyond those identified here. If you have experience you believe may be relevant, please submit your profile. Pacific and Southeast Asian nationals are strongly encouraged to apply.

For a complete position description please click here.

How to apply

Please submit your application by clicking "Apply for job" at the top of this page. Applications will only be accepted via the Tetra Tech International Development Website. Emailed applications will be disregarded.

Australia Assists is committed to equitable access. Applicants with disabilities or are facing other barriers that prevents them from using this application portal, please request reasonable accommodation by emailing HR@australiaasssists.org

Alternative submission formats (e.g. Word, accessible PDF, or email) are available on request. Please contact us to discuss available options.

A completed application includes:

• Resume
• Statement of suitability (not to exceed two pages), demonstrating how your qualifications, experience, knowledge, skills and personal attributes align with the selection criteria
  • How your qualifications, experience, knowledge, skills and personal attributes align with the general selection criteria and the criteria for your nominated technical area(s).
  • Which technical area(s) you are applying for.
• Please indicate your earliest availability to deploy and your preferred deployment length.
• Details of 2 professional referees.

NOTE: Due to the high volume of applications received for our Humanitarian Roster, if you have previously submitted an application, we strongly encourage you to apply for your nominated field through this advertisement to enable us to progress your application

Applications remain open and will be assessed on a rolling basis.