Job Title: Senior Advisor – WatSSUP project
Organisation: GIZ Uganda
Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda
About Organisation:
The EU/ BMZ joint measure under the GIZ “Water Supply and Sanitation for refugee settlements and host communities in Northern Uganda” (WatSSUP) project is part of the EU Action “Water Supply and Self-Reliance for Refugees (WASER)” co-financed by the European Union (EU). The main outcome of this component is to ensure national efforts by key state and non-state actors in Uganda to adopt knowledge-based, integrated policies on transition, service integration, and self-reliance are supported at national and sub-national levels. The component compliments the livelihood component and infrastructure component of the WASER Action (lead by AVSI/World Vision and KfW respectively).
The project “Water Supply and Sanitation for refugee settlements and host communities in Northern Uganda” is implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The project is part of the BMZ special initiative “Displaced Persons and Host Countries”. Key implementing partner is the Ministry of Water and Environment (MWE), together with its decentralized agencies, including water utilities such as Northern Umbrella of Water and Sanitation (NUWS) and National Water and Sewerage Corporation (NWSC). The geographical implementation areas are the districts Yumbe, Madi Okollo and Terego with a focus on the three refugee settlements (Imvepi, Rhino and Bidibidi). Additionally, limited activities are implemented in Kiryandongo District and settlement. The WatSSUP field offices are in Arua, Lira and Kampala.
Within the context of CRRF-implementation (Comprehensive Refugee Response Framework), the objective of the WatSSUP project is to support the Government of Uganda, through the Ministry of Water and Environment, in establishing service delivery for water supply and sanitation in selected refugee settlements and host communities in line with the Water and Environment Refugee Response Plan (WESRRP) and international refugee strategies. The aim of the project is to ensure sustainable water and sanitation services in selected refugee settlements and host communities through supporting the transition from humanitarian-led water supply to government-owned utilities (Utility Model).
Job Summary: The role will serve as the EU’s technical and strategic liaison to the project, ensuring alignment with EU WASER action. In addition, the advisor consults closely with all other thematic Outputs of the project who work at National level (Output 1,4), Regional (Output 2), District (Output 3,4), Community (Output 5) level, and the CRRF Secretariat.
GIZ Uganda is recruiting a Senior Advisor to support the implementation of the EU action with the project and coordination of field activities.
Key Duties and Responsibilities: The Senior Advisor will;
- Lead and supervise the technical field team in Arua and Lira to ensure smooth and timely implementation of all field activities under the WatSSUP TransIn (EU) component.
- Coordinate the TransIn component of the EU WASER Action, ensuring alignment with the objectives and implementation modalities of the other EU components and with the overall WatSSUP programme activities.
- Serve as a focal point for coordination with consortium partners (two NGOs) and KfW regarding their field activities within the Waser Action incl the coordination of all field activities beyond the TransIn activities to ensure consistency, complementarity, and efficient resource use across all WatSSUP activities.
- Support the coordination of the liaison with the EU delegation in Kampala and serve as a liaison officer between ministries, utility management and local partners and EU if needed.
- Promote multi-stakeholder engagement between national, regional, and local actors to ensure effective dialogue and information transfer.
- Provide strategic and technical guidance to maintain programme quality and coherence across all outputs. Ensure compliance with EU and GIZ communication and visibility guidelines throughout programme implementation. Representation of the WatSSUP project in EU, government, and partner meetings as delegated.
- Identify and communicate key risks, challenges, and opportunities arising in the field and propose adaptive, practical solutions.
- Support the preparation and coordination of progress reports and updates to the EU Delegation in line with contractual requirements and agreed reporting timelines.
Specific Tasks
Advisory role
- Provide targeted technical advice to ensure the effective integration of the EU WASER Action within the existing WatSSUP structures and outputs.
- Support the alignment of programme implementation with national transition strategies in the water and refugee sector.
- Promote effective coordination between the three EU WASER Action components and between national institutions (e.g., MWE, OPM, CRRF Secretariat) and sub-national actors (District Local Governments, utilities) to ensure achievement of the action.
- Support platforms such as the District Engagement Forum and Refugee Engagement Forum to foster inclusive dialogue and bottom-up policy input.
- Encourage participatory processes that promote the inclusion of women, persons with disabilities, and refugee-led organisations in programme planning and implementation.
Technical Support and Monitoring
- Oversee implementation of field activities across outputs 2,3,4 and 5 of the programme.
- Track progress across the three outputs ensuring subnational participation and integration of water service delivery and behavior change.
- Provide technical input and policy advice to support adoption and implementation of National Transition Strategy aligned action plans.
Communication, Learning, and Visibility
- Ensure EU and GIZ visibility requirements are met across all activities, particularly through community engagement, communication materials, and strategic events.
- Support knowledge sharing, documentation of lessons learned, and contribution to national and international learning platforms on refugee transition.
Other Duties/Additional Tasks
- Perform other duties and tasks at the request of management.
Qualifications, Skills and Experience:
- Master’s degree in Civil Engineering, water and sanitation or related fields.
Details of experience
- 5 years in international cooperation, WASH, utility management, government operations, and refugee response.
- At least 3 years in a management position or team lead role within donor-funded projects.
- Proven experience in working with water utilities, the national and regional levels of the MWE, as well as district local governments at senior level.
- Knowledge and work experience within the refugee response sector and good understanding of the international refugee policies and their implications
- Proven experience with Uganda’s refugee response framework, transition and decentralization processes and the HDP-Nexus.
Knowledge, skills and competences
- Excellent understanding of development cooperation policies, reporting procedures, and visibility standards.
- Strong analytical and facilitation skills, particularly in multi-stakeholder settings.
- Proven ability to operate in politically sensitive and multi-actor environments.
- Excellent understanding of capacity development and proven track record of advising governments and/or other agencies within the context of international development.
- High level of flexibility and adaptability to new organizational systems and their requirements
- Excellent communication, presentation, and report writing skills.
- High degree of self-motivation and team spirit in a multi-cultural and inter-disciplinary team
- Ability to travel in the programme implementation area.
- Strong social, communicative, organizational, teambuilding and intercultural skills
- Proven understanding of the geographical and socio-economic context of the implementation area, particularly the refugee settlements of Bidibidi, Rhino Camp, and Imvepi, is considered an asset.
How to Apply:
Applications and CVs should be in one document and a maximum of 5 pages only and sent electronically, quoting the position and reference number.
Please include name and contact of three references. One official reference from your current workplace is a MUST.
Eligible candidates are encouraged to apply to the Head of Human Resources by email to [email protected] until 11:59PM on Sunday 9th November 2025.
Please note: This is a national position. Only the shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Deadline: 9th November 2025
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Level of Education: Postgraduate Degree
Work Hours: 8
Experience in Months: 60