Danish Refugee Council (DRC) is a leading protection agency with a mandate to protect, advocate and promote durable solutions for displacement affected populations.

DRC has been operating in Ukraine since 2014, currently DRC employs over 800 staff in Ukraine and will continue to scale-up in 2024 to implement emergency response in the Protection, Livelihoods, Shelter/NFIs and Humanitarian Disarmament and Peacebuilding (humanitarian mine action) sectors, using direct interventions, support to duty bearers and civil society organizations (CSOs), and partnerships with CSOs. DRC will continue and adapt its durable solutions portfolio to the evolving context.

DRC is currently looking for a highly qualified Economic Recovery Assistant (Urban and Rural Livelihoods Assistant) in Kharkiv.

About the job:

Economic Recovery Assistant (Urban and Rural Livelihood Assistant) will support the implementation of both urban and rural economic recovery activities. This includes sectoral cash assistance to subsistence and small-scale farmers, vocational training support, and grant and capacity-building assistance for MSMEs and agri-businesses. The role involves working closely with communities, CSOs, and local authorities to identify vulnerable individuals, conduct service mapping, and share information on available services. The position is based in the DRC Kharkiv office, with field activities across Kharkiv Oblast and Slovyansk.

Your main duties and responsibilities will be:

Needs assessments

  • Regularly inform the line manager of changing needs in the hromadas/raions based on field visits to strengthen project design and implementation, and upon request, participate in multi-sectoral geographical needs assessments with the MEAL team to feed into new proposals, following Safety team recommendations and reporting any problems promptly.

Project design and proposal development

  • Upon request of the line manager, provide accurate and relevant information (in their respective areas of expertise) that can assist in the design and development of project proposals at the regional level, particularly regarding the suitability of the proposed activities to the identified needs.

Project initiation

  • Participate in operational briefings with other team members to ensure clear understanding of activities and targets.
  • Participate in key stakeholder's sensitization before the actual launch of activities. This should be done in collaboration with other sector teams of the same project to promote clear and consistent external communication.

Project implementation

  • Implement daily activities within the area of responsibility based on the operational schedule developed by the line manager, report on achievements at the end of each day, communicate promptly about any problems encountered, and proactively suggest alternatives and solutions when possible.
  • Throughout project implementation, maintain all required documentation/MoVs related to activities directly implemented, ensure compliance with minimum standards of data protection, and upon request provide high-quality and up-to-date information for reporting purposes (including PMM-BFU-meetings).
  • In collaboration with MEAL, participate in mainstreaming Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP) principles: ensure communities are informed, actively participate, have a say in activities, and can share concerns and receive feedback.

Project closure

  • Ensure that all MoVs for activities directly completed/achieved are available and archived and participate in centralizing and sharing lessons learned and good practices identified during project implementation in accordance with MEAL recommendations.

Sector specific expertise / technical expectations

  • Under the line manager’s leadership and in line with DRC UKR SOPs and other guidelines, participate in Economic Recovery-specific tasks such as registration of potential beneficiaries and distribution of assistance (in-kind or cash).
  • Communicate with beneficiaries by making preliminary arrangements for meetings if relevant, providing all necessary information on DRC activities, receiving feedback, reporting on project status to the Team Leader, and responding to complaints and feedback through the complaint and feedback mechanism.
  • In the absence of a dedicated Emergency/Basic Needs team or upon request from APM, support beneficiary registration and assistance distribution, and perform any other duties assigned by the Economic Recovery Team Leader and/or Economic Recovery Manager relevant to achieving Economic Recovery objectives.

Internal coordination and collaboration 

  • Participate in relevant internal coordination meetings and foras (team meetings, ad hoc integrated program meetings, etc.), ensure coordination with colleagues of other sectors regarding internal ways of working, adopt positive and constructive communication with all staff, report any issues to the line manager, and support internal referencing efforts between DRC sectors in the same raions/hromadas.
  • Participate in exchange foras where MEAL findings are shared with program teams, and upon request from the line manager, participate in meetings with Partnership personnel to discuss implementing partner(s).

External coordination

  • Collaborate with local authorities at hromada level during activity implementation, report all information to the line manager, and participate in updating the mapping of complementary services delivered by other actors to enable safe and effective external referrals.

About you

You should have at least 1 year of experience in livelihoods, economic recovery, business development, vocational training, employment services, or similar community economic projects preferably with an INGO and ideally in emergency settings. You should also have strong interest or experience in working with conflict-affected populations and be able to communicate clearly and empathetically with people in distress. Strong organizational, analytical, and interpersonal skills are essential, along with integrity, confidentiality, and high ethical standards. You should be able to build and maintain positive relations with communities, stakeholders, and humanitarian partners to ensure effective implementation, coordination, and long-term quality of DRC’s economic recovery activities. Moreover, we also expect the following:  

Required

  • Education: University degree
  • Interest: Demonstrated interest in business development and creating employment opportunities for vulnerable populations.
  • Experience: Minimum 1 year of relevant experience in livelihoods, economic recovery, business development, vocational training, employment services, or related community economic projects. or other relevant work experience and Minimum of 1 year of NGO/program experience.
  • Comfortable supporting people going through challenges or distress.
  • Good interpersonal and communication skills.
  • Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office, especially Outlook, Word and Excel.

Desirable

  • Languages: Fluency in Ukrainian; intermediate English is an advantage.
  • Good understanding of the country’s development status and overall social context.
  • Strong sense of personal integrity and understanding of confidentiality and ethics.

In this position, you are expected to demonstrate DRC’ five core competencies: 

  • Striving for excellence: You focus on reaching results while ensuring an efficient process. 
  • Collaborating: You involve relevant parties and encourage feedback. 
  • Taking the lead: You take ownership and initiative while aiming for innovation. 
  • Communicating: You listen and speak effectively and honestly. 
  • Demonstrating integrity: You uphold and promote the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct in relation to our values and Code of Conduct, including safeguarding against sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment.

We offer

  • Contract length: 3-month probation period, with the possibility of extension as fixed-term contract based on funding availability and performance.  
  • Band: I
  • Designation of Duty Station: Kharkiv
  • Start date: April 2026

Salary and conditions will be in accordance with Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for National staff; please refer to our website. For questions regarding the vacancy please contact [contact person].

Application process

All applicants must upload a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages) in English. Applications sent by email will not be considered.

Closing date for applications: 26th March 2026
We encourage candidates to apply as soon as possible, interviews might be conducted on a rolling basis. DRC reserves the right to select candidate before the vacancy close date once a suitable candidate has been identified. 

At Impactpool we do our best to provide you the most accurate info, but closing dates may be wrong on our site. Please check on the recruiting organization's page for the exact info. Candidates are responsible for complying with deadlines and are encouraged to submit applications well ahead.
Before applying, please make sure that you have read the requirements for the position and that you qualify. Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.