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 implements 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 Safety Officer (Partnership Officer) in Kharkiv.
About the job
Under the management of the Safety Manager and in close collaboration with the Partnership and Program Unit and regional safety departments, the Safety Officer will support the safe and effective operation of DRC’s local partners.
After the adaptation period, the Safety Officer is expected to gradually take on increasing autonomy by providing operational support to capacity development support to partners as regards safety matters, as well as taking responsibility to coordinate partners in the development of safety-related documentation and strategies, ensuring sufficient detail and adaptation to their specific needs.
The Safety Officer will be responsible for conducting capacity assessments of partners and developing and implementing capacity development plans in line with both partners’ objectives and risk appetite, and DRC capacity development guidelines and DRC Safety Risk Management System (SRMS).
The task split for this role is 70% partner, 30% safety team.
Your main duties and responsibilities will be:
- Facilitate the training of partner staff in basic safety, first aid, EORE, as well as other trainings identified through the partner capacity assessment.
- Collect, verify, analyze and report information that affects, or may affect, DRC staff safety, operationists and program continuity to Area Manager, HOS, affected team members and all other relevant stakeholders in a timely manner.
- Conduct initial capacity assessment of partners and compile recommendations accordingly
- Based on the findings of the capacity assessment and partners objectives, and in close consultation with colleagues and partner focal points, develop a tailored capacity development plan for partners within the topic of safety and security.
- Visit partner offices and accompany partners on field missions as needed to ensure high quality and continuous capacity assessments and support to partners.
- Provide area specific safety induction to partners/connect partners with relevant safety officers where applicable and make nuanced adjustments to standardised briefings where necessary.
- Collaborate closely with relevant DRC colleagues to ensure high quality and coordinated capacity development support, including participation in relevant coordination meetings such as the Project Partnership Working Group (PPWG) for relevant partners.
- 30% of the time the Safety Officer will be required to support the DRC Safety Team in the effective implementation of the SRMs, as instructed by the Area Manager and Safety Manager.
About you
To be successful in this role we expect you to have at least 2 year of experience in NGO safety and/or incident management, able to organize and conduct training and capacity building activities, develop standard operation procedures and provide clear and solid analysis of context developments. Moreover, we also expect the following:
Required
- Full professional proficiency in Ukrainian;
- English proficiency level: B2 or higher;
- Proven experience in context/security analysis;
- Experience in conducting safety training and experience of capacity building;
- High professional standards and strong sense of responsibility;
- A minimum of a bachelor’s or master’s degree;
Desirable
- Familiarity with humanitarian principles and practices;
- Experience working in multicultural environments;
- Proactive and collaborative approach to work;
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: 12-month contract, including a 3-month probation period, with the possibility of extension based on performance and funding availability.
- Band: H
- Designation of Duty Station: Kharkiv
- Start date: May 2026
Salary and conditions will be in accordance with Danish Refugee Council’s Terms of Employment for employees on national contracts; please refer to our website for more details.
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: 24 April 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.