UN Women Invites Applications for Chief, Women’s Economic Empowerment – Nairobi, Kenya

Posted: September 27, 2025
Duty Station: Nairobi, Kenya
Organization: UN Women
Job Type: Full-time
Experience Required: 15+ years

About UN Women

Established in July 2010, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) is dedicated to advancing gender equality and empowering women globally. UN Women works to eliminate discrimination, support women’s participation in all aspects of life, and ensure that women and girls worldwide can live up to their full potential.

Job Overview

UN Women is recruiting a Chief, Women’s Economic Empowerment, who will lead the global strategy, partnerships, and policy frameworks on women’s economic empowerment. This senior leadership role will be based in Nairobi and will shape UN Women’s global agenda, provide thought leadership, oversee programme design and implementation, and ensure alignment with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and UN Women’s Strategic Plan.

Key Responsibilities

Strategy & Leadership

Lead implementation of UN Women’s Women’s Economic Empowerment Strategy, positioning UN Women as a global leader in feminist economic policy and programming.
Act as a thought leader, convening feminist economists, policy experts, and practitioners.
Provide strategic advice to senior leadership on women’s economic empowerment.

Policy & Programme Development

Oversee the design and rollout of global programming frameworks and projects.
Introduce innovative feminist economic approaches to policy and practice.
Lead development of tools, methodologies, and guidelines for programming.
Integrate women’s economic empowerment with other UN Women thematic areas, across both development and humanitarian contexts.

Knowledge & Research

Lead production of policy briefs, peer-reviewed publications, and discussion papers.
Build global learning platforms and knowledge-sharing networks on women’s economic empowerment.
Oversee communities of practice and ensure lessons learned are widely shared.

Advocacy & Partnerships

Represent UN Women in international forums, policy dialogues, and high-level partnerships.
Strengthen collaborations with governments, civil society, private sector, academia, and development partners.
Drive advocacy initiatives to mobilize resources and promote global commitment to gender equality.

Management

Oversee the Economic Empowerment Section, including staff performance, workplans, and financial resources.
Ensure transparency, accountability, and compliance with UN regulations.
Promote teamwork, learning, and evaluation-based improvements.

Qualifications

Education:
- Master’s degree (or equivalent) in Economics (specialization in feminist economics preferred), Gender & Development, Public Policy, or related social sciences.
- PhD is desirable.
- A first-level university degree with 2+ additional years of relevant experience may be considered.
Experience:
- Minimum 15 years of progressively responsible experience in policy and programme work on gender, feminist economics, or women’s economic empowerment.
- Proven experience publishing policy research and thought leadership in feminist economics.
- Strong background in designing and implementing large-scale women’s economic empowerment programmes.
- Experience in team leadership, resource mobilization, and partnership building.
- Field experience in developing countries is an advantage.
- Recognition as an authority on women’s economic empowerment is highly desirable.