As part of Devex’s ongoing coverage of global development employment trends, this article takes a closer look at UNICEF’s hiring activity in 2025, including the top locations and sectors the agency recruited for, as well as the salaries offered across them. UNICEF, the United Nations agency for children, is the world’s leading organization focused on child welfare, working across health, education, and protection in some of the most challenging conditions worldwide. For many development professionals, landing a role at the agency is a long-term career goal — and demand for the work it is doing has only grown in recent years as humanitarian needs have intensified. In 2024, the agency hired for more positions than any other employer in the sector, according to data from Devex’s job board postings. However, as with many multilateral organizations, UNICEF is operating in an increasingly uncertain funding climate, shaped by changing donor priorities and tighter aid budgets. These pressures have influenced where it is recruiting and deploying staff. Hiring at the agency continued throughout 2025, albeit at a slower pace, particularly for roles tied to program delivery; operations and administrative support; and monitoring, evaluation, accountability, and learning — or MEAL. According to data from the Devex job board, UNICEF posted 3,484 vacancies between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2025. This represents a 50% decrease compared with the same period in 2024, when 7,038 vacancies were posted. However, this was still enough to leave the agency in third position on the list of the top global development employers of 2025. Recruitment spanned a range of sectors, with the largest share of advertised roles falling under health, followed by education, and then WASH — water, sanitation, and health. Across the board, short-term assignments dominated — accounting for almost 79% of roles posted last year, including jobs advertised by country offices of UNICEF. This was also the case in 2024, when 64% of jobs offered short-term contracts. How much UNICEF jobs paid in 2025 The following salary analysis is based on the 909 vacancies with compensation information published by the agency from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2025. Mid-level roles, which also accounted for the majority of jobs overall, dominated the dataset, comprising 51% of those with salary information. This information was also available for more entry-level roles (252) compared to senior-level ones (176). Where salaries were listed in local currencies, figures were converted to U.S. dollars to allow for comparison. Figures for 2024 were also converted to 2025 U.S. dollar constant prices for further analytical uniformity. Across job postings, the average annual pay in 2025 ranged from $69,142 to $95,801, reflecting a decrease of about 13% from the previous year’s average of $79,113–$103,763. The North Africa and Middle East region offered the highest average annual salary, ranging from $77,222 to $109,938 — an 11% decrease compared to the previous year when the region also offered the highest average pay. The next region on the list was the Western Europe region where the average annual salary was $76,361–$89,191, maintaining its 2024 position as the region with the second-highest pay. In 2025 however, the average annual salary for Western Europe was about 9% lower than the year before. The West Africa region offered the third-highest average annual salary at $67,109–$94,909, reflecting an 11% decrease compared to the previous year’s numbers. Jobs in the East Asia and Pacific region paid the lowest with an average salary of $51,780–$75,301, a significant decrease of more than 25% from the previous year. At the country level, the United States boasted the highest average salary at $93,251–$122,734, followed by the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the range was $90,784–$133,719. Kenya rounded out the top locations for highest pay by country, with an average annual pay of $87,090–$117,202. https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/kristiana.louise.ortega/viz/2025UNICEFjobguidesalarybylocation/Sheet1
2025 UNICEF job guide salary by location Top sectors UNICEF hired for in 2025 By sector, humanitarian aid roles paid the highest average annual salary of the agency’s jobs, with a range of $81,755–$113,016 — just a slight 2% decrease from the previous year. This was followed by roles in global health jobs, which offered, on average, $77,185 to $110,037, reflecting a decrease of about 7% from the previous year. Jobs in WASH recorded the third-highest average annual pay at $73,523–$103,282, about 8% less than what they paid the previous year. Looking back at 2024, the sectors that offered the highest average annual salary at the agency were social/inclusive development, followed by humanitarian aid, then global health. Where UNICEF hired the most in 2025 With the agency’s headquarters based in New York, the U.S. remained a key hub for global operations and emerged as the top recruitment location in 2025. A total of 340 roles based in the country were posted. Hiring activity reflects a dual focus on frontline response locations and regional coordination centers. Most roles are based in crisis-affected countries across Africa and South Asia — including Sudan, Nigeria, Kenya, Nepal, and Mozambique — while additional positions are anchored in strategic coordination and support hubs such as the United Kingdom, Thailand, and Uzbekistan. Highest-paid UNICEF roles advertised in 2025 Here are the 10 highest-paid jobs posted on the Devex job board last year. The application period for these roles has closed. 1. Representative Location: Yemen Grade level: D-2 Average annual salary: $171,094–$205,942 2. Comptroller and Director, Division of Finance and Management Location: United States Grade level: D-2 Average annual salary: $171,094–$205,942 3. Director, Office of Internal Audit and Investigations Location: United States Grade level: D-2 Annual average salary: $171,094–$205,942 4. Director, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Section Location: Kenya Grade level: D-2 Average annual salary: $171,094–$205,942 5. Director, Education Cannot Wait Location: Switzerland Grade level: D-1 Average annual salary: $152,417–$193,215 6. Deputy Director, Talent Management Location: Turkey Grade level: D-1 Average annual salary: $152,417–$193,215 7. Chief of Investigation, Office of Internal Audit and Investigation Location: United States | Hungary Grade level: P-5 Average annual salary: $131,486–$165,076 8. Regional Chief of Operations Location: Nepal Grade level: P-5 Average annual salary: $131,486–$165,076 9. Chief, Nutrition Location: Somalia Grade level: P-5 Average annual salary: $131,486–$165,076 10. WASH Senior Manager Location: Sudan Grade level: P-5 Average annual salary: $131,486–$165,076