ICMPD Safeguarding & PSEAH Expert: Interim Consultancy Opportunity in Vienna|Apply by 31 Aug 2026
The International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) is seeking an experienced Safeguarding & PSEAH Expert (Interim) to support the organisation in strengthening and consolidating its institutional safeguarding and duty-of-care systems.
This consultancy provides an opportunity for an experienced safeguarding professional to contribute to an international organisation working on migration policy and programmes across more than 100 countries. The assignment is based at ICMPD Headquarters in Vienna, Austria, with a hybrid arrangement and remote delivery possible.
The application deadline is 31 August 2026, making this a time-sensitive opportunity for qualified independent consultants.
About ICMPD
ICMPD is an international organisation with 21 Member States that works with governments to develop robust, rights-based migration management systems.
Its work takes a whole-of-route approach to migration, connecting governments, partners and stakeholders and supporting implementation through projects around the world.
As part of its institutional development, ICMPD is bringing together several safeguarding and duty-of-care components into a more coherent organisational system. These include safeguarding, protection from sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment (PSEAH), complaint and feedback mechanisms, data protection, partner due diligence and staff training.
About the Consultancy
The Safeguarding & PSEAH Expert will provide interim expertise to operationally lead the consolidation and rollout of ICMPD’s institutional safeguarding system.
The expert will also support the transition to a permanent safeguarding function, with the assignment expected to run from August 2026 through December 2026.
The maximum level of input is 90 working days.
Importantly, this Call for Experts is open to independent contractors only.
Key Responsibilities
The selected expert will begin by reviewing ICMPD’s existing safeguarding policies, tools and practices. This will involve identifying gaps, inconsistencies and areas requiring harmonisation.
A major part of the assignment will be operationalising ICMPD’s safeguarding and PSEAH framework so that it covers both people served by ICMPD programmes and ICMPD personnel.
The expert will help establish clear roles and responsibilities and develop appropriate case-handling and referral procedures.
Another significant responsibility will be designing an institution-wide complaint and feedback mechanism capable of safely receiving PSEAH reports. The mechanism will also need to be piloted as part of the assignment.
The consultant will additionally:
- Support the development of data-protection procedures for people served by ICMPD.
- Establish safeguarding criteria for partner due-diligence processes.
- Develop safeguarding due-diligence criteria and assessment tools.
- Strengthen organisational awareness of safeguarding and PSEAH.
- Develop safeguarding and PSEAH training.
- Align ICMPD’s systems with recognised inter-agency standards.
- Prepare materials to facilitate the handover to a permanent safeguarding function.
Expected Deliverables
The consultant will be responsible for producing several important institutional deliverables.
These include a stocktake and gap assessment, inception note and detailed work plan.
The expert will also produce an operational safeguarding and PSEAH framework, including a case-handling and referral protocol.
Other expected outputs include:
- Institution-wide complaint and feedback mechanism design and pilot.
- Data-protection procedures.
- Safeguarding due-diligence criteria and assessment tools.
- Safeguarding and PSEAH training package.
- Inter-agency alignment materials.
- Handover package for the permanent safeguarding function.
All deliverables must be submitted in editable Microsoft Word format and in English.
The final deliverable deadline is 31 December 2026.
Who Can Apply?
This is a senior specialist consultancy aimed at professionals with substantial safeguarding and PSEAH experience.
Applicants should have an advanced university degree in a relevant area such as:
- Human rights
- Protection
- Social sciences
- Law
- International development
Equivalent professional experience may also be considered.
Candidates must have at least eight years of professional experience in safeguarding and PSEAH within humanitarian, migration or development contexts.
Crucially, applicants should have experience operationalising a safeguarding or PSEAH framework at institutional level.
The role also requires someone who can work independently and lead delivery effectively under time pressure.
Specific Expertise Required
The consultancy requires a broad combination of safeguarding, protection and organisational expertise.
Candidates should have demonstrated experience in designing complaint and feedback mechanisms, including approaches that support safe and survivor-centred responses.
Familiarity with data-protection principles in beneficiary-data contexts is also required.
Experience with partner due diligence is another important requirement, particularly where safeguarding considerations need to be incorporated into organisational assessment processes.
Applicants should also be familiar with recognised inter-agency standards, including:
- IASC Six Core Principles
- Misconduct Disclosure Scheme
- Core Humanitarian Standard
These areas should be clearly demonstrated in an applicant’s CV and professional experience.
Language Requirements
Excellent command of English is required.
Additional languages are considered an asset and may strengthen an application, particularly given ICMPD’s international operating environment.
Location and Working Arrangements
The assignment location is Vienna, Austria, at ICMPD Headquarters.
However, the consultancy is structured as hybrid, with remote delivery possible.
No regular travel is anticipated. Limited travel may be required where necessary, and any such travel would be arranged and reimbursed by ICMPD according to its applicable rules.
The expert will report to the Head of the Health, Safety, Security & Services (H3S) unit, who will provide overall supervision.
Contract and Payment
The assignment is expected to run from August to December 2026, with a maximum of 90 working days.
Fees will be paid following satisfactory delivery of services, according to the payment schedule established in the contract and upon submission of the required documentation.
The assignment is subject to the availability of project funds and/or final donor approval.
How to Apply
Interested experts should submit their CV by email to:
Applicants must use the following exact subject-line format:
Last Name_CfE0726/Safeguarding & PSEAH Expert
Following the required subject format is important because failure to do so could result in an application being automatically rejected if it cannot be properly detected by the recruitment process.
Shortlisted candidates should be available for either a face-to-face or online interview. Reference checks may also be conducted before the final selection.
Why This Opportunity Stands Out
This consultancy could be particularly attractive to experienced safeguarding professionals seeking to work at institutional level rather than focusing exclusively on individual programmes.
The successful consultant will have the opportunity to help build a coherent safeguarding system that brings together PSEAH, complaints and feedback, data protection, partner due diligence, training and organisational accountability.
The assignment also offers exposure to an international migration organisation and requires the consultant to connect institutional safeguarding practice with recognised international standards.
Final Thoughts
The ICMPD Safeguarding & PSEAH Expert (Interim) consultancy is a senior-level opportunity for an experienced independent safeguarding professional with a strong background in humanitarian, migration or development environments.
The ideal candidate will combine at least eight years of relevant experience with practical expertise in institutional safeguarding, survivor-centred complaints mechanisms, PSEAH, data protection, partner due diligence and inter-agency standards.
With a maximum of 90 working days, remote delivery possible and a deadline of 31 August 2026, qualified independent consultants should ensure their CV clearly demonstrates the specific experience requested and follow the application subject-line requirements exactly.
Application deadline: 31 August 2026.
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