Call for Experts: DRRS Dominican Republic- Junior River Engineer / Urban Drainage specialist

Background

Santo Domingo is experiencing growing environmental and climate-related pressures as a result of rapid urbanization, aging infrastructure, and increasingly intense rainfall associated with climate change. These trends are placing significant stress on the city's water systems, affecting both urban drainage and the health of the Ozama River basin. Together, these challenges have direct implications for public health, economic activity, ecosystem quality, and the resilience of the Dominican Republic's capital.

Urban flooding has become a recurring problem during the rainy and hurricane seasons. Much of the National District lacks a dedicated stormwater drainage network, relying instead on fragmented drainage solutions with limited capacity and insufficient maintenance. As urban expansion continues and impervious surfaces increase, the city's ability to safely convey stormwater is further reduced. Extreme rainfall events, such as the record precipitation experienced in November 2023, have exposed the vulnerability of existing infrastructure and highlighted the need for a more integrated and resilient approach to urban water management.

At the same time, the Ozama River, one of the country's most important urban river systems, faces persistent water quality challenges driven by the discharge of solid waste, plastics, untreated wastewater, and polluted urban runoff. The degradation of the river and its tributaries affects surrounding communities, biodiversity, and the coastal environment, while also reducing the river's ecological, social, and economic value. Because many of the pollution sources originate within the urban environment, improving river health requires coordinated action that addresses waste management, drainage, land use, and watershed governance in an integrated manner.

Addressing these interconnected challenges presents an opportunity to strengthen climate resilience, improve environmental quality, and support sustainable urban development. A systemic perspective that considers both the technical and institutional dimensions of water management is therefore essential to identify effective and implementable solutions.

Objectives

The objective of this assignment is to investigate the viability of a DRRS deployment to the Dominican Republic taking into account local context, stakeholders and broader aim of the DRRS programme.

Activities

The DRRS scoping mission will focus on assessing both the technical challenges and the enabling environment for two potential areas of support: urban drainage in Santo Domingo and river basin management of the Ozama River. The activities to be carried out include:

-    Find and review existing documentation provided by the Embassy and project partners to understand the current context, previous studies, and ongoing initiatives related to both topics.

-    Assess the technical and institutional context for urban drainage and river basin management, identifying key challenges, opportunities, and the conditions required for successful implementation of future interventions.

-    Support the team leader in conducting stakeholder interviews with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Ministry of Environment, the National District Municipality of Santo Domingo (where appropriate), and The Ocean Cleanup to better understand their priorities, ongoing activities, and potential roles. Interviews will be mostly in Spanish.

-    Identify the enabling environment by evaluating institutional capacities, stakeholder ownership, coordination mechanisms, and potential local champions that could support implementation, drawing on previous DRRS experience.

-    Evaluate the strategic focus for DRRS support and develop recommendations for the way forward,  including priority interventions, opportunities for collaboration among stakeholders, and possible follow-up actions.

All activities will be undertaken under the direction and guidance of the DRRS team leader.
 

Deliverables

-    Short report describing the outcomes of the mentioned activities. (indication 2-5 pages)
-    Feedback call with RVO on the activities as well as the report.
 

Required expertise    

Based on the available information, the following expert profiles have been drafted for this assignment.

General requirements:
-    Able to rapidly assess situations and data and provide conceptual and practical solutions;
-    Experience in and knowledge of the local/regional context;
-    Ability to be a relevant sparring partner for the local officials and to provide feedback on the existing plans and ideas, as well as provide input for suitable alternatives; 
-    Excellent communication skills in English and Spanish;
-    Familiarity and practical experience with climate adaptation;
-    Familiarity and practical experience with complex (governance) systems;
-    Diplomatic skills and political sensitivity

Junior River Engineer and Water Quality expert:
-    Junior River engineer with maximum of 5 years of experience;
-    Experience in (river) water quality challenges;
-    Knowledge of urban drainage is considered very relevant;
-    Experience in the Dominican Republic or broader Caribbean region is an asset;
-    Fluent level in Spanish and English (C1 level or higher);
-    Flexible working attitude open to short deadlines and shifting schedules.

Time line and working days

This assignment is scheduled to be carried out in July and August 2026.  Expected time input for this assignment is 4 days. The work will be done remotely. 
 

Candidates' CVs will be evaluated based on qualifications sent through based on the order in which they have been submitted. Only profiles with a maximum of 5 years experience will be considered.

If you are interested in one of the positions, please respond as soon as possible, but at the latest before Monday 20th of July 2026 before 9 AM via drrs@rvo.nl. Please send your CV, the position you are interested in, a short motivation and discuss your availability in your message.

We strongly encourage a diverse set of candidates to apply, as we are committed to fostering gender diversity and inclusion in DRRS. Moreover, we stimulate national experts to become part of our database and to apply for vacancies. Please visit our website and become part of our network.

At RVO we are fully committed to creating a safe and respectful work environment. We have a zero-tolerance policy towards any form of sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment (PSEAH). All deployees/experts must adhere to the Code of Conduct, which outlines ethical standards and behaviors expected within our organization. Successful candidates will be required to uphold these principles and participate in mandatory PSEAH and CoC training as part of their onboarding process.