Call for Experts: DRRS Kenya - Urban Planner from a Governance perspective

Background

Recent extreme rainfall events have once again exposed the severe vulnerability of Nairobi to flooding, resulting in significant loss of life, displacement, and destruction of infrastructure. In the most recent flood events affecting the city in March 2026, authorities reported that between 40 and 50 people lost their lives in Nairobi alone, with national fatalities rising further as floodwaters submerged homes, swept away vehicles, and overwhelmed drainage systems across multiple informal settlements and urban areas . These recurring disasters underline the growing intensity of hydro-meteorological hazards in Kenya’s urban centres and the urgent need for strengthened disaster risk reduction (DRR) systems.
 

Objectives and scope

The objective of this assignment is to support the Government of Kenya, in particular the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Forestry (MECCF) as requesting agency and other national and municipal stakeholders, in developing an appropriate and actionable roadmap towards an Integrated Urban Flood Risk Management Plan and Investment Strategy for Nairobi. This roadmap is to be built and embraced by all the relevant stakeholders. In a parallel track, the team will support rapid flood hazard mapping and hotspot identification together with Kenyan counterparts to serve the transition to (flood) risk informed urban planning.
 

Activities

The Urban Planner will work from within the broader DRRS team. All activities are to be aligned with the team under the guidance of the DRRS team leader.

• August — First DRRS visit and participation in the National Climate Outlook Forum
• September–November — Remote technical work and preparation of the high-level workshop
• Pending intermediate results of the process: November/December — Second DRRS visit and high-level multi-agency workshop
   

Deliverables 

Under the responsibility of the team as a whole:

• A concise and strategic scope description and roadmap for an Integrated Urban Flood Risk Management Plan and Investment Strategy for Nairobi.
• A rapid flood hazard mapping and modelling assessment using available global and local datasets.
• Identification of flood hotspots, exposed areas and critical bottlenecks.
• A high-level action plan for improving urban flood resilience, validated through the November/December workshop and connecting both working tracks.
• Strengthened collaboration between national and county-level agencies through a joint technical and senior-level working process.
• A debriefing call with relevant GoK officials, the Netherlands Embassy in Kenya, RVO, and other relevant stakeholders to present the findings.

Specific deliverables for the Urban Planner:

• Strategic planning and governance-interface note.
• Contribution to working sessions and high-level workshop.
• Support materials for the planning working group.

Required expertise

Based on the available information, the selected team leader should ideally comply with the following description:

General requirements (applicable for all for all team members):  

• 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 presentation and reporting skills in English;
• Good communication skills in English;
• Familiarity and practical experience with complex (governance) systems;
• Experience with International Financial Institutions (IFIs) is an asset.

Specific requirements Urban Planner:

• The expert should be a senior urban planner, Urban Governance Specialist, Environmental planning & governance specialist or equivalent with proven experience in strategic urban planning in complex institutional environments. The main requirement is the ability to operate at the interface between urban planning, governance, legal and regulatory frameworks, and infrastructure investment.
• The expert should have demonstrated experience in translating existing laws, policies, plans, institutional mandates and regulatory instruments into a coherent spatial and strategic planning framework. This includes the ability to assess how land-use planning, development control, riparian protection, environmental regulation, drainage responsibilities, informal settlement upgrading, public space development and infrastructure planning can be brought together in an Integrated Urban Flood Risk Management Plan and Investment Strategy.
  A key part of the role will be to ensure that the proposed planning framework is institutionally workable and legally grounded. The expert should therefore be able to identify where existing planning and regulatory instruments can already support flood risk reduction, where mandates or responsibilities overlap, and where practical coordination mechanisms are needed between agencies. Experience with planning law, development permitting, zoning, enforcement mechanisms, public land management, safeguards and community-sensitive urban transformation is highly desirable.
• The expert should also be able to work closely with the DRRS Team Lead, the governance/legal contributors, the technical modelling team and Kenyan counterparts. Flood hazard and risk information will be provided through the technical work track; the planner’s role is to translate this information into planning concepts, governance implications, spatial development choices, institutional arrangements and implementable follow-up action.
• Additional qualification requirements;
  • Experience working with vulnerable communities and informal settlements is an advantage, including sensitivity to tenure, livelihoods, public health, relocation risks, social safeguards and community acceptance of flood risk reduction measures. 
  • Strong visual communication skills such as preparation of maps, diagrams, infographics, planning concepts, are an advantage.

Timeline

Tentative deployment is from 1st to 8th of September 2026 and a to be planned week in nov/dec 2026 plus time for preparation and finalization before and after deployment. Total expected input is 19 days between August 2026 and december 2026.

Candidates' CVs will be evaluated based on qualifications sent through based on the order in which they have been submitted.

If you are interested in one of the positions, please respond as soon as possible, but at the latest before Friday 17th of July 2026 before COB 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.