US Embassy Kinshasa: Political Assistant- Open to: Appointment Eligible Family Members (AEFMs)

Open Period:

12/18/2025 – 01/19/2026

Format MM/DD/YYYY

Vacancy Time Zone:

GMT+1

Series/Grade:

FP – 1605 7

Salary:

USD $52,864 /Per Year

Work Schedule:

Full-time – 40 hours/Week

Promotion Potential:

FP-7

Duty Location(s):

1 Vacancy in

 

Kinshasa, CG

Telework Eligible:

No

For More Info:

HR Section

+243 972616179

HRKinshasa@state.gov

Overview

Hiring Path:

• Excepted service

• Open to the public

Who May Apply/Clarification From the Agency:

 

This position is open to:

• U.S. Citizen Eligible Family Members (USEFMs) – All Agencies

 

For USEFM – FP grade is FP-07. Actual FP salary authorized by Washington D.C.

Security Clearance Required:

Secret/Confidential Clearance

Appointment Type

Temporary

Appointment Type Details:

Definite not to Exceed 5 years.

Marketing Statement:

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY (EEO): The U.S. Mission provides equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, or sexual orientation.

 

Summary:

The U.S. Embassy in Kinshasa is seeking eligible and qualified applicants for the position of Political Assistant/Leahy vetting in the Political Section.

 

 

The work schedule for this position is:

 

 

Full Time (40 hours of hours per week)

 

 

Start date: Candidate must be able to begin working within a reasonable period of time (4 weeks) of receipt of agency authorization and/or clearances or their candidacy may end.

 

Supervisory Position:

No

Relocation Expenses Reimbursed:

No

Back to top

Duties

This position supports a number of political section objectives, including managing human rights (Leahy) vetting for certain U.S. training programs for host country military and police officials; monitoring the political section’s grants portfolio; supporting the drafting of congressionally-mandated annual reports (Human Rights Report, International Religious Freedom Report, Trafficking-in-Persons Report); and supporting political section reporting on a range of topics, including domestic politics, parliament, and elections-related political developments.

 

 

 

 

Back to top

Qualifications and Evaluations

Requirements:

All selected candidates must be able to obtain and hold a:

 

 

 

Secret security clearance.

 

 

All selected candidates will be subject to a background investigation and may be subject to a pre-employment medical exam.

 

 

Selected candidate must be able to begin working within a reasonable period of time 4 weeks upon receipt of agency authorization and/or clearances/certifications or their candidacy may end.

 

 

Education Requirements:

University degree in International Relations, Human Rights, Law, or Political Science is required

 

 

 

 

Evaluations:

You will be evaluated against the qualifications and requirements in this vacancy announcement.

You may be asked to complete a pre-employment language or skills test.

You must complete the application form and provide the required documents. Your application must address all the position qualifications and requirements including education, experience, language, and any knowledge/skills/abilities listed. If you fail to submit a complete application, then your application may be disqualified for this position.

 

Qualifications:

Experience:

 

 

Two years of work experience in a human rights, international relations, government, democracy, law, labor, social justice, humanitarian, or other related field is required. Examples of relevant work experience would include work with an NGO focused on human rights and democracy, experience as a journalist, or experience in a government or international organization dealing with human rights and democratization issues is also required.

 

 

Language:

 

 

Fluent- Reading/Writing/Speaking in English is required

 

 

Job Knowledge:

 

 

– A general knowledge of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s political history, human rights environment, and general cultural knowledge.

 

 

– A thorough knowledge of democracy theory, fundamental human rights practice, and UN peacekeeping operations.

 

 

– Robust understanding of the legal, policy, and political environments as they relate to human rights.

 

 

 

 

 

Skills And Abilities:

 

 

Strong oral and written communications skills are required to develop and maintain effective, sustainable working relationships with national working partners. Leadership skills are required to lead results-driven project teams. Ability to work both independently and in teams and to take responsibility for successful project planning. The incumbent will be expected to exercise considerable ingenuity and tact in applying guidelines to unique and different settings, as the work is highly complex and requires close coordination with stakeholders. Ability to travel semi-frequently to sometimes remote or difficult areas to gather data and meet with key stakeholders or investigate political developments. Ability to obtain and maintain a secret clearance is required.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to top

Benefits and Other Info

Benefits:

Agency Benefits:

 

The U.S. Mission offers a competitive compensation and benefits package for local employees.

 

 

For Eligible Family Member (EFM) applicants, benefits should be discussed with the HR Office. The pay plan is assigned by the HR Office and confirmed by Washington, D.C.

 

Other Information:

HIRING PREFERENCE SELECTION PROCESS:

 

 

A hiring preference is extended to eligible and qualified applicants in the order listed below. It is essential you accurately describe your status in your application, failure to do so may result in a determination that you are not eligible for a hiring preference.

 

 

HIRING PREFERENCE ORDER

 

 

 

Appointment Eligible Family Member (AEFM) / U.S. citizen Eligible Family Member (USEFM) who is a preference-eligible U.S. Veteran*

 

AEFM / USEFM

 

Foreign Service (FS) on Leave without Pay (LWOP) and Civil Service (CS) with reemployment rights **

 

 

* IMPORTANT:  US citizen Eligible Family Member (USEFM) applicants who claim status as a preference-eligible U.S. Veteran must submit a copy of their most recent DD-214 (“Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty”) preferably Member Copy 4, Letter from Veterans’ Affairs which indicates the present existence of a service-connected disability, equivalent documentation, or certification.  A “certification” is any written document from the armed forces that certifies the service member is expected to be discharged or released from active duty service in the armed forces under honorable conditions within 120 days after the certification is submitted by the applicant. The certification letter should be on letterhead of the appropriate military branch of the service and contain (1) the military service dates including the expected discharge or release date; and (2) the character of service.  Acceptable documentation must be submitted in order for the preference to be given.

 

 

** This level of preference applies to all FS employees on LWOP and CS with re-employment rights back to their agency or bureau.

 

 

For complete definitions of AEFM, USEFM, EFM, Member of Household, etc., please visit the 3 FAM 7210 Definitions.

 

ADDITIONAL EMPLOYMENT CONSIDERATIONS

 

The following apply to EFMs, USEFMs, and AEFMs only:

 

 

 

Current employees who used a hiring preference to gain employment who are within their first 90 calendar days of employment are not eligible. This does not apply when the hiring mechanism is TEMP or the work schedule is intermittent or irregular.

 

Candidates with a hiring preference who have already accepted a conditional offer of employment may NOT be extended a second conditional offer of employment unless and until they withdraw their candidacy for the first position in writing.

 

 

The following apply to Locally Employed (LE) staff only:

 

 

 

Current employees serving a probationary period are not eligible.

 

Current employees with an Overall Summary Rating of Needs Improvement, Unsatisfactory, or an MBC score of less than 100 points on their most recent Employee Performance Report are not eligible.

 

Back to top

How to Apply

How to Apply:

 

 

 

Click the “Apply to This Vacancy” button at the top of the page to begin your application. For an instructional video on how to apply click here.

 

 

Please address all relevant experience, education, language skills (including English), and job related skills or requirements in your application.

 

 

You may edit your application any time before the vacancy closing date. If you fail to submit a complete application by the vacancy closing date of this vacancy, then your application may be disqualified for this position.

 

 

For a copy of the complete position description, please contact the HR Office.

 

 

To request a reasonable accommodation, please contact the HR Office.

 

 

 

 

Required Documents:

Please upload all applicable documents to your application. If you fail to submit a complete application, then your application may be disqualified for this position.

 

 

 

Eligible Family Member (EFM) Applicants must submit:

 

 

 

Copy of Sponsor’s Travel Orders/Assignment Notification (or equivalent)

 

Passport copy

 

DD-214 – Member Copy 4, Letter from Veterans’ Affairs, or other supporting documentation (if applicable)

 

SF-50 (if applicable)

 

Next Steps:

The HR Office will contact successful applicants. For more information on applying for jobs or employment with us, please visit the U.S. Mission website cd.usembassy.gov or

Powered by Monster