The World Health Organization (WHO) is offering an international volunteer assignment for a Systems Administrator in Pretoria, South Africa.
The role is based onsite at WHO South Africa and focuses on cloud infrastructure, Microsoft Azure administration, cybersecurity, access management, DevOps and related IT operations.
The assignment is listed as a full-time international UN Volunteer opportunity with an expected start date of October 1, 2026, and a duration of 12 months, with the possibility of extension.
WHO Systems Administrator Opportunity at a Glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Organisation | World Health Organization (WHO) |
| Host entity | WHO South Africa |
| Position | Systems Administrator |
| Location | Pretoria, South Africa |
| Work arrangement | Onsite |
| Opportunity type | International UN Volunteer |
| Work schedule | Full-time |
| Expected start date | October 1, 2026 |
| Duration | 12 months, with possibility of extension |
| Experience | 7 years required |
| Education | Master’s degree preferred; bachelor’s may also be considered |
| Language | Fluent English |
| Assignments | 1 |
| Main field | Information technology and telecommunications / software development |
The listing also states that applicants must be nationals of a country other than the country of assignment, meaning South African nationals would not meet this particular international assignment requirement.
What Would the Systems Administrator Do?
The position sits within the Information Technology Management (ITM) unit at WHO South Africa. The unit is responsible for cloud infrastructure and supports technical teams in deploying, maintaining and improving applications.
The Systems Administrator would work under the overall supervision of the IT Manager and direct supervision of IT Specialists.
The assignment includes responsibilities such as:
- Provisioning, configuring and maintaining cloud infrastructure, including virtual machines, virtual networks, App Service plans and Kubernetes clusters.
- Monitoring system performance, availability and security events.
- Managing identity and access controls, security groups and permissions.
- Carrying out access reviews to support least-privilege controls.
- Handling backup, patching and disaster-recovery procedures.
- Supporting infrastructure-as-code, deployment changes and version control.
- Identifying unused cloud resources and cost anomalies and coordinating corrective action.
- Leading deployment sessions with developers and product owners.
- Supporting architecture reviews and cybersecurity risk assessments.
- Planning infrastructure upgrades and migrations.
- Providing first-level support to Azure users, including VPN, Bastion connectivity, permissions and DevOps processes.
- Maintaining documentation covering configurations, incidents, procedures and important technical decisions.
This makes the opportunity particularly relevant to experienced IT professionals whose background combines systems administration with cloud infrastructure and Azure technologies.
Who Can Apply?
Applicants must meet the experience, education, nationality and language requirements specified for the assignment.
The listing requires seven years of relevant experience. It also specifies experience in systems administration or a related area, including three years of professional hands-on experience administering cloud infrastructure.
For education, the stated requirement is a master’s degree in computer science, information technology or a related field. However, candidates with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, IT or a related field may also be considered.
Fluent English is required.
Applicants must also be between 18 and 80 years old, according to the eligibility information in the listing. The international volunteer requirement means the candidate must hold a nationality different from South Africa.
Technical Skills and Experience Required
The role has a strong Microsoft Azure and cloud infrastructure focus.
Applicants are expected to be familiar with areas including:
- Cloud governance
- Compliance auditing
- Cloud security and access control
- Cost optimization
- Lifecycle management
- Troubleshooting
- DevOps practices
- IP addressing, networks and subnets
The listing also identifies experience with cloud infrastructure administration as an important part of the profile. An Azure administration certification, such as Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate, is described as an added advantage. Equivalent AWS or Google Cloud Platform certification is also valued when accompanied by willingness to adapt.
Beyond technical knowledge, WHO is looking for strong communication, reporting, interpersonal and organisational abilities. The successful volunteer is expected to work effectively in a multicultural environment, collaborate with international and national personnel, and adapt to changing or difficult working conditions.
What Makes This a Specialized IT Volunteer Role?
This is not a general IT support position. The responsibilities are concentrated around cloud infrastructure administration, Azure environments, security, identity and access management, deployment processes and infrastructure reliability.
The position also connects technical work with WHO’s health information technology environment. The listing notes an interest in providing health IT platforms that can support high-level decision-makers while applying sound cloud computing principles.
That combination means applicants should pay close attention to the cloud infrastructure and Azure requirements rather than focusing only on general systems administration experience.
Assignment Duration and Location
The assignment is based in Pretoria, South Africa, and the work is listed as onsite. It is a full-time international volunteer assignment with an expected start date of October 1, 2026. The initial assignment period is 12 months, with the possibility of extension.
Only one assignment is listed for this position.
Application Information
The supplied UNjobs listing does not specify a closing date. It states that WHO has not specified a closing date or may continue listing the vacancy after its stated closing date, and advises applicants to verify the current status through the recruiting organisation.
Because the supplied page is a UNjobs listing rather than an official WHO or UN Volunteers application page, applicants should verify whether the vacancy is still accepting applications before submitting anything. UNjobs itself states that it is not an official United Nations document.
