DevOps Consultant

Client: Agency of the United Nations

Location: Remote (Rome, Italy)

Duration: Initial period of 20 days, with the possibility of extension subject to budget availability and satisfactory consultant performance.

Rate: Based on experience

Application deadline: 02 December 2025

Organizational context The Agency is a specialized agency of the United Nations with headquarters in Rome, Italy and over 40 offices globally. The Agency’s mission is to transform rural economies and food systems by making them more inclusive, productive, resilient and sustainable. It invests in the millions of people who are most at risk of being left behind: poor, small-scale food producers, women, young people and other vulnerable groups living in rural areas.

The Agency is the only specialized global development organisation exclusively focused on and dedicated to transforming agriculture, rural economies and food systems. It targets its support to reach the last mile and remotest areas, to help millions of rural people.

The Information Technology Division (ICT) is responsible for providing information technology solutions and services to support the operations of the Agency and to ensure that, in fighting rural poverty, the Agency makes the most effective use of Information and Communications Technology tools and services.

Technical Context An important element of the Agency’s work is the provision of updated information systems that enable operational activities. In this context, a key component is the enrichment of information platforms using consolidated corporate data, including the use of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and related datasets to visualize the spatial context of the Agency’s interventions and understand and monitor landscape use for effective project design. The Agency has set up an Enterprise GIS system, using open-source tools (MerginMaps, QGIS, PostGRE/GIS, Geoserver, Geonode, OpenLayers, Leaflet, etc.). The GIS system has custom integration with PowerBI (custom widgets) and harvests a number of external data sources. The system has been scaled up with several additional applications around the core infrastructure, which require ongoing support, updates, and enhancements.

A DevOps Consultant is needed to assist with the support of a number of Web GIS applications within the Agency.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Webmaps (new GIS portal):
• Containerization of the application;
• Creation of CI/CD pipelines;
• Implement backup mechanisms and align the retention policy;
• Perform load testing and optimize the application using CDN and caching;
• Configure access for internal and external users;

• Configure a dedicated URL for external access and a dedicated tool for PMUs data upload;
• FIELD app:
• Synchronize deployed DB on staging;
• Synchronize deployed DB on production;
• Synchronize, if requested, media content to Azure bucket;
• Configure SSO integration;
• Support deploying upgrades and fixes/patches;
• Geonode:
• Configure SSO integration;
• Ongoing maintenance;
• WISH:
• Analyze options for deploying a Python GeoAI Unit: GPU underlying framework specifications/configuration for a GeoAI Python unit (most likely based on PyTorch and related libraries; GeoAI will require Python 3.10 or above); depending on use cases, the GPU will be needed for deep learning models (if any training is to be done on imagery, which is likely);

Required competencies

• Problem solver – able to propose solutions in a clear and understandable manner to non-technical users; ability to brainstorm and develop practical and innovative solutions with others
• Team Worker – develops and maintains positive relationships with end users; able to consult and deal effectively with all levels of the organization and establish working relations of openness and trust in a multicultural setting
• Planner and Organiser – prioritizes and organizes work for effective resolution of functional and technical problems
• Performer – demonstrates success in the implementation and quality control of corporate projects
• Accountability: Takes ownership of all responsibilities and honours commitments; delivers outputs within prescribed time, cost and quality standards; operates in compliance with organizational regulations and rules

Languages The project will be conducted in English