Humanitarian Policy Officer Jobs
Job title: Regional Director, East and Southern Africa
Principal Location: Nairobi (other strategic locations in East Africa negotiable)
Role Purpose:
Street Child is a rapidly growing, child-focused, humanitarian and development organisation. In 2023, Street Child celebrated reaching over one million children across 25 countries over its fifteen years of existence. This was accomplished with and through a growing network of more than 200 national and local actors. The Regional Director will be a standard bearer of this ambition in East and Southern Africa, providing leadership across all countries where Street Child is operational while monitoring and pursuing growth opportunities across the region. As Street Child’s most senior representative in the region, the Regional Director will guide and drive the organisation to deliver on the objective of ensuring all children are safe, in school, and learning.
As Street Child actively seeks opportunities to expand its support for the most marginalized girls and boys, the Regional Director will be responsible for providing outstanding leadership and for resourcing and delivering high impact programming across East and Southern Africa. The Regional Director will work to identify and advance partnerships with regional, national, and local actors, as well as donors. This will require bringing a strong network to the role along with energy to represent Street Child in organisational, regional, and global forums. As Street Child country teams drive delivery for girls and boys, the Regional Director will work with country directors to develop high-functioning teams to deliver and resource ambitious regional and country strategies.
The Regional Director will manage one regional programme coordinator and will progressively assume responsibility for line management of country directors in East and Southern Africa.
Key Responsibilities:
- The Regional Director will act as chief motivator, working collaboratively with country, regional, and head office teams to:
- Cultivate enthusiastic and high-performing teams through outstanding leadership:
- Build, lead and motivate an ambitious and enthusiastic team of Street Child Country Directors and Strategic Leadership Teams.
- Oversee and support the recruitment and development of passionate, motivated, and technically excellent Street Child staff.
- Strengthen Street Child’s culture of learning, for both staff and local partners, by identifying professional and organisational development opportunities that respond to self-identified capacity gaps.
- Build a supportive network of learning and information exchange between regional county teams.
- Be a frequent in-person presence in operational countries, sometimes spending extended periods to support leadership at the country level, including in insecure contexts.
- Oversee the management of partnerships in countries in East and Southern Africa where Street Child does not maintain a direct presence.
- Drive resource mobilization across the East and Southern Africa region, for country programmes, regional strategy, and partners:
- In close collaboration with country leadership, identify country-level needs, seek out opportunities, and support in the development of winning proposals for country programmes.
- Across the region, identify needs and gaps, and drive new potential expansion opportunities in line with Street Child’s global strategy.
- Guide programmatic excellence across the region through robust strategy development and high-quality programme delivery:
- Develop a technically robust and evidence-based regional strategy that identifies Street Child’s comparative value and strategic goals in the region, across humanitarian, development and refugee contexts.
- Continuously consult with Country Directors, programme managers and local partners to ensure programme design and delivery is iterative, adaptive and quality-assured and impact is clearly measured.
- Provide support to local partners to develop organisational development plans and their own high-functioning leadership structures.
- Oversee and work closely with the regional finance team in their development and delivery of accurate, value for money budgets and robust operational processes.
- Ensure that operations and programmes in East and Southern Africa are conducted in line with Street Child’s policies and standards, including in the areas of safeguarding, safety and security, HR, finance.
1) Be a passionate representative of Street Child and our partners, across the organisation and in external forums:
- Represent Street Child at the highest level in East and Southern Africa, including pro-active participation in relevant coordination mechanisms at national and regional level.
- Represent Street Child and the needs of children in East and Southern Africa in global for a as required.
2) Advance and diversify partnerships with the local actors who respond to the needs of girls and boys in their communities, and with donors who can resource the work:
- Lead the development of strategic partnerships with relevant actors including donors, INGOs and local/national government, including at the regional level.
- Oversee the development of a resource mobilisation strategy for the region based on Street Child’s expertise and donor priorities.
- Lead and/or support Country Directors in the development of high-quality and highly competitive institutional funding proposals.
- Proactive engagement with Street Child UK head office and programmes team on strategic, networking and fundraising activities.
- The Key Responsibilities provide a high-level view of the Regional Director role. These responsibilities will evolve as the Regional Director expands Street Child’s reach across East and Southern Africa. Street Child operates with an entrepreneurial spirit that may require staff to step-up and step-in to reasonable tasks beyond the initial description of their role. The Regional Director may occasionally be called upon to provide surge or scoping support to other parts of Street Child Programmes as delegated by the Director of Global Programmes.
Qualifications and Experience:
- Significant senior management experience, leading high-functioning programme regional or county teams in the humanitarian and development sector. Previous experience as a country or regional director is preferred.
- Strong strategic thinker, with demonstrated expertise developing, resourcing, and delivering strategic plans at the regional or country level.
- Demonstrable experience of proposal development and/or winning funding; Experience in both humanitarian and development contexts.
- Strong command of the localisation agenda, and commitment to local level leadership and decision-making.
- Strong experience delivering high quality education and/or child protection programming.
- Excellent written and spoken communications in English.
- Experience working in the East and Southern Africa region.
- Demonstrated experience working closely with and in support of a multitude of partners including those from local civil society, government, and the private sector.
- Excellent relationship building skills, with an ability to skillfully navigate both national and international stakeholders.
- Willingness to actively engage in program development with country teams including extended missions to support at country level (significant travel expected).
- Additional language skills with a preference for Swahili, Portuguese, French, Somali, or other regional language
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
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This organisation is scheduling interviews as the applications come in. Don’t miss your opportunity, apply now!
GRT are looking for an experienced, passionate and delivery focused Finance Manager to join our team in Birmingham. You will join us on a full-time basis as part of an initial one-year fixed term contract with a view to progressing into a permanent role. GRT’s aim is to eradicate poverty by providing humanitarian aid, relief and providing sustainable programmes to the needy across the globe.
The ideal candidate will have a have a genuine understanding of, and commitment to, the aims and values of the GRT to implement the financial policies whilst working to support our dynamic teams. The Finance Manager will report directly to the CEO.
The Finance Manager will be responsible for preparing financial statements, overseeing monthly management accounts, managing payroll operations, handling accounts payable and receivable, and preparing the annual budget.
Main Responsibilities:
· Ensuring that financial and accounting services adhere to legal standards and contribute to the smooth operation of GRT activities.
· Annually reviewing and updating of all finance related policies.
· Creating an annual budget and regularly monitoring and comparing it with actual figures monthly.
· Managing the finance team by assigning tasks and overseeing their performance.
· Entering all financial data into finance software. (QuickBooks, Sage etc)
· Creating financial statements, overseeing cash management protocols, and managing accounts payable processes.
· Uploading pension contributions to the pension provider's platform
· Maintaining accurate ledgers and conducting monthly reconciliation of bank accounts.
· Ensuring the accuracy of monthly payroll processing.
· Handling banking activities for cash and cheques received.
· Reconciling donations received from online gateways such as JustGiving and Givebrite, as well as those received via standing order or direct debits.
· Administering invoice approval and payment processes, as well as operating expense claim procedures and payments.
· Addressing internal and external customer queries.
· Preparing project payments requests and donor receipts.
· Handling communications with HMRC regarding payroll and Gift Aid.
· Overseeing the maintenance of the inventory of all fixed assets in accordance with contractual and financial regulations.
· Overseeing all payments to suppliers and partner projects, including both local and international transactions.
· Generating month-end reports and quarterly project fund balances.
· Responding to bank inquiries and providing necessary information.
· Completing year-end QuickBooks reports for trustees and the accountant and addressing any inquiries they may have.
· Preparing for the year-end audit and managing inquiries from auditors.
· Concluding the year-end report and submitting it to the Charity Commission.
General Duties
• Be flexible within the broad remit of the post.
• Comply with Organisational policies and legal practices.
• Encourage effective cross-departmental working through personal example.
• Keep professional knowledge and expertise up to date.
• Attend internal and external meetings as required and contribute positively.
• Undertake any other duties commensurate with this post as reasonably requested by the CEO.
Personal Specification:
· Degree in Finance or Computing.
· Relevant professional qualification (e.g., ACCA, ACA, CIMA).
· Eight years of accounting experience, with at least two years specifically in Charity Finance.
· Experience in preparing and submitting annual accounts in SORP format.
· Excellent working knowledge of accounting systems such as QuickBooks or similar software.
· Up-to-date understanding of relevant charity and financial legislation, bookkeeping practices, accounting conventions, and best practices.
· Experience in developing and implementing policies, procedures, and systems.
· Strong numerical, analytical, and strategic skills, including database development and management.
· Meticulous attention to detail.
· Excellent communication skills for presenting to various audiences, including non-financial specialists.
· Willingness to work variable hours, including occasional weekends and evenings.
Knowledge about Muslim Charity- Helpful
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Do you believe in the power of learning and evidence to improve outcomes for some of the world’s most vulnerable young children and caregivers?
If the answer to this question is yes, this is the role for you!
The Moving Minds Alliance (MMA) is an advocacy impact network focused on Early Childhood Development in Emergencies (ECDiE). It comprises a (growing) network of 38 organizations working together to increase the quantity and quality of funding, policy prioritization, and leadership needed to effectively support young children and caregivers affected by crisis and displacement. MMA’s goal is for all children and caregivers to have access to the power and resources necessary to meet their self-determined needs in an environment of dignity, equity and care, especially in situations of national and international displacement.
MMA does not provide funding for implementation of early childhood programs. As a network, its activities are led by members collaborating in working groups responsible for operationalizing specific areas of work, with support from the Core Team and some external consultants. Operational costs and activities are financed by a sub-group of philanthropic foundations, which are part of the overall MMA membership, through a combination of annual member fees and additional donations and grants. A Steering Committee provides overall strategic direction. MMA is hosted by the International Rescue Committee (IRC-UK).
Our Vision: Rebuilding resilience of the youngest refugees
Forced displacement worldwide is at a record high. Young children and caregivers are disproportionately represented among those fleeing from emergencies and crisis-affected contexts. More than 43 million children have been displaced by conflict. One in four children around the world lives in contexts affected by conflict or disaster. Most children born in displacement will go on to spend their entire childhoods away from home.
Children’s experiences during their formative early years shape the architecture of the brain. This creates the foundation for future development, learning and physical and mental health. Prolonged exposure to violence and toxic stress can have life-long negative effects on children’s development. It can lead to higher levels of depression, anxiety, and in some cases post-traumatic stress disorder. Evidence indicates that quality ECDiE services that support parents, caregivers, and families to provide nurturing care during crisis can mitigate the negative effects of trauma and stress on young children and promote resilience and well-being for a lifetime.
Whilst the international community has made significant efforts to ensure children have access to basic healthcare and nutrition, more must be done to ensure that caregivers and young children can access quality ECDiE services. These services are severely lacking in crisis situations across the globe, as well as in communities hosting refugees and asylum-seekers.
The Purpose of the Role
The Knowledge Management and Learning Lead is a critical new appointment. The post-holder will support MMA’s ambition to become the thought leader and ‘go-to’ agency for the latest global, regional and local thinking, evidence and advocacy content on ECDiE. They will strengthen MMA’s capacity for disseminating learning and evidence for impactful advocacy, promoting uptake of evidence that emerges from research, linking researchers with policy makers and practitioners who can use it, including the development of learning products and policy statements.
The post-holder will understand that high quality research, information and learning exchange is the lifeblood of an effective network. They will support MMA to systematically strengthen learning and knowledge exchange. They will ensure that the views and perspectives of affected children, caregivers and communities are centred. They will support the Research Forum on Young Children in Emergencies, which generates research that can be used to influence policymakers and practitioners to provide more effective support to enable young, displaced children and their families to thrive.
Responsibilities:
1. Develop and implement MMA’s MERLA framework and Strategy with the support of technical experts from across the MMA network:
a. Define MMA’s learning agenda and gather data and evidence on its core research questions.
b. Collect, curate and aggregate learning across MMA member initiatives and generate evidence on the outcomes / impact of MMA activities.
c. Harvest, distil and (internally and externally) disseminate evidence and learning on ECDiE from its members.
d. Create platforms and processes to support and enhance internal learning, knowledge sharing, and alignment across the MMA membership and Working Groups.
e. Develop mechanisms to support the MMA’s ongoing performance improvement. This includes ensuring that appropriate digital platforms are in place for data collection and working with the MMA Director to make sure that our learning approach is supported through effective use of data.
f. Work with the Communications Manager to curate, build and share our digital library of resources, information and knowledge across the Alliance membership.
g. Identify, engage and support local partners to harvest emergent evidence from community-based innovations in ECDiE. Present this evidence in case studies and other learning products which can be used to increase the effectiveness of advocacy.
h. Increase outreach to and collaboration with regional and global organizations working on issues related to young children in emergencies through participation in events and meetings.
2. Oversee the annual production of key learning products. This will include reports which summarise the extent to which national humanitarian and climate response plans identify and prioritise young children and caregivers.
3. Provide day to day co-ordination and support to the Moving Minds Alliance Research Forum. This will include:
a. Organizing and producing webinars, to shed light on ongoing research efforts taking place worldwide, specifically focused on young children and families in emergency contexts.
b. Creating monthly research roundups to compile the most recent, relevant, and impactful research findings in ECDiE.
c. Promoting the “Meet the Fellows” series on the MMA’s social media platforms (LinkedIn & Twitter), in collaboration with the Communications Manager.
d. Expanding participation by members and Research Fellows at conferences and events.
As part of a small team, the post-holder will also share the MMA team’s collective responsibility to deliver an effective and impactful secretariat function.
Key Working Relationships
The Knowledge Management & Learning Lead will work independently, reporting to the MMA Director. They will be a senior member of the core team and will be expected to support day-to-day activities. The post-holder will work collaboratively with MMA member representatives. They will work alongside MMA working groups and committees, such as the Steering and Strategy Committees
They will work closely with the Arab Resource Collective (ARC – the host organization of ANECD) in Lebanon and BRAC IED in Bangladesh, two of MMA’s key members which will be actively involved in the management of The Research Forum.
The role will involve coordinating with monitoring and evaluation and/or programmatic staff from the different organisations across the membership and with our partners.
They will identify, engage, and work with local partners directly involved in implementing ECDiE in diverse contexts and settings.
They will collaborate with IRC team members where required. From time to time, they may oversee consultants.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Essential
Skills, Knowledge and Experience.
You will bring a track record of:
· Curating and disseminating research and learning to influence policymakers and practitioners.
· Using research and learning to strengthen network members’ engagement and enhance collective impact.
· Developing and implementing relevant and proportionate monitoring, evaluation, research, learning and accountability frameworks.
· Using innovative and creative approaches (jncluding participatory, qualitative research methodologies and data collection tools) to support local ‘non-research specialist’ partners to generate research and learning across a variety of diverse, typically low resource settings.
· Developing strategies to strengthen advocacy to diverse national, regional and global decision makers using research and learning generated by local partners.
· Practical application of research ethics and safeguarding.
· Working in a network with proven ability to build effective relationships and matrix-manage across geographically dispersed teams and organisations.
· Recruiting and managing technical experts, ensuring their products are useful and incorporated into ongoing work.
Values & attributes
Passionate about and committed to:
● Using research, evidence and learning to contribute to sustainable change for children in crisis.
● Commitment to the decolonization of knowledge and learning
● Principles of equity, transparency and inclusion.
● Ensuring systems, approaches and relationships are free from any form of racism, bias, discrimination, or exclusion.
Is excited to:
● Bring a creative, entrepreneurial, and dynamic approach
● Work independently with light touch supervision.
· Use knowledge and learning to strengthen the quality of network collaboration, convening and relationships.
· Able to work in a dynamic, dispersed and adaptive team, comfortable with complex challenges.
MMA’s Core Team and pooled fund is held by the International Rescue Committee. As such, staff are employed on IRC contracts.
Candidates must have the right to work in the UK. The deadline is for 17th of April 2024. The salary for this role is £55,000 per annum.
IRC-UK is committed to equality of opportunity and non discrimination for all applicants and employees. IRC-UK seeks to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce regardless of gender, race, religious belief, nationality, ethnic/national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status or disability. IRC-UK welcomes applications from all candidates, including underrepresented groups and refugees who have the right to work in the UK.
IRC UK will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable adjustments to participate in the job application and/or interview process, and for essential job functions if appointed to a role. Please contact us if you may need such adjustments
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as the applications come in. Don’t miss your opportunity, apply now!
ABOUT THE EUROPEAN LEGAL SUPPORT CENTRE
ELSC is an initiative of the Palestinian NGO Network, comprising 200 Palestinian civil society organisations, developed in response to the widespread repression in Europe of advocacy for Palestinian rights. Founded in January 2019, we provide free legal advice and assistance to individuals who face unjust smears, disciplinary investigations, criminal sanctions and other repressive measures aimed at shrinking the space for Palestinian rights advocacy in mainland Europe and Britain. Some of our public legal wins in Britain of the past four years can be read here: https://elsc.support/our-work-in-the-uk.
We are “movement lawyers”. In every case we take on, we are accountable not only to the individual client but also to our civil society partners in Britain; and we work hand in hand with local stakeholders in the movement, from trade unions to civil liberties groups. We aim to defend and empower the movement to organise for justice without fear of repression.
ABOUT THE ROLE
The Associate Solicitor will lead our legal team in Britain and oversee our cases in England and Wales.
The role requires a qualified solicitor with experience of running litigious cases. Our main practice areas in Britain are: (i) public law and human rights; (ii) employment and discrimination and (iii) defamation law. The post-holder will have particular expertise in one of these areas. Our cases also involve data rights, freedom of information, criminal law, actions against the police, charity law, education law, international humanitarian law, and immigration issues.
The post holder will manage a growing team that consists of a Legal Officer and a Junior Legal Officer. In addition, our country teams have advocacy and communication officers and researchers who monitor anti-Palestinian racism.
JOB DESCRIPTION
Duties and Responsibilities
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Oversee all litigious and advisory casework in Britain alongside our junior legal staff and legal network. Provide expert legal advice and representation, to individual clients and movement partners.
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Manage our legal officers, providing training and feedback to them as appropriate. Collaborate closely with our legal network of solicitors and counsel with the goal of strengthening the wider movement.
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Develop and advance new legal strategies for challenging state and non-state repression of advocacy for Palestine in consultation with our legal network, national partners and experts.
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Support the development of effective advocacy campaigns to increase the impact of litigation outside the courtroom.
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Support ELSC’s outreach and public engagement initiatives.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Required experience, knowledge and skills
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3 years + post-qualified experience (PQE) and admitted to practise as a solicitor in England and Wales.
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Experience leading on a variety of contentious and non-contentious matters, particularly in public, employment and/or defamation law.
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Excellent written and oral communication skills, with the ability to provide clear and concise legal advice on complex issues in a comprehensible and appropriate format.
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An ability to engage with the law critically and develop strategies that serve broader political objectives. Track record of collaborating well with other lawyers, academics and civil society organisations.
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Excellent client care skills, particularly in relation to vulnerable or marginalised clients.
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Experience in a role which requires coordination of multiple projects and/or workstreams concurrently, and the ability to manage relationship with partner organisations, coalitions and counsel.
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High level of English-language proficiency.
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Commitment to the Palestinian liberation and solidarity movement.
Desirable experience, skills and knowledge
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Dual-qualified in Scotland and/or Northern Ireland.
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Ideal candidate will already have LAA Supervisor status or meet the requirements to do so
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Experience working with campaigning and advocacy organisations.
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Experience with management and organisational development.
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Understanding of and experience working with a variety of local, national, and international jurisdictions, including those governed by common law or civil law.
OTHER REQUIREMENTS
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Demonstrate a commitment and sensitivity to the ELSC aims and objectives
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Commitment to anti-racism, anti-discriminatory practice and equal opportunities.
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Willingness to travel and work occasional unsocial hours as required.
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Abide by all organisational policies, codes of conduct and practices and legal requirements.
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Treat with confidentiality any personal, private, or sensitive information about individual organisations, clients, donors and supporters, staff, and projects.
We welcome and encourage applicants from all backgrounds and do not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, LGBT or relationship status, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and belief, sex, or social class. We particularly welcome applications from Palestinians and those who identify as part of the Palestinian diaspora.
ELSC recognises that applicants from marginalised communities are less likely to apply for jobs if they do not fulfil every single qualification. We encourage you to consider applying even if you do not meet every attribute listed. Our priority is to find the right candidate for the position.