Advocacy Officer-INGO Forum: Sudan (Kenyan national)

Nairobi

Organization: Mercy Corps
Location: Nairobi
Grade: Junior level - Junior
Occupational Groups:
- Legal - Broad
- Political Affairs
- Communication and Public Information
Closing Date:

Description

Position Description

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

Risk Level:☐Level 3☐Level 2 ☐XLevel 1

(Level 3: Frequent contact with participants, direct contact with children, access to sensitive data, and/or high level of accountability.

Level 2: Some contact with participants; unplanned non-direct contact with children.

Level 1: Likely to have no contact with participants or sensitive data)

About the INGO Forum

Sudan is facing one of the most severe humanitarian crises globally, marked by widespread displacement, disease outbreaks, and confirmations of famine in several ‘hunger hotspots.’ In an effort to coordinate INGO efforts and establish a common voice for INGOs operating in Sudan, the INGO forum was established in 2009 as a key representation platform. To date, the forum is made up of 51 members and 17 observers operating across the country, including in some of the most difficult to reach parts of Sudan.

The INGO Forum is a permanent member of the Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) and the Inter-Cluster Coordination Group (ICCG). It co-leads the Humanitarian Access Working Group (HAWG), alongside OCHA and spearheads collective engagement with Government and other Authorities as well as with donors. The forum also leads collective advocacy nationally, regionally and internationally through its Advocacy Working Group (AWG) and in close coordination with the regional Inter-Agency Working Group (IAWG) and Member liaison offices in key donor/diplomatic capitals around the world.

Since 2023, the situation in Sudan has dramatically shifted as state and non-state actors wage a brutal war. The situation in non-Sudanese Armed Forces - controlled areas is particularly dire, with humanitarian access severely restricted and the absence of United Nations (UN) presence exacerbating the challenges. As humanitarian needs continue to escalate, there is an urgent need for an interim solution to address critical gaps in coordination, common services and aid delivery.

To this end, the three core tenants of the INGO Forum’s work include:

Coordinated aid delivery– Enhancing operational alignment across organizations to maximize humanitarian impact.

This includesestablishing an NGO-led coordination mechanism under the Sudan INGO Forum to provide immediate, effective, and well-managed humanitarian responses in these areas to ensure that urgent needs are met and operations are not disrupted.

Common service provision– Offering essential support, analysis, and shared resources to facilitate NGO operations.

This includes common negotiation support i.e. for access or against BAI, collective advocacy efforts, information sharing, donor and stakeholder engagement, security and admin SOP s and collective position papers, etc.

Stakeholder coordination andrepresentation–Engaging with donors, UN agencies, authorities, and the broader humanitarian system to advocate for improved response conditions.

There is of course a convening and facilitation role included in this representation function

General Position Summary

The Advocacy Officer position has been newly created in order to strengthen coordination across work-streams and enhance the quality of support provided to Members as well as the quality of representation provided in inter-agency platforms in view of ultimately strengthening the humanitarian response in Sudan. This position will focus on supporting humanitarian advocacy and policy influencing at country, regional and global levels, as well as analyzing, facilitating and coordinating humanitarian access negotiations, products and initiatives.

The Advocacy Officer will have specific responsibilities for convening and facilitating meetings and events related to policy, advocacy and communications. S/he will be responsible for ensuring adherence to information sharing protocols and will lead consolidation of Member inputs into collective products.

This position reports to the roving access/advocacy advisor who will lead the overall Access and Policy/Advocacy strategy and representation for the INGO forum. S/he will be expected to liaise with area coordinators and the information management officer to ensure coherent messaging across the INGOF. Coordination with the Administration Officer will also be required to ensure that contact lists are regularly updated and information systematically stored.

Essential Job Responsibilities

Policy/advocacy strategy and coordination:

Maintain an up-to-date tracker of external engagement, products in view of enhancing impact monitoring
Establish a regular mechanism for monitoring progress against the Forum’s advocacy strategy and support updating it as needed to reflect contextual evolution
Support in convening and facilitating meetings including through agenda setting and administrative tasks related to online, hybrid and in person meetings

Advocacy and communications products and events:

Draft and consolidating collective products
Provide administrative support to the organization of events including high-level meetings and media engagement
Draft monthly forum bulletins for circulation to Members and relevant external stakeholders including donors
Contribute to regular updating of the Forum’s website
Facilitate publication of forum products
Lead on preparing and implementing dissemination plans for pubic facing products and monitor adherence
Ensure adherence to the Forum’s advocacy strategy and work plan
Proactively seek areas for high level engagement with Third States, governments, donors, and other influential stakeholders

Administrative and other tasks:

Take notes from key meetings and engagements to ensure internal follow-up and accountability
Maintain repository of products, minutes, etc. to ensure knowledge preservation and eventual transfer
Maintain up to date contacts for relevant stakeholders

 Security

Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Accountability to Beneficiaries

INGO Forum team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to their beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of field projects, in line with Mercy Corps’ standards and policies.

Supervisory Responsibility

None.

Accountability

Reports Directly To:Access/Advocacy Advisor

Works Directly With:INGO Forum Secretariat including area coordinators, the information management officer, the AML officer, the INGO Forum Director and primarily with members.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

INGO Forum team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our program participants, community partners, other stakeholders, and to international standards guiding international relief and development work. They must be committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring, and evaluation of projects, in line with Mercy Corps’ standards and policies.

Knowledge and Experience

Essential requirements:

An masters degree in a media, communications, international relations, public policy, development, political science, a related field or equivalent experience
At least 4 years of relevant experience with NGOs, the UN system or other humanitarian/development actors
Experience working on complex humanitarian or fragile contexts with understanding of humanitarian principles, international humanitarian law (IHL) and humanitarian coordination mechanisms
Experience writing advocacy strategies, policy briefs, policy papers and public statements
A demonstrable understanding of current humanitarian policy trends and issues
Data analysis and interpretation skills
Ability to work under pressure and adapt to a multi-cultural environment
Fluency in English (written and spoken)

Desirable requirements:

Previous humanitarian experience in Sudan, Chad or South Sudan
Existing relationships with relevant stakeholders including NGOs, UN agencies, donors, national authorities and stakeholders and relevant advocacy and media stakeholders
Working knowledge of Arabic a plus

Success Factors

Ability to take initiative, learn quickly and be accountable for results
Flexibility and creativity in planning and problem solving
Ability to understand the larger picture while remaining focused on the details
Awareness of and sensitivity to multi-cultural international development work
Even temperament and a good sense of humor
Security awareness

INGO Forum Team members represent the Forum and the host agency, Mercy Corps, both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit/TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Organizational Learning

As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

Team Efficiency and Effectiveness

Achieving our mission starts with how we build our team and collaborate. By bringing together individuals with a variety of experiences, backgrounds, and perspectives, we strengthen our ability to solve complex challenges and drive innovation. We foster a culture of trust and respect, where every team member is valued for their contributions, empowered to reach their full potential, and motivated to do their best work.

We recognize that building a strong and effective team is an ongoing process, and we remain committed to learning, improving, and growing together.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Mercy Corps is an equal opportunity employer that does not tolerate discrimination on any basis. We actively seek out different backgrounds, perspectives, and skills so that we can be collectively stronger and have sustained global impact.

We are committed to providing an environment of respect and psychological safety where equal employment opportunities are available to all. We do not engage in or tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender identity, gender expression, religion, age, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin, disability (including HIV/AIDS status), marital status, military veteran status or any other protected group in the locations where we work.

Safeguarding & Ethics 

Mercy Corps is committed to ensuring that all individuals we come into contact with through our work, whether team members, community members, program participants or others, are treated with respect and dignity. We are committed to the core principles regarding prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse laid out by the UN Secretary General and IASC. We will not tolerate child abuse, sexual exploitation, abuse, or harassment by or of our team members. As part of our commitment to a safe and inclusive work environment, team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner, respect local laws and customs, and to adhere to Mercy Corps Code of Conduct Policies and values at all times. Team members are required to complete mandatory Code of Conduct e-learning courses upon hire and on an annual basis. 

We do our best to provide you the most accurate info, but closing dates may be wrong on our site. Please check on the recruiting organization's page for the exact info. Candidates are responsible for complying with deadlines and are encouraged to submit applications well ahead.

Before applying, please make sure that you have read the requirements for the position and that you qualify.
Applications from non-qualifying applicants will most likely be discarded by the recruiting manager.

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