Policy and Advocacy Manager

POLICY & ADVOCACY MANAGER-MERCY CORPS UGANDA

Position Description

Location: Kampala, Uganda

Position Status: Full-time, Regular

Salary Level: 10

Current Team Member: New position

Minimum Salary: 8,923,898/=

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is an international development organization that works in over 40 countries to promote community-led and market-driven development. With a strategic focus on countries in transition, Mercy Corps takes a progressive approach to supporting communities, entrepreneurs, governments and the private sector from relief to long-term economic growth. With a network of over 3,700 experienced professionals around the world, we are uniquely positioned to respond to complex environments and the needs of local communities.

In Uganda, Mercy Corps has been in operating since 2006 in Karamoja specifically in Kotido, Abim, Amudat, Kaabong and Moroto; in Northern Region in Gulu; West Nile in Yumbe and Central region specifically Kampala district. Mercy Corps offers technical expertise in Market Development, Gender, Peace and Conflict Management, Economic Empowerment, Food Security Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning, Agriculture and Agribusiness.

Mercy Corps has implemented and still implements multiple donor-funded projects within and outside the West Nile region with her major donors including but not limited to DANIDA (Danish Government Overseas Aid), Austrian Development Agency, Agence Française de Dévelopement (AFD) and Private foundations among others.

 

Program / Department Summary

The Delivering Resilient Enterprises and Market Systems (DREAMS) program is a collaboration between three leading organizations in the field of global poverty alleviation: Village Enterprise, Mercy Corps, and IDinsight. The DREAMS program aims to improve the well-being of 150,000 women, children, and men over the course of the five years.  Targeting refugees and host community members in the West Nile region of Uganda, our innovative approach is layering two evidence-based models – poverty graduation and market systems development – to achieve increased household income, savings, and assets: improved food security and wellbeing.

General Position Summary

The Policy and Advocacy Manager will be responsible for developing and implementing the advocacy strategy and work plan for the DREAMS program. The P&A Manager is responsible for the designing and implementation of advocacy activities and initiatives under DREAMS and other related activities of Mercy Corps Uganda. This includes ensuring effective packaging and dissemination of evidence and learning generated under DREAMS, representing Mercy Corps Uganda in relevant advocacy networks and working groups in Uganda and the region, drafting advocacy products and messages, and representing MCU and the DREAMS program with external stakeholders including donors, government entities, peer agencies and partners. The P&A Manager will ensure accountability to Mercy Corps policies and donor rules and regulations. They will report to and work with the Program Manager, as well as work very closely with the rest of the DREAMS program team, regional advocacy and media advisors, and PAQ team. 

Essential Job Responsibilities

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• Actively learns about safeguarding and integrates it into their work, including safeguarding risks and mitigations related to their area of work ·
• Practices the values of Mercy Corps including respecting the dignity and well-being of participants and fellow team members ·
• Encourages openness and communication in their team; encourages team members to submit reports if they have any concerns using reporting mechanisms e.g., Integrity Hotline and other options 

Technical Responsibilities

ADVOCACY AND INFLUENCE 

• Develop and oversee implementation of the DREAMS Advocacy Strategy & Action Plan in line with Mercy Corps Uganda Country Strategy, identifying key policy issues, advocacy targets, approaches and key activities.
• Keep track of key influence opportunities for MCU and DREAMS at national, regional and global level and ensure adequate engagement from MCU and the DREAMS programs team in those moments.
• Work closely with the Communications officer to deliver the DREAMS Communications & Media Strategy and relevant humanitarian communications plans, leveraging communications to build on learning and achieve advocacy objectives. 
• Contribute to country-level advocacy related to the Uganda operating environment as needed.  

PROGRAM LEARNING 

• Contribute to DREAMS’ research and learning agenda and ensure adequate packaging and dissemination of the evidence generated under the program including though briefs, events, etc.
• Provide strategic direction to internal evaluations carried out by DREAMS including annual surveys and support the generation of learnings for advocacy and influencing work.  
• Identify opportunities for and support research on identified learning priorities for DREAMS and collaboration with other MCU programs to ensure relevant cross-program learning.  
• Collaborate with the Uganda program team for context monitoring and analysis relating to programming, including trends around access and community acceptance. 
• Ensure that DREAMS’ programmatic learning informs advocacy strategies and evidence and learning agendas of Mercy Corps in Uganda, in the region and globally.

REPRESENTATION 

• Represent Mercy Corps in relevant humanitarian and development fora as well as sub-groups of Uganda INGO Forum and any other relevant coordination for a or advocacy working group. 
• Maintain external messaging and develop tailored talking points as needed for Uganda country media and policy engagement.  

Knowledge and Experience

Minimum Qualifications & Transferable Skills 

• Bachelor’s degree required. Masters or equivalent in a field related to communications, international relations, International Development or relevant fields is preferred.
• At least 5 to 7 years’ experience in advocacy, program learning, or communications. . 
• Experience working in the INGO sector and in protracted displacement contexts preferred. 
• Proven ability to work cooperatively with internal and external stakeholders, and to play a leadership role in convening groups. Astute skills in relationship building and coordination. 
• Experience with program quality, M&E, information management, and other learning efforts in development and emergency contexts.
• Willingness and ability to travel frequently to Mercy Corps project sites, including traveling to insecure environments, is required.
• Excellent listening, interpersonal, communication and networking skills; and the ability to work with diverse populations.
• Skilled at delivering and facilitating training and capacity building interventions, e.g. coaching, mentorship.
• Analytical, problem solver, with strong experience and understanding of project cycle management and coordination.
• The willingness and ability to adapt leadership and management style as appropriate
• Excellent oral and writing skills in English are required.

Supervisory Responsibility

Communications Officer

Accountability

Reports Directly to: Director of Programs

Works Directly with: Finance and Operations Team, other Program Officers, partners, and senior gender officer.

Accountability to Participants and Stakeholders

• Mercy Corps 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. We are committed to actively engaging communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.
• Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically
  to our 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 our field projects.

Success Factors

The ideal candidate must have the ability and curiosity to work comfortably and effectively in a multi-cultural and diversity setting. S/he must be an excellent communicator, have a strong sense of humour, multi-tasker, and able to work in difficult and often stressful environments. S/he must be committed to the work of Mercy Corps and the objectives of this program. S/he must demonstrate their dedication with a strong work ethic, attention to detail and creativity in planning and problem solving.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

The position is based in Yumbe, Uganda. The region is secure with access to most basic amenities.

Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside work hours. 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 locations.

Ongoing Learning

In support of our belief that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities we serve, we empower all team members to dedicate 5% of their time to learning activities that further their personal and/or professional growth and development

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Achieving our mission begins with how we build our team and work together. Through our commitment to enriching our organization with people of different origins, beliefs, backgrounds, and ways of thinking, we are better able to leverage the collective power of our teams and solve the world’s most complex challenges. We strive for a culture of trust and respect, where everyone contributes their perspectives and authentic selves, reaches their potential as individuals and teams, and collaborates to do the best work of their lives.

We recognize that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive than we are today.

 

Safeguarding & Ethics

Risk levels assigned to all positions;

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

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 and have signed on to the  Interagency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. By applying for this role an applicant confirms that they have not previously violated an employer’s sexual misconduct, sexual exploitation and abuse, child safeguarding or trafficking policy. 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. As an applicant, if you witness or experience any form of sexual misconduct during the recruitment process, please report this to Mercy Corps Integrity Hotline (integrityhotline@mercycorps.org).

To Apply:

Interested applicants must submit their Cover Letter & CV saved in 1 document as a PDF of no more than 5 pages by 3rd September 2024.

Please note that any application submitted that does not follow the above instructions will be automatically discarded.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Locals with the required qualifications are encouraged to apply.

Mercy Corps does not charge any fees at any stage of the recruitment process.