Oxfam is committed to working with others to find lasting solutions to poverty and injustice. We have a conviction that people are capable of building a livelihood without poverty on their own, once given the chance to do so.
Oxfam has been working in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region for over five decades and over the past four decades promoting gender equality and supporting women’s right to participate and be represented in governance and decision-making structures and processes.
This focus is complementary to other areas of Oxfam’s work on women’s rights and to the broader goal of Oxfam to contribute to a ‘world without poverty.’ Oxfam is committed to supporting women, men and children living in poverty, to claim their rights to sustainable livelihoods, to basic social services, to life and security, to be heard, and to an identity.
AMAL is a three-year multi-country programme to be implemented jointly by Oxfam Great Britain, Oxfam Novib, Intermon Oxfam and partners, which is aimed to promote active participation and leadership of women in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, including the poorest and most marginalised women, in local, national and regional governance structures and decision-making processes, thereby ensuring that they have a say in formulation of and/or their needs and priorities are reflected in socio-economic policies and practice affecting them at all levels. The programme is set to be implemented in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Morocco, Tunisia and Yemen. In this framework Oxfam is recruiting for a:
National Vacancy
Regional Advocacy and Media Officer
Full time position
Based in Beirut, Lebanon (may move to Cairo, Egypt in the course of the project)
One year fixed term national contract with possibility of renewal
Purpose of the function
Main role to lead the AMAL program regional advocacy campaign based on regional research to be conducted in the first year of the project on women’s leadership and political participation. To analyse relevant developments in the national/regional political and economic context. With regard to campaigning and/or lobby agendas, to identify external (national, regional and when relevant global) decision-makers to press to adopt and implement the policy positions of Oxfam and partners. To establish and maintain regular contact with these key regional players/ decision makers. To assist/advise partner organizations in developing their lobby, advocacy and campaigning activities. To oversee the media work with 2 regional partners.
The function
In close co-operation with the Oxfam AMAL program team staff and regional counterparts and on the basis of the research on womens political participation conducted in the first year of the program, you will lead on the formulation and implementation of the AMAL program lobby, advocacy and media strategy, including as needed the development of advocacy and media materials (policy lines, talking points, reports, papers, letters, flyers, press releases, stories.) You report to the Regional Gender Lead of Oxfam Novib, with matrix management by the Programme Coordinator. You are a member of the AMAL program management team for the region.
You will identify key issues and opportunities for lobby and campaigning. You ensure that all media and advocacy statements are signed off in accordance with agreed Oxfam procedures prior to publication. You will liaise with the Oxfam reams in Yemen, OPT, Tunisia and Morocco in this regard.
You will lead as part of the regional advocacy campaign of the AMAL in producing 2 policy briefs/reports focusing on the women’s rights and policies in the MENA region to share with policy decision makers at global regional levels. Throughout the AMAL programme you will identify women change agents and develop stories on these women for wider dissemination.
You will maintain contact with Oxfam staff and local partner organisations in relation to development of Oxfam policy, advocacy and media work in relation to the AMAL program . You are responsible for identifying, organising, facilitating and if needed monitoring of capacity building strategies on media and advocacy target beneficiaries and partners. The partners will receive on the job training on development of advocacy strategies and most importantly lead on research on gaining women’s perception and aspirations in rural areas to inform their sub-nation and national media and advocacy campaigns targeting national, regional and global institutions and authorities.
You identify partner needs in the area of advocacy, lobby and media, and develop programs reinforcing lobby and media activities and you ensure that the activities are in line with Oxfam Southern campaigning principles.
You facilitate the networking between partners and relevant external actors including knowledge & research institutes in relation to policy, advocacy and media, and initiate and facilitate reports and any publications in this area. You will support partners to be linked together via an interactive community of practice, linked to Face-book and Twitter, where organisations can upload videos and pictures, share news, chat and network. During years two and three of the programme implementation, in collaboration with country teams, you will pilot an innovative virtual ‘e-twinning programme’, which will link women’s organisations in the region that are in different stages of development.
You will contribute to raising the voice of women activists from around the region, by facilitating delegations of women to key targets and decision makers in the UK governments, and EU. In Europe partner organizations will link up with NGOs such as WIDE to facilitate and accompany the missions. You will facilitate the delegations and be responsible to develop and agree key messages regarding women’s socio, economic and political rights.
During year three, together with two regional partner organizations you will implement a campaign on the identified policy issue that advocates for women’s rights and agree with all countries on the priorities and the brand of the campaign.
You have ●Completed an academic degree in political science, development studies, sociology, communication or related field; ●Demonstrable recent and substantial work experience with NGOs in the Middle East in Maghreb, experience in capacity building with NGOs is an asset; ●Experience in policy, advocacy, campaigning and media/communications work at local, national and international levels; ●Familiarity with and previous experience with working with social media. ●Gender development and/or women’s right background;●Ability to influence others, excellent social skills and a team player; ●Experience of working in insecure environments and adhering to security protocol ●Experience of working in a multicultural team environment with both national/global staff Knowledge of and sensitivity to conservative Islamic cultures is a distinct advantage ●High level of flexibility with the ability to produce creative and pragmatic solutions to complex/ambiguous operational problems ●Excellent communication skills in English; fluency in written/spoken Arabic and in spoken/written French. ●Readiness to undertake regular travel to offices in the field ●Applicants must be legally entitled to work in Lebanon.
We offer
A competitive, fair pay and benefits package that is justifiable to our donors. This position will be a national contract, recruited primarily in the Middle East and North Africa region.
Application procedure
Are you interested? Send your application in writing, including a motivation letter and a curriculum vitae and mentioning reference number 5-159 to jobs@oxfamnovib.nl to the attention of Ewa van den Berg, HR Consultant of Oxfam Novib, no later than October 30, 2012.
Information on the job is available with Mirjam Andriessen +31 6 10973441 of Oxfam Novib. Information on the contract and procedure is available with Mrs Natalia Arkhipova of Oxfam Great Britain at: NArkhipova@oxfam.org.uk
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