ROLE PURPOSE:

Plan International Country Offices in response to an emergency, often need additional experts to support their response and help those affected by crises. Plan International's core surge team is composed of technical, global experts who can deploy to emergency responses. Each deployment is context-specific and negotiated. The post holder will be expected to provide leadership to their area of technical specialism to support the country team they are deployed to.

Core surge team members are globally roving and work away from their home base continuously, who can deploy urgently from a few weeks up to four months per assignment. Core surge is typically deployed to country programmes for up to nine months a year (pro rata for part-time posts). When not deployed (or on annual leave), core surge team members may be assigned project/proactive work.

Plan's Global Humanitarian Team prioritises supporting our staff and partner organisations at the frontline of humanitarian responses, Country Offices and National Organisations by providing expertise and specialist services in real time, closer to the point of impact and scale up humanitarian action, strengthen core humanitarian and lifesaving assistance and raise more funds.

This Deployable Humanitarian Policy and Advocacy Specialist sits within the Global Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy, and Diplomacy Unit. This unit is one of four global humanitarian capability units at Plan.

Plan International's global strategy has placed an increased emphasis on influencing as a key strategy to achieve the outcomes we seek for children in both development and humanitarian contexts. Humanitarian policy, advocacy, and diplomacy has a critical role to play to ensure children, and particularly girls, realise their rights before, during and after disasters and conflicts and disease outbreaks, and therefore makes an important contribution to the implementation of Plan International's Global Strategy. Emergencies provide an opportunity to call on humanitarian actors, including governments, donors and other agencies, to respond effectively to the needs and rights of children, and especially girls, to deliver on commitments and implement policies. Emergencies can also present a window of opportunity for changing discourse and policy.

In early December, the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs launched their Global Humanitarian Overview 2024. The forecast is terrifying. In 2024, nearly 300 million people around the world will need humanitarian assistance and protection, due to conflicts, climate emergencies, and other drivers. Humanitarian diplomacy is crucial in a fragile world — and in allowing us to best deliver for people in crisis - and our Global Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy, and Diplomacy Unit — and this deployable specialist role are key.

At times you will be expected to develop context specific humanitarian policy, advocacy, and diplomacy initiatives. You will be an important colleague in helping us ensure that our teams worldwide are supported and equipped with the ability to conduct humanitarian diplomacy, to negotiate, to be influential humanitarian advocates no matter their position or sectoral focus, and to uphold the humanitarian values and principles.

DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE:

• This position may line manage a team when on deployment to a Country Office;


• No budget responsibility is required for this position;


• Develops and maintains relationships with stakeholder groups both within Plan International and externally;


• May deploy at short notice to a Country Office for up to 4 months;


• The post is expected to be on deployment for up to 9 months per year.

ACCOUNTABILITIES:

Support to and advising Country Offices

• Support the Country Office to help us fulfil our obligations under the Humanitarian Principles and our role as a principled humanitarian organisation;


• Ensure work has a focus on the impact of a crisis on children and girls;


• Support with analysis and monitoring of the policy context in-country;


• Advise country and emergency response staff on humanitarian and socio-political issues, legal frameworks and humanitarian standards relevant to advocacy, particularly those related to protection of civilians, International Humanitarian Law (IHL), the Humanitarian Charter, children's rights and gender in emergencies;


• Support with the development of crisis-specific policy positions and messages;


• Support with the development of briefings and other policy documents for external and internal audiences;


• Conduct humanitarian advocacy trainings and work with colleagues to develop principled humanitarian policy, advocacy, and diplomacy capabilities including in conflict and sensitive situations;


• Assist in the development of research to support influencing work, including speaking directly with crisis-affected populations about their experiences;


• Support communications planning and messages to ensure communications and media work strategically supports the influencing objectives. Support with internal advocacy coordination with emergency response teams and with different levels of the organisation, including convening and chairing internal advocacy working groups where relevant;


• Support the inclusion of policy and advocacy in funding submissions.

Advocacy and representation

• Represent Plan International and advocate with decision-makers, partners and other key stakeholders such as donors, at the national level;


• Assist in the establishment of effective policy and advocacy relationships with the humanitarian community in country and engage in external advocacy working groups;


• Share information on upcoming events, visits, and strategic meetings in a timely and effective manner.

System strengthening and capacity building

• Develop and pilot tools, templates, and guidance to support advocacy in emergencies;


• Capture and share learning on humanitarian advocacy across the organisation;


• Undertake capacity-building activities on humanitarian advocacy at different levels of the organisation.

Supporting humanitarian advocacy at other levels

• Documenting and sharing of case studies and evidence for use in thematic and crisis- specific advocacy;


• Advising on crisis-specific advocacy at the international and capital levels. Building and maintaining an internal network amongst humanitarian and advocacy staff.

Safeguarding

• Ensures that Plan International's global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International's Code of Conduct (COC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

KEY RELATIONSHIPS:

Internal

• Works closely with the Head of the Global Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy, and Diplomacy Unit and the Global Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy, and Diplomacy Unit, as well as other key humanitarian advocacy colleagues;


• Plan's Global Humanitarian Team including the Global Humanitarian Director and colleagues in the 4 global units of humanitarian capability (including other deployable specialists);


• Regional Heads of Humanitarian;


• Country Directors (CDs) and Country Management Team (CMT)and Emergency Response Manager (ERM), and other relevant Country Office colleagues in the countries of response;


• National Organisations (NOs) humanitarian network to coordinate global humanitarian advocacy on specific crises where deployed;


• NY, Geneva, Brussels and African Union Liaison Offices.

External

• Peers, policymakers, information officers and other officials of the host government, donors and donor governments, other agencies and groups, and media representatives responding to the emergency.

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE, SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE:

Essential

• Considerable and demonstrable experience in advocacy strategy and messaging development, particularly in humanitarian contexts;


• Proven experience and highly developed skills in policy influencing at the national level with a range of audiences, including experience in conveying complex messages in politically sensitive environments;


• Demonstrable and substantive knowledge of current humanitarian issues and relevant legal and policy frameworks;


• Specific knowledge and expertise on children's rights and gender in emergencies;


• Demonstrable commitment to gender equality;


• An in-depth understanding of the humanitarian architecture, coordination mechanisms and its various working groups, including experience in influencing within these structures;


• Discretion and sound reasoning in dealing with sensitive matters; ability to independently solve complex and challenging problems;


• Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to work effectively and smartly within a complex organisation balancing consultations and coordination with getting things done;


• Strong networking and negotiation skills.

Desirable

• Fluency in English and at least one other language (e.g., French, Spanish, Arabic, Portuguese).

PLAN INTERNATIONAL'S VALUES IN PRACTICE:

We are open and accountable

• Promotes a culture of openness and transparency, including with sponsors and donors;


• Holds self and others accountable to achieve the highest standards of integrity;


• Consistent and fair in the treatment of people;


• Open about mistakes and keen to learn from them;


• Accountable for ensuring we are a safe organisation for all children, girls & young people.

We strive for lasting impact

• Articulates a clear purpose for staff and sets high expectations;


• Creates a climate of continuous improvement, open to challenge and new ideas;


• Focuses resources to drive change and maximise long-term impact, responsive to changed priorities or crises;


• Evidence-based and evaluates effectiveness.

We work well together

• Seeks constructive outcomes, listens to others, willing to compromise when appropriate;


• Builds constructive relationships across Plan International to support our shared goals;


• Develops trusting and 'win-win' relationships with funders, partners and communities;


• Engages and works well with others outside the organization to build a better world for girls and all children.

We are inclusive and empowering

• We empower our staff to give their best and develop their potential;


• We respect all people, appreciate differences and challenge equality in our programs and our workplace;


• We support children, girls and young people to increase their confidence and to change their own lives.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT:

As part of the core surge team, the primary purpose of the role is to deploy to emergencies globally. The post holder will deploy to a diverse range of countries and contexts. This can range from insecure environments to countries that have just been impacted by a rapid-onset disaster.

The post holder will be provided with the necessary support for such varied locations, including security training, well-being and mental health support and briefings before all deployments. While on deployment, the accommodation, transport, and availability of services will be dependent on the context and the specific country offices policies.

LEVEL OF CONTACT WITH CHILDREN:

Low contact: No contact or very low frequency of interaction.

OTHER INFORMATION:

• Location: This role will be deployed 75% of the time to Plan International’s country programmes and home-based when not deployed. This can be flexible where Plan International has an office that can employ on behalf of the Global Hub and you have the pre-existing right to work and live;


• Type of Role: Two year fixed term contract;


• Reports to: Head of Global Humanitarian Policy, Advocacy and Diplomacy Unit;


• Closing Date:  Sunday 15th September. Please note that we will review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the advertisement early.

Applicable locations include: Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, Benin, Bolivia, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, China, Colombia, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Finland, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Korea, Laos, Lebanon, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Vietnam, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International's Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.