Political Officer - British Embassy Mogadishu at British High Commission Nairobi

Main purpose of job:

The successful candidate will be a core part of the British Embassy’s Open Societies (formerly Political) Team. She/ he will be expected to:

• Engage with Somali and international partners, developing strong relationships at all levels (including facilitating and informing the Ambassador’s engagement), to deepen our expertise and help to achieve outcomes in line with our goal of a stable, more inclusive and democratic Somalia.
• Strengthen and expand our relationships including across the Somali Federal Government, Federal Member States, parliamentarians, business, civil society, international partners and other stakeholders.
• Work at pace to produce high quality analysis, including well-drafted written reports.                                                         

The job requires excellent judgement, networking ability, interpersonal skills, strong personal organisation and deep subject matter expertise.

Roles and responsibilities 

The successful candidate will be a highly competent and dynamic Political Officer. She/he will have excellent interpersonal, communication and analytical skills, as well as good judgement.  The successful candidate will be experienced at developing relationships with a range of individuals and organisations and should bring to the job extensive contacts at a senior level. She/he will be able to understand complex environments and be able to explain these clearly and concisely. The Job Holder is expected to be resilient with good organisational skills and the ability to deliver under pressure and with energy.

Having native or near-native Somali language skills as well as sophisticated English language skills and the ability to interpret are essential. Good IT skills and a detailed current knowledge of the political situation in Somalia is also essential.

The Open Societies Team needs to provide advice across a range of political matters from local and national politics, to constitutional and human rights issues and relations with regional states. We would expect the successful candidate to specialise in some areas, to complement areas of focus of other staff, but also to be able to cover other areas of the team’s work as required.

The main duties include:

• Developing maintaining, and deepening the UK’s relationships including with leading figures in the Federal Government of Somalia, Federal Member States, parliamentarians and civil society.
• Understanding complex political situations and relationships in Somalia, and producing political reporting and advice for the British Ambassador to Somalia, as well as colleagues across our Somalia Network.
• Arranging meetings and events and interpreting as required for the British Ambassador, British Embassy colleagues and senior visitors.
• Identifying options for UK policy, evaluating the advantages and disadvantages and making recommendations.
• Understanding and helping to implement UK policy objectives, including by explaining the UK policy position on various issues.
• Representing the British Embassy professionally at all times (often as the first point of contact for many of our external contacts).

Essential qualifications, skills and experience  

• University degree
• A minimum of 3 years of experience working at the interface between the Somali authorities and a large donor/multilateral organisation/international non-governmental organisation.
• Native or near native Somali language skills, with the ability to interpret at the highest level.
• Strong detailed knowledge of Somali politics.
• Eligible to work in Kenya and Somalia and to travel between the two

Required competencies  

Seeing the Big Picture, Making Effective Decisions, Collaborating and Partnering, Delivering at Pace

Grade: C4 (L)

Duration of Post: 12 months

Salary: KES 390,410.27

Start Date: 1 December 2021

Other benefits and conditions of employment  

Any other information:

The Job Holder will be based in Nairobi working in our High Commission but will be expected to travel to Somalia as required – perhaps one week in every month. When visiting Mogadishu the Job Holder will be paid a per diem rate for the time spent in Somalia. Accommodation in Somalia is provided within the British Embassy Mogadishu compound, and movement outside the Embassy will be under the control of the British Embassy.

The successful candidate will need to be comfortable being accompanied by armed Close Protection Officers outside of the Embassy, wearing body armour and travelling by armoured vehicle. All staff have to complete a strenuous security course to learn the basic skills of working in a conflict posting.

Learning & Development

The Somalia Network is committed to supporting all our staff’s learning and development (L&D). Our dedicated L&D Champions - with the full support of senior management - aim to create opportunities at post to enhance both job-specific expertise and wider career development. BHC Nairobi is a regional hub for many training courses.

Leave:

Members of staff are entitled to paid annual leave, which is earned, from the day they commence employment. Entitlements are as follows:

Grade C4 - 30 days

In addition to annual leave, the BHC normally observes no fewer than 9 and no more than 14 Kenyan and British public and religious holidays in a year. These vary from year to year and are at the discretion of the High Commissioner. A list of holidays is published each year. 

Additional information  

• Due to COVID 19, you may experience some delay in the progress of this recruitment campaign.  We are working hard to minimize any disruption.
• Please complete the application form in full as the information provided is used during screening.
• Please check your application carefully before you submit, as no changes can be made once submitted.
• The British High Commission will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position.
• Employees recruited locally by the British High Commission in Nairobi are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in Kenya.
• It is essential that the applicants already have the right to live and work in Kenya without the need to apply for a work permit
• Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary may have their salaries reduced by the equivalent local income tax amount.   
• Information about the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Competency Framework can be found on this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-competency-framework Please note: Job grade AA=A1, AO=A2, EO=B3, HEO=C4, SEO=C5
• Reference checking and security clearances will be conducted on successful candidates.
• Please log into your profile on the application system on a regular basis to review the status of your application