Policy Adviser Job at New Zealand Embassy Ethiopia

The New Zealand Embassy in Addis Ababa is accredited to, and responsible for leading the New Zealand Government engagement with, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Djibouti, and the African Union. Further accreditations to Ghana, Nigeria, and Seychelles are being sought. Additional accreditations are possible.Ethiopia is an important country in Africa acting as Africa’s de facto political capital. It is the home of the African Union headquarters and the highest number of African diplomatic missions. Addis Ababa offers the opportunity for New Zealand to interact with African states not covered by New Zealand’s limited footprint in Africa, and is a vital source of information and resolution mechanism for African disputes.

The New Zealand Embassy in Addis Ababa is seeking a Locally Engaged Staff (LES) Policy Adviser (Political and Trade) for a fixed-term 9 month position.  In this busy position you will work within a team of staff to support the delivery of the Embassy’s strategic outputs.

About the Position

The Policy Adviser (Political and Trade) will be responsible for contributing to the advancement of New Zealand’s foreign policy and trade interests by supporting the post’s engagement with government officials, non-government contacts and other diplomatic missions.  This includes conducting research and analysis, providing translation/interpretation, preparing reports and other documentation, making and fostering a wide network of contacts, supporting media and public diplomacy efforts and assisting with visits and events.

Relationships

The position is required to build and maintain the following relationships:

Internal (within Post)

• Head of Mission
• Deputy Head of Mission
• Development Programme Manager
• Administration Manager
• Other Embassy LES staff

External (outside Post)

• Key multilateral and regional actors (AU, RECS, UN)
• Key diplomatic missions (African, likemindeds, UNSC members)
• Other New Zealand diplomatic missions, particularly Cairo, Pretoria, Geneva and New York
• MFAT divisions in Wellington
• Government agencies in priority African countries (countries of accreditation, host country for UN, AU/PSC, REC events, countries with conflicts on UNSC agenda)
• Regional NGOs and International Organisations

Key accountabilities

The position has the following key accountabilities:

Policy Advice

• Monitor and summarise open source information (e.g. media, think tank reports) on key issues of relevance and interest to the New Zealand Government and the bilateral relationships, with specific focus on countries to which the Embassy is accredited.
• In close coordination with seconded staff, identify key political, economic and foreign policy developments in countries of accreditation and complete timely reports including identifying potential implications for New Zealand.
• In close coordination with seconded staff identify key peace and security-related developments in Africa and complete timely reports including identifying potential implications for New Zealand.
• Monitor the daily communication and documentation produced by the African Union (including PSC) and key Regional Economic Communities, e.g. EAC, IGAD, COMESA and ECOWAS.
• Support mission’s media and public diplomacy strategy.
• Monitor developments in the African Union, including relationships within the AU Commission and between the African Union and its Member States, including analysis of any implications for New Zealand’s interests.
• Report on trends and developments of interest/relevance to New Zealand on other topics as agreed with seconded staff.
• Effectively contribute to the post’s map of relationships
• that matter: decision-makers, policy makers, thinkers and influencers, including by developing a network of contacts in the AU, RECs, relevant Embassies, and in think tanks and by using Embassy and MFAT databases to record relevant information.
• Support seconded staff as required on official calls and travel, including preparing briefing for meetings.
• Undertake Amharic translation/interpretation.
• Support seconded staff as required on official calls and travel, including preparing briefing for meetings
• Assist with logistics for visits and organisation of events

Organisational Responsibilities

• Ensure all post policies and procedures are adhered to.
• Be aware of and adhere to the Health and Safety policies and procedures.
• Contribute to Post-wide projects and emergency response situations.

Knowledge Management

• Contribute to the continuous development of the Post’s knowledge base by using the Post’s internal systems, sharing information and data with relevant internal stakeholders.

Security

• Be familiar with the Post Security Instructions and adhere to these at all times.

Other

• Maintenance of an up-to-date Desk File
• Translations from Amharic to English as required across the range of the Embassy’s work
• Support for Embassy events
• Other Embassy support and administrative tasks as required from time to time.

Category: Locally Engaged Staff (LES) – Fixed-term 9 month position from 1 October 2017 to 30 June 2018.

Reports to: Deputy Head of Mission

Last Review Date: August 2017

Staff Management: This position has no staff management responsibilities.

Additional Comments

The job holder is expected to perform such other duties as can reasonably be regarded as incidental to the position description and such other duties reasonably within their experience and capabilities as may be from time to time.

Qualifications, skills and experience

The ideal candidate would have the following qualifications, skills and experience:

• Full fluency in  English, with a particular focus on the ability to write high quality written reports
• Fluency in French to allow accurate coverage of all meetings, transactions in person, over the phone or by email, and research using French language media
• Fluency in Amharic
• Tertiary qualification as a minimum
• Knowledge of peace and security issues in Africa, ideally including the AU system preferred
• Ability to think critically and analytically
• Ability to anticipate issues and problems and think of creative and effective solutions
• Ability to contribute to and work within a team
• Excellent written oral and communication skills
• Ability to build and maintain effective relationships including with external stakeholders
• Well-developed planning and organisational skills, including ability to prioritise tasks effectively and work under pressure
• Ability to communicate effectively with a range of people
• Ability to work autonomously and within guidelines, demonstrating the use of sound judgement
• Competent in Microsoft Office Suite, including strong skills in Outlook, Word and Excel
• Possess a strong achievement/delivery focus – sets high standards including accuracy and attention to detail
• Display personal integrity and an honest and ethical approach