View Vacancy - Political Officer (Open Societies) - C4, New Delhi

The British Government is an inclusive and diversity-friendly employer.  We value difference, promote equality and challenge discrimination, enhancing our organisational capability. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. We do not discriminate on the basis of disability, race, colour, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, sexual orientation, age, veteran status or other category protected by law. We promote family-friendly flexible working opportunities, where operational and security needs allow.
Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Political

Note: All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the complete online application form including the employment and educational details, motivational segment and the competency based questions. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

Please note that due to Covid-19 outbreak, the start date of employment mentioned in the advert is tentative, subject to normal business of British High Commission. All recruitment campaigns will remain open for applications, we will progress the recruitment process as swiftly as possible and continue to review all applications, monitor progress and developments. We will be in touch with you for the interviews/ should there be further updates on the application, however given the circumstances, kindly expect some delay in response and please reach out to SAAD.Recruit@fco.gov.uk if you have any further questions.

Main purpose of job:

You will work in the Political Department at the heart of the High Commission, supporting the cross-mission coordination of our work on open societies and human rights. The successful candidate will be responsible for producing high-quality analysis of key trends, maintaining a diverse network of civil society organisations, and organising and publicising events including for international days and as part of high-profile visits in support of open societies and human rights objectives. The successful candidate would also support design and implementation of programmes.

Roles and responsibilities:

1.     Monitoring and analysis (40%)

Produce regular evidence-based reports for internal use on national open societies and democracy trends including government legislation and policies, and ad hoc reporting in response to emerging issues of interest, working with regional political officers. In terms of specific policy areas of focus, this is likely to include trends around key institutions in India such as the judiciary, online safety and harms, civil society and related issues (such as gender equality, freedom of religion or belief, media freedom, LGBT+ rights, and human trafficking). Provide advice to London on correspondence and Parliamentary business about topical open societies issues. Work with Foreign and Security Policy Team to produce analysis on multilateral open societies issues.

2.     Programmes (30%)

Provide technical and management support on FCDO open societies programmes, working closely with the implementing partners to track progress against work plan, manage finances, develop and maintain the programme delivery plan. Facilitate coordination and learning across partners, lead on programme reviews, coordinating inputs from team members, and facilitate information sharing across the project team and the wider High Commission. Support other teams to integrate open societies and human rights into their programmes.

3.     Networking and managing contacts (20%)

Civil society stakeholder engagement lead for the mission. Manage and build a diverse network of contacts on major open societies themes, including civil society organisations, political analysts, journalists and academics, and senior contacts for engagement by the Political Counsellor. Attend relevant events and conferences, and engage with experts and emerging research, to inform reporting.

4.     Visits and events (10%)

Organise events for international days and other milestones, convening and engaging relevant stakeholders, and drafting communications to publicise outcomes, delivering through the Bilateral Affairs Officer on logistics. Prepare programmes for incoming UK visits focused on open societies, and set up visits and meetings in India for the Second Secretary Political Internal and Bilateral, accompanying on domestic travel and producing meeting records to inform analysis.

Learning and development opportunities:

1. Formal in-house and external training.

2. Coaching, mentoring and job shadowing.

3. Structured learning on the job, including stretching objectives and work.

Language requirements:

Language: English and Hindi

Level of language required:  Excellent command of written and spoken English and Hindi  

Other skills / experience / qualifications:

Essential on arrival:  

  • Interest and expertise in open societies policy.
  • Experience of working with civil society in India.
  • Experience of programme management.
  • Strong interpersonal and communication skills.
  • Analytical and drafting skills.
  • Ability to think creatively to solve problems, often under pressure.
  • Confident engagement with senior stakeholders.
  • Willingness to work to frequent and tight deadlines while maintaining high standard of work.
  • Strong I.T skills.

Making Effective Decisions
28 November 2021
Higher Executive Officer (HEO)
Full-time, Permanent
40
South Asia & Afghanistan
India
New Delhi
British High Commission
1
INR
INR 110,484 + 12% PF + 6% Superannuation Fund
3 January 2022

For British High Commission (BHC) candidates, the Local Staff BHC Terms & Conditions will apply. 

For other than BHC candidates, salary will be ­­­­­­INR 110,484 + 12% PF + 6% Superannuation Fund.

Additionally the BHC offers a great benefits package that includes annual domiciliary medical cover, plus a Group Hospitalisation Scheme with Rs. 500,000 floater cover for your immediate family. 

Please note - BHC does not deduct tax at source and employees are required to ensure that any requirements of local income-tax law are complied with in full. Employees who are not liable to pay local income tax on their Mission salary, eg. some non-local national staff and some spouses or partners of UK diplomatic staff, will have their salaries abated by an equivalent amount.    


The BHC is recognised as a good employer, with a robust, fair and transparent performance management & appraisal system linked to increments and staff bonuses. We have a 5-days working week, plus annual leave, public holidays, maternity leave provision, special leave, paid sick leave provision; ample development opportunities, travel opportunities, a good organisational culture, and excellent work/life balance. 

Around half of our work force is women.  We treat people with respect and equality and have a policy of zero tolerance for any form of discrimination, bullying, or harassment. 

This is a good opportunity to be part of a strong, diverse team, working in the biggest network that FCDO has anywhere across the globe.  We are aiming to make it the best.

To Apply: 

Please note applications without (a) and (b) will not be considered.

A.    Complete the Online Application Form

B.    Complete the Motivation and Competency Segment in the Online Application Form

Internal candidates applying for this position need to upload their appraisal forms for the previous 2 years (if applicable) and also inform their current line managers, else the applications will not be considered.

We will accept only online applications by 28th November 2021 (latest by 23:55 hours IST).

Please note that all the applicants will be required to strictly adhere to the security guidelines for British High Commission

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. 

Please note - Provident Fund Transfer in and out from EPFO is not possible as BHC PF is managed by a private PF trust governed by Indian Income Tax Act, 1961. The staff still has the option to transfer out and in from a privately held PF trust which are not governed by EPFO.

Applicants who do not have the required qualification & experience should kindly abstain from applying, as their applications will not be considered.

Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and no telephone enquires will be dealt with.

The appointment will be subject to Police Verification and other checks including references, medical, educational and professional.

We welcome all applications irrespective of age, race, colour, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief or creed. We are also open to applications from people who want to work flexibly.

Please be aware that you will only be able to apply to vacancies for Country Based Staff roles with the British Government through this official tal.net site (operated by Oleeo). Jobs may be advertised on third party websites, however our adverts will always link back to the official tal.net site. If you complete and send an application through any other site, we will not receive it.

This opportunity is closed to applications.