View Vacancy - Political, Communications and Scholarships Officer EO (06/23 ABI)

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Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Policy & Political roles)
Communications, Press and Media

Main purpose of job:

The British Embassy in Abidjan is growing!

The Embassy in Abidjan is part of the worldwide UK diplomatic network representing British political, economic and consular interests overseas.

We are looking to recruit a dynamic, creative and collaborative individual for the important role of Political, Communications and Scholarships Officer. The jobholder will work with the British Ambassador and her team in building positive UK-Côte d’Ivoire bilateral relations and in raising the profile of the Embassy’s work at local and national levels.

The officer will play an active role identifying and engaging with a broad range of external contacts, spotting and reporting on political trends and developments. S/he will lead on management of the UK’s Chevening scholarships programme and its Ivorian alumni. (Chevening aims to create lasting relationships between the UK and future leaders, influencers and decision-makers.) The officer will lead the Embassy’s comms work, managing messaging, leading delivery of the comms strategy, engaging traditional and social media and developing impactful campaigns.

The successful candidate will have strong analytical skills, a good contact network and the ability to forward plan and to work well independently. The Embassy offers the opportunity to work in a supportive, empowering, inclusive, English-speaking working environment, as well as a good work-life balance and a fantastic L&D offer.

Roles and responsibilities:

Internal Political Officer (35%)

  • Act as the Embassy contact point on internal political issues and personalities. Provide regular reporting, briefing and analysis for a range of stakeholders both in the UK and across the region;
  • Provide regular analysis and reporting of Ivorian media coverage on priority themes;
  • Organise, participate in and report on regular meetings with political figures,  the Ivorian government, international institutions, the resident diplomatic community and NGOs/civil society groups, both as an individual officer and with colleagues;
  • Organise regular engagement (e.g. working lunches, meetings) with political personalities, journalists and influential figures for senior colleagues e.g. Ambassador, Deputy Ambassador and lead on note-taking.

Communications (35%) 

  • Lead the British Embassy’s day-to-day communications work to project the UK’s presence, activity and objectives, reaching influential opinion-formers as well as the general public. Disseminate practical information related to the UK e.g. Travel Advice, visa information.
  • Collaborate with Embassy colleagues (e.g. trade and consular) and draw on regional hub support to develop innovative, impactful content; run campaigns, promote events and share information.
  • Lead on identifying and managing content for Embassy digital channels (currently website, Facebook and Twitter.) Ensure timely and regular messaging. Identify and engage the key digital stakeholders in the Ivorian context.
  • Provide quarterly evaluation of ongoing comms activity and reach and provide rapid evaluation of specific campaigns, applying lessons learnt to future campaigns.
  • Draft press releases, website articles, briefings and speeches as required in both English and French and secure their publication.
  • Lead on media management and social media coverage (including pictures and videos) at Embassy events and engagements.
  • Lead on co-ordination and delivery of proactive, external-facing engagement plan for the Ambassador, drawing on content provided by policy leads.
  • Ensure all material produced by the Embassy follows the branding guidelines. Develop and redesign new material for staff to use. Manage inventoried stocks of comms material, commissioning new material when required.
  • Identify and bid for funding opportunities e.g. GREAT Challenge Fund. Provide accurate comms budget forecasts.
  • Other ad hoc work as needed
  • Keep up to date with personal and professional development needs.

Chevening Scholarships (25%)

·       In liaison with the Chevening Secretariat, lead on managing the annual Chevening Scholarships application process, including downloading applications, managing shortlisting, arranging interviews, updating the Chevening online application system and organising pre-departure briefings.

·       Lead on Chevening strategy, outreach and marketing, including generating written and visual content for social media, press and radio. Continuously identify ways to promote Chevening, for example by attending university fairs and other outreach events. Spend and record the Chevening marketing budget and commission and use the Chevening materials, ensuring branding compliance. Lead on responding to related enquiries.

·       Administer the programme and budget in line with policy. Meet deadlines set by the Scholarships Unit and the Chevening Secretariat, e.g. submitting annual programme, marketing and alumni plans and country briefings for the Reading Committee.

·       Maintain positive relationships and contact with applicants and award recipients before, during and after their award.

·       Continuously develop an effective Chevening alumni network, organising a series of alumni events from concept to delivery and an annual welcome-home event, working with the Alumni Association and Embassy colleagues. Update and maintain the database of Chevening alumni.

·       Build partnerships to enable the increase of the scholarship allocation in the medium term.

Corporate 5%

·       Contribute to the wellbeing and effective functioning of the Embassy, helping to create a great place to work (e.g. surprise checks, committee membership.)

Resources managed (staff and expenditure):

Comms and Chevening budgets.

·       A minimum of three (3) years relevant experience;

·       Communications and media experience, in particular in making the most out of social media, and creating multimedia content, as well as experience of working with journalists;

·       Deep knowledge and understanding of Côte d’Ivoire, the key political players, institutions and structures, civil society actors, and the country’s regional and international relationships;

·       Strong IT skills;

·       Strong drafting, team-working and communication skills, discretion.

·       Knowledge about the UK

·       Relevant University (Bachelors) degree or equivalent in politics, communications, international relations or social sciences

Seeing the Big Picture, Changing and Improving, Delivering at Pace, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together, Developing Self and Others
29 March 2023
Executive Officer (EO)
Fixed Term, Fixed term, with possibility of renewal
12 months
Africa
Côte d'Ivoire
Abidjan
British Embassy
XOF 951,463 - XOF 1,213,470
1 June 2023

Learning and development opportunities:

The British Embassy in Abidjan prides itself on its strong learning and development culture. We offer fantastic opportunities to our team and encourage an environment of continuous development and improvement. We provide on-the-job learning, online courses, formal training, mentoring and the opportunity to learn from colleagues in the region through shadowing and job swaps (for example, the previous jobholder travelled to Addis Ababa to learn about the African Union and to London to learn about international comms strategic planning). Colleagues can also bid for resources to undertake professional qualifications that will help them deliver effectively in their job.

Working patterns:

  • Working hours 34 per week – Monday - Thursday 08:30 – 16:30, and Fri 08:30-14.30. There is an hour lunch break every day except Friday. Evening or weekend work will occasionally be required – Time Off In Lieu is given for those hours.
  • Working from home one day a week is possible, subject to operational requirements and line manager agreement.
  • 14 public holidays per year.
  • 26.5 days per calendar year of annual leave, increasing after 5 years.
  • The British Embassy is committed to the ongoing learning and development of its staff and offers 5 development days per year

Any other information:

The British Embassy Abidjan team is growing quickly at the moment, given the UK government’s increasing focus on Côte d’Ivoire. It is a small and friendly team of around 25 colleagues - the embassy comprises trade, political, corporate services, development and consular teams. The jobholder will report to the Second Secretary (Regional Political) but work closely with colleagues across the whole Embassy, including the Ambassador.

  • 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.
  • Employees recruited locally by the British Embassy in Abidjan are subject to Terms and Conditions of Service according to local employment law in Côte d’Ivoire .
  • All candidates must be legally able to work and reside in the country of the vacancy with the correct visa/work permit status or demonstrate eligibility to obtain the relevant permit.
  • The responsibility lies on the successful candidate to;
  1. Obtain the relevant permit
  2. Pay fees for the permit
  3. Make arrangements to relocate
  4. Meet the costs to relocation
  • The British Embassy/High Commission does not sponsor visas/work permits 
  • 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: AA=A1, AO=A2, EO=B3, HEO=C4, SEO=C5
  • Reference checking and security clearances will be conducted on successful candidates.
  • The British Embassy will never request any payment or fees to apply for a position
  • Appointable candidates who were unsuccessful may be placed on a ‘reserve list’.  If during the reserve period of 12 months the same or a largely similar role becomes available, that role may be offered to the second or subsequent candidate.
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.