View Vacancy - Governance Adviser (DRC2206) Internal & External

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Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Programme Roles)
Governance and Political

About the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office                                                                                                              

How we approach our work is important. The How We Work Statement (below) sets out the ambition we share across the FCDO for how we lead and behave towards each other, how we make decisions, and how we get the job done. Some aspects may be particularly relevant to this role.

  • We put respect and kindness first. We are inclusive, we get to know each other, and value our diversity and the contribution we each bring. We are fair, act with integrity, and tackle inequality and unacceptable behaviour. We work together and take responsibility to solve problems. 
  • We draw on the expertise, insight and diverse perspectives of people across the FCDO, HMG, and beyond. We use the best available data and evidence. We are open to challenge and take a sustainable, long-term approach. We are transparent about the rationale for decisions and smart about taking and managing risks. 
  • We are agile and alert to emerging opportunities. We encourage learning, innovation and use of data and digital. We are all clear on what we are expected to deliver and support each other in doing so. We look to reduce duplication and unnecessary process. We are committed to transforming both the FCDO and the way HMG delivers international policy. 

The British Embassy in Kinshasa works to deliver the UK’s vision for sub-Saharan Africa in the Democratic Republic of Congo: a prosperous, safer, healthier sub-Saharan Africa which sees the UK as a partner of choice for peace, trade and economic development, is less reliant on aid and is more resilient to shocks and stresses.

DRC is the largest country in sub-Saharan Africa and central to our global objectives of supporting the bottom billion, addressing climate change, building stability and supporting open societies. It is home to 8% of the world’s extreme poor and faces the world’s largest food crisis and the third largest humanitarian crisis. DRC also has most of the world’s second largest rainforest, immense hydropower potential and precious mineral resources, supplying the majority of cobalt that powers phones and electric batteries.

Our strategic objectives in DRC are:

  • providing basic services to accelerate a demographic transition and sustainably reduce poverty;
  • meeting acute humanitarian needs, safeguarding forests and biodiversity and pursuing green economic recovery;
  • building long-term stability; and supporting more stable, open and inclusive institutions 

Description of the team

The DRC has enormous potential for growth and inclusive development, but has been held back by exclusive political settlements and weak governance: it has enormous extractive and mineral wealth, the world’s second largest rainforest and has a young population. However, revenues remain extremely low, the public sector remains weak and ineffective, and the state is barely present in some parts of the country. Corruption is rife and accountability for elected officials and service delivery is very weak. Congo saw its first peaceful transfer of authority in decades following the 2018 election. Elections in 2023 will be an important test to determine whether this was an outlier, or part of a trend towards democratization. 

This role sits within the Governance, Political and Social Development team that delivers a cross-cutting policy and programme function in the office. The post holder will report to the Team Leader, and work closely with leads on political, social development, conflict, as well as with the health, education and economic sector teams. 

The coming 3 year period will be critical for the country and for the team, as DRC prepares for elections in 2023, and as we roll out the new FCDO country plan. There is a strong window of opportunity to influence and shape the reform agenda with government of DRC and civil society, working with other international partners. This role will be critical to delivering that. 

Purpose of Job

We are looking to recruit a high-performing Governance Adviser to work across our Open Societies campaign goal, focusing on strengthening accountability and democratic governance. The role requires strong technical governance expertise, programme delivery skills and political acumen in order to provide advice and deliver programmes in a complex context. Experience or understanding of working effectively in similar context is important.   

The post holder will lead on external engagements with key partners, and shape the UK’s governance and open societies engagement through a crucial electoral period. The post holder will need excellent skills in political economy analysis, public sector reform- particularly in health and education and democratic governance. 

The role is critical to the UK’s ability to deliver in the DRC. Working at provincial and national level, this job will provide analysis, thought leadership that informs the delivery of ODA across a number of sectors, and delivers a core policy influencing agenda. The post holder will lead the provincial governance elements of a new accountability programme and will be expected to leverage policy, programming and influencing levers to deliver results.  

Key Responsibilities 

We all have a responsibility to embrace the changes of the FCDO as it transforms, building the culture we want to see and delivering our cultural statement in how we lead and behave towards others; how we make decisions and how we get the job done is everyone’s responsibility. 

In this role you will also be responsible for:

  • Strategic thought leadership on governance, including political economy analysis, shifts in political settlements, working across teams to provide advice for the Development Director, Ambassador, and UK Ministers.
  • Delivery of programme elements in a new accountability programme that will look at work with civil society, national electoral bodies, local governments and national drivers of accountability and inclusive politics.
  • Leading our external engagement on decentralisation, building partnerships with national counterparts, multilaterals and others to deliver on these agendas
  • Lead technical adviser on issues of democratic governance, working with political colleagues to support a transparent and fair elections process.
  • Providing high quality governance advice towards the delivery of the UK’s DRC education and health programmes. 

Candidates who secure a role that is considered specialist/technical, may be required to affiliate to the relevant specialist network, if not already a member.

The post is open to people who have the necessary experience. Drawn from the FCDO Governance Technical Competency Framework, the following four competencies will be used for assessment against this role: 

  • Public Sector Governance and Service Delivery – Ability to lead on sectoral, political and institutional analysis to advise on entry points to enable reforms, support programme delivery in sectors and strengthen accountable, open governance. Proven skills required for the design and delivery of governance support that strengthens delivery of health and education results, in selected provinces in DRC and at the center.
  • Accountable and Inclusive Politics – Ability to advise the office and design programmes that support a more inclusive political system in DRC. Working with political, conflict and social development colleagues, the adviser will enable the office to deliver through the electoral period, advising on shifting political and power dynamics and appropriate responses to maximises impact and ensure we do no harm. Build a network and engage delivery partners nationally and international to promote inclusion and accountability, including gender empowerment.
  • Applied Governance and Political Economy Analysis- Ability to commission, analysis and understand available evidence, policy and practice in a range of circumstances. The adviser will demonstrate knowledge of political systems, institutional arrangements, the current literature and core governance concepts. They will apply political and institutional analysis to influence planning, policy and programming decisions.
  • Anti-Corruption - Understand the causes and effects of corruption in countries as well as corruption’s transnational and multi-sectoral nature. Provide strategic advice, influencing, design and delivery of programmes and strategies to address corruption. Ability to speak to comparative contexts and lessons globally where appropriate. 

We will assess evidence of the following behaviours, drawn from the civil service success profiles:

  • Managing a quality service – Ability to deliver high quality, efficient and cost effective projects and outputs by considering a broad range of methods for delivery, planning, bringing together a team, and delivering. Proactively manage risk and find innovative solutions. Set direction for delivery by implementing partners and ensure accountability for quality results. Consider a range of delivery options to ensure value for money.
  • Working together - Actively build and maintain a network of colleagues and contacts to achieve progress on shared objectives- this will mean working with international partners, across Embassy teams, and with government and civil society. Build strong interpersonal relationships and contribute to an inclusive working environment. Engage in an open and approachable way with colleagues that enables collaboration and joint delivery. In the governance programme, it will be important to work with colleagues in other sectors to ensure complementarity between delivery objectives.
  • Communicating and influencing- Communicate with others in a clear, honest and enthusiastic way in order to build trust. Explain complex governance issues in a way that is easy to understand. Take into account people’s individual needs and adapt your style. Strong written and verbal presentation skills, including those needed to communicate with senior officials and ministers.
    • Excellent written and oral skills in French and English 
    • A proven track record in working with national counterparts and international partners
    Managing a Quality Service, Communicating and Influencing, Working Together
    3 July 2022
    Grade 7 (G7)
    Full-time, Permanent
    36
    Africa
    Democratic Republic of the Congo
    Kinshasa
    British Embassy
    1
    USD
    80,647.00 per annum
    1 August 2022
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      • Information about the Civil Service Success Profiles can be found on this link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/success-profiles
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