Head of Policy & Advocacy

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it is girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges girls and vulnerable children face. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and we enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

For over 85 years, we have rallied other determined optimists to transform the lives of all children in more than 80 countries.

We won’t stop until we are all equal.

role purpose

The Head of Policy and Advocacy leads Plan International ECE’s evidence-based policy, advocacy and influencing efforts in Ukraine, Moldova, Poland and Romania, as well as across relevant international, regional and national humanitarian and development processes.

As a member of the East and Central Europe Ukraine Crisis Response Leadership Team, the role has shared accountability to contribute to the overall learning and strategic direction of Plan International in the East and Central Europe region with a total budget to grow to approximately €100 million and a staff complement of about 100 people. This includes helping shape the overall narrative and rationale of grant proposals to ensure programs development aligns with policy asks.

Dimensions of the role 

The Head of Policy & Advocacy ensures direct linkages between Plan International ECE programs to key policy spaces, as well as leads on the development of intersectional age and gender responsive policies to position Plan International ECE as a leading organisation promoting equity, diversity and inclusion in the region. This role drives Plan International ECE’s youth engagement and support for youth-led activism by identifying opportunities for youth participatory knowledge generation and influencing. The Head of Policy and Advocacy works alongside our partners in the four countries to amplify their own advocacy recommendations and priorities, as it relates to the ongoing humanitarian response and Ukraine’s reconstruction and recovery, as well as in relation to their own influencing efforts on the promotion of gender equality and inclusion. The role works closely with the Head of Communications to help disseminate Plan International ECE’s messages and policy recommendations. It represents Plan International ECE on the Ukraine NGO Platform’s Advocacy Working Group and inputs into the Poland NGO Platform’s Advocacy Working Group as well. It also works closely with advocacy colleagues across Plan International’s Global Hub, National Offices and Liaison Offices in Geneva, New York and Brussels.

You will be a values-based and feminist leader, deeply comfortable with purpose driven advocacy, and with a demonstrable commitment to gender equality, equity, diversity, and inclusion. You will understand and drive efforts to deliver positive change for diverse girls and young people in crisis through advocating, campaigning, and communicating at a national and international level. You will lead by example in ensuring gender equality is evident in everything we do throughout all aspects of our advocacy efforts

Key Accountabilities and main Responsibilities

Plan International’s Eastern and Central Europe Policy and Advocacy efforts, in line with Plan International’s Global Advocacy Strategy, commits to an advocacy approach based on human rights; a global girls’ agenda; gender transformative change with an intersectional and inclusion lens; and driven by evidence and powered by girls’ and young women’s leadership.

Key accountabilities and responsibilities include:

• Positioning Plan International ECE as leading child-rights, girl focused and youth led humanitarian and development actor among national and international decision makers and key donors
• Expanding on the existing advocacy strategy for Plan International East and Central Europe and further developing the youth engagement and advocacy strategy
• Providing advocacy and influencing advice to the Heads of Mission, Programs Teams and Communication staff across the four countries and developing country specific influencing opportunities especially for Ukaine and Poland
• Working with the Programs teams to help shape policy asks based on our programs and also ensuring proposals and program conceptualisation align with our policy asks
• Proactively developing country-specific and ECE-wide policies and advocacy recommendations which reflect the priorities and analysis undertaken by Plan International and its partners
• Representing Plan International ECE at external events and meetings and identifying appropriate and relevant policy spaces where Plan International ECE can input its age and gender analysis, messages and advocacy recommendations
• Developing and maintaining good relationships with key advocacy, humanitarian, development and research colleagues across the Plan International global federation, as well as building networks with advocacy and communication colleagues from partner organisations and from other national and international NGOs.
• Establishing working relationships with decision-makers across UN entities, as well as national and local government officials especially in Poland and supporting the establishment of such relationships in Ukraine
• Providing technical support and guidance to the Advocacy Specialist in Ukraine and Programs teams across the four countries
• Working closely with colleagues at the EU Liaison Office to identity further funding and influencing opportunities based on Plan International ECE’s programmes and gender and age responsive policy asks.
• As a member of the Pan International ECE Leadership Team, providing strategic support and advice on political issues which may impact on Plan International’s programming across ECE.

Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded:

• Ensure that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in accordance with the principles and requirements of the policy including relevant Implementation Standards and Guidelines as applicable to their area of responsibility. This includes, but is not limited to, ensuring staff and associates are aware of and understand their responsibilities under these policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), their relevance to their area of work, and that concerns are reported and managed in accordance with the appropriate procedures.

Key relationships

• This role reports to the Director of Plan International Eastern and Central Europe and collaborates closely with the other members of the Leadership Team, especially the Heads of Mission and the Head of Communications
• Works regularly with country specific colleagues across the four countries including the advocacy specialist in Ukraine (when recruited), the communications staff, technical specialists, and the two business development managers
• Liaises with advocacy, policy and influencing colleagues across the Plan International Federation to help them tailor policy asks and recommendations to their own political contexts.

Communications and Working Relationships

Internal

• Director of Ukraine Crisis Response – Line manager
• Ukraine Crisis Response Leadership Team
• Ukraine Crisis Response Hub (Strategic & Operational Shared Service centre)
• PII Leadership Team, Global Hub’s Departments and Global Policies / Process Owners
• National Organisations (NO)

External:

• Members of the Ukraine NGO Platform Advocacy Working Group and the Poland NGO Forum Advocacy Working Group
• Civil society actors and platforms
• National and local authorities
• Institutional and private sector donors (directly and through National Organisations) and National Institutions
• UN and donor representatives and partners including humanitarian country teams, clusters, national and international NGOs, civil society and community-based organizations.

Knowledge, Skills, and Competencies

Essential:

• Degree Level or equivalent substantial experience working in policy and advocacy at an international level.
• Strong and effective communicator.
• Excellent verbal and writing skills in English and Polish with ability to quickly turn around complex information into succinct policies and advocacy recommendations
• Track record of influencing local, national and international decision makers, as well as working alongside local partners and in advocacy working groups
• Strong understanding of international humanitarian and development issues and rights-based work.
• Demonstrated experience in policy and advocacy, including carrying out policy research
• Proven leadership in developing advocacy strategies and approaches
• Previous experience working in area/country affected by active conflicts
• Previous experience in the humanitarian system, including inter-agency working groups
• Competency to provide strategic direction and clear recommendations to deliver on advocacy aims 
• Track record of handling complex, sensitive and fast-moving situations and work in high pressure environments with tight deadlines.
• Uses strong interpersonal and communication skills, both written and verbal, to build relationships, negotiate and persuade a wide range of audiences.
• Keeps up to date with key humanitarian and international development issues and trends, and to be able to spot new opportunities as they arise.
• Strong organisational skills to deal with a complex work environment.
• Work enthusiastically as part of a team and form effective and constructive working relationships across the whole organisation and wider network within sector.
• Participate in training and other activities as requested by the organization.
• Good understanding of humanitarian values, principles, the Humanitarian Charter and Code of Conduct for the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and NGOs in Disaster Relief.
• Languages: English and Polish

Desirable

• Experience with children’s rights, gender-focused and youth led advocacy in humanitarian and development settings
• Understanding of the geo-political context in Eastern and Central Europe, relating to the war in Ukraine; national political landscapes in Ukraine, Moldova, Poland and Romania; and broader EU
• Experience of working with people at all levels in a multi- cultural / global environment.

Location: Warsaw, Poland (or) Kyiv, Ukraine

Type of Role: Full-time, Fixed-term contract

Reports to: Director of ECE Hub Ukraine Response

Closing Date: 23/10/2024

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International's Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.