Background
The East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project (EHAHRDP) is the secretariat to a network of more than 75 member organizations drawn from eleven countries in the sub-region (that is, Burundi, Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia (and Somaliland), South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda). The project was designed to strengthen the work of human rights defenders (HRDs) in the East and Horn of Africa sub-region by reducing their vulnerability to the risk of persecution and by enhancing their capacity to effectively defend human rights. The Project envisions a region in which the human rights of every citizen as stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) are respected and upheld. EHAHRDP implements activities in the areas of protection, advocacy and capacity building.
Additionally, EHAHRDP acts as the secretariat for the Pan-African Human Rights Defenders Network, which brings together five sub-regional networks from North, Central, West, Southern and the East and Horn of Africa. Further information about EHAHRDP’s activities can be found on our website or through our social media outlets on Face book http://www.facebook.com/humanrightsdefendersproject or Twitter @EHAHRDP.
EHAHRDP is in the process of recruiting a Special Programs Officer for its work in supporting human rights defenders in Somalia.
Key responsibilities:
• Coordinate the implementation of the Somalia project, including problem identification, project design and planning, implementation, coordination of activities, budget management, evaluation and reporting to ensure that the project is effectively management in accordance with the strategy of EHAHRDP and the parameters of EU regulations and procedures;
• Communication and collaboration with Somalia project partners for the effective implementation of the project;
• Establish or reinforce partnerships with other organizations in the field, to create synergies for raising awareness on human rights compliance and protection in Somalia;
• Ensuring high quality, transparency and accountability of key processes in the project, including: project design, development, and budgeting; project approval process; financial management and reporting;
• Participate in the development of proposals and fundraising;
• Undertake regular visits upto 50% of the time to Somalia for implementation of project activities and assessing outputs by project partners;
• Be updated on relevant human rights legislations, issues and development in Somalia;
• Play an active role in the formation of the Somali National Human Rights Coalition;
• Engage in relevant Somalia advocacy activities, including press releases and statements in conjunction with the advocacy team.
Qualifications
• A solid understanding of human rights and protection mechanisms;
• Familiarity with the Somali context and culturally sensitive;
• Previous experience working in the region, preferably in Somalia;
• Good conceptual and analytical capacity;
• Strong communication, time management and coordination skills;
• Very good budgeting, proposal and report writing skills;
• Excellent ability to work independently with limited supervision;
• Ability to engage with project partners, donors and state authorities clearly and effectively, both orally and in writing;
• Ability and willingness to travel regularly to Somalia.
Education and experience
• A master’s degree in human rights, law, social sciences, political science or a related field from an accredited academic institution with at least two years of relevant profession experience.
Languages
• Fluency in English and working knowledge of Somali is required. As part of the recruitment process, short-listed candidates will be tested on their knowledge of Somali.
Location
The position will be based in Kampala, Uganda with frequent travels within and out of the country especially Somalia. Applicants should be eligible to work in Uganda without restriction.
Applicants should send a letter of motivation, CV and contacts of three references to: [email protected] by 31 October 2014. Do not send scanned copies of certificates.
The subject line of the email should read “Application for the position of Special Programs Officer”