Regional Support Officer – Young Mediterranean Voices
Please note that we do not accept copies of CVs, kindly visit our recruitment portal if you wish to apply.
If you are interested in applying and feel that you are suitable for the role, please apply before Sunday 20 October 2019 (23:59 Lebanon Time). Please read the Role Profile carefully, check definitions of the behaviours and Core skills, and complete the application form using the ‘Guidance notes for completing application form section’ for assistance (This is found in the application form) by visiting the British Council Recruitment Portal link below.
The British Council is committed to a policy of equal opportunity and is keen to reflect the diversity of UK society at every level within the organisation. We welcome applications from all sections of the community. In line with the British Council's Child Protection policy, any appointment is contingent on thorough checks. In the UK, and in other countries where appropriate systems exist, these include criminal records checks.
Role purpose
The Regional Support Officer - Young Mediterranean Voices (YMV) will support the Regional Programme Manager implementing the Young Mediterranean Voices programme which is delivered in eight countries across the region to agreed client and British Council standards and objectives. The post holder is also expected to ensure good documentation practice ensuring consistency across the eight countries in areas of procurement, branding, M&E and compliance.
Young Mediterranean Voices (YMV) seeks to empower young people to enhance a culture of dialogue, to contribute to public policy and shape media discourses, and to create a shared understanding with peers across the Mediterranean on how to address issues of common concern to their communities.
To achieve this, the programme focuses on four specific objectives:
• A cadre of young influencers with enhanced skills for dialogue and debate will be created;
• Debating practices will be embedded in education institutions and CSOs;
• Platforms and mechanisms for young influencers will be enhanced to shape public policy, influence decision-makers and shape media narratives;
• Exposure among young debaters for shared understanding and capacity will be enhanced to develop shared responses with peers to socio-cultural challenges.
YMV is coordinated by the Anna Lindh Foundation, co-founded by the British Council, and developed in partnership with the Centre for Mediterranean Integration (CMI), Friends of Europe, the World Leadership Alliance-Club de Madrid, MEDAC and Soliya. The programme is funded by the European Commission and co-funded by the Government of Finland and World Bank Group.
About us
The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. We create friendly knowledge and understanding between the people of the UK and other countries. We do this by making a positive contribution to the UK and the countries we work with – changing lives by creating opportunities, building connections and engendering trust.
We work with over 100 countries across the world in the fields of arts and culture, English language, education and civil society. Each year we reach over 20 million people face-to-face and more than 500 million people online, via broadcasts and publications. Founded in 1934, we are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter and a UK public body.
Geopolitical/SBU/Function overview
Politics, population, economics
There are deep historical ties between the Middle East and North Africa and the region remains critically important for UK security and prosperity as well as a high priority for the British Council.
The region is currently blighted by conflict and instability, rooted in the geopolitical struggle between regional powers and weakening of the social contract between governments and their populations. The Iran-Saudi and Shia-Sunni conflict is playing out in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, and is having a huge impact more widely in the region. It shows no sign of abating. The breakdown in the social contract that drove the 2011 anti-government uprisings has occurred due to a number of longstanding barriers to political, economic and social progress.
• Dominance of ruling monarchies, authoritarian regimes, and limited democratic institutions.
• Exclusion of young people from political processes and few opportunities for them to express themselves freely.
• A very young demographic and mounting youth unemployment at 30%, twice the global average.
• Poorly performing education systems and low learning outcomes against international benchmarks.
• Inequality of opportunity for women; most development indicators show that women have an increasing participation in education but are under-represented in economic and political life.
• An under-developed sense of citizenship and weak civil society.
• An economic model heavily dependent on oil. Lower oil prices are already having an impact on the social contract in the Gulf.
The majority of young people are finding their path to economic independence and self-fulfilment blocked, and given the limited legitimate outlets available to express their grievances and create change, radical thinking and radical action has powerful appeal.
The region is now at a crossroads in its transition, with huge generational shifts taking place in politics, society, geopolitics and the economy. As well as creating conflict as different parties contest the direction of this transition, it is also generating significant opportunities - the new generation is more connected, more educated, more entrepreneurial, innovative and expressive than previous generations. They have the potential to drive sustainable economic growth and stability. Moreover, governments have greater impetus to engage with youth due to their rising numbers and the end of the oil boom, which has increased their need to diversify their economies away from oil and towards a model based around harnessing the region’s human capital.
British Council MENA vision for 2020
By 2020 we will connect tens of millions of people across the Middle East and North Africa with the UK, helping them reach their potential through development of English and skills, creation of positive pathways, and engagement with the UK’s cultural resources. We will support the creation of more secure, open, prosperous, and equitable societies. Our programmes will result in greater trust, understanding and friendship between people in the UK and MENA.
Main opportunities/challenges for this role
Working closely with colleagues across the YMV programme, support country teams follow good documentation practice and overall compliance.
Opportunities going forward include:
• Opportunity to work on an exciting youth-led programme across the region
• Operating in a very dynamic region which offers huge numbers of opportunities.
• Opportunity to exchange culture and learning from team members
• Various professional development opportunities
• Opportunity to work with systems such as SAP, Office 365, SharePoint
Challenges include:
• Coordinate with a dispersed team across 8 countries with very different contexts and across 3 time zones
• Ensuring compliance with internal and external standards
• Gathering evidence for measuring impact outcomes and demonstrating value for money
Main Accountabilities
Finance and compliance
• Follow up procurement and financial procedures to be compliant with British council and donor requirement
• Provide financial management support including the effective use of SAP, raising PO’s, journals and creating vendors
• Ensure a good information management of the project documentation and appropriate filing on the database and collaboration sites.
Events logistics
• To provide support in events and workshop planning: follow up on procedure, ensure efficient and timely booking of venue, flights and accommodation arrangements as necessary, organising hospitality, transport, marketing materials and management contributing to the successful running of events.
Information management
• To be responsible for managing and maintaining the project data and information on Office365 and SharePoint
• To be responsible for collecting internal and external project communication, including collaterals, impact stories, and M&E data
• To support country teams ensure compliance with branding guidelines of British Council and EU
Monitoring and Evaluation
• To assist in monitoring, evaluating the quality of events and their outcomes; and disseminating lessons learned to enable teams to repeat successes, act on lessons learnt and improve the quality of events and their outcomes.
• To provide support on evaluation (including scorecard storyboard) carried out to agreed standards, collecting and analysing Scorecard data where appropriate
• To support monitoring activities in the field
Communication and customer service
• To act as a liaison between country teams and the Regional team to ensure consistency in sharing information about the project.
• To provide support to country teams to raise the profile of YMV project
Key Relationships
External stakeholders include:
• Facilitators/trainers and other consultants
• Suppliers
• Hubs and debate clubs across the region
• Press/media stakeholders
Internal stakeholders include:
• Regional Programme Manager YMV
• YMV Country teams
• Project consortium partners, for example Anna Lindh Foundation.
• Director Business Development in MENA
• Director Society in MENA
• Regional Monitoring and Evaluation lead
• Education and Society Strategic Business Unit colleagues
Role Requirements
Threshold requirements:
Passport requirements/ Right to work in country: Post holder must be eligible to work in Lebanon. When required, successful candidate needs to secure, at his/her own cost and liability, the appropriate work and residency permits and any other required document.
Notes: Hours are variable according to events and can include evenings and occasional weekends. The role includes representing the British Council at external events where appropriate. On certain days it may be necessary to work longer hours to cater for key deadlines.
Person Specification:
Language requirements :
Minimum / essential
- Written and spoken English at Proficiency Level (B2)
- Fluent in written and spoken Arabic
Desirable
- Good command of written and spoken French
Assessment Stage
- Shortlisting
Qualifications:
Minimum / essential
- University degree or proven relevant experience
Assessment Stage
- Shortlisting
Role Specific Knowledge & Experience:
Minimum / essential
- Project Management Skills – Level 2
- Financial planning management – Level 1
- 1 year experience in event or project management
- 1 year experience working on youth related projects
Desirable
- Previous experience in working on EU funded projects
Assessment Stage
- Shortlisting
British Council Core Skills
- Managing projects (Level 1) - Follows project management disciplines
- Planning and organising (Level 1) - Is methodical
- Managing finance and resources (Level 1) - Uses resources efficiently
- Using technology (Level 2)
- Communicating and influencing (Level 2)
Assessment Stage
- Shortlisting AND Interview
British Council Behaviours
1.Connecting with others: (Essential)
Making regular opportunities to understand others better
2. Working together: (Essential)
Establishing a genuinely common goal with others
3. Making it happen: (Essential)
Delivering clear results for the British Council
4. Shaping the future:(Essential)
Looking for ways in which we can do things better
5. Being accountable (More Demanding)
Putting the needs of the team or British Council ahead of my own
6. Creating shared purpose: (Essential)
Communicating an engaging picture of how we can work together
NOTE:
Daleel Madani, the civil society network, serves as a platform for organisations to post their professional opportunities, but is not involved in the recruitment process. The hiring organisation is solely responsible for the job and candidate selection.
- Lebanon
- Beirut