• You will play a crucial role in delivering the British High Commission (BHC) Zambia’s Country Business Plan, particularly on human development and Gender Equalities, Disability and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) priorities 
  to contribute to our mission to strengthen the transmission of growth to poverty reduction. 
• Drawing on the latest data and evidence you will provide strong advisory skills, influencing, political analysis and leadership to identify opportunities to get behind and drive change.  
• You will focus on developing and maintaining relationships with key stakeholders including in government, civil society, cooperating partners and political stakeholders to drive forward mutually agreed priorities.
• You will represent BHC externally and advise senior leaders in BHC.
• You will work with programme managers, advisers and partners, bringing your technical expertise to programmes to operate in a nimble way and deliver impact, cutting across a range of sectors to reduce poverty, build human capital and strengthen resilience to shocks. Sectors you will work on could include (but not limited to) education, social protection, health, nutrition, climate resilience and shock response, gender and inclusion.  
• As bilateral FCDO ODA levels reduce, you will seek ways to maintain influence and deliver change through our UK multilateral contributions and other tools.
• Country Based Staff advisers are central to delivering the FCDO’s ambition in Zambia, uniquely bringing their technical expertise and deep knowledge of the local political and cultural context, working with and enabling local actors to drive change.  
• As a senior member of staff, you will take initiative, be a self starter and provide leadership and contribute across teams and different areas of work to shaping the new portfolio of the BHC’s work to tackle poverty in Zambia.
• You will work collaboratively with colleagues across the mission, and in headquarters, embracing change, innovation and FCDO’s culture.
• The post holder will have the opportunity to further develop specialist areas depending on their background and experience.

Roles and responsibilities

Proactively leading the UK effort to deliver targeted real-world development outcomes. Deploying the full range of relevant UK levers to achieve change.  

• Setting Direction: Based on the latest reserach and evidence set a clear direction for delivering the outcome, bringing together the different parts of the mission.  
• Leadership: Lead the development of the outcome delivery plan, ensuring we are clear what the UK is trying to achieve and how we will get there. Follow through in delivering the plan. 
• Political Analysis: Develop and implement social and political analysis to inform strategies for delivering change (directly and/or through programming), drawing on the range of levers and tools (e.g., political economy analysis) available. 
• Monitoring & Evaluation:  Aim to regularly assess and review policy outcome deliverables, adapt as needed.  
• Learning and adaptation: Lead those working on the outcome to focus on learning, taking a reflective approach and adapting. 
• Engagement:  Lead engagement with FCDO headquarters and across Whitehall on various human development policy areas. 

Influencing external change. Build relationships with key external stakeholders, expand networks and understanding of the context, and deliver advice or support to support FCDO objectives.  

• Building Relationships and Strategic Engagement: Building relationships of influence with key players and implementing engagement plans that contribute to outcomes and BHC objectives to influence change. 
• Analysis, Communicating and Reflection: Developing and sharing knowledge on the context, opportunities, and constraints. Identifying what works/ doesn’t work, and adapting your approach. 
• Work with BHC communications team to effectively share success and learning stories on BHC programming. 
• Identify opportunities to convene different interest groups in support of the programme and policy, manage complex relationships effectively, and manage negotiations to solve problems and ensure the programme remains on track. 

Work closely with programme managers and colleagues working on compliance of programmes to deliver the required outcomes.  

• Impact & Results. Ensure that programmes deliver meaningful real-world impact, having a clear theory of change and undertaking annual reviews. 
• Challenging and supporting implementing partners to analyse, mainstream and monitor gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI). 
• Monitoring and Evaluation.  Assess impact, results and draw out learning of policy work and programming. 
• Programme compliance. Understand and fully implement the FCDO’s programme compliance rules (PrOF rules and guidance). 
• Risk Management. Actively monitor risks to the successful delivery of the programme and proactively escalate risks to SLT, including fraud and safeguardign risks.  
• Change Management. Ensure programmes adapt to change, and that decisions are made based on evidence and results frameworks and theories of change are kept up to date.  
• Value for Money. Deliver agreed outputs and targets as effectively, efficiently, and economically as possible.  
• Manage complex stakeholder/ partner relationships, understand the different perspectives, incentives, and interests.  
• Effectively present strategic project/programme/sectoral policies to others (partner governments; cooperating partners) ,and across His Majesty’s Government (HMG)).  

Cross-cutting responsibilities  

• Lead the cross-office strategy work on women and girls, and gender equality, disability and social inclusion (GEDSI) and safeguarding.  This will include work to effectively mainstream GEDSI across all our programmes.  
• Support teams across the BHC to use poverty and vulnerability analysis to inform design and evaluate results. 
• Ensure that timely, quality responses to letters, corporate returns and submissions relevant in relevant sector are produced. 
• Proactively contribute to cross-office efforts across a range of corporate issues, including better delivery, people issues and initiatives, crisis planning and preparedness, etc. 
• Provide support as required on high-level visits or briefing requests, remain flexible to carry out additional duties if needed. 

Administrative  

• All FCDO staff are expected to undertake some administrative tasks to support delivery of work related to their job.  This includes saving own documents to the corporate record, arranging relevant meetings, making travel arrangements and processing expenses claims. 

• A strong undergraduate degree in relevant subject. 
• At least five (5) years of work experience in a relevant field with demonstrable experience of working closely with stakeholders and communities on human development issues.  
• Excellent written and verbal English communication skills. 
• Demonstrated ability to take initiative.  
• Willingness to embrace change and evolve ways of working. 
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with external stakeholders to enable and drive change.  
• Experience of working on human development programmes and/or policies, particularly linked to human development (e.g. education, health, social protection) and climate resilience.
• Excellent analytical skills coupled with the ability to explain complex technical issues to a non-expert audience.
• Strong understanding of social development, poverty and vulnerability issues.
• Experience in delivering policy objectives through policy reform.
• Experience supporting gender, disability and safeguarding mainstreaming, including through influencing and building the capacity of others.
• Ability to build strong, respectful and collaborative working relationships with stakeholders within and beyond the BHC
• Experience in engaging with a range of stakeholders and influencing real world change.
• Willingness to continue professional development