MENA Regional Influencing Policy & Advocacy Manager

Shaping a stronger Oxfam for people living in poverty.

Department Purpose

The Regional Platform (RP) of Oxfam in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) has a mandate to:
Provide strategic leadership, management & accountability of and to Oxfam country and cluster programs in MENA.

• Deliver regional impact, developing partner relationships, brand and impact in the region through relevant influencing and advocacy work, public engagement and programming
• Connect, coordinate, convene – Connect practitioners to sources of expertise, convene people to share knowledge and learnings, and coordinate capacity building initiatives
• Enable operational agility and efficiency – Provide support to Oxfam country offices
  In MENA, Oxfam works in development, humanitarian, and campaigning, with a large part of the current transformation focused on becoming a major influencing & advocacy, knowledge-for-impact global reach organization.

Job Purpose

To develop, manage, lead and support the influencing, advocacy, campaigning, policy work of Oxfam in MENA to ensure the achievement of the organizational goals as set out in the regional and country
strategies in the MENA region. To contribute to global influencing priorities and position the MENA region
within global discussions and debates, externally and within Oxfam

Job Responsibilities
1. External engagement and building of an influencing agenda at regional level – 30%
– Provide strategic vision and maintain an influencing agenda ensuring full understanding of key regional
issues and positioning Oxfam on these- with a focus around inequalities and humanitarian advocacy together with MENA influencing colleagues at regional and country level, including risk management.
– Ensure the implementation of the policy and advocacy strategy that supports the advancement
towards the achievement of Oxfam goals in the region and ensuring the coherence between
country level influencing and advocacy and regional one. This should include external engagement
plans with regional stakeholders, pushing for joint initiatives on key common issues including
humanitarian advocacy, inequalities, economic recovery, social protection and informality, as well as
International Financial Institution engagement.
– Develop, nurture and manage a network of key influential external regional stakeholders (partners,
allies, collaborators; including regional NGOs, intergovernmental organizations, coalitions,
networks, academia, multi-lateral organization, state institutions when relevant, etc.) that can help
position Oxfam and partners’ priorities in the region.
– Work closely with the Regional Director and other stakeholders to engage with and influence key
regional targets such as the Arab League, the African Union and specific influential governments
in the region.
– Work closely with the Regional Director, Regional Business Development Manager and other
stakeholders to build understanding of and engagement with Gulf donors.
– Work closely with the Regional Business Development Manager and Head of Programs to ensure
that influencing work is resourced and that programs and advocacy are working in synergy and
coherence.
– Stay abreast of and adjust to changing circumstances and understandings regarding international and
regional context developments, as well as latest state-of-the-art thinking on diverse public policy issues
ensuring that the region’s ideas and approaches address the latest thinking and emerging issues and
remain agile and innovative.
– Making sure that gender justice and Oxfam’s feminist principles are at the heart of national, regional
and global influencing including program and advocacy and campaigning strategies.
– Provide specific support to Regional Business Development Manager and other regional colleagues
in developing multi-country and regional proposals to include a strong influencing component in
support of national and regional influencing strategies.
– Support the OI Regional Director in external representation, regional level representation and
external engagement as required—this includes support in developing key messages, talking
points, and speeches.
– Ensure that the RD is well positioned external by seeking regional and global opportunities
for representation and participation.
– Represent MENA in various Oxfam influencing, policy and campaigning fora in the confederation
and bring the MENA perspective and lens to those platforms.
– Identify key influencing moments globally and within Oxfam that advances regional and country
influencing goals.
2. Provide guidance, advice and leadership to Oxfam Country Offices’ influencing and policy
teams – 30%
– In line with MENA regional strategy and the individual country strategies, guide and support
countries to develop influencing strategies, interventions and approaches linking country-level goals
to regional and global-level influencing or campaigning opportunities, as well as mainstream
influencing in their programmatic work.
– Provide guidance for the development and implementation of advocacy and campaigns at the
4 country level, ensuring regional and global linkages.
– Ensure adequate resourcing allocated within budgets to scale up influencing including advocacy and
campaigns at national and regional level and support initiatives for resource mobilization.
– Forge meaningful links between local to global and ensure collaboration and cooperation with other regional offices in Oxfam’s confederation, particularly in the Global South.
– Work closely with Oxfam’s affiliate offices, and make sure to link Oxfam’s region and country offices with the different parts of the confederation, namely affiliates and global campaigns to ensure support and that MENA views are embedded in Oxfam’s global work.
3. Management and Leadership – 40%
– Lead and manage a team of regional policy, comms and media advisors, this includes senior inequality advisor, senior humanitarian policy advisor, and a senior media advisor.
– Support Regional Director in management decisions and deliberations as part of the Regional
Management Team and Regional Leadership Team of Oxfam in MENA.
– Actively participate in the Regional Management Team (RMT), bringing strategic vision,
influencing perspectives, and risk management to emerging issues
– Provide high level advice and support to regional policy advisors and facilitate the development of
quality policy papers.
– Lead on or contribute research pieces, policy papers and advocacy activities related to MENA
– Ensure there is a clear communications and media strategy in place, that serves the purpose of our
regional goals and programs, including overseeing and guiding the digital and social media work.
– Ensure alignment of regional policy work with regional strategy and priorities, as well as internal
coherence across the different policy areas (inequality, humanitarian, etc.).
– Direct signoff or signoff oversight of main policy and advocacy reports, documents and comms
products that are mandated to him/her as part of Oxfam ways of working and signing-off processes.
– Together with other RMT members, analysis of risks to Oxfam in the region, especially to Oxfam
brand and reputation as a result of our engagement in programs and influencing work.
– Participate in global and other Oxfam confederation meetings and forums to ensure MENA’s
priorities (RP and CO’s) on influencing are considered.

Job Requirements
Essential
• At least 10 years of experience in socio-economic, development and humanitarian policy,
advocacy, and programs.
• Academic degree in economics, social studies, development studies, political science studies or related.
• Proven experience working in MENA on policy, advocacy and campaigning.
• In-depth understanding of the economic, political and social causes and dynamics in MENA of
humanitarian crisis, poverty, injustice, and inequality and a familiarity with policy issues related to these
issues.
• Ability to think and act strategically and understand the relationship between national and regional
dynamics and the global objectives of Oxfam.
• Proven experience of leading and/or supporting others to design and deliver advocacy and campaigns,
program and research and policy work in one or more countries in the global south, especially in MENA.
• Proven track record of qualitative and quantitative research skills.
• Several years of work experience in more than one country in the region.
• Excellent inter-personal and collaboration skills, particularly in cross-cultural contexts.
• Excellent management and leadership skills to effectively manage and steer a strong technical team.
• Excellent written skills to draft and to oversee the development of high-quality policy, advocacy and
communications materials.
• Very strong analytical and conceptual thinking skills; able to understand highly complex issues and
translate them into simple, workable actions and plans.
• Excellent communication and influencing skills, with experience of external representation strategies,
lobbying, advocacy and campaigning in the region.
• Collaborative ways of working as part of a leadership team.

• A high level of energy ,stamina and flexibility. Ability to adjust to constantly changing situations while maintaining focus on delivery and follow-through, often working under pressure and to tight deadlines.
•Fluency in written and spoken English and Arabic is essential

Desirable
•Fluency in French highly desirable.
•A network of contacts in the region.
•May need to work after hours or at the weekends as per Oxfam policies (with due compensation).
•Ability to travel frequently and at short notice, including to remote and difficult locations.

Other
•Eager and required to adhere to Oxfam’s principles and values (click here) as well as the promotion of gender justice and women’s rights (click here).
•Understanding of and commitment to adhere to equity, diversity, gender, child safety and staff health and wellbeing principles.