Government Liaison Officer

ABOUT ARK:

ARK is a social enterprise, empowering local communities through the provision of agile and sustainable interventions to create greater stability, opportunity, and hope for the future.

We believe that resilient communities are the foundation of local, national, regional and international development and stability – and ultimately a safer, peaceful and more prosperous world. At ARK, we have delivered research and programmatic interventions since 2008 including working with the Nigerian government to prevent human trafficking, promoting accountability for war crimes in Syria, supporting vulnerable communities in Yemen and developing Civil Defence capabilities in Palestinian refugee camps. As a social enterprise we work in partnership with communities, our donors, and other implementers to build local capacities, generate opportunity and bring about sustainable change. Learn more about our impact here: https://www.ark.international/impact

PURPOSE OF POSITION:

The Government Liaison Officer will assist the Chief of Party in the communication and relationship with the relevant government authorities in official processes such as the signing the MoUs (Memorandem of Understanding), projects sub-agreements, and programme/non-programme related correspondences. The Government Liaison Officer will support the country office working with ARK programme staff and keeping strong communications with the different authorities to best represent ARK and maintain good relationships between ARK and government stakeholders.

WHAT WE OFFER:

• A fantastic opportunity to work in a company that demonstrably delivers social impact.
• Flexible working
• Employee benefits such as comprehensive group medical and life insurance.
• Leave entitlement of 30 working days a year plus public holidays

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead all government liaison processes and communication with Yemeni authorities, such as following up MOUs, projects sub-agreements, programme related/none-program related correspondence with government authorities. Represent ARK to government officials in a way that best reflects ARK’s values, donor requirements and maintains a good relationship with government stakeholders.
• Ensure that all ARK programme staff (SMT, Chief of Party, Programme staff, Corporate Service staff) know and are aware of the government liaison requirements for all programme activities such as travel permits, tenders requirements or any activities related to ARK with MoPIC (Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation), before implementation.
• Submit any official letters and relevant documentation to the relevant authorities to facilitate ARK activities within the legal and accepted practices in Yemen.

SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

• Previous experience in a Government Liaison Officer role in Yemen, preferably on a USAID programme
• Established network of government officials in MoPIC and other relevant departments
• Extensive knowledge of Yemeni government procedural requirements for international development organisations
• Full professional fluency in Arabic and working proficiency in English
• Excellent and demonstrable attention to detail, coordination and planning skills
• Exceptional negotiation skills and emotional intelligence

MORE ABOUT OUR COMPANY:

What Makes Us Different

We pride ourselves on being the first people able to access and operate in challenging fragile and conflict-affected environments. We are expeditionary by design and our systems and structures enable flexible and agile responses while ensuring safe, effective and compliant delivery.

Working with and through teams drawn from the communities in which we operate enables us to deliver impactful interventions built on intimate local understanding. In collaboration with our global network of international and local experts, we integrate nuanced understanding of the challenges we aim to solve with best practice and field-leading innovation to deliver programming that meets short-term stabilisation objectives and builds the evidence base and knowledge needed to lay the groundwork for long-term peacebuilding and development programming.

What We Do

We enjoy sectoral experience in civil society development, good governance, protection and human rights, refugees and migration, stabilisation, gender, security and justice, as well as cross-cutting experience in programme design and learning, organisational development and management, research and analysis, needs assessments, monitoring and evaluation, communications and capacity building.

Our People

Today, our team covers a diverse range of professional backgrounds, from diplomacy, humanitarian, development and the military, to the UN, civil society groups, multilateral organisations, journalism and the private sector.

They bring sectoral expertise in civil society development, good governance, protection and human rights, refugees and migration, gender and security and justice, as well as practical experience in programme design and learning, organisational development and management, research and analysis, needs assessments, monitoring and evaluation, communications and capacity building. The multi-disciplinary and multi-national nature of our team means the research we undertake and the programmes we deliver are grounded in empirical need and deliver measurable and sustainable impact.

ARK Group is an equal opportunity employer. We actively seek a diverse applicant pool and encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply. ARK Group does not discriminate on the basis of ability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, or sexual orientation. We welcome all kinds of diversity. ARK Group places human dignity at the centre of its development and stabilisation work and is thus committed to the protection from sexual exploitation and abuse of children and adults. All ARK Group employees and related personnel are expected to share this commitment, and only those who also uphold these values will be recruited as part of our team. This vacancy is therefore subject to a range of due diligence checks.