Switzerland: SSR Officer

SSR Officer

DCAF – Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance is dedicated to improving the security of states and their people within a framework of democratic governance, the rule of law, and respect for human rights. DCAF contributes to making peace and development more sustainable by assisting partner states and international actors supporting these states, to improve the governance of their security sector through inclusive and participatory reforms. It creates innovative knowledge products, promotes norms and good practices, provides legal and policy advice and supports capacity‐building of both state and non‐state security sector stakeholders.

DCAF's Foundation Council comprises 63 member states, the Canton of Geneva and six permanent observers. Active in over 70 countries, DCAF is internationally recognized as one of the world's leading centres of excellence for security sector governance (SSG) and security sector reform (SSR). DCAF is guided by the principles of neutrality, impartiality, local ownership, inclusive participation, and gender equality. For more information please visit www.dcaf.ch

ISSAT is a Department of DCAF established in 2008 in response to the need to increase the capacity of the international community to support Security Sector Governance/Reform (SSG/R) processes, to enhance the effectiveness and quality of SSG/R programming, and to facilitate the coordination and coherence of international assistance for nationally driven SSR/G processes. It provides practical support to the international community in its efforts to improve security and justice, primarily in conflict-affected and fragile states. It does this by working with a group of member states and institutions to develop and promote good security and justice reform practices and principles, and by helping its members to build their capacity to support national and regional security and justice reform processes. The ISSAT provides a deployable capacity to support its Governing Board Members. For more information, please see: www.issat.dcaf.ch

We are looking for a motivated and experienced individual for the role of:

SSR Officer – (100 %)

Location: Geneva (with regular travel)

Starting date: 1 October 2019 or upon mutual agreement

Duration: This is a project funded post, the position will be offered on a one-year contract which can be renewed dependent on performance and availability of funding.

The role

An SSR Officer (SSRO) within ISSAT is a professional level, multidisciplinary profile, able to undertake activities related to Advisory Field Support (AFS), professional development and training (PDT), and advocacy & outreach and knowledge (OAK), including the development of operational tools in the area of SSR programme design, assessment and monitoring and evaluation. It is a demanding role with advocacy and outreach aspects to wide-ranging high-level departmental contacts within donor states, their staff overseas, international organisations and partner nations.

ISSAT SSROs are part of an in-house network called the “methodology cell”. This body is set up to contribute to the methodological development of ISSAT’s mandates and use ISSAT’s operational experience to update ISSAT’s approaches, produce knowledge products and tools and share with the wider community of SSR practitioners.

Reporting to the Head of Advisory Field Support (AFS), the SSRO will work in relation to ISSAT’s mandates as well as other activities across all of the service lines.

Key areas of operation:

1. AFS and Training tasks

· Support AFS and/or training mandates, bringing thematic, process and contextual expertise where relevant;

· Support the mandate team leader in planning and preparing the mandate, as well as lead the application of ISSAT methodology to the mandate; and,

· Deploy on mandates as a team member, with responsibility to ensure consistent application of ISSAT methodology.

2. Knowledge and Outreach tasks

· Extract findings from ISSAT’s previous work and our partners’ work on SSR and SSG to develop the evidence demonstrating successful SSR in different contexts;

· Contribute to the design and roll-out of ISSAT’s knowledge base on SSR and SSG’s latest trends, challenges and opportunities; and,

· Translate mandate-focused learning into a shared knowledge base within the international community, ensuring that the latest SSR thinking.

You:

• Minimum of 2-4 years of experience in SSR and/or related international development work, field experience will be considered a significant advantage;
• Proactive and have demonstrated an ability to work as part of a multi-cultural, multi-disciplinary team;
• Good communication (verbal and written), and good drafting and presentational skills, as well as the ability to network and liaise effectively with a wide range of potential stakeholders at all levels both within governments and non-governmental and multinational organisations;
• Able to analyse situations quickly and effectively, adapt to rapidly changing circumstances and produce workable solutions to meet customer requirements – SSG/R is a fast developing field and it will be necessary to retain currency in the latest thinking and developments;
• Interest in international relations and development issues, fundamental to the SSR concept, is highly desirable – knowledge of the EU would be an added advantage;
• Masters degree in law, conflict studies, international relations, development, political science, or a related field;
• The team’s operating language is English. Fluency in one or more of French, German, Spanish or Portuguese is an added advantage; and,
• Swiss or EU citizenship, or a valid work permit for Switzerland at the time of application is a pre-requisite

We offer:

• a rewarding, dynamic and challenging work experience;
• the chance to be part of a multicultural team of supportive, hardworking and values-driven people; and,
• the chance to contribute to a securer world.

f you think you are a good match for DCAF and the position advertised, please send your application to ISSATrecruitment@dcaf.ch by midnight (CET) on 04th August 2019 with the subject heading “APPLICATION SSR Officer”, enclosing:

• a one-page motivational statement in English describing your story and what you can bring to DCAF; and,
• a concise CV (maximum two pages).

DCAF is an equal opportunities employer that considers applications from all qualified candidates.