External Affairs and Policy Advisor, Africa

Focus of the Role

The External Affairs and Policy, Africa team shapes and directs our external policy agenda and voice in Africa, building networks with political leaders, multilateral organisations, think-tanks and other influential and/or philanthropic bodies. To support our work, we are looking for an External Affairs and Policy Advisor, Africa. The Advisor will be responsible for developing, improving, and maintaining content for the external outputs generated by TBI Africa Division. Duties will also include raising brand awareness by identifying platforms for TBI specialists to participate in, sharing content with the appropriate audiences and monitoring the impact of our external communications activities through development of relevant tools and metrics..

Our ideal candidate is an experienced professional with demonstrableskills in creative writing, stakeholder engagement and strategic communications. The candidate should be detail oriented and able to work proficiently under pressure and across teams.  

The External Affairs and Policy Advisor, Africa will report to the Director for External Affairs and Policy, Africa.

Key Responsibilities

• ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Assist in the development of collateral products that align with TBI’s brand purpose and unique value proposition
• Collaboratively design,develop and maintain TBI marketing and communications materials
• Proactively identify opportunities to place relevant content on TBI activities across multiple communications channels
• Generate and publish engaging content on TBI’s activities in Africa
• Quality assurance of published content
• Support TBI teams engaging with external stakeholders by drafting speaking points and key messages
• Remain current on developments for the Africa Advisory practice and generate new ideas to draw the attention of target audiences

Person Specification

• At least 8 years’ experience in strategic communications and stakeholder engagement or relevant field
• Experience managing multi-country projects and teams
• An understanding of the Africa media landscape and proven relationships with main media houses
• Knowledge of online publishing strategies
• Understanding of SEO and web traffic metrics
• Experience developing engaging content for digital channels
• Outstanding written English skills, proficiency in French is a plus
• Detail-oriented work style

About The Institute

The Tony Blair Institute (TBI) is a mission-driven not for profit organisation. We exist to equip political leaders and governments to build open, inclusive and prosperous societies. We work hard, every day, to make a difference. When governments work well they are able to create economic and social change in a way that promotes fairness, social justice and opportunity. We work relentlessly to support leader and governments with the challenges they face. Giving them practical solutions and actionable insights, that once implemented, can be transformative for their people  

We do this within two connected divisions: 

 Government Advisory 

Our Government Advisory teams work directly with political leaders and governments around the world to implement reforms that improve the lives of their citizens. It works with a variety of partners and its outputs cover a range of disciplines and projects across countries in Africa, the Middle East, Eastern Europe and South Asia.

 Policy Futures 

Our Policy Futures work encompasses three broad areas: 

• Renewing the Centre: developing a bold and innovative domestic policy programme to help renew the centre ground of British politics; 
• Tech and Public Policy: exploring the policy challenges and opportunities presented by the technological revolution; and 
• Extremism Policy Unit: creating solutions designed to tackle the threat of extremist ideologies in the UK and around the world. 

As an organisation, the core beliefs we all embrace are: 

• Open and Progressive: you’ll believe in the value of teamwork 
• Bold and Pragmatic: you’ll approach everything you do with integrity and authenticity 
• Optimistic Changemaker: you’ll be focused on results 

TBI believes embracing diversity and inclusion make us a better place to work.  It’s our goal to reflect everyone in society and we actively welcome applications from individuals and groups who are under-represented in the workplace. We celebrate difference be it ethnicity, religion, age, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation or disability. We will only ever assess you on your abilities and fit for a role. We’re happy to discuss any adjustments you need to ensure a level playing field during recruitment and, if you\'re successful, discuss any adjustments you might need to thrive in your role.