Job Title

Consultant Liaison Officer

Reports to

Senior Project officer

Management Responsibility

None

Job location

Rwanda with regular trips to the project implementation areas: Rusizi and Rubavu at  border areas between DRC and Rwanda

Contract Duration

3 months Fixed Period

International Alert background

International Alert has been working for over 30 years with people directly affected by conflict to find peaceful solutions.

We believe in a world where people resolve their differences without violence and can build a more peaceful future for their families and communities.

We build a more peaceful world by collaborating with people from across divides to resolve the root causes of conflict, because everyone can play a part in building peace, every day.

We work alongside local communities, partners, businesses, and policymakers to turn our in-depth research and analysis into practical solutions and action on the ground.

And we bring together people from the grassroots to the policy level to inspire and amplify the voice of peace, because it is only together that we can achieve change. To learn more about how and where we work, visit www.international-alert.org.

Project summary: Strengthening Access to Justice in the Great Lakes Region - Uhaki bila Mipaka

International Alert is leading a consortium with two national organizations, iPeace and Pole Institute, to implement a regional project on Strengthening Access to Justice in the Great Lakes Region - Uhaki bila Mipaka, funded by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN) in Kigali. It is being implemented in both the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda around 5 border points.

The project seeks to contribute to improved access to justice in border regions to reduce tensions and strengthen stability in the Great Lakes Region.

The project responds to the immediate needs of cross-border populations while working to improve strategic structural problems through the promotion of dialogue and regional cooperation. The project directly improve access to justice by equipping cross border communities with the information and access they need as well as providing them with legal aid support and building the capacities of actors in the justice sector. The project also works with authorities and civil society locally to find mechanisms to efficiently resolve disputes and support authorities at the border who face these challenges every day. At the highest level, the project works with technical justice institutions on both sides of the border to explore ways of improving collaboration on cross border justice issues. The project combines improved governance of justice with peacebuilding, building of social cohesion and conflict prevention in the Great Lakes region.

Consultant Liaison Officer will work as a Project Officer hence he/she will report to the Senior Project Officer

Duties and Responsibilities

With the support of Senior project Officer and Deputy Team Leader, the consultant Liaison Officer will be responsible for the implementation and monitoring of the planned project activities of Access to Justice project UHAKI BILA MIPAKA. 

From the Programmatic point of view

• Organize Interactive Meetings on the Rights and Obligations of cross-border populations for members of cooperatives and community-based structures.
• Organize an open-door and communication on the essential issues of access to justice with judicial institutions.
• Accompany the young people trained at the Alternative University in the implementation of Activities of citizen engagement with the judicial authorities.
• Organize   and monitor broadcast radio programmes.
• Accompany trained youth in the process of spreading/swarming (actions to multiply learning outcomes)
• Organize training sessions on conflict sensitivity in the dispensation of justice for judges and court registrars.
• Organize communication and dialogue forums to strengthen the relationship between the populations and the cross-border authorities.
• Support advocacy actions initiated by community-based structures;
• Accompany and support the organization of mediation meetings by members of community-based structures and referral of cases;
• Support and accompany the activities of the Access to Justice Support Groups (GAPAJ)

From an operational point of view, 

• Participate in mechanisms to coordinate ATJ project activities
• Strengthen collaboration with teams from AtJ consortium member organizations
• Report all completed activities and progress
• Support the M&E team in the data collection process

• Be of Rwandan nationality.
• Hold an advanced degree in law, Political Sciences, Public Administration, International Relations, International Development, social sciences, or a similar field.
• Perfect command of French and English are strongly required.
• At least 5 years of experience in peacebuilding and/or development, including access to justice programming.
• Proven experience in cross-border initiatives .
• Be familiar with the notions of conflict sensitivity and gender relations and their applicability.
• Ability to cultivate and maintain open and non-discriminatory professional relationships with border communities, public administrations and representatives of other operational organizations in the project delivery environment.
• Demonstrate strong personal integrity and know how to enforce that of the organization.
• Able to develop good interpersonal relationships, and to work in a multidisciplinary environment and cultural diversity.
• Good ability in writing different documents.
• Ability to meet deadlines, strong ability to organize work and manage urgent competing priorities.
• Proficiency in the following software: WORD, EXCEL, POWERPOINT, OUTLOOK and Internet.
• Ability to work under pressure and autonomy while maintaining the ethics of the organization and maintaining the quality of work.
• Ability to tactfully manage conflicts, strong diplomatic communication and facilitation skills.
• Ability to perform duties independently with minimal technical support.

Desirable

• Have capacity and direct experience in facilitating various training workshops and writing training modules and reports.
• A good knowledge of written and spoken regional languages such as Swahili.
• Have direct experience in the execution of projects using a gender-based approach.
• Be methodical and perfectionist, know how to organize your work in particular by respecting priorities and deadlines.
• Have a practical mind, know how to identify problems, and propose alternatives of positive solutions for all concerned, and in a better time.
• Experience in written reporting of project activities.
• Excellent command of other Microsoft office products. Good IT knowledge.
• Commitment to Alert's approach and values, particularly regarding the needs of conflict-affected populations.
• Ability to think strategically.