[Hiring] NY-Washington Liaison Officer @CANADEM

Role Description

The Senior NY-Washington Liaison Officer reports to the Special Representative and is based in New York, USA or Washington, D.C, USA. The Senior Liaison Officer will develop their own work plan for approval by the Special Representative.

Within the delegation of authority and under the direct supervision of the Special Representative, the Senior Liaison Officer shall be responsible for the following duties:

• Serve as the senior New York-based or Washington, D.C-based liaison capacity for the GSF, maintaining regular contact with the Standing Group of Partners, Permanent Missions, United Nations Secretariat entities, relevant UN agencies, funds and programmes, and other partners engaged on Haiti.
• Provide strategic political and policy advice to the Special Representative and the Chief of Staff on New York and Washington dynamics affecting the GSF mandate, including Security Council deliberations, Member State positions, donor priorities and policy debates.
• Maintain structured senior-level liaison with Washington, D.C.-based stakeholders, including relevant United States Government counterparts, the OAS, international financial institutions, policy institutions, donors and other partners, as directed by the Special Representative.
• Support the Special Representative's engagement with the Standing Group of Partners, including preparation of strategic briefs, agendas, talking points, records of discussion, decision papers, follow-up matrices and decision trackers.
• Monitor and analyze Security Council developments, Member State positions, donor discussions, United States Government policy developments, congressional or executive branch developments, and other New York/Washington processes relevant to the GSF mandate.
• Lead or coordinate the preparation of strategic briefing materials, background notes, talking points, correspondence, readouts and analytical updates for meetings involving the Special Representative, senior GSF leadership, SGP members, Member States, UN counterparts and other partners.
• Facilitate timely communication between Haiti-based GSF leadership and New York/Washington stakeholders on mandate implementation, operational support requirements, resource mobilization, force generation, human rights due diligence, protection issues and other priority matters.
• Support the preparation and quality assurance of GSF inputs for regular reporting to the Standing Group of Partners, the Security Council and other stakeholders, ensuring consistency with the GSF mission strategy, approved messaging and reporting timelines.
• Track commitments, requests for information, political guidance, decisions and follow-up actions emerging from New York and Washington engagements and ensure that responsible GSF offices are informed of deadlines and deliverables.
• Lead planning support for high-level visits by the Special Representative and GSF senior leadership to New York and Washington, including meeting programmes, briefing books, stakeholder mapping, protocol coordination and post-visit follow-up.
• Develop and maintain senior stakeholder maps, contact lists, engagement calendars, political/donor outreach trackers and decision logs for New York and Washington interlocutors.
• Identify opportunities to strengthen political support, donor engagement, strategic partnerships and public understanding of the GSF mandate, in consultation with the Office of the Special Representative and relevant partners.
• Facilitate coordination with UNSOH, BINUH, OAS and other partners to ensure coherent messaging and alignment of support related to the GSF mandate, operational support, technical assistance and partner engagement.
• Contribute to strategic planning processes by providing analysis of New York/Washington political dynamics, partner priorities, resourcing discussions, force generation considerations and emerging risks or opportunities affecting mission implementation.
• Advise on and support resource mobilization and partner engagement strategies, including identification of potential donor concerns, policy opportunities, messaging requirements and follow-up actions.
• Develop or oversee mission-specific guidance, engagement protocols, briefing templates and standard operating procedures related to external liaison, high-level visits, stakeholder engagement and follow-up.
• Ensure that sensitive information received through liaison channels is handled in accordance with applicable confidentiality, information management and security requirements.
• Provide guidance and quality assurance to any assigned support staff, consultants or temporary personnel supporting New York/Washington liaison functions, including review of written products and tracking tools.
• Produce handover notes and maintain well-organized records to ensure continuity and institutional knowledge for incoming or replacement Liaison Officers.
• The Senior Liaison Officer may be requested by the Special Representative to perform other duties, as required.

Qualifications

• A minimum of ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience within an international organisation or in the private sector at the national or international level in the field of political science, international relations, law, disarmament, security, development management, conflict resolution, external relations, diplomacy or a related field is required.
• Experience providing senior-level political analysis, strategic advice, reporting, liaison support, and coordination with Member States, UN entities, international organizations, donors, regional organizations or government counterparts is required.
• Experience supporting senior officials in intergovernmental, diplomatic or multilateral settings is required.
• Experience preparing strategic briefs, talking points, background notes, decision papers and policy advice for senior leadership is required.
• Experience engaging with Permanent Missions, host governments, donors, New York and/or Washington-based institutions, international financial institutions or policy institutions is desirable.
• Experience working with or supporting peace operations, special political missions, multinational security arrangements, resource mobilization, force generation or Haiti-related political/security files is desirable.
• Experience providing quality assurance for analytical, reporting or liaison products is desirable.
• An advanced university degree (Master's degree or equivalent) in political science, international relations, law, public administration, security studies, conflict studies, social sciences, development studies, management or a related field is required.
• A first-level university degree in combination with two (2) additional years of qualifying experience may be accepted in lieu of the advanced university degree.

Requirements

• Fluency in English (both oral and written) is required.
• Fluency in French is desirable.
• Knowledge of Haitian Creole and/or Spanish is an asset.

Benefits

• This position is home-based in New York or Washington, D.C.
• The employer does not intend to rent or provide dedicated office space for this role.
• Regular travel to Washington, D.C. or New York, and occasional travel to Port-au-Prince or other locations may be required, subject to operational requirements, security conditions and approval.

Additional Notes

CANADEM and its partners have a no-tolerance policy for inaction to prevent, respond to and follow up on alleged cases of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment (SEAH). For this reason, we adhere to all policies, procedures and training of the United Nations on The Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment (PSEAH). CANADEM mandates all deployees successfully complete the PSEA online course. This e-learning course is composed of a set of lessons designed to raise awareness about SEAH, become familiar with a range of measures to combat SEAH, understand the impact on victims and the consequences for UN Personnel who commit Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment.