Job Announcement

International Foundation for Electoral Systems – IFES

The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) is an international non-governmental, nonprofit organization providing professional support to building electoral democracy. In Kyrgyzstan, IFES is implementing a project funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) aimed at strengthening the electoral legal framework and election administration practices by bringing them closer in line with international standards. Working with a diverse group of local partners, IFES will expand efforts to reach underrepresented groups, including women, youth and persons with disabilities to help foster as more inclusive and accessible elections.

IFES/Kyrgyzstan is currently seeking to hire for a full-time staff position of Gender/Inclusion officer.

TITLE:                                 Gender/Inclusion Officer            REPORTS TO:                    Senior Project Manager

LOCATION                         Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Summary of Position

Under the supervision of the Senior Project Manager, the Gender/Inclusion Officer is responsible for co-designing and implementing a strategy for IFES’s gender/ inclusion programs in Kyrgyzstan and other regional programming. S/he closely monitors and analyzes political and economic developments in the region and develops program ideas, drafts proposals on a range of gender and democracy assistance programs. S/he also identifies program partners and develops and maintains close relationships with them and with donors. The Gender/Inclusion Officer is also involved in new business development efforts.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

• Monitors, analyzes and reports on political and gender related developments in Kyrgyzstan and the wider Eurasia region to provide regional and country analysis and information.
• Support all project components in all aspects of gender equality and social inclusion.
• Anticipates potential problems, troubleshoots problems and actively takes part to lead resolution of them with creative and immediate solutions.
• Maintains an understanding of USAID and IFES gender and inclusion strategies.
• Leads efforts to evaluate and use information related to the Gender polity in the country.
• Drafts, reviews and edits/adds information to ensure high quality quarterly and periodic progress reports for the donor.
• Contributes to the substantive design of the gender programs/activities and contributes to the development of new program ideas.
• Closely monitor and inform the Management on policies/procedures/guidelines/laws issued by the authorities at central and field levels that could impact on the participation of women and other marginalized groups in project activities.
• Assists with assessing new funding opportunities in the region and serves as proposal manager (as assigned) for new bid opportunities.
• Establishes, maintains, and develops strong working relationships with partner organizations and other relevant stakeholders in Kyrgyzstan and the IFES HQ office.
• Travels as needed for program oversight and implementation; if an immediate need arises deploys on short- to long-term service in a program in the field to maintain continuity of the program.
• Participates in cross-functional teams and initiatives.
• Oversees implementation of specific grant(s) and associated grant activities.
• Perform other related duties as required.

Qualifications

• University diploma (bachelors or better) in Political Science, Sociology or related field;
• 3-5 years of relevant professional experience in gender, women’s empowerment and/or diversity management and work experience with an international organization is desirable;
• Experience with Gender program management, implementation and familiarity with GOK regulations and processes
• Demonstrated experience working on or studying the politics, economics, history and culture of Eurasia;
• Strong written and oral communication and presentation skills;
• Excellent command of both English and Kyrgyz languages (written and oral); knowledge of other local/regional language is a plus;
• Professional demeanor and appearance; and
• Be highly organized and able to work well in a team.

Interested applicants should submit CV, a motivation letter and salary history in English language only to: ifeskg@ifes.org indicating in subject line: Gender/inclusion officer. The deadline for submission is October 6, 2023.