Civil Affairs Officer (AUSSOM)

The Civil Affairs Officer supports the implementation of civil affairs, stabilization, conflict management, and community engagement activities in support of the Mission’s mandate. The role involves strengthening relations between AUSSOM, local authorities, communities, and other stakeholders through dialogue, confidence-building, conflict prevention, reconciliation, and support to local governance structures in complex and high-risk operational environments.

Responsibilities

• Monitor local conflict dynamics and support efforts aimed at conflict prevention, mediation, reconciliation, and stabilization in support of the Mission’s mandate.
• Support engagement between AUSSOM, local authorities, communities, civil society actors, and other stakeholders to strengthen confidence-building and local peace initiatives.
• Contribute to early warning, conflict analysis, and information gathering relating to political, social, security, and community developments at the local level.
• Support dialogue, reconciliation, and social cohesion initiatives aimed at reducing tensions and strengthening community resilience in conflict-affected areas.
• Assist in promoting civic engagement, local participation, and interaction between communities, local authorities, and relevant institutions.
• Support efforts aimed at strengthening local governance structures, rule of law, stabilization, and state authority extension initiatives in areas affected by conflict and insecurity.
• Support information gathering and analysis on political, social, and economic issues affecting local conflict dynamics, and provide inputs to senior civil affairs staff.
• Assist in monitoring developments at the local level and prepare regular updates for the Senior Civil Affairs Officer.
• Support engagement with local communities, civil society groups, and local authorities to understand concerns, perceptions, and emerging issues.
• Contribute to drafting reports, briefings, talking points, and analytical notes for internal use and for senior leadership.
• Assist in maintaining effective working relationships with AUSSOM components, UN agencies, local authorities, and other stakeholders.
• Support the implementation of Quick Impact Projects (QIPs) by assisting with field visits, documentation, monitoring, and reporting, in line with AU directives.
• Provide logistical and coordination support for meetings, workshops, consultations, and community-level engagements.
• Assist in identifying local capacity-building needs and support senior officers in coordinating responses with relevant partners.
• Support activities aimed at promoting dialogue, reconciliation, and social cohesion under the guidance of the Senior Civil Affairs Officer.
• Help maintain databases, records, and information management tools relevant to civil affairs work.
• Contribute to mission planning and monitoring processes by providing field-level observations and inputs.
• Perform other duties as assigned by the Senior Civil Affairs Officer.

Requirements

• Master’s degree (Bac +5) in social sciences, Political Science, International Relations, Public Administration, Anthropology, Law, Economics or other relevant field with two (2) years of relevant professional experience.
• Or Bachelor's degree (Bac +3) in social sciences, Political Science, International Relations, Public Administration, Anthropology, Law, Economics or related field with five (5) years of relevant professional experience.
• Experience in public administration, institutional capacity building, and working with local authorities.
• Experience designing and implementing initiatives to build trust, promote dialogue, and enhance social cohesion.
• Negotiation and mediation skills.
• Political analysis and report-writing skills.
• Ability to operate in high-stress, austere operational environments.
• Ability to analyze local dynamics, identify stakeholders, and understand the concerns of local populations in conflict and post-conflict environments.
• Sound, rapid decision-making in emerging complex situations.
• Respect for local cultures and ability to work in multi-ethnic/multi-cultural/multi-religious settings.
• Ability to act as a bridge between communities, local authorities, and AUSSOM.
• High degree of flexibility to work in stressful, insecure, or isolated environments.
• Proven ability to engage with non-state actors, community groups, women, and marginalized groups.
• Strong analytical and research skills.
• Good drafting and reporting abilities.
• Ability to engage with local communities and stakeholders respectfully and effectively.
• Good organizational and coordination skills.
• Ability to work in a multicultural and multi-ethnic environment.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to support project implementation and monitoring.
• Computer literacy, including MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Proficiency in one of the AU working languages (Arabic, English, French, Kiswahili, Portuguese, and Spanish) is mandatory and fluency in another AU language is an added advantage.

Skills

• Public Administration
• Institutional Capacity Building
• Trust Building Initiatives
• Dialogue Facilitation
• Social Cohesion
• Negotiation
• Mediation
• Political Analysis
• Report Writing
• Conflict Analysis
• Stakeholder Analysis
• Decision Making
• Cultural Sensitivity
• Community Engagement
• Non-State Actor Engagement
• Research Skills
• Project Implementation
• Project Monitoring
• Organizational Skills
• Coordination Skills
• MS Word
• Excel
• Power Point

Languages

Arabic, English, French, Kiswahili, Portuguese, Spanish