Chief, Political Affairs and Advocacy Branch

The Chief, Political Affairs and Advocacy Branch leads the branch within the Office of the Executive Director, providing strategic political advice, Member State engagement, and advocacy support to UNFPA's executive leadership. The role involves advising on geopolitical developments, coordinating high-level political engagement, and managing the branch to advance UNFPA's mandate and priorities.

Responsibilities

• Advise the Executive Director, Chief of Staff and other members of executive leadership on geopolitical developments, Member State positions and emerging political trends relevant to UNFPA’s mandate, strategic priorities and institutional positioning.
• Provide timely situational awareness, political analysis and forward-looking advice on emerging opportunities, sensitivities and risks requiring executive leadership attention.
• Direct the preparation of political briefs, country and regional profiles, stakeholder analysis, strategic advice and other products to support executive decision-making and engagement.
• Maintain an integrated overview of political developments and Member State dynamics relevant to UNFPA and identify implications for institutional positioning and executive engagement.
• Draw together political intelligence and analysis from headquarters, regional and country offices and relevant external sources to support informed executive decision-making.
• Identify opportunities for proactive political engagement and advise executive leadership on approaches to complex or sensitive political issues.
• Lead and coordinate executive-level engagement strategies with Member States, ensuring sustained, coherent and differentiated engagement across geographic and political constituencies.
• Advise the Executive Director and Chief of Staff on the prioritization, objectives, sequencing and approach for engagement with Heads of State and Government, ministers, Permanent Representatives and other senior government officials.
• Oversee the substantive and strategic preparation of executive leadership for high-level bilateral and group engagements, ensuring timely coordination of political analysis, substantive inputs, strategic objectives and recommended approaches.
• Represent OED, as appropriate, in meetings and consultations with Member State delegations, regional and political groups and other high-level stakeholders, conveying executive leadership priorities and ensuring appropriate follow-up.
• Maintain a strategic overview of executive leadership engagement with Member States to support continuity, institutional memory and informed prioritization.
• Ensure systematic follow-up on executive-level engagements and commitments, working across relevant business units to facilitate coordinated and timely action.
• Lead the development of political advocacy strategies to strengthen understanding and support for UNFPA’s mandate and strategic priorities among Member States and other high-level political stakeholders.
• Advise executive leadership on opportunities to position UNFPA’s mandate, evidence and comparative advantage in major political and multilateral discussions.
• Guide targeted political outreach on emerging issues, strategic priorities and matters requiring sustained executive-level engagement.
• Oversee the development of tailored political narratives, arguments and advocacy approaches for different Member State constituencies and political contexts, in close coordination with substantive and communications teams.
• Build and maintain trusted relationships with Permanent Missions, senior government officials and other relevant political stakeholders.
• Support executive leadership engagement with regional and political groups and other relevant high-level constituencies.
• Advise on and support the prioritization of high-level political meetings, official visits, missions and engagements involving executive leadership.
• Oversee coordinated preparation and follow-up for official visits and high-level engagements involving Heads of State and Government, ministers, Permanent Representatives and other senior political stakeholders.
• Ensure appropriate diplomatic and protocol arrangements for executive leadership engagements, working with relevant UN, host-country and organizational counterparts.
• Facilitate coordination across headquarters, regional and country offices to ensure that executive-level political engagements are informed by country and regional contexts and contribute to broader organizational priorities.
• Ensure that political engagement, strategic advocacy and communications are appropriately aligned while maintaining clear functional responsibilities.
• Provide strategic leadership and overall management of the Political Affairs and Advocacy Branch, establishing priorities and ensuring high-quality and timely delivery of its work programme.
• Lead, manage and develop Branch personnel, fostering a collaborative, accountable and high-performing team culture.
• Establish effective mechanisms for political intelligence, engagement planning, relationship management, institutional memory and systematic follow-up.
• Ensure close and effective collaboration with the Executive Front Office, Executive Board Branch, Strategic Leadership Communications Unit, Division for External Relations, regional offices, country offices and other relevant business units.
• Ensure that the Branch’s work complements and does not duplicate the formal responsibilities of organizational units responsible for Executive Board governance, UN system and intergovernmental affairs and public funding and financing.
• Perform other duties as may be required by the Chief of Staff and Executive Director.

Requirements

• Advanced university degree (minimum Master’s degree or equivalent) in political science, international relations, international economics, law, public administration, public policy, development studies or another related field.
• A minimum of 15 years of progressively responsible professional experience at the national and international levels in political affairs, diplomacy, international relations, multilateral affairs, strategic advocacy, development cooperation or a related field.
• Extensive experience in providing strategic and political advice to senior executive leadership in an international, governmental or multilateral setting.
• Demonstrated experience engaging with Member States, governments, Permanent Missions, regional or political groups and senior government officials.
• Strong understanding of geopolitical dynamics, multilateral processes and the United Nations system.
• Demonstrated ability to analyse complex political developments and translate them into concise, actionable advice for senior leadership.
• Extensive experience preparing political analysis, strategic briefings, talking points, engagement strategies and other advisory products for senior leaders.
• Demonstrated experience developing and implementing engagement and advocacy strategies across diverse political and regional contexts.
• Strong diplomatic, negotiation and relationship management skills and demonstrated ability to build trust across diverse political and cultural constituencies.
• Demonstrated leadership and management experience, including the ability to lead multidisciplinary teams and coordinate work across organizational boundaries.
• Experience working in or directly with an executive office, senior government office or comparable senior leadership environment is highly desirable.
• Experience in the United Nations system or a comparable international organization is highly desirable.
• Knowledge of population and development, sexual and reproductive health and rights, gender equality, humanitarian affairs or related development issues is desirable.
• Fluency in English is required;
• Working knowledge of another official UN language is an asset.

Skills

• Political Affairs
• Diplomacy
• International Relations
• Multilateral affairs
• Strategic Policy Advocacy
• Development Cooperation
• Political Analysis
• Strategic Briefing Preparation
• Engagement Strategies
• Advocacy Strategies
• Geopolitical Dynamics
• Multilateral Processes
• United Nations System
• Political Advice to Senior Leadership
• Diplomatic Negotiation
• Relationship Management
• Leadership and People Management
• Cross-Functional Coordination

Languages

English