Main purpose of job

Security and Justice is a key strategic pillar of the UK’s work in both Jamaica and the wider Caribbean (Economic Prosperity and Climate Change Resilience are the other two pillars). The main purpose of this role is to lead and ensure – working with the UK’s wider Caribbean network – a cohesive and joined up offer on Governance, Security and Justice both in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. The role will enhance the UK’s political networks and understanding on wider Governance, Security and Justice issues both in Jamaica and the region. 

This role will be crucial in ensuring that programmatic interventions, currently focusing on Jamaica, inform strategic approaches to strengthening the wider regions capabilities on security and Justice as well as the regions abilities to tackle the root causes of violence, including gender-based violence

The role will be anchored in the British High Commission in Kingston, but with a strong outward facing regional focus. The role will work closely with the Serious Organised Crime Network coordinator to ensure a cohesive UK offer on security and justice.

Roles and responsibilities

Strategic oversight:

• You will play a leading role in informing the UK’s wider Caribbean regional governance and security agenda in line with strategic priorities for the Caribbean, securing buy-in from Caribbean Heads of Mission, drawing on a network of political officers and experts from both Jamaica and within the wider regional team, including the Serious and Organised Crime Network (SOCnet) team.
• Ensure the UK’s Governance, Security and Justice strategic engagements for both Jamaica and the wider Caribbean are informed by strong political economy analysis.
• Analyse key governance trends across the Caribbean with a particular focus on current and potential drivers of serious and organised crime and violence including enablers such as corruption and illicit financial flows.
• Strategically support the UK’s approach to addressing violence against women and girls.
• Work closely with UK Partners Across Government (PAGs) with interests in/roles related to the areas of responsibility. 
• Lead FCDO’s relationships with key international bodies and mechanisms related to areas of responsibility.

Programme leadership:

• Act as the lead advisor for designing and implementing the UK’s new flagship Regional Security and Justice Programme (currently in the design phase), ensuring that programme interventions contribute to a cohesive UK offer for enhancing security and Justice in the region.
• Provide leadership and advisory oversight for the UK’s Violence Prevention and Serious Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption programmes exploring opportunities for taking lessons from Jamaica into the region as part of the new Regional Security and Justice programme.
• Ensure the programme portfolio is delivering its ambition, through effective monitoring and evaluation, driving and managing performance by encouraging an open discussion on failure and lesson learning and ensuring opportunities to adapt and improve are seized.
• Provide oversight for programme and team budgets and role modelling effective financial management practices and disciplines.

Resources managed (staff and expenditure):

• As the UK iterates its approach and strategy to strengthen its regional focus, it is anticipated that this role will assume line management responsibilities, which will be defined in the future.
• Budget oversight.

Whilst this role is focussed on governance, security & justice, you will be expected to contribute/support the wider mission’s objectives by working collaboratively with other teams across the BHC in Kingston to ensure coherence between regional and bilateral initiatives. 

Given the regional element to this role, there is an anticipation for the successful candidate to travel regularly in the region.

• Applied Governance and Political Economy Analysis: The ability to understand and explain the governance and political economy of Caribbean states and territories, the interactions between them and with the wider world and Caribbean identities and governance challenges. Within this, key issues are the challenges facing SIDS, (including from climate change but also underlying political, social and economic factors influencing state development), the complex and dynamic relationships between the UK and Caribbean countries and territories (legacy social, economic, policy impacts of slavery, demands for reparations, debates around institutions such as the Monarchy, modern partnerships), economic and social integration and impact of external actors (illicit financial flows/drugs trade, tourism), challenges of regional integration, external and internal drivers of crime and violence.  This role requires drawing on this analysis to influence/guide FCDO policy across the region working with political officers.

• Security, Justice and Human Rights: Ability to provide strategic advice, policy direction and programme leadership on security and justice, working with HMG, country and international partners. Ability to apply political and institutional analysis to the challenges of the sector and use this to inform advice and programming. This role benefits from an understanding of the theories behind tackling serious and organised crime, the public health approach to violence prevention, community security in urban settings, the role of specialised court systems and the role and approach of a variety of HMG Government Departments.

• Anti-Corruption: Understanding the causes and effects of corruption in countries, including the political drivers and technical challenges, as well as corruption’s transnational and multi-sectoral nature. Ability to provide strategic advice, work across other UK government departments and internationally, and design and deliver programmes and strategies on corruption. In addition, this role benefits from an understanding of the interlinkages between major corruption and serious and organised crime.

• Public Sector Governance and Service Delivery: Knowledge of public sector governance at national and local levels and Application in particular service delivery sectors especially in relation to climate finance and implementation of infrastructure projects. Ability to apply political and institutional analysis and use this to inform work around civil service and sector reform processes. This role benefits from an understanding of why reform succeeds and fails when initiatives require actions across multiple government departments, the risks and rewards of centralised delivery capability and organisational development theory. 

• Excellent stakeholder management and communication skills, overall excellent leadership skills, confidence in acting as a main point of contact.
• Minimum 10 years’ practitioner experience in areas of governance, security and justice.
• Legal status to live and work in Jamaica in your own right, from time of application.