View Vacancy – Senior Political Adviser (Foreign Policy)- C4, Islamabad

Note : All applicants are required to mandatorily fill the complete online application form including the employment and educational details, motivational segment and the competency based questions. We will be thoroughly reviewing the application forms only for all the required details. Forms that are incomplete in any respect will not be considered while shortlisting for the next stage.

Please note that due to Covid-19 outbreak, the start date of employment mentioned in the advert is tentative, subject to normal business of British High Commission. All recruitment campaigns will remain open for applications, we will progress the recruitment process as swiftly as possible and continue to review all applications, monitor progress and developments. We will be in touch with you for the interviews/ should there be further updates on the application, however given the circumstances, kindly expect some delay in response and please reach out to [email protected], if you have any further questions.

This is a fixed term position for 2 years.

Main purpose of job:

To provide political analysis and understanding on Pakistan’s relationship with India, China, and Russia. To help strengthen the BHC contact network to support UK policy work.

Your reporting, advice and support to senior leaders in the mission, teams across BHC Islamabad, FCDO HQ in the UK, and other Whitehall departments, will help to shape how HM Government achieves its objectives in Pakistan and the region. You will need to produce high quality written reports, using excellent drafting skills, with limited supervision.

You will need to ensure that senior leaders have the right contacts to be able to understand Pakistan and achieve BHC Islamabad’s objectives. In addition, you will need to develop and maintain your own network of contacts to inform your reporting and advice. You will need a strong understanding of the foreign policy architecture within Pakistani civilian and military institutions. You will play a leading role in the coordination of events and visits that advance BHC objectives.

You will also be required to provide guidance to junior colleagues, including embedding organisational vision and values.

Roles and Responsibilities:

Understanding and reporting- 40%

• Use network of contacts to inform reporting on and monitoring of regional political developments, including Indo-Pak relations, China, Russia and the impact thereof.
• Support the Regional Stability team to provide informed, strategically-aware advice to UK policy-makers on all aspects of the Indo-Pak and regional relationships and assist the CSSF Projects Team in implementing relevant Indo-Pak specific programming.
• Provide timely and strategically-aware reporting on Kashmir, as a political entity, and as key to relations between India and Pakistan.
• Undertake proactive and reactive open source research on topics of interest to the BHC, verify this research with expert contacts and use it to increase depth and breadth of understanding.
• Lead in compiling a fortnightly political report, which goes to the BHC, a senior readership in FCDO HQ, and government departments across Whitehall.

Engagement and network management- 30%

• Maintain a diverse network of contacts and use this network to inform our understanding and engagement with contacts in Pakistan Government, Civil Society and Media constituencies to support UK priorities across Pakistan.
• Provide effective advice on BHC engagement with key influencers in and out of the Pakistani foreign policy system.

Political advice to BHC teams and HQ- 10%

• Support the BHC, including the High Commissioner, with political advice when needed, and identify and notify of opportunities to deliver against UK priorities.
• Provide advice to HQ when needed.

Leadership- 10%

• Help the political support officer to monitor regional security issues and produce timely reporting and analysis on key developments.

Visits and Events Organisation- 10%

• Organise, accompany and support senior staff on visits and produce timely and informative records of meetings.
• Plan regular BHC visits to Pakistan-administered Kashmir to meet politicians and other stakeholders.
• Co-ordinate events (receptions, dinners) to support BHC objectives, including proposing events, compiling guest lists, overseeing administration to ensure success and on occasion attending to provide support.

Learning and development opportunities:

The BHC actively supports learning and development. There will be opportunities for formal L&D development in the UK, Dubai and locally as well as structured learning on the job and coaching and mentoring opportunities.

Essential:

• Deep knowledge of Pakistani politics, state institutions, and key influencers.
• Relevant experience of interacting with political parties, government bureaucracy and civil society organisations.
• Experience of political influencing.
• Proven ability to develop and maintain effective professional networks.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills.
• An excellent command of written and spoken English and Urdu.
• High standard of accuracy and attention to detail.
• A proactive and dynamic individual with a can-do attitude, who works well in a team.
• Be well organised and able to demonstrate flexibility.
• Ability to think creatively to solve problems, sometimes under pressure and multi-task.
• Have a track record in managing and prioritising your workload.
• Confidence and commitment to deliver with minimal supervision.
• A Bachelor’s degree; ideally in International Relations or similar.
• Have strong computer skills (particularly MS Word, Excel and Outlook).
• Three years relevant experience of interacting with political parties, government bureaucracy and civil society organisations.
• A pre-existing network within political parties, government bureaucracy, and civil society organisations.

Language Requirements

Language: English and Urdu.

Level of language required: Exceptional command of written and spoken English and Urdu.