HIV and AIDS Advocacy Adviser

Working alongside the Malawi Network of Religious Leaders living with or personally affected by HIV and AIDS (MANERELA+)
Based in Lilongwe, Malawi
Two-year placement (with the possibility of renewal)

The HIV and AIDS Advocacy Adviser will work alongside the Malawi Network of Religious Leaders living with or personally affected by HIV and AIDS (MANERELA+) in facilitating the process of building the capacity of staff and religious leaders in MANERELA+ in the area of advocacy on HIV and AIDS, including sexual and reproductive health and rights. The project will first deal with some of the barriers preventing the partner in this project from developing a holistic response to HIV. S/he will be required to identify skills and performance gaps and work with counterparts to come up with initiatives to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of advocacy interventions being implemented by the faith community at all levels in Malawi.

This placement is part of a project on promoting Effective HIV Responses through Improved HIV and AIDS Advocacy and Management Capacity Development with Malawi Civil Society, which includes two other partners, and two other Progressio development workers. The project aims to contibute to HIV prevention, mitigating its impact, especially amongst women and girls, through the greater and positive involvement of women, men, girls and boys themselves, and religious and community leaders in dealing with stigma, denial, discrimination, inaction and mis-action, and also through advocacy for policy change and effective HIV and AIDS programming.

You should have a Master’s Degree in Mass Communication/Journalism or Education, Social Sciences, Development Studies, or related fields.

You should have at least five years’ experience in advocacy, HIV and AIDS programming, including campaign planning, implementation, participatory monitoring and evaluation; a minimum of three years’ experience of developing, implementing and monitoring effective advocacy strategies to respond to HIV, and the organisational development of NGOs and/or community based organisations. It is also essential to have proven experience/expertise in programme implementation using rights-based approaches, and of working in a multi-cultural setting, with people of different educational, cultural, socio-political and faith backgrounds.

An understanding of participatory capacity building techniques and methods, and the ability to transfer skills and knowledge through formal or informal training and skill-sharing; excellent analytical skills in policy analysis; in-depth knowledge of governance issues; an ability to promote a gender-sensitive approach; excellent leadership, interpersonal and communication skills, including the ability to communicate and work with a wide range of stakeholders in a participatory, respectful, consultative manner, and to enhance effective work relationships; maturity and sound political judgement; good problem solving skills, an openness to learning, and a drive for innovation and excellence; excellent project management, self-organising and prioritising skills to meet competing deadlines, including the ability to plan and implement own work with limited support; an ability to adapt skills and knowledge to local context and work with existing resources, in a resource poor environment, and a demonstrable ability to engage with potential national, regional and international donors and mobilise resources are essential. You must also have empathy with and readiness to work with people living with or affected by HIV.