About Women for Women International (WfWI)

WfWI invests in women in 17 conflict-affected countries around the world as they rebuild their lives. We invest where inequality is the greatest by supporting women who are survivors of war and conflict. Our programs connect them to the skills they need to rebuild their families and communities, and to transform their lives. The women in our direct delivery programs engage in community cohorts who practice to build and use savings, build and maintain businesses, earn and increase income, understand, maintain, and enjoy their rights, improve their health and the health of their families, and participate towards transformation for themselves, their families, and communities. For over 30 years, Women for Women International has used an integrated approach to innovate; we are a learning organization that listens to data, our country teams, and individual and groups of women themselves to constantly evolve and improve the way we work. 

Participants of our program receive vocational training for jobs like animal husbandry, tailoring and knitting, participate in savings and self-help groups, and learn to invest in their businesses as they receive stipends. They practice supporting decision-making in their households, and work together, with their families and power-holders, to create social change in their communities. WfWI progamming includes men’s engagement, where male family members and community leaders are engaged through programming as allies and key supporters.

WfWI also support grassroots and local organizations, led by women community leaders, to gain access to resources and strengthen capacity with agility and without undue burden, to improve their ability to respond to their organization and their community’s self-identified priorities. Globally, WfWI works to bring women’s participation, voice, and leadership to all tables where they are central to the decisions that affect them. From macro-global issues like climate-change, to micro-context issues like polio eradication, through listening to women we build evidences bases to engage decision-makers at every level to transformatively sustain an enabling environment for women in war and conflict-affected contexts.

Since 2002, we have operated in three regions of Afghanistan. In our 2024 – 2026 strategic period, we will scale where we are, and increase our geographic regions of operation.

Purpose of the Role

The External Liaison will work closely with Safety and Access, Programs, Logistics, and the Senior Management Team to support smooth access across operational areas, and within ministry frameworks. This includes supporting MoU processes, community leader engagement, local authority engagement, problem prevention and problem solving, and visa and work permit processes.

The External Liaison will support internal and external responsiveness and consistent engagement with stakeholders, support representation, and maintain WfWI’s reputational strength particularly vis-à-vis the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

The External Liaison is responsible for staying abreast of local and national news, policy, and regulation movements and announcements, both local, national, and international related to Afghanistan, and of ensuring that necessary updates are relayed to the SMT and responsibly inform decision-making.

The External Liaison will advise and support security, programmatic, and operational decisions, based on information, recommendations, and experiences shared from counterparts and other actors.

Engagement

Internal Relations

• • Maintain strict confidentiality, expecting a high level of access to sensitive information.
  • Work within the SMT and with the Country Director to resolve issues pragmatically, compassionately, and in a timely manner with appropriate follow-up.
• Engage meaningfully in initiatives to support a growth-oriented, positive, productive workplace.
• Foster an open door or other systems for all staff to discuss issues of a confidential nature.
• Support investigations for reported employee grievances, as assigned, working with the Country Director, SMT members, and Global PCC diligently and systematically.

Externa Engagement and Representation

• As first or second line of engagement with many internal and external stakeholders, including authorities, internal and sector colleagues, and others, represent WfWI with impeccable respect, responsiveness, eloquence, and integrity.
• Be consistently prepared to represent SMT internally or externally as needed.
• Support all teams in external representation.
• Support the development and implementation of representation and engagement communications protocols together with the SMT, PCC, Safety and Access, Advocacy, and Communications colleagues in Afghanistan and globally.

Disability, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB)

• Support the rollout of organizational WfWI DEIB policies, and staff onboardings and trainings in close coordination with the Global and Afghanistan PCC teams.
• Supporting PCC team’s monitor and reporting on DEIB rollout.

Delivery

General Duties

• Represent WFWI with the Ministries of Economy, Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, Ministry of Higher Education (TVET), Ministry of Martyrs and Disability, and any relevant ministries or departments that require official or other representation by WFWI in relation to securing access for programs, including necessary approvals, and access for staff, including work and visa permits, and any other matters related to government/authority engagement in Afghanistan.
• As per any assigned delegation of authority, sign official letters that are submitted to relevant government authorities, or coordinate appropriate signatures from designated signatory (usually the Country Director).
• Conduct multi-pronged risk assessments and SWOT analyses of proposed program areas prior to assessments, registration, expansion, or geographic or programmatic program creep, utilizing responsible and diverse sources of information.
• Provide strategic and operational security information analysis and reports to provide consolidated and coherent information to CD, SMT, and other relevant colleagues.
• Strategically and practically support incident, emergency, and crisis response efforts, including major situations necessitating the hibernation or relocation of project staff.
• Establish, develop, and responsibly and ethically leverage a network of multi-level interlocutors inside Afghanistan from NGO, international community, and the de facto authorities.
• Support the administration and security units to ensure that all new employees and visiting WfWI international staff, as well as other relevant visitors to WfWI – Afghanistan, are provided with comprehensive and context specific orientations and briefings to include contextual analysis, standards operating procedures, and emergency response procedures.
• Conduct regular meetings with senior Afghan civil authorities and community leaders to establish effectiveness of program, to hear concerns, challenges, and recommendations, and to support participant and staff safeguarding.
• Meet regularly with Country Director and contribute WfWI’s Afghanistan strategic planning process, including discussion on strategic, safe, feasible, and innovative ways to implement program operation and activities.
• Seek continued improvement in delivery of access, government, and other partner engagement best practices.
• Provide strategic leadership, vision, and management to the WFWI’s access, engagement, and safety team members, in particular coordinating closely with security supervisor(s) of WfWI – Afghanistan, with support to transport and other access related activities.
• Support development and delivery of safety, access, and inclusion trainings and initiatives.
• Provide any other support to WfWI – Afghanistan within team member’s competencies and willingness, following discussion and agreement with line supervisor.

Other Responsibilities

All our staff are required to adhere to WfWI’s Code of Conduct, Safeguarding, Anti-Fraud and Corruption, and Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) policies, and to WfWI’s:

Leadership Principles                                   Organizational Values

Decisive                                                          Empowerment         

Accountable                                                   Integrity        

Courageous                                                   Respect

Adaptable                                                      Resilience      

Inclusive

Qualifications and Skills

• Master Degree, or equivalent, required; please specify relevance of degrees(s) to work.
• At least three years of progressive experience leading engagement and external liaison functions.
• Demonstrated ability to work within a Senior Management Team to assess complex issues pragmatically, within parameters of established humanitarian principles, and organizational ethics.
• Fluent written and verbal Dari, Pashto language skills; please expect written fluency testing.
• Willing and able to travel to sub-offices as needed as well as travel internationally.
• Demonstrated ability to take decisions proactively, work autonomously, and solicit team and leadership support when appropriate.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, strong use of logic and creativity.
• Impeccable integrity.
• Impeccable verbal and/or written communications skills, able to adapt to various levels of professionals and various internal and external stakeholders; able to quickly apply feedback.
• Evolved and growth-oriented interpersonal engagement and communication skills. Ability to establish and maintain working relationships in a multicultural, multiethnic environment.
• Meticulous, consistent respect for confidentiality, and reinforcement of confidentiality as culture.
• Ability to interact with and lead employees at various levels, with confidence and humility.
• Proven negotiation and advocacy skills establishing and using networks to achieve desired results within categories of positive change.
• Knowledge of access, engagement, and safety best practices and willingness to develop in-depth knowledge of WfWI and other relevant access, engagement, and safety policies and procedures.
• Ability to use computer applications such as Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint for information management and communication.
• Demonstrates leadership, versality and integrity.
• Proactive in developing teams, systems, practices, and a positive and joyful workplace.
• Conscientious towards establishing and maintaining principle-centered working relationships, including disclosure of any family, business, or other relationships and affiliations.
• Demonstrated ability to navigate Afghanistan’s laws and regulations, and to effectively, respectfully, responsibly, and ethically manage contextual and extraordinary complexities.
• Committed to progress in the workplace, including progress in equity for all, diversity, inclusion, and belonging.

Submission Guidelines for Vacancy

Thank you for your interest in applying for this position. To ensure your application is complete and considered, please follow the steps outlined below:

1. Application Process

Please submit your application by completing the online form at the following link:
👉 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KYK72QN

2. Survey Details

The application form contains 36 questions, most of which require brief responses. Some may ask for more detailed explanations, so please take the time to provide clear, thoughtful, and accurate answers.

3. Answer Carefully

Please ensure that you answer all questions thoroughly. Incomplete, vague, or unclear responses may result in your application not being shortlisted.

4. Submission Deadline

This vacancy will remain open until the position is filled. However, we will begin our first round of shortlisting 14 days after the announcement.
We strongly encourage early applications to ensure timely consideration.We sincerely appreciate your time and interest in joining our team. 
We look forward to reviewing your application!