Turkey: Government Relations Assistant

General Description of the Programme:

GOAL an International Humanitarian Organisation has had a presence in Turkey since 2013 and has been contributing to the migrant response since 2016 with a focus on responding to needs in health service delivery, social safety nets and the protection of vulnerable and marginalised migrants in southern Turkey.

GOAL has been working in Syria since 2013, responding to the acute needs of conflict-affected communities. GOAL is working in Idleb Governate, both through direct implementation and through partners, delivering food, non-food programming to highly vulnerable populations, and provision of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) through support to Water units, as well as emergency support to recently displaced households.

Job purpose:

The Government Relations Assistant reports to, and assisting the, Government Relations Manager in the overall management of GOALs relationship with Turkish Authorities at all levels. He/she will assist GOAL liaise with relevant local authorities in Gaziantep and other cities in Turkey following up provincial level authorities’ legal practices, changing rules and regulations and practices regarding humanitarian response. He/she has to foresee the probable risks in advance and inform Government Relations Manager asap and seek advice.

Duties, objectives and competencies

Key Responsibilities

• Turkish Citizenship
• Assist the communication at the provincial level and support Government Relations Manager,
• Attends coordination meetings in the absence of Government Relations Manager,
• Provide regular updates about Government Relations developments,
• Assisting program staff to ensure and enable appropriate and compliant implementation together with partners’ liaison focal points,
• Submission of legal letters regarding GOAL’s Operations and other matters as needed,
• Obtain staff access permissions as needed,
• Monitor load/unload process in AFAD Çobanbey Warehouse as needed,
• With e support of the GRM act as focal point for GOAL programmes implemented in Turkey,
• Liaise with local partners and provide support and guidance on activity permissions and approvals,
• Drafts reports and briefs regularly and provide up to date information to line manager and relevant senior management

Other Duties

The post holder may be requested to undertake other activities as mutually agreed with the Government Relations Manager. This Job Description is intended as a guide to the position and is subject to change at GOAL’s discretion.

Requirements (essential)

• One (1) year working experience in Government Relations/Liaison department or Accountable experience within a humanitarian program or similar
• Understanding Turkish rules and regulations with respect to humanitarian response to Syrian Community living in Turkey
• Fluency in Turkish. Advanced drafting and reporting skills.
• Good communication, interpersonal and motivational skills.
• Strong diplomatic skills
• Familiarity with MS Office programs/applications
• Ability to draft reports weekly/monthly/quarterly
• Good team player, flexible and capable of working with a multinational country team, and capable of working under pressure.

Requirements (desired)

• English literacy is an advantage.
• Experience and skills in developing and maintaining relations with official authorities

Suitably qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

General terms and conditions

GOAL has a Staff Code of Conduct and a Child Protection Policy, which have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants and children from exploitation. GOAL also has a confidentiality policy ensuring the non-disclosure of any information whatsoever relating to the practices and business of GOAL, acquired in the course of duty, to any other person or organisation without authority, except in the normal execution of duty. Any candidate offered a job with GOAL will be expected to adhere to these policies any job offer made is also subject to police clearance. GOAL is an equal opportunities employer.

This Job Description only serves as a guide for the position available. GOAL reserves the right to change this document. Any published closing dates are estimated. Due to the nature of GOAL’s work we aim to fill vacancies as quickly as possible. This means that we will close adverts as soon as we have found the right candidate and this may be before the published closing date. We would therefore advise interested applicants to submit an application as early as possible.

Interested? Then apply for this position via clicking on the "**apply now**" button and fill out the application form. All applicants must send a cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages). Both must be in English. Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

The application deadline is 31 January 2019.

Thank you.