JOB DESCRIPTION
| Job Title: | Adviser – Human Rights and Social Development |
|---|---|
| Division: | Human Rights and Social Development Division (HRSD) |
| Location: | Suva, Fiji |
| Reporting to: | Team Leader – Governance and Institutional Strengthening |
| Number of Direct Reports: | 1-2 |
| Purpose of Role: | The Adviser will provide technical advice, assistance and capacity building under the HRSD work programme. As the role requires working across the objectives of the HRSD work programme, the Adviser will have a matrix reporting relationship with other Team Leaders in this regard. |
| Date: | October 2026 |
Organizational Context and Organization Chart
The vision of the Human Rights and Social Development Division (HRSD) is for just, equitable and resilient Pacific societies and it aims to achieve this by advancing human rights, equality and social inclusion for all Pacific people, grounded in cultural values and principles.
HRSD provides a comprehensive suite of policy and legislative advice, technical assistance and capacity building, through a team comprising a Director, Programme Manager, Team Leaders, Advisers, Officers and Project Coordinators based in Suva, and Country Focal Officers and Country Project Officers located across the Pacific. The team provides advice, technical assistance and capacity building to national ministries, civil society, regional partners and other national/regional partners, as well as through mainstreaming within SPC programmes.
In line with its vision, the work of HRSD encompasses the following objectives:
Objective 1: Pacific governments and state institutions are strong, transparent and responsive for upholding and advancing human rights and good governance, gender equality, social inclusion, and positive expressions of Pacific culture.
Objective 2: Pacific civil society is able to advocate for and realise human rights and good governance, gender equality, social inclusion, and the right to practice positive expressions of Pacific culture.
Objective 3: Positive expressions of Pacific culture are safeguarded, promoted and integrated across our work to support human rights, gender equality and social inclusion.
Objective 4: SPC programs and operations apply the people-centred approach and uphold and advance human rights and good governance, gender equality and social inclusion, and positive expressions of Pacific culture.
Objective 5: HRSD works collaboratively, coherently and deficiently to deliver quality outcomes that uphold and advance human rights and good governance, gender equality and social inclusion, and positive expressions of Pacific culture.
Key Result Areas (KRAs):
KRA#1: Provide technical assistance and support on human rights and gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) – 30%
KRA#2: Human rights and GESI capacities and skills development – 30%
KRA#3: Support stakeholder engagement, networking and coordination – 20%
KRA#4: Project management and people management – 20%
The performance requirements of the Key Result Areas are broadly described below
| Jobholder is accountable for | Jobholder is successful when |
|---|---|
| KRA#1: Provide technical assistance and support on human rights and GESI • Support governments and civil society organisations in Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) to implement and deliver on | • Quality and timely technical assistance and support, including knowledge products, |
| human rights and GESI commitments, including through human rights mechanisms. - Support governments and civil society organisations in PICTs to implement and deliver on climate change and human rights priorities, with a particular focus on implementing and progressing the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion (ICJAO) on Climate Change and Human Rights. - Support Pacific Island Countries in the establishment and strengthening of their National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) - Conduct research, legal and policy analysis on key and emerging regional human rights, gender and social inclusion issues in line with PICTs' priorities. - Engage in national, regional and international fora, mechanisms and processes for the purposes of integrating human rights and GESI perspectives in policies and programs. - Support integrated programming and mainstreaming of People Centered Approaches to Development across SPC. - Work with the other Advisers and the Social Innovation and Knowledge Management team to develop ideas and concepts for the advancement of human rights and GESI in the region. - Support monitoring, evaluation and learning for projects, programmes and activities. | research, legal and policy analysis is provided consistently with annual work plan. - PICTs and other stakeholders provide positive feedback on technical assistance, advice and engagement and continue to request TA. - Evidence of human rights and GESI in integrated programming and mainstreaming across SPC. - Evidence of quality technical assistance being provided towards the establishment and strengthening of NHRIs. - TA and support on human rights and GESI provided to the activities of the GESI One CROP team within various regional and international Climate Change and Environmental meetings. - TA and support being provided towards the implementation of the ICJAO - TA and support on human rights and GESI are delivered in a coordinated way across programmes and teams. - MEL and reporting requirements are met. - Quality and timely inputs into the development of concepts for project and programme proposals for the Division and across SPC. |
|---|---|
| KRA#2: Human rights and GESI capacities and skills development - Identify needs for development of capacities and skills for PICTs and other stakeholders. - Develop and deliver capacity building on human rights and GESI through multiple modalities. - Develop and deliver capacity building material on Climate Change, Environment and Human Rights. - Support the capacity development needs of NHRIs. - Support capacity strengthening needs of PICTs to engage with human rights mechanisms. - Monitoring and evaluation of capacity building is conducted to meet desired outcomes. - Continuous review and adaptation of capacity building and skills development materials inform by learning. | - HRSD staff's knowledge enhanced through development and circulation of training/other materials and internal training activities on thematic focal areas. - Quality and contextualized capacity building and skills development programmes, tools and guidelines are developed and delivered in line with PICTs priorities and work plan. - Positive evaluation from participants regarding capacity and skills development initiatives. - Timely completion of capacity building and skills development reports capturing evaluation data and lessons learnt. - Capacity building and skills development material are adapted and current. |
| KRA#3: Stakeholder engagement, networking and coordination - Support stakeholder engagement, networking and coordination to advance divisional objectives at national, regional and institutional levels. | - Partners are regularly informed of divisional work at country level. - New opportunities are identified to advance divisional objectives. |
| - Engage in working groups, task forces and other technical committees. - Represent SPC at national, regional and international forums as delegated by the Director. | - Stakeholders provide positive feedback through written and oral communications. - Division representation and inputs are acknowledged as required. |
|---|---|
| KRA#4: Project management and people management - Manage and report on the delivery of projects, programmes and activities. - Collaborate with in country staff to develop implement, monitor and report against project, programmes and activities work plans and budgets. - Manage the leave approvals, management plans and performance appraisals of Country Focal Officers (CFOs) as required. - Collaborate with CFOs and in country focal points to develop, implement, monitor and report against CFOs' work plans and budgets. | - In country programs/projects deliver quality outcomes, consistent with annual work plans and budgets. - CFOs, country project staff, in country supervisor provide feedback that the collaboration of the Adviser contributes positively to project, programme and activities delivery. - Timely and quality reporting of interventions are completed to a high standard. |
The above performance requirements are provided as a guide only. The precise performance measures for this job will need further discussion between the jobholder and supervisor as part of the performance development process.
Most Challenging Duties Typically Undertaken (Complexity):
- Navigating diverse religious, political and cultural contexts to advance human rights and GESI.
- Managing work plan deliverables with remote staff.
- Providing technical advice and support for PICTs senior government officials and other leaders to advance human rights and GESI.
- Continually adapting work delivery to respond to current and emerging human rights and GESI issues.
- Communicating complex human rights and GESI concepts to influence a wide range of audiences.
Functional Relationships & Relationship Skills:
| Key internal and/or external contacts | Nature of the contact most typical |
|---|---|
| External Key external contacts are: - PICTs focal points (minister level and lower) including CSOs - Funding and development partners - Other regional and international agencies - Consultants - Researchers/academics | - Responding to request for information, technical assistance and support - Reporting (activity/outcome and financial), various committees and working groups - Coordination & delivery of work programme, including technical assistance - Negotiating, influencing and securing cooperation and collaboration - Engaging in communities of learning, information and practice - Representing SPC |
| Internal Key internal contacts are: - Division Director - Division Team Leaders | - Reporting (activity/outcome and financial) Programme delivery against outcomes - Finance, MEL, results reporting. - Supporting coordination and collaboration for integrated programming and implementation of PCA. |
| - Division team including CFOs and country project staff - Other SPC Technical Divisions and programmes - OMD, including SPL and other internal support services |
|---|
Level of Delegation:
Routine Expenditure Budget: 0
Budget Sign off Authority without requiring approval from direct supervisor: 0
Personal Specification:
This section is designed to capture the expertise required for the role at the 100% fully effective level. (This does not necessarily reflect what the current position holder has.) This may be a combination of knowledge / experience, qualifications or equivalent level of learning through experience or key skills, attributes or job specific competencies.
Qualifications
| Essential: | Desirable: |
|---|---|
| - A postgraduate qualification in development, human rights, law, gender, international relations or other relevant social science from a recognised university or equivalent work experience or equivalent body of knowledge and experience. | - Master’s degree in a relevant field of Social Science. - Specific training qualification on human rights, gender and social inclusion. - Diploma or certificate courses in project management. |
Knowledge/Experience
| Essential: | Desirable: |
|---|---|
| - At least 7 years of development experience in human rights, gender equality and social inclusion, and/or youth development, including at least 5 years of experience working in the Pacific. - Proven track record in quality programming, including developing, delivering and reporting against work plans. - Experience in developing capacity building resources and delivering sessions to diverse government and non-government audiences. - Practical experience and understanding of the nexus between climate change, the environment and human rights, including relevant Pacific and international convenings. - Strong communication skills and experience working in multidisciplinary and cross-cultural teams. | - Working with teams located remotely. - Demonstrated high level of emotional intelligence through work approaches. - Conducting research, including participatory research and mixed methods. - Organizing and convening bi-lingual regional, sub-regional and national events - Working with engaging consultants. - Knowledge of the mandates of CROP and UN agencies, development partners, NGOs, civil society organizations in PICTs. - Understanding of ethical guidelines in programme/project implementation including do no harm and survivor-based approaches. |
Key Skills/Attributes/Job Specific Competencies
The following levels would typically be expected for the 100% fully effective level:
| Expert level | - Proven experience delivering human rights, gender and social inclusion programmes and technical assistance. - Applied knowledge of national, regional and international human rights, gender and social inclusion frameworks and development challenges in the Pacific. - Applied knowledge and experience of climate change, environment and human rights nexus and working knowledge of Pacific and International Climate Change and Environment convenings. - Applied knowledge and working experience of NHRIs. |
|---|---|
| Advanced level | - Cultural, political and religious sensitivities. - Integration of human rights and GESI across development sectors. - Critical analysis and innovative thinking. - Complex multisector coordination, planning and design. - Presentation, communication, reporting writing and facilitation skills. - Networking and stakeholder engagement. |
| Working knowledge | - Project management. - Monitoring, evaluation and learning frameworks. - Proposal writing. |
| Awareness | - SPC Regulations and Policies - SPC human rights and social development work in the region. - Resource mobilization. |
Key Behaviours
All employees are measured against the following Key Behaviours as part of Performance Development:
- Change and Innovation
- Interpersonal Skills
- Teamwork
- Promotion of Equity and Equality
- Judgement
Personal Attributes
- High level of professional integrity and ethics
- Friendly demeanor
- Demonstrated high level commitment to customer service
Change to Job Description:
From time to time it may be necessary to consider changes in the job description in response to the changing nature of the work environment – including technological requirements or statutory changes. Such change may be initiated as necessary by SPC. This Job Description may also be reviewed as part of the preparation for performance planning for the annual performance cycle.