Associate Programme Officer - Sweden

Context

Responding to increasing challenges to democracy and a shrinking democratic space around the world, including in more established democracies, International IDEA’s Democracy Assessment team, through its Global State of Democracy (GSoD) Programme (established in 2016 as part of International IDEA’s Global Programmes), seeks to contribute to the global debate on democracy and inform the development and implementation of strategies and policies that build, advance and safeguard democracy worldwide.

Since its launch, the GSoD programme has completed 3 two-year programme cycles, which have been organized around a variety of different knowledge products, including International IDEA’s flagship Global State of Democracy Report, an annually updated statistical dataset on democratic quality, now covering 165 countries in the world (GSoD Indices) and shorter thematic policy briefs on current issues in the democracy debate (GSoD In Focus).

The flagship GSoD Report, published in 2017, 2019 and 2021, provides evidence, data, balanced and impartial democratic quality and trend analysis at global and regional levels, as well as thematic and country case studies geared specifically to international, regional and national policy makers and civil society organizations working on democracy and governance-related issues. The third edition of the GSoD Report will be launched in November 2021.

The Democracy Assessment team is now recruiting an Associate Programme Officer with strong analysis and writing skills to contribute to the GSoD programme. The APO will be required to conduct research, support others’ research tasks, serve as a liaison with the Communications team, and carry out other tasks, as required.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Conducts substantive research support (primarily qualitative, with the possibility of some quantitative research) for the DA team, including as related to the Global State of Democracy global report, regional reports, thematic papers, and other research products
• Contributes analytic support to work products, as assigned
• Assists in the development of visualizations for reports and other work products
• Supports team members in the development of funding proposals
• Serves as a point person for communications issues within the team
• Supports the team’s communication and outreach activities
• Helps to manage the DA team’s social media content, including ensuring that there is a social media calendar and ensuring the content is produced on time and is of high quality
• With the supervision of a DA team member, leads the development of certain communication products, as relevant and assigned
• Assists in ensuring that the team’s communications strategy is kept updated and is being well implemented
• Tracks and reports on the outputs and outcomes of DA’s knowledge products and outreach efforts through regular results reports.

General Profile

• Requires good knowledge, excellent skills and initial experience in their field;
• Will contribute to assigned projects in different aspects of the project life cycle, more specifically will conduct research and analysis, will draft various documents (articles, concept notes, agreements, etc.) and will support the projects vis-à-vis all internal and external stakeholders;
• Adds value to team-based activities in his/her unit; collaborates with other entities of the Institute as required;
• Can be expected to travel globally to any geographical area involved in his/her projects;
• Follows internal procedures to ensure high standards of performance and compliance with Institutional guidelines;
• Acts in accordance with International IDEA’s core values; Respect, Integrity, and Professionalism;
• Integrates a gender and diversity perspective in all activities. 

Reporting Line

• Head of Programme Democracy Assessment

Communication and Interpersonal Skills

• Liaises regularly with all internal and external stakeholders involved in his/her projects.
• Builds cooperative and collaborative working relationships across teams and/or across organizations.
• Acts in all assignments with personal energy and engagement.
• Excellent knowledge in written and oral English required. Knowledge of at least one other widely spoken language in an International IDEA priority region (Arabic, French, Spanish) would be an asset.

Education and Experience

• University degree in Political Science, Law, or related field.
• Minimum three (3) years of experience working within the field of democracy, rule of law, or governance support, including substantial internship(s).
• Experience conducting research and analysis, ideally including qualitative and quantitative methods.
• Knowledge of and experience in the field of democracy analysis and assessment, including in at least one region (preferably the Middle East or Asia/the Pacific) and/or specific topic.
• Experience designing/creating websites and working with social media, web-based blogs, and digital marketing is an advantage.
• Experience working in intergovernmental organizations or international NGOs is an advantage.
• Varied writing experience, including in at least one of the following sectors: policy, academia, media, and/or law.
• Experience in supporting or leading communications work, including event planning and management and publicity (via mainstream and social media).
• Experience in project management would be an advantage.

Terms of Contract:

• Local Post.
• Fixed-term appointment for one (1) year.
• Remuneration - SEK 28 805 Net per month

Please note as this is a local post, International IDEA will bear no costs relating to the relocation of the selected candidate to the duty station. This position is open to those currently legally authorized to live and work in Sweden.

Applying for this position:

• Applications should be submitted online no later than 23:59 (CEST), 28 November 2021. Please note that all applications must be made in English.

International IDEA is an equal opportunity employer which seeks to further diversify its staff in terms of gender, culture and nationality.