Access and Safety Advisor – South Sudan NGO Forum Secretariat

Job Purpose:

The South Sudan NGO Forum Secretariat hosted by Tearfund coordinates the efforts of the NGO Forum Steering Committee as voted representatives of the South Sudan NGO Forum, which has 110 international NGOs and 237 national NGOs in 2025. The NGO Secretariat exists for the purpose of coordination, information sharing, advocacy, policy/position paper production, government/donor/UN engagement and engagement on other vital issues regarding humanitarian relief, recovery and development.

The Access and Safety Advisor leads the NGO Forum’s work on humanitarian access and the safety/security of its members. The role provides strategic advice, facilitates access for NGOs, manages safety and security information systems, and represents NGO interests in relevant coordination forums including the Co-chairing of the Access Working Group. This position ensures that humanitarian delivery is both safe and unimpeded, through proactive engagement with stakeholders, high-quality analysis, and strengthened member capacity.

A. Main duties & Responsibilities

Access Coordination and Strategic Engagement

1. Lead NGO Forum engagement with government authorities, UN agencies, donors, and other stakeholders to address humanitarian access constraints.
2. Support members in developing and implementing strategies that enhance operational access.
3. Represent NGO interests in national and state-level coordination platforms, including the Access Working Group, Humanitarian Country Team (HCT) sub-groups, and relevant OCHA-led processes.
4. Facilitate regular NGO humanitarian leads’ meetings for information exchange, best practice sharing, and joint problem-solving.
5. Lead the production of strategic briefs, advocacy messages, and situational updates on access issues for members and external stakeholders.
6. Support development of humanitarian strategies that are rights-based, beneficiary-centred, and aligned with HCT priorities.
7. Work with NGOs, donors, and OCHA to promote best practice mechanisms for humanitarian delivery in South Sudan.
   

   B. Safety and Security Management

• Lead, manage, and develop the Security Team, including oversight of SOPs, workflows, and quality assurance processes.
• Maintain and enhance security information collection, analysis, and dissemination systems, ensuring timely, relevant, and actionable outputs.
• Facilitate regular security briefings, training, and workshops for NGO Forum members.
• Represent NGO security interests with UNMISS, diplomatic missions, INSO, and other relevant bodies.
• Provide 24/7 security advice and support to members as required.
• Strengthen state-level security coordination and cultivate state-based security focal points.
• Support access to relevant UN and INSO security training for NGO staff.
• Maintain the NGO Forum security resource database, ensuring members have access to up-to-date tools and manuals.
  

  C. Information Management and Knowledge Sharing

1. Produce regular analytical reports on both access and security trends for the NGO community.
2. Develop and maintain information-sharing protocols and platforms for both access and security content.
3. Facilitate learning events and knowledge exchange across members, promoting joint problem-solving and adaptive practices.

D. Representation and Partnerships

1. Co-chair the Access working group ensuring that NGO perspectives shape policy and operational decisions on access and security.
2. Build and maintain strong working relationships with the UN, government agencies, donors, and other humanitarian stakeholders.
3. Engage with global NGO security and access consortia to share information and identify good practices.

E. Corporate and Secretariat Leadership

1. Participate in the Secretariat Senior Management Group, integrating access and security work into the Forum’s strategic objectives.
2. Contribute to Secretariat strategic planning and annual reporting.
3. Ensure compliance with Secretariat governance, safeguarding, and risk management policies.

Person specification:

Essential

• Extensive experience in humanitarian access negotiation and stakeholder engagement.
• Proven track record in humanitarian access and security risk management.
• Strong understanding of the political, security, and humanitarian context in South Sudan or similar environments.
• Excellent networking, facilitation, and diplomacy skills.
• Strong analytical, report writing, and communication skills.
• Experience leading teams in complex, insecure environments.
• Good verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills to interact with other team members, senior support personnel, high level personnel and customers.

Desirable

• Prior experience in a similar coordination or advisory role.
• Familiarity with INSO, OCHA, and humanitarian coordination structures.
• Experience from South Sudan is desirable.
• Proficiency in English and Arabic languages.

Competencies Essential:

• Professionalism Humanitarian Access Negotiations experience in a complex emergency context.

Planning & Organizing

• Develops clear goals that are consistent with agreed strategies;
• Identifies priority activities and assignments;
• Adjusts priorities as required; allocates appropriate amount of time and resources for completing work;
• Foresees risks and allows for contingencies when planning;
• Uses time efficiently.

Technological Awareness

• Keeps abreast of available technology, understands applicability and limitations of technology to the work of the office, actively seeks to apply technology to appropriate tasks, and shows willingness to learn new technology.

Desirable:

Communication

• Speaks and writes clearly and effectively;
• Listens to others, correctly interprets messages from others and responds appropriately;
• Asks questions to clarify, and exhibits interest in having two-way communication;
• Tailors language, tone, style and format to match audience;
• Demonstrates openness in sharing information and keeping people informed.

Teamwork

• Works collaboratively with colleagues to achieve organizational goals;
• Solicits input by genuinely valuing others’ ideas and expertise;
• Willing to learn from others;
• Places team agenda before personal agenda.

Client Orientation

• Has a deep understanding of humanitarian principles and the practical application of same in execution of the job role.
• Considers all those to whom services are provided to be ‘clients’ and seeks to see things from clients’ point of view;
• Establishes and maintains productive partnerships with clients by gaining their trust and respect;
• Identifies clients’ needs and matches them to appropriate solutions;
• Meets timeline for delivery of products or services.

Note:

The recruitment process will include specific checks related to safeguarding. In addition, personal identification information will be submitted against a Watchlist database to check against criminal convictions as a counter-terror measure.