Traidcraft Exchange - Regional Director Africa

Regional Director Africa March 2022

Photo credit: Traidcraft Exchange/Kevin Ouma

About Traidcraft Exchange We bring people together, to fight injustice in trade.

Traidcraft Exchange exists to do two things...

In its simplest form trade should be beneficial for everyone involved.

Goods and money are exchanged and everyone is better off.

To support people to harness the benefits of trade To fight against injustice in global trade

But global trade doesn’t work this way - instead it feeds the rich and exploits the poor. It traps people in poverty.

It’s our mission to challenge the way global trade works - to use the power of trade to create lasting solutions to poverty.

With your support, we can work towards a future where everyone gets a fair income for their work, no matter what country they live in.

Imagine if no matter how hard you worked today, you couldn’t afford to put food on the table.

For millions of people around the world, that’s the reality they face.

A fair income gives you freedom, security and hope for the future. It allows you to feed your family and educate your children.

That is the power of trade done well. But unfair trade amplifies poverty.

It makes the rich richer and leaves the poor behind.

It’s a simple mission, but it is changing lives all over the world.

Traidcraft Exchange is a medium-sized international NGO working towards greater trade justice. We work in Sub Saharan Africa and South Asia, to support farmers, artisans and informal workers to benefit from more sustainable and equitable trade and advocate and campaign for change in business practices and government policy globally and in the UK. We have recently developed a new strategic direction for the organisation in response to a changing context and global challenges, integrating a climate justice perspective into our work, and recognising the need to do more to build the power and agency of communities on the ground.

As an organisation we are undergoing a period of transition. We are organising ourselves around key sectors and issues, linking up our programmatic and advocacy work across geographies, to take a more

systemic approach to achieving greater equity and inclusivity within global value chains. We particularly focus on tea, honey, agriculture and garments and textiles.

In the countries where we work, we are shifting from a project implementation role to become a resource partner and provide accompaniment to farmers associations, artisans’ enterprises, worker collectives and civil society organisations that are challenging the negative impacts of mainstream trade and developing alternative business models that put people and planet first.

We share our 35 years of trading experience, technical knowledge and skills with collectives of farmers, artisans and workers, supporting them to strengthen their voice and power to claim their rights and negotiate more equitable and sustainable trading relationships.

We are testing a participatory grant making approach to provide small grants to grassroots collectives and accompany partners as they take forward their plans for the future. We work in coalition with others to influence the wider eco-system to respond to the needs of vulnerable communities and advocate for greater transparency and accountability within supply chains. We are learning by doing and seeking to develop new more flexible funding partnerships to resource our work.

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The Role

Photo credit: Traidcraft Exchange/Ricci Shryock

Role:

Regional Director, Africa

Location:

Nairobi or Dares Salaam (right to work in Kenya or Tanzania is needed)

Salary:

US$60,000 - 80,000

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Job Summary

Responsibilities

We are seeking an outstanding, seasoned, and strategic leader to become Traidcraft Exchange’s Regional Director for Africa with experience of working with farmers groups, artisans, cooperatives and SMEs to bring about greater trading profitability and sustainability. The candidate will bring a deep understanding of the trading context and supply chains in the region that provide opportunity for vulnerable communities and will be passionate about enabling and supporting people-led change.

Purpose

Accountabilities

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The candidate will not only have practical experience of working directly with communities and businesses but will also have a strong understanding of the wider policy environment and the barriers and opportunities for smallholder farmers and artisans, in particular women and vulnerable groups, to access higher value markets and to be able to build their collective power and agency. The candidate will be experienced in trade facilitation and working in coalition with others to influence the wider ecosystem to meet vulnerable communities’ needs.

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To create an inspiring vision for Traidcraft Exchange’s work in Africa and to position the organisation strategically to focus on sectors, geographies and supply chains where we can deliver the greatest impact.

To develop a strategy that builds the capacity and collective agency of women farmers, artisans and workers and to develop partnerships and collaborations at programmatic and policy level to bring about lasting change.

To develop a robust funding strategy for the Africa programme’s work, initiating and developing strong funding partnerships to enable us to scale and deepen our impact To lead and build a high performing and motivated team of staff, who are values-based and excited to take a learning by doing approach.

To represent and promote the work of Traidcraft Exchange and our partners in the region at the most senior level.

To develop a diverse network of partners and allies.

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This post will report to the Head of Global Programmes and Partnerships This role is responsible for developing Traidcraft Exchange’s strategy for the region (we currently work in Kenya, Tanzania and Senegal) and is accountable for ensuring we are making a meaningful impact.

The role is responsible for overseeing the regional budget and for raising funding for our work, with the support of the partnerships and investment and fundraising teams in the UK The post will lead and manage a small team of staff and consultants in Kenya and Tanzania and work collaboratively with other programme teams in South Asia, policy, campaigns and fundraising in the UK. The role will explore different governance set ups for Traidcraft Exchange in the region and make recommendations on our future structures in line with our mission and strategy

The successful candidate will have a track record in fundraising, an excellent understanding of the funding landscape and strong donor relationships. He/she will lead and deliver a resource mobilisation strategy for the region. The candidate will demonstrate a passion and personal drive for Traidcraft Exchange’s mission and embody our values to motivate and develop a small team to scale up our work. Our values underpin what we do and how we do it in all areas of our work; both internally and externally.

This role would suit an entrepreneurial person with the drive, vision and tenacity to succeed. It is an exciting time for the organisation and a great opportunity to shape our work in Africa and to have a deep and meaningful impact in the lives of vulnerable communities in the region.

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Candidate profile You will be:

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An experienced strategic and visionary leader with significant and demonstrable experience in leading innovative and impactful programmes supporting women farmers, artisans, workers and businesses to trade more sustainably An excellent fundraiser with a track record in developing new funding relationships and securing substantial funds to grow programmatic and coalition work Deeply committed to and experienced in leading participatory approaches that put people and communities in the driving seat to determine their own future.

Passionate about issues of trade and climate justice and fully aligned to our values and mission.

Flexible and innovative – excited by a learning by doing approach and the opportunity to test and learn from new partnership models An excellent networker and relationship builder, able to build effective and impactful coalitions and alliances to deliver a vision.

You will be experienced in organisational profile building and effective at inspiring and engaging different stakeholders to support the mission.

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Excellent knowledge and understanding of the trading context in the region, the policy and environmental barriers and opportunities for more sustainable and equitable people-centred trade Extensive experience of working with whole supply chains and within different sectors, ideally including tea, honey, agriculture and garments and textiles Outstanding visioning and strategic thinking skills Excellent fundraising skills Excellent team and people leadership and management skills Strong networking and relationship building skills Experience in budget and financial management - highly numerate, able to manage regional budgets, and ensure regulatory compliance Personal commitment to justice and fairness Ideally you will have experience of working within the private sector and specifically within trade

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How to Apply All correspondence, at this stage, should be via Oxford HR. To apply for this post, click on the “Apply” button on the job advert page, complete our online application form, and submit your CV and cover letter as two different documents, which should be prepared before applying as they will be considered in the application process.

The cover letter should be no more than two pages long and explain why you are interested in this post and how your skills and experience make you a good fit.

The documents should be saved in MS Word in the following format: Your First Name-Your Last Name-Document Name-Date (mmyy) e.g., Pat-Jones-CV-032022Traidcraft-Exchange or Pat-Jones-CoverLetter-032022-Traidcraft-Exchange.

Timeline

Closing Date: First stage interviews: Final interviews:

15.04.2022 TBC TBC

Equality Statement

Equality and diversity are at the core of Traidcraft Exchange’s values. Staff are expected to work collectively and individually to promote a constructive and sensitive approach to others from a variety of backgrounds, where the work of others is valued and respected.

Selection Process

All candidates will receive an update regarding their application after the closing date. We advise candidates to add the role email to their safe senders list and regularly check their spam folder.

Queries

If you have any queries on any aspect of the appointment process, need additional information, or would like to have an informal discussion, please email at traidcraftexchange-rd-africa@oxfordhr.co.uk in the first instance.

Photo credit: Traidcraft Exchange/Michael Goima

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About Oxford HR Oxford HR operates globally - mainly within the international development and charity sectors. We carry out retained executive search mandates at board and senior management levels. We also offer human resource and organisational development consultancy.

Oxford HR has many years of experience in search as well as an extensive network of international development, social sector, corporate, public sector, and academic contacts from across the world. We carry out comprehensive and often international searches designed to meet the specific needs of our client.

Photo credit: Traidcraft Exchange/Ian Gatere

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OXFORD

LONDON

AMSTERDAM

NAIROBI

46 Woodstock Road

5 Tanner Street

Korte Schimmelstraat 12

Workify Africa

Oxford

Bermondsey

1053 SZ

ABC Place

OX2 6HT

London

Amsterdam

Waiyaki way

SE1 3LE

Nairobi

United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The Netherlands

Kenya

+44 (0) 1865 985 457

+44 (0)20 7939 7451

+31 (0) 621 153 452

+254 (0) 797 233 217

www.oxfordhr.co.uk | Company No. 6456325

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