Senior Policy Associate Contrat : CDI

Position Overview (Summary of the Organization and Role)

We are recruiting a Senior Policy Associate (UJALA) to be based at University Mohammed VI Polytecnic (UM6P) in Rabat, Morocco. The UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA) aims to generate rigorous, policy-relevant evidence to answer critical questions around small-scale agriculture and food security in Africa. The ideal candidate will have a substantial familiarity with the agriculture sector in sub-Saharan Africa, strong project management skills, and some experience developing and maintaining partnerships with the private sector, governments, and NGOs.

Under the supervision of the UJALA Lab Director, the Senior Policy Associate will create a partnership landscape, develop partnerships with private sector partners for research, be responsible for UJALA’s communications, manage the research competition and communications with the academic Chair(s), lead on donor reporting, and facilitate meetings with the donor and external stakeholders. You will work closely with the J-PAL Agriculture sector team, J-PAL regional offices, partner organizations, and J-PAL’s network of researchers. You will have the opportunity to travel domestically and internationally to liaise with these partners and support or participate in training courses. You will also be exposed to the latest research in economics (as it pertains to agriculture) and work directly with affiliated researchers to summarize lessons learned from UJALA-funded research.

About UJALA: J-PAL and UM6P are partnering to form the UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA). UJALA funds research to rigorously evaluate agricultural technologies and practices designed to increase small-scale farmers’ food security, productivity, and profitability. UJALA aims to answer critical questions related to designing and delivering effective food and agricultural subsidies, assessing the value of fertilizer customization to crop needs and soil nutrients, reducing low-income households’ reliance on imported food, alleviating farmers’ constraints to adopting and maintaining new agricultural technologies and practices, and connecting farmers to markets that sell at competitive prices.

About UM6P: University Mohammed VI Polytechnic is an institution oriented towards applied research and innovation with a focus on Africa. The University is engaged in economic and human development and puts research and innovation at the forefront of African development. This enables it to consolidate Morocco’s frontline position in these fields, using a unique partnership-based approach, and boost skills training relevant for the future of Africa.

About J-PAL: The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of over 200 affiliated professors at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.

J-PAL values diversity, equity, and inclusivity in our work and the broader perspectives our staff bring. We encourage people of color, first generation college students/graduates, and other underrepresented groups to apply to this role. In your cover letter, please consider sharing how your racial, gender, socioeconomic and/or other identity has influenced your drive and desire to work at J-PAL. (This is not required, but rather an opportunity for us to get to know you.)

Responsibilities:

Support the development of research projects and partnerships: You will support the work developing research projects and partnerships with the private sector, identifying programs that are RCTable, working with partners to identify an evaluation opportunity, identifying researchers from the J-PAL network to lead the evaluation, and guiding the partnership through to proposals for research funding.

Research competition management: You will also have the opportunity to support and manage the administration of UJALA’s ongoing competitive research fund by processing grant proposals, coordinating with researchers and the UJALA Review Board and Steering Committee, and drafting funding decisions—all in coordination with J-PAL Global.

Evidence communication and dissemination: You will manage UJALA’s external communications in collaboration with J-PAL’s Agriculture and Communications teams as well as UM6P’s Communications Office, developing social media, blog posts, website content, and more. You will manage the co-branding between organizations. With support from J-PAL Global, you will write summaries of UJALA-funded research that “translate” results from technical papers into lessons for decision-makers. You will have the opportunity to support senior staff to create materials for policy outreach, including publications, evaluation summaries, presentations, grant proposals, policy memos, among other lab-specific work.

Event planning: You will have the opportunity to help organize events and further your communication skills by participating in meetings with partner organizations and presenting at events/conferences.

Donor reporting: You will be responsible for drafting the narrative reports to UJALA’s funding partners, working in close collaboration with UJALA Finance and Operations Officer and the Lab Director.

Fundraising: In collaboration with the UJALA Lab Director, UJALA Senior Research Manager, UJALA Academic Chairs, and J-PAL colleagues, you will support fundraising efforts to expand the funding sources and financial viability of the lab over time. You will support the drafting of any related concept notes or policy memos needed for fundraising activities.

Travel: You are willing to travel internationally as required. Position may require travel to project location(s) or a J-PAL office in the US, Egypt, or South Africa.Other assignments as needed as the position grows.

Qualifications and Skills:

Education: You hold a bachelor’s (master’s preferred) with significant training in economics, including intermediate-level economics and econometrics. You have a demonstrated academic interest in international development and public policy and/or international experience.

Experience: Three to five years of relevant work experience.

Skills: You are comfortable working in or learning computer applications, including Google Suite, Salesforce, and Foundation Connect. You are a strong writer and a quick learner. Advanced proficiency in English and French is required.

Communication: You are detail-oriented and have advanced writing skills. You understand how to communicate policy lessons from technical academic research in ways that policymakers and practitioners understand. You are precise, clear, and creative.

Organization: You are a strategic thinker. You can handle multiple projects at once, meet deadlines, and effectively manage your time with little direct supervision.

Attitude: You love learning. You are passionate about international development policy and the rigorous research that informs it. You are agile, adaptable, self-motivated, hard-working, and collaborative.

Cultural competencies: You are comfortable and adept at working in a diverse and multicultural work environment, with colleagues, partners and policymakers from around the world. You display sensitivity, adaptability, and inclusivity in your engagement with people from diverse backgrounds including age, ability, culture, gender, nationality, race and ethnicity, religion, sexuality, socioeconomic status, and other identities. Experience with living in Morocco or a low- or middle-income country is a strong advantage.

Benefits:

This position offers a competitive salary, life & health insurance, retirement benefits, maternity leave and paid vacations.

https://www.povertyactionlab.org/careers/senior-policy-associate-ujalauniversity-mohammed-vi-polytecnic-morocco-job-104887