Vacancy: Project director, innovation in remitting aid & assistance funds in northeast Syria

Deadline for application: 22 August 2024

Start date & duration: 1 October 2024 - 31 August 2025 (11 months)

Nature of appointment: Consultancy of approximately 100-110 days across 11 months (approx. 2.5 days per week for 11 months).

Location of post: Anywhere, preferably in Europe, with some travel to Geneva/Berlin for in-person events/team meetings and tech sprint.

For further details, contact info@polisync.org

About the project

The project will explore the role of innovation, including digital payment technologies and other alternative payment mechanisms, in remitting aid and assistance funds into, and around northeast Syria. Representing one of the most complex environments in the world for payments, organisations involved in non-commercial fund transfers struggle to effectuate transfers into, and around, Syria, in light of considerable infrastructural, banking, political, security, regulatory and economic constraints. These include the protracted armed conflict; sanctions on most private and public banks and other relevant bodies; financial sector de-risking (especially the decline in correspondent banking relationships); fragility of the banking sector and wider state infrastructure, including in relation to electricity and internet access.

Through a series of mapping exercises, multi-stakeholder consultations and a “tech sprint”, this project’s ultimate aim will be to assess the feasibility of one or more alternative payment mechanisms to be launched and piloted in northeast Syria in 2025, after carefully considering challenges and opportunities. A secondary objective is to foster greater awareness of capacity, trust and opportunities for collaboration across often-siloed sectors, in relation to cross-border and domestic fund transfers in Syria, with applicability to other poorly banked jurisdictions.

Role and responsibilities

PoliSync is seeking an experienced Project Director to lead an eleven month applied project on Innovation in Aid and Assistance Fund Transfers. The role of Project Director will be key to the project’s success. The selected candidate will combine extensive experience and skills in steering and delivering large-scale projects, including facilitation of multi-stakeholder dialogues and consultations, research and analytical skills, and working together with technology specialists, including crypto and blockchain specialists, to discuss potential piloting of the project outcomes.

Specifically, the Project Director will: 

  • Lead the project, including liaising with donors and State/diplomatic actors; coordinating the project team for smooth delivery of project deliverables (ensuring clearly assigned roles, deliverables and timelines for project team members); leading on the analysis and reporting of deliverables; liaising with the donor as required; dissemination of project outcomes;

  • Establish, facilitate and guide a multi-stakeholder working group to serve as an ongoing coordination mechanism for the research, development and piloting of the project’s payment platform. Establish trust and a common framework, vision and terminology to allow for productive, well-informed exchanges of ideas in a confidential forum;

  • Support assessment of local operating environment, including through mapping existing aid and assistance (cross-border and domestic) fund transfer mechanisms currently in use in Syria, with an assessment of constraints and limitations in their use, or opportunities for adaptation or scaling up, including support on analysis and reporting on findings;

  • Support a mapping exercise of existing alternative payment practices in other poorly-banked jurisdictions, including innovative tech payment solutions, analysis and reporting of findings;

  • Lead focus group meetings with stakeholders to generate ideas and consensus on innovative payment solutions (including crypto and blockchain), once a clear understanding of the local and regulatory landscape has been established, including analysis and reporting on findings;

  • Provide some support on the tech sprint, including background briefing on project findings that emerged from the steering committee, mappings, and focus groups, and support the preparation of a product design brief to ensure it includes project findings;

  • Lead the dissemination of project findings.

Qualifications, skills and experience

  • Masters degree in international affairs or development, international law, humanitarian affairs, political science, or related fields;

  • At least ten years experience directing and delivering on large-scale, research and multi-stakeholder consultation projects;

  • Experience liaising with donors, including in-person and written updates and reporting at required intervals, and working to a budget/deadlines;

  • Experience using diplomatic skills and experience consulting with State/diplomatic representatives on politically complex issues;

  • Experience facilitating and guiding multi-stakeholder initiatives and dialogues, with representatives from different sectors, including technology, financial, diplomatic, research, State and humanitarian actors;

  • Experience managing and working in a project team, with the ability to create a positive, solutions-oriented team environment and offering ongoing support to project team members to work through project milestones and challenges;

  • Good technical expertise on innovative technology payment solutions, (crypto, blockchain), and challenges in humanitarian aid and assistance fund transfers, particularly with reference to complex environments with considerable infrastructural, banking, political, security, regulatory, economic constraints;

  • Specific knowledge of the Syrian context is desirable, as is knowledge of the context in other poorly banked countries;

  • Experience writing policy reports, and producing concrete, actional policy recommendations; passionate about finding solutions to complex challenges in humanitarian settings, and working in multicultural/multi-sectoral contexts;

  • Fluent oral and written English, other languages a bonus, especially Arabic.

Candidates from diverse geographic backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Payment rate: Quote for day rate to be submitted for between 100-110 days of work across 11 months (based on approx. 2.5 days per week across 11 months).

To apply

Send a letter of motivation outlining your suitability for the role to info@polisync.org. Be sure to outline your specific experience related to the required qualifications, skills and experience outlined above. Please also send your CV, with three references, and a quote with your all-inclusive day rate (i.e. including social charges or taxes) for 100-110 days work across 11 months to carry out the duties and responsibilities above.

Only applicants in whom PoliSync has a further interest will be contacted.

Shortlisted candidates will be required to be interviewed.