Senior Operations Advisor, Iraq
Fixed Term 12 Months with possibility for extension
The starting salary package for this position is £76,028 GBP / approx. $96,100 USD including all allowances
About MAG:
MAG (Mines Advisory Group) is an international humanitarian organisation based in Manchester, UK, and working in 32 countries. We remove landmines and unexploded ordnance to release safe and productive land for communities, and work to reduce the threat of armed violence by supporting governments to safely manage weapons and ammunition. In 1997, MAG was a co-recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for our work campaigning for the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention.
About the role:
As the Senior Operations Advisor, you will be responsible for providing senior level support to the Technical Operations Manager (TOM) and the wider MAG Iraq program. You will support and strengthen MAG’s relationships with Iraqi National Mine Action Authorities (NMAAs). You will work with the TOM to ensure that MAG’s approach to NMAAs aligns with International Mine Action Standards (IMAS), and that these standards are integrated into the planning and implementation of technical operations and programme activities. You will also be responsible for monitoring, analysing, and reviewing the process of our operational activities and targets, and will provide input on programme support activities including supporting proposals, case studies, reporting, and stakeholder liaison as necessary.
About you:
You will have extensive experience of Mine Action operations, including experience working in collaboration with a range of Humanitarian Mine Action actors, including NMAAs. You will be determined and proactive, with experience leading, mentoring, and training diverse groups of people. You will be an expert in quality management, with good knowledge of capacity development and a critical ability to develop, review, and realise standard operating procedures. You will be committed to continual improvement, with a good knowledge of research methods and the creativity, innovation, and drive to continually improve the effectiveness and efficiency of our work. Previous experience of working within Iraq and Arabic/Kurdish language skills would be highly desirable.
About the Iraq programme:
Following decades of conflict, Iraq is heavily contaminated with landmines and other unexploded ordnance (UXO). The recent regional crisis has added to the scale of this problem. MAG has been working in Iraq since 1992 and has expanded into new areas over the last few years. We currently have 600 national staff and 50 teams operating in 6 areas in northern Iraq. By clearing hazardous areas, MAG has enabled new schools, roads and hospitals to be built, opened up vital trade routes and allowed communities to use their farming land in safety, giving them greater food security and an escape from poverty. Our work over the last 4 years in particular has supported the surveying and clearance of contaminated land, as well as delivering life-saving risk education for those who have fled the violence and are now seeking to return. The HQ office for the programme is in Erbil, KRI, with 6 operational bases in various locations and a support office in Baghdad.