Director of Advocacy Campaigns Communications and Media - Damascus, Syria

Programme & Policy

Overview

Lead advocacy, campaigns, and communications to amplify Save the Children's impact for children in Syria.

You have:

• Minimum of 7-10 years' progressive experience in senior positions delivering advocacy, campaigns, communications, and media work with INGOs in both development and humanitarian contexts, including experience in Category 1 or large-scale emergency responses and protracted crises.
• Demonstrable track record in advocacy on International Humanitarian Law, and engagement with humanitarian coordination mechanisms (OCHA, clusters, HCTs), alongside long-term policy influence on child rights.
• Proven success in designing and implementing advocacy strategies and campaigns resulting in measurable policy change, improved protection, or enhanced humanitarian response for children and communities.
• Experience managing external relations, government/UN agency/NGO/donor engagement, and high-profile media work in both stable and crisis settings.
• Proven management and leadership skills, including building, motivating, and developing diverse teams in high-pressure, rapidly changing environments (humanitarian and development).
• Highly developed interpersonal, negotiation, influencing, and communication skills (verbal and written), with fluency in Arabic & English.
• Excellence in concise, clear writing and presentation skills for diverse audiences: policymakers, humanitarian coordinators, donors, media, and communities.
• Strong analytical, planning, organizational, and coordination skills with ability to manage multiple priorities under time pressure.
• Commitment to Save the Children's aims, values, and principles, including humanitarian principles (humanity, neutrality, impartiality, independence) and child rights-based approaches.
• Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in policy, social science, communications, journalism, international relations, humanitarian studies, international development, or related fields.

Save the Children International has an exciting opportunity for a Director of Advocacy Campaigns Communications and Media to join our Syria Country office team.

Team and Role Purpose

The Director of Advocacy, Campaigns, Communications and Media (ACCM) is a pivotal member of the Senior Management Team in Syria Country Office, providing strategic leadership on advocacy, policy influence, media and communications to raise the profile of issues facing children, and to amplify Save the Children’s impact in Syria. This role drives public and private advocacy, campaigns, and media & communications engagement to advance Save the Children’s policy positions and influence decision-makers at national, regional and global levels. The ACCM Director actively shapes and implements efforts to shift awareness, attitudes, behaviours, and policies regarding children’s rights, ensuring they are prioritised and protected by government, partners, and the public.

In Syria’s contexts - Category 2, large-scale emergency response, the ACCM Director elevates Save the Children's visibility and impact with effective advocacy and child rights strategies—including integrated humanitarian and development advocacy, impactful campaigns, policy engagement, crisis communications, and high-quality media output.

• Job Title: Director of Advocacy Campaigns Communications and Media
• Reports to: Syria Country Director
• Work Pattern: Hybrid/Remote with flexible working options available
• Location: Damascus, Syria. For a full list of locations that Save the Children International can hire in, please visit: SCI Careers
• Required Time zone: UTC+3
• Contract Length: Fixed Term Contract (2 years)
• Right to Work: The successful candidate must have the right to work in the country where the role is based, for the duration of employment.
• Language Requirements:English, Arabic
• People Management: Manager of a team: Media, policy, Child Rights Governance, nfo/Comms, advocacy roles

Principal Accountabilities

Strategy, Planning & Leadership

• Lead the design and delivery of ACCM strategies integrating development and humanitarian frameworks to drive policy change and deliver impact for children.
• Advise the Country Director and SMT on external positioning, advocacy risks, and opportunities across the humanitarian–development–peace nexus.
• Foster an accountable, inclusive, high-performing culture grounded in humanitarian principles, child safeguarding, and security standards.
• Ensure ACCM coherence across emergency response, humanitarian coordination, child rights governance, and development programming.

Advocacy and Campaigns;

• Build and maintain strategic alliances with advocacy networks, child rights forums, and humanitarian fora to ensure timely and visible advocacy in both development and crisis contexts.
• Align country advocacy with global campaign priorities and deliver ACCM components of the Country Strategic Plan through evidence-based policy and advocacy.
• Position Save the Children as a leading child rights and protection advocate, chairing and contributing to coalitions influencing government policy and humanitarian action.
• Oversee implementation of global and national campaigns, designing agile tactics for stable and crisis contexts and monitoring their impact.
• Lead proposal development and resource mobilization for advocacy and campaigns.
• Lead emergency advocacy and communications, ensuring rapid-response messaging, safe participation, and principled representation, including on topics like protection of civilians, access, CAAC, forced displacement, humanitarian architecture.

Media and Communications

• Ensure consistent application of branding and communication standards across development and humanitarian contexts.
• Oversee production of high-quality materials—policy briefs, reports, appeals, and storytelling—that reflect child-centred priorities and amplify children’s voices.
• Build and maintain strong media relations to enhance visibility and manage crisis communications effectively.
• Lead timely production of press releases and humanitarian narratives, ensuring rapid, coordinated internal and external communications.

Policy, evidence and analysis

• Provide strategic direction for long-term context-specific policy influence and system change, developing evidence-based advocacy and research products.
• Conduct situational and needs analyses to inform humanitarian policy briefs and advocacy materials on protection, education, and accountability.
• Monitor policy developments, coordination mechanisms, and donor priorities to identify advocacy opportunities and risks.
• Ensure integration of field evidence and lessons learned into advocacy, communications, and programme design to achieve sustainable impact.

Humanitarian Affairs

• As ACCM Director in a CAT2/complex emergency,
• Lead advocacy on humanitarian access, operational space, and principled action in complex emergencies, engaging with authorities, armed actors, and donors.
• Develop specialized strategies on protection of civilians, grave violations, IHL/IHRL compliance, and accountability.
• Represent Save the Children in humanitarian coordination fora and donor mechanisms, advocating for flexible and timely humanitarian financing.
• Oversee humanitarian information management and crisis communications while upholding conflict sensitivity, do-no-harm, and staff safety standards.

Monitoring, evaluation and learning

• Establish systems to monitor advocacy and campaign outcomes across development and humanitarian objectives.
• Ensure delivery against KPIs, contribute to Country Annual Reports, and track CSP milestones.
• Lead documentation and dissemination of lessons learned and best practices to inform organizational learning and sector innovation.

Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development

• Lead and manage the ACCM team with clear strategic direction, measurable objectives, and robust performance management.
• Build staff capacity through coaching, mentoring, and tailored development plans for both routine and crisis contexts.
• Foster a culture of motivation, resilience, and wellbeing, ensuring protocols for emergency deployment and staff care.

Partnerships, Representation & External Engagement

• Represent Save the Children in key advocacy, humanitarian, and policy fora at national and international levels.
• Cultivate partnerships with government, donors, UN agencies, civil society, and media, ensuring principled and strategic engagement.
• Support senior leadership in high-level diplomacy, crisis communications, and strategic advocacy with key stakeholders.
• Coordinate with global and regional advocacy teams and lead the CO HAWG with the global humanitarian advocacy team, to align national work with broader humanitarian and child rights agendas.

Experience and Skills

Essential

1. Minimum of 7-10 years' progressive experience in senior positions delivering advocacy, campaigns, communications, and media work with INGOs in both development and humanitarian contexts, including experience in Category 1 or large-scale emergency responses and protracted crises.
2. Demonstrable track record in advocacy on International Humanitarian Law, and engagement with humanitarian coordination mechanisms (OCHA, clusters, HCTs), alongside long-term policy influence on child rights.
3. Proven success in designing and implementing advocacy strategies and campaigns resulting in measurable policy change, improved protection, or enhanced humanitarian response for children and communities.
4. Experience managing external relations, government/UN agency/NGO/donor engagement, and high-profile media work in both stable and crisis settings.
5. Proven management and leadership skills, including building, motivating, and developing diverse teams in high-pressure, rapidly changing environments (humanitarian and development).
6. Highly developed interpersonal, negotiation, influencing, and communication skills (verbal and written), with fluency in Arabic & English.
7. Excellence in concise, clear writing and presentation skills for diverse audiences: policymakers, humanitarian coordinators, donors, media, and communities.
8. Strong analytical, planning, organizational, and coordination skills with ability to manage multiple priorities under time pressure.
9. Commitment to Save the Children's aims, values, and principles, including humanitarian principles (humanity, neutrality, impartiality, independence) and child rights-based approaches.

Desirable

• Experience in specific crisis contexts (e.g., Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan, Ukraine, DRC, oPt, Syria, Somalia, Myanmar) or similar conflict, displacement, or disaster response settings.
• Strong international advocacy and humanitarian networks.
• Experience managing advocacy risk, crisis communications, and sensitive external engagement in politically restricted or insecure environments.
• Background in humanitarian negotiations, coordination roles, protection in emergencies, child protection in armed conflict (CAAC), humanitarian architecture, and donor relations in emergency settings.
• High-level external representation, including diplomatic experience, UN engagement, multi-country advocacy, or major international campaign leadership.

Education and Qualifications

Essential

• Advanced university degree (Master's or equivalent) in policy, social science, communications, journalism, international relations, humanitarian studies, international development, or related fields.

Working at Save the Children International

Save the Children is the world's leading organisation for children, employing ~25,000 staff. We save children's lives. We fight for their rights. We help them fulfil their potential. Through our work in 116 countries, we put the most deprived and marginalised children first.

We know that great people make a great organisation, and that our employees play a crucial role in helping us achieve our ambitions for children. We value our people and offer a meaningful and rewarding career, along with a collaborative and inclusive environment where ambition, creativity, and integrity are highly valued.

The work here is challenging but is also immensely rewarding. At Save the Children, you will be in good company, working with talented, like-minded individuals who are determined to ensure that all children survive, learn, and are protected. Your contribution will help ensure children's voices are heard at the highest levels, and that we achieve our global strategy, Ambition for Children 2030, and reach every last child.

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

DEI is core to our vision, values and global strategy. Save the Children is committed to creating a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive organisation, and one which will support us in our vision to ensure every child attains the right to survival, protection, development, and participation.

We are committed to equal employment opportunities, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality, disability, marital or civil partnership status, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, caring or parental responsibilities, age, or beliefs and religion. We are committed to diversifying our staff to better represent the communities we serve and actively welcome underrepresented groups to apply.

Reasonable adjustments will be made should any candidate invited to interview require this.

Application Information

Please attach a copy of your CV and cover letter with your application. A full copy of the role profile can be found at SCI Careers. It is recommended that you save a copy of the role profile as it will no longer be available after the advert closes.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and the job advert may be closed earlier than advertised subject to the volume of suitable applicants. Please submit your application at your earliest convenience to avoid disappointment.

Due to the high volume of applications we receive, only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. Candidates who are successfully shortlisted should expect to hear from us within 2 weeks of the advert deadline.

Our Recruitment Process

1. Application review by our recruiting team based on your CV and cover letter
2. Two-stage competency-based interviews with the hiring team
3. Some recruitment may include an additional assessment or case study stage, or a third stage interview
4. If successful, you will receive a conditional offer of employment, followed by your contract subject to passing background checks

We need to keep children and adults safe so our selection process includes rigorous background checks and reflects our commitment to the protection of children and adults from abuse. All employees are expected to carry out their duties in accordance with our Code of Conduct and all policies and procedures relating to Anti-Harassment, Health and Safety, Safeguarding, and DEI and Equal Opportunities.

Save the Children does not charge a fee at any stage of the recruitment process.

Apply now

Potential interview questions

Added 20 hours ago - Updated 26 minutes ago - Source: savethechildren.net