Advocacy & Communications Manager - Syria Damascus

General Description of the Programme:

Established in 1977, GOAL is an international humanitarian and development agency, committed to working with communities to achieve sustainable and innovative early response in crises, and lasting solutions to poverty and vulnerability. GOAL has worked in over 60 countries and has responded to almost every major humanitarian disaster. We are currently operational in 18 countries.

GOAL began operations in Syria in 2013 responding to the acute needs of conflict-affected communities. GOAL's areas of operations include but not limited to Aleppo, Idleb and Lattakia Governorates, and is expanding to new governorates in Syria. Programmes focus on Food and Nutrition Security, WASH, Shelter, Livelihoods/ERMS and Emergency Response with an emphasis on cash and voucher modalities. GOAL Syria implements its programmes directly, with over 500 staff based in Syria, and through Syrian NGO partners. GOAL's programme works at the household and community levels to improve community resilience and household coping strategies.

 

Job purpose:

In close coordination with the Director of Strategic Engagements, the Communications and Media Manager lead the overall responsibility for the development and implementation of a visibility strategy for the GOAL Syria Country Office. The role oversees and/or contributes to the development of content collection plans and the acquisition, editing, and packaging of audio-visual and other media; and the design and production of programme or corporate information and visibility material utilized within context of GOAL Syria’s operations.

 

Duties, objectives and competencies

Media and Communications

• Lead the development and implementation of a communications strategy for GOAL Syria to support both visibility and advocacy strategies.
• Content development and planning
  • Develop content packages that will be published under donor-funded communications and visibility campaigns, working in close cooperation with the GOAL Syria Program team.   
  • Oversee and guide the logistical planning and the acquisition of the written, visual, and audiovisual content that will be produced about GOAL’s program activities.
  • Work in close coordination with the GOAL Head Office Communications Team, package the written, visual, and audiovisual content that will be produced under the campaign mentioned above, ensuring the timely publication of web-stories, social media postings, digital advertisings, etc.
• Develop and deliver a clear and effective system for internal communications including the dissemination documents and publications for internal stakeholders, including being able to scale up the delivery of robust communications material during emergencies.
• Develop and maintain a media contact database and ensure positive and collaborative relationships with key media outlets in Syria.
• Liaise and maintain contact with the GOAL HQ Media and Communications team and implement communication activities including facilitating media visits and working within incoming media & communications surge support during emergencies.
• Ensure that the branding and communication guidelines of GOAL are uniformly and consistently followed across the Syria country office.
• Work with the Senior Communications and Media Officer and HQ Communications department to proactively develop a high profile for GOAL Syria (within Syria and beyond) through the production of high quality, well researched, and well written products (in a variety of mediums) reflective of the full spectrum portfolio, responding quickly and appropriately to external requests for information, especially in emergencies.
• Oversee a system of offline/online media storage and retrieval, and help keep archives of content and associated data secure, accessible, and up to date.
• Maintain and regularly ensure GOAL website are regularly updated and reflect current programme priorities, advocacy and campaigning work and success stories, working closely with GOAL HQ.
• Ensure the use of social media, for both internal and external communications in support of GOAL Syria advocacy, campaigning and visibility strategies and plans.

Advocacy and Campaigns

• Lead the development and implementation of an advocacy strategy for the Syria Country Office. Support programme leadership to articulate their top priority advocacy objectives in line with the Country Strategic Plan.
• Identify key opportunities and events for GOAL Syria to position itself.
• Ensure that GOAL Syria receives national recognition for achieving proven and innovative national impact from well-managed programs and emergency response efforts.
• Support programme leadership and other program staff in their work, including development of a plan for achieving their priority advocacy objectives.
• Identify with SMT, MEAL and programme leadership policy research needs and oversee and ensure quality of funded research whether undertaken internally, through partners or research institutions.
• Ensure that all programme staff have strong understanding of advocacy and campaigning principals, approaches and methodologies.
• Ensure a strong, supportive and collaborative relationship with GOAL Global Communications and Advocacy departments and staff.

Staff Management, Mentorship, and Development

• Manage the Senior Communications Officer; define expectations, provide leadership and technical support as needed, and evaluate direct reports regularly.
• Ensure the recruitment, training, and promotion of staff as appropriate and ensure availability of appropriate professional development opportunities.
• Incorporate staff development strategies and Performance Management Systems into team building process.
• Documentation of performance that is less than satisfactory, with appropriate performance improvements/ work plans.

 

Requirements (essential)

• Citizen of Syria;
• Bachelor’s degree in subject relevant to position (e.g. communications, social science, development studies, information management, project management, etc.);
• At least five years working in the NGO, humanitarian or similar sector with experience in successfully leading the development and implementation of communication and campaign strategies;
• Strong experience in drafting and editing written content in English (including stories and/or social media posts), to be assessed on basis of links to samples of work that should be listed in the applicant’s CV.
• Proficiency in graphic and visual design, including in the execution of layout, colour palettes, typography, and branding.
• Experience in the development and production of print matter and display items of various scales, including banners, posters, fliers, and leaflets.
• Experience in the development and dissemination of rich media content packages for social media platforms.
• Technological skills, including in the installation and operation of media and design hardware and software and offline/online content filing and data management.
• Formal training and experience in audio-visual pre-production, production, and post-production (including developing, scripting, and editing short form video), to be assessed on basis of links to samples of work that should be listed in the applicant’s CV.
• Content management skills, including knowledge of archiving and of video compression and publication formats.
• Strong network within advocacy, media and marketing.
• Highly developed cultural awareness and ability to work well in an international environment with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
• Fluency in English and Arabic, including strong English writing and presentation skills.
• Ability and willingness to change work practices and hours in the event of emergencies.

 

Requirements (desired)

• Experience of working in Syria/for Syria related programmes preferred.
• Experience working in an emergency or development context is highly desirable.

 

 

Interested? Then apply for this position via clicking on the "apply now" button and fill out the application form. All applicants must send a Cover letter and an updated CV (no longer than four pages). Both must be in English.

Please note that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

GOAL has the right to select one or more candidates from this vacancy announcement. We may also retain applications and consider candidates applying to this post for other similar positions with GOAL at the same grade level and with similar job descriptions, experience, and educational requirements.

Qualified female candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

The application deadline is 05 May 2026 however, you are encouraged to apply immediately as we will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis, therefore we may withdraw the position before the advertisement’s closing date if a suitable candidate/s is identified.

Please note that GOAL does not charge a fee of any kind or any other financial obligation at any stage of its recruitment process (application, interview, processing, training, induction) or other fees, or request information on applicants’ bank accounts. GOAL does not work with intermediary institutions and individuals or employment agencies during the recruitment process. If any fee or payment is requested from you at the application or any stage of the recruitment process, please do not respond.  

GOAL does not accept any responsibility for the accuracy, errors or omissions of any of the information contained in translated advertisements by an independent party on other sites or through other channels.

 

 General terms and conditions Safeguarding

Safeguarding

Children and vulnerable adults must be safeguarded to the maximum possible extent from deliberate or inadvertent actions and failings that place them at risk of abuse, sexual exploitation, injury and any other harm. One of the ways that GOAL shows this on-going commitment to safeguarding is to include rigorous background and reference checks in the selection process for all candidates.

Accountability within GOAL

Alongside our safeguarding policy, GOAL is an equal opportunities employer and has a set of integrity policies. Any candidate offered a job with GOAL will be expected to adhere to the following key areas of accountability:

• Comply with GOAL’s policies and procedures with respect to safeguarding, Code of Conduct, health and safety, data protection and confidentiality, do no harm principles and unacceptable behaviour protocols.
• Report any concerns about the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult or any wrongdoings within our programming area.
• Report any concerns about inappropriate behavior of a GOAL staff or partner.

This Job Description only serves as a guide for the position available. GOAL reserves the right to change this document. Any published closing dates are estimated.  Due to the nature of GOAL’s work we aim to fill vacancies as quickly as possible.  This means that we will close adverts as soon as we have found the right candidate and this may be before the published closing date.  We would therefore advise interested applicants to submit an application as early as possible.

Thank you.