Project Officer, Afghanistan Initiative

About Malala Fund

Registered in the U.K., U.S. Nigeria, and Pakistan, Malala Fund is working toward a world where all girls can learn and lead. Malala Fund advocates for resources and policy changes needed to give all girls a secondary education. The girls we serve have high goals for themselves and we have high expectations for leaders who can help them. We invest in local education leaders and front-line organizations, the people who best understand girls in their communities in regions where most girls are missing out on secondary school. We give girls the tools they need to advocate for education and equality in their communities and a platform for the world to hear their voices. We believe girls should speak for themselves and tell leaders what they need to learn and achieve their potential.

About the position

The Project Officer, Afghanistan Initiative (Right to Education), will coordinate and manage project delivery across Malala Fund's efforts to advance Afghan girls' access to education and respond to the ongoing gender apartheid. This includes supporting advocacy planning and execution, managing partner and stakeholder relationships, delivering strategic convenings, and contributing to research and public engagement efforts.

This is a delivery-focused role for a proactive, detail-oriented individual with strong project management capabilities, understanding of international advocacy, and deep familiarity with the Afghan context. The post holder will be expected to manage workstreams independently, ensure high-quality delivery of outputs, and identify opportunities to improve coordination across partners and Malala Fund teams.

Fluency in Dari and/or Pashto is essential, as is experience working on Afghan women's rights or education advocacy.

Location: London, UK/Hybrid - 1 year term

Responsibilities:

Project Management and Delivery

• Lead coordination and implementation of activities under the Afghanistan Initiative, including high-level delegation visits, legal roundtables, strategy meetings, and public events.
• Manage timelines, deliverables, and budgets across advocacy, policy, and legal accountability workstreams to ensure alignment with initiative goals and organisational strategy.
• Support the Senior Director in driving the overall delivery of the Afghanistan Initiative, including coordinating internal processes, tracking key activities, and facilitating cross-team collaboration.
• Convene and manage the Afghanistan Initiative Working Group, ensuring internal alignment on priorities, strategy, and actions across policy, legal, communications, and programme teams.
• Provide logistical and administrative support for convenings, legal and policy meetings, and coalition-building efforts, ensuring smooth implementation and timely follow-up.
• Maintain project management systems and tools to track outputs, risks, milestones, and impact across the initiative.
• Support budget tracking and liaise with operations colleagues on contracts, grant deliverables, and procurement needs related to the initiative.
• Facilitate coordination between internal teams and external partners to deliver integrated, high-impact advocacy and accountability interventions.

Advocacy and Research Support

• Contribute to the preparation of targeted advocacy materials (e.g. talking points, policy memos, internal analysis).
• Conduct desk research and media scans on relevant developments in Afghanistan and international forums (e.g. UN, EU, OIC).
• Translate findings and stakeholder insights into internal recommendations and briefings for senior leadership.

Communications and Documentation

• Liaise with Malala Fund's communications team to support visibility of the Afghanistan Initiative, particularly around key events or milestones.
• Assist in the drafting and translation (Dari/Pashto/English) of written materials including public statements, op-eds, and campaign content.
• Monitor public discourse and flag emerging narratives relevant to Malala Fund's positioning on Afghanistan.

Risk and Compliance

• Support due diligence, safeguarding, and data security processes for all stakeholder engagements and activities.
• Escalate potential political, security, or reputational risks to the Senior Director and maintain risk documentation.

Qualifications

Essential

• Typically 5+ years of experience in project coordination or officer-level roles in international advocacy, human rights, development, or policy settings.
• Fluency in Dari and/or Pashto; fluency in English is essential.
• Strong knowledge of Afghanistan's political and social landscape, with particular attention to gender and education issues.
• Demonstrated project management skills with the ability to lead delivery across multiple partners and stakeholders.
• Ability to work independently and manage competing priorities under tight deadlines.
• Experience working with civil society organisations, multilateral bodies, and/or diaspora communities.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills; experience drafting for both internal and external audiences.
• Occasional travel required.

Desirable

• Familiarity with international legal frameworks, gender apartheid advocacy, or multilateral accountability mechanisms.
• Experience supporting advocacy or communications campaigns, including digital or media components.

Why work at Malala Fund?

• Make an impact: Malala Fund works for a world where all girls can learn and lead.
• Great company culture: We are a collaborative, global team with offices in Washington, D.C., New York, London, Islamabad and Abuja. Our values inform our fun, welcoming work culture and the work we do for girls:
• We set ambitious goals
• We dare to be brave
• We seek and amplify diverse perspectives
• We think creatively
• We act with integrity
• Flexible hybrid work models: Hybrid work options with one or two days in the office and a monthly stipend by country to support work from home expenses.
• Fully paid health, income protection and life benefits: Based on country and legal requirements.
• Retirement plan options: Based on country and legal requirements.
• Rest and relaxation: Generous paid time off and country-specific paid public holidays including sick leave and birthday leave.
• Paid parental leave: Generous paid parental leave.
• Employee assistance and mental health benefits
• Give back: Get paid to volunteer in your community.
• Professional development and educational benefits: Annual company contribution towards professional development or higher education and free LinkedIn Learning access to 20,000+ online courses.

If fighting for girls' education excites and inspires you, we might be the perfect fit!

Malala Fund is an equal opportunity employer and inclusive organisation that welcomes applications from under-represented and intersectional groups including BIPOC, LGBTQ+ and persons with disabilities. We are seeking people with different backgrounds, cultures, ages, experiences and identities to provide a wide range of experience, ideas, views and insights into the strategy, policies, culture and ambitions of Malala Fund.

Malala Fund is also committed to ensuring the safety of those involved in our work. Our first priority is protecting everyone who comes in direct or indirect contact with our organisation.

Malala Fund has a zero-tolerance approach to abuse and exploitation by any of our staff, representatives or partners. We commit to ensuring that those who work with Malala Fund or on our behalf are able to work in an environment that is free from harm. To this end, Malala Fund reserves the right to conduct background checks on prospective and current employees.