External Consultant — Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Support

SOS CHILDREN'S VILLAGES INTERNATIONAL

Humanitarian Action Team (HAT) | Global Advocacy, Policy and Representation (GAPR)

JOB ADVERTISEMENT

External Consultant — Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Support

Commissioning Unit

Humanitarian ActionTeam (HAT), in coordination withGlobal Advocacy, Policy and Representation (GAPR)

Contract Type

Consultancy Contract (short-term)/ individual/ small team/ company

Duty Station

Home-based, with1-2 times possible short travel as required (e.g.Brussels/ Vienna)

Duration

1 September – 10 December 2026 (approx. 4 months)

Level of Effort

Upto 50 workingdays, part-time / intermittent

Reporting To

Director, Humanitarian Action Team, in coordination withGlobal Advocacy, Policy and Representation (GAPR)

Application Deadline

15 August 2026

About the Assignment

SOS Children's Villages International (SOS CVI) is scaling up its humanitarian action across multiple large-scale, high-priority and protracted crises, including Ebola-affected Uganda/DRC, Palestine (Gaza scale-up and West Bank expansion), Somalia, Syria (Aleppo/Idlib) and the LAAM region. The Humanitarian Action Team (HAT), together with Global Advocacy, Policy and Representation (INT/CA), connects frontline evidence with regional and global decision-making, ensuring the federation speaks with a coherent, principled voice on behalf of crisis-affected children.

Building on the outcomes of the 2026 Brussels humanitarian advocacy workshop and the newly established bi-monthly PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group, HAT is seeking an external humanitarian advocacy expert to accelerate delivery of a small number of time-critical priorities between September and December 2026.

Purpose

The consultant will draft a fully-fledged Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan for SOS CVI, while providing targeted, time-bound support to Member Associations (MAs) and PSA partners, clarifying SOS messaging and positioning on humanitarian issues, and strengthening engagement with key external partners and coalitions.

Scope of Work

• Lead the drafting of a federation-wide Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan, building on the Brussels workshop outcomes.

• Provide targeted advocacy support to priority MAs (e.g. Palestine, Somalia, LAAM-region) and facilitate the bi-monthly PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group.

• Clarify and consolidate SOS CVI's humanitarian messaging and public positioning, including core narratives and agreed 'red lines'.

• Map priority external partners, coalitions and coordination structures (UN agencies, IASC/clusters, ICVA, EU/multilateral bodies) and propose an engagement approach.

Key Deliverables

• Inception note with methodology and workplan (by 12 September 2026).

• Consultation round and stakeholder mapping (by 3 October 2026).

• Draft SOS Messaging & Positioning Framework (by 17 October 2026).

• Draft Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan (by 14 November 2026).

• External Partner & Coalition Engagement Plan (by 21 November 2026).

• Final strategy package incorporating feedback (by 5 December 2026).

• Presentation to HAT, COO/CEO/GAPR and the PSA coordination group, with handover note (by 10 December 2026).

Required Qualifications and Experience

• Advanced degree in International Relations, Humanitarian Studies, Human Rights, International Development, Law or a related field.

• Significant experience in humanitarian and fragile/conflict-affected settings, with a strong track record in humanitarian advocacy strategy design and message development.

• Deep understanding of the international humanitarian system (UN, IASC, OCHA, cluster system) and experience engaging UN, EU or other multilateral bodies.

• Demonstrated experience developing organisation-wide advocacy strategies, ideally within a federated or membership-based organisation.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English (C1–C2); French, Spanish or Arabic an asset.

• Strong facilitation and stakeholder-coordination skills; ability to work autonomously to tight deadlines.

• Familiarity with child protection in humanitarian action (CPiHA) and Children and Armed Conflict agendas is highly desirable.

Contract, Fees and Payment

The total fee will be agreed at contracting based on the consultant's proposed daily rate and confirmed level of effort and assignment proposal and approach. Payment is made in three tranches against accepted deliverables: 20% on contract signature and submission of the inception note; 40% on submission and acceptance of the draft Strategic Operational Plan and Messaging Framework; and 40% on submission and acceptance of the final strategy package and presentation.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should submit the following by 15 August 2026:

• A technical proposal (max. 4 pages) outlining understanding of the assignment and proposed methodology.

• A CV highlighting relevant experience.

• Two professional references.

• A financial proposal (daily rate and estimated total cost based on the indicative level of effort).

Applications and enquiries should be directed to:

Mihai Grigorean [email protected] and Lidia Giglio [email protected]

SOS Children's Villages International is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. All appointments are subject to safe recruitment checks and adherence to the SOS CVI Code of Conduct and Safeguarding Policy.

DETAILED TERMS OF REFERENCE

• Background

SOS Children's Villages International (SOS CVI) is scaling up its humanitarian action across multiple large-scale, high-priority and protracted crises, including Ebola-affected Uganda/DRC, Palestine (with a strategic focus on Gaza scale-up and West Bank expansion), Somalia, Syria (Aleppo/Idlib) and the LAAM region. The Humanitarian Action Team (HAT), together with Global Advocacy, Policy and Representation (INT/CA), is responsible for connecting frontline evidence with regional and global decision-making, and for ensuring the federation speaks with a coherent, principled voice on behalf of crisis-affected children.

A Humanitarian Advocacy Advisor job description has recently been developed to establish a standing internal function covering surge advocacy support, policy development, capacity building, strategy design, coherence/quality assurance, research, materials development and external representation.

Pending recruitment and onboarding of that permanent function and building on the outcomes of the 2026 Brussels humanitarian advocacy workshop and the newly established bi-monthly PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group, HAT requires dedicated external expert support to accelerate delivery of a small number of time-critical priorities between September and December 2026.

• Purpose of the Consultancy

The purpose of this consultancy is to engage an external humanitarian advocacy expert/ team to draft a fully-fledged Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan for SOS CVI, while providing targeted, time-bound support to Member Associations (MAs) and PSA partners, clarifying SOS messaging and positioning on humanitarian issues, and strengthening engagement with key external partners and coalitions. The assignment covers a bounded subset of the responsibilities set out in the Humanitarian Advocacy Advisor job description that can realistically be delivered within a four-month window.

• Objectives

• Produce a comprehensive, actionable Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan for the federation building on existing SOS CVI humanitarian advocacy and policy framework (main deliverable).

• Deliver concrete, time-bound advocacy support to selected priority MAs and to the PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group.

• Clarify and consolidate SOS Children's Villages International's humanitarian messaging and public positioning in general and particularly for large scale crises, in close collaboration with the GAPR team.

• Map and propose an approach for engaging priority external partners, coalitions and coordination structures, including donor countries where SOS has presence.

• Scope of Work

The consultancy covers the following four focus areas, (notably: humanitarian advocacy strategy and local-to-global approach; advocacy coherence and positioning; partnerships and networks; and capacity-building support to MAs).

Focus Areas :

A. Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan (main deliverable)

Key Tasks :

• Lead the drafting of a fully-fledged, federation-wide Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan, building on the outcomes of the 2026 Brussels advocacy workshop and on existing SOS CVI engagement strategy on humanitarian action.

• Define strategic objectives, priority themes(incl. Children andArmed Conflict, protection in protracted crises, prevention of child-family separation, localisation) and a local-to-global influencing model.

• Propose a monitoring and results framework to track advocacy outcomes and policy influence.

B. Support to Member Associations and PSA Partners

Key Tasks :

• Provide targeted advocacy support to priority MAs (e.g. Palestine, Somalia, LAAM-region MAs) on context-specific messaging and influencing plans.

• Facilitate and help structure the bi-monthly PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group, including its role as a rapid-response coordination platform.

• Support at least two coaching/technical support sessions with MA advocacy or humanitarian focalpoints during theassignment period.

C. SOS Messaging and Positioning

Key Tasks :

• Clarify and consolidate SOS Children's Villages International's humanitarian messaging and public positioning across priority crises and in alignment withoverarching SOS CVI policy positions on broader child protection topics.

• Develop core narratives, thematic talking points and agreed 'red lines' in coordination with the GlobalAdvocacy and Communications teams.

• Ensure coherence between global positioning and country/MA-level messaging.

D. External Partner Engagement

Key Tasks

• Map priority external partners, coalitions and coordination structures (UN agencies, IASC/clusters, ICVA,INGO coalitions, EU/multilateral bodies).

• Propose an engagement approach that connects country-level advocacy to regional/global entry points.

• Identify concrete opportunities for jointpositioning or coalition-building in the September–December window.

• Deliverables and Indicative Timeline

Dates are indicative and will be finalised with the successful consultant at contract signature. All deliverables are subject to review and written acceptance by the Head, Humanitarian Action Team in consultation with Global advocacy, Policy and Representation lead.

Deliverables

• Inception note: methodology, workplan, stakeholder consultation list and annotated outline for the Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan

• Indicative Timing - By 5 September 2026

• Format - Short note(max 5 pages)

• Consulation round completed with HAT,Global Advocacy, selected MAs and PSAhumanitarian advocacy coordination group; summary of findings

• Indicative Timing - By 3 October 2026

• Format - Consultation summary + stakeholder map

• Draft SOS Messaging & Positioning Framework for humanitarian advocacy (core narratives, thematic lines incl. Children and Armed Conflict, spokesperson lines, red lines/no-go messaging)

• Indicative Timing - By 17 October 2026

• Format - Framework document, reviewable by HAT/Global Advocacy Comms

• Draft Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan (maindeliverable): strategic objectives, priority themes, local-to-global influencing pathways, MA/PSA engagement model, monitoring framework

• Indicative Timing - By 14 November 2026

• Format - Full strategy document

• External Partner& Coalition Engagement Plan: mapping of priority UN/EU/multilateral/INGO coalitions, engagement approach, entry points linked to the PSA advocacy coordination group

• Indicative Timing - By 21 November 2026

• Format - Engagement plan + partner map

• FINAL Humanitarian Advocacy Strategic Operational Plan, incorporating COO/HAT/GAPR PSA feedback, plusfinal Messaging & Positioning Framework and Partner Engagement Plan

• Indicative Timing - By 5 December 2026

• Format - Final strategy package(3 documents)

• Presentation of the final strategy to HAT, COO/CEO/GAPR and the PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group; handover notefor implementation

• Indicative Timing - By 10 December 2026

• Format - Slide deck + handover note

• Methodology

• Desk review of existing SOS CVI humanitarian strategy, CVI humanitarian advocacy engagement to date, PSA agreements, Brussels workshop outputs, and relevant MA context material (e.g. Palestine, Somalia, LAAM).

• Key informant interviews/consultations with HAT, Global Advocacy, Communications, selected MA advocacy focal points, and PSA partners.

• Participation in at least one session of the bi-monthly PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group during the contract period.

• Iterative drafting with structured review cycles (HAT technical review, then COO-level review of the final package).

• Alignment throughout with SOS CV's Global Humanitarian Strategy, the Core Humanitarian Standard, and relevant international humanitarian, human rights and refugee law frameworks.

• Reporting and Coordination

The consultant will report to both the Director, Humanitarian Action Team and to Head, GAPR, who will be the primary points of contact and approving authority for deliverables in close coordination and consultation with the PSAs member of the humanitarian network group. The consultant will coordinate closely with Global Advocacy team on messaging and positioning, and with core HAT team members on MA and crisis-specific inputs. Brief progress check-ins will be held at least every two weeks, with a mid-point review in mid-October 2026.

• Duration and Level of Effort

The consultancy will run from 1 September to 10 December 2026 (approximately 16 weeks), on a part-time / intermittent basis, for an indicative maximum of 50 working days. The consultant is expected to manage their own schedule to meet deliverable dates, with availability for scheduled calls and, if required, limited travel.

• Location and Travel

This is a home-based consultancy. Limited travel may be required (e.g. to attend a PSA humanitarian advocacy coordination group meeting in person, in Brussels/Vienna, or other locations for specific external engagement), subject to prior agreement and separate reimbursement in line with SOS CVI travel policy. Any travel costs are excluded from the consultancy fee unless otherwise agreed in writing.

• Required Qualifications and Experience

• Advanced degree in International Relations, Humanitarian Studies, Human Rights, International Development, Law or a related field.

• Significant experience in humanitarian and fragile/conflict-affected settings, with a strong track record in humanitarian advocacy strategy design and message development.

• Deep understanding of the international humanitarian system (UN, IASC, OCHA, cluster system) and experience engaging UN, EU or other multilateral bodies.

• Demonstrated experience developing organisation-wide advocacy strategies or operational plans, ideally within a federated or membership-based organisation.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills in English (C1–C2); French, Spanish or Arabic an asset given MA and PSA geographic spread.

• Strong facilitation and stakeholder-coordination skills; ability to work autonomously to tight deadlines.

• Familiarity with child protection in humanitarian action (CPiHA) and Children both climate induced disasters and Armed Conflict agendas is highly desirable.

• Contract Type, Fees and Payment Schedule

This is an individual consultancy contract or small team The total fee will be agreed at contracting based on the consultant's proposed daily rate and the confirmed level of effort, inclusive of all professional expenses unless travel is separately agreed under Section 9. Payment will be made in three tranches against accepted deliverables.

• Evaluation Criteria for Selection

• Relevant qualifications and demonstrated experience in humanitarian advocacy strategy development (35%).

• Track record of engagement with UN/multilateral coordination structures and INGO coalitions (20%).

• Quality and relevance of proposed methodology and workplan (20%).

• Experience working with federated/membership-based or multi-country organisations (15%).

• Financial proposal / value for money (10%).

• Confidentiality and Safeguarding

The consultant will be required to sign SOS Children's Villages International's Code of Conduct and Safeguarding Policy prior to contract signature, and to treat all internal strategic, donor and MA information shared during the assignment as confidential. The consultant is expected to uphold safeguarding standards and promote a safe environment throughout the engagement, in line with SOS CVI's Code of Conduct.