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Senior Manager, Safeguarding (Africa)

Location: Africa-based

About Mastercard Foundation

Mastercard Foundation is a global foundation based in Toronto, Canada with several offices in Africa. Our programs promote financial inclusion and advance education and learning in Africa, primarily for young people, and in Canada for Indigenous youth. The Foundation was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. From inception, the Foundation was designed to be a separate entity and independent from Mastercard. Our policies, operations, and funding decisions are made by our President and Board of Directors.  

The Foundation believes that youth employment is key to unlocking prosperity, both for youth and their societies. Enabling young women and men from disadvantaged communities to secure dignified and fulfilling work will ensure inclusive development and economic growth in Africa.  

Values are timeless, they transcend and rise above all. They guide everything we do, as employees of the Foundation.  We share a common vision of a world where everyone has the opportunity to learn and prosper. We make mistakes, we reflect, and we grow so that we can impact our world – it’s why we are here. We are ambitious and driven. We encourage you to bring your bold ideas, curiosity, and expertise to your work. We laugh at ourselves and with each other. We are a team. Our journey together makes our impact even more meaningful.  

THE POSITION

Mastercard Foundation is dedicated and takes responsibility to ensure a safe environment for all young people who participate in our programs. The Foundation is guided by the best interest of the youth we aim to empower. We believe everyone has the right to freedom from all forms of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation.  The Foundation has a zero tolerance approach and expects all partners to share similar values and to actively protect and respect the children and youth who participate in Foundation programs.

The Senior Manager, Safeguarding is a newly-created position at the Foundation and comes at an exciting time of growth for the Foundation as it implements its new strategy, Young Africa Works, which addresses the challenge of youth unemployment in Africa. Reporting to the Associate Director, Compliance, the Senior Manager will work closely with the Programs team and a wide-range of stakeholders across the Foundation. In particular, this individual will collaborate with a cross-functional Safeguarding Committee within the Foundation to advance safeguarding priorities.

The Senior Manager will lead important work on developing and embedding the safeguarding framework throughout the Foundation.  They will provide guidance and expertise on safeguarding across the Foundation, working closely with related teams to ensure safeguarding is integrated into everything the Foundation does.  They will be responsible for the continued review of safeguarding approaches, promoting youth-centred safeguarding practices and ensuring continued compliance with regulatory requirements.  They will stay appraised of leading safeguarding practices and contribute to safeguarding forums and communities of practice and represent the Foundation in these spaces.

Specific Responsibilities:

  • Lead the development and implementation of a holistic child & youth safeguarding strategy.
  • Create and implement policies and controls to advance child & youth safeguarding across the Foundation.
  • Integrate child & youth safeguarding measures throughout the organization including partner selection with ongoing review and due diligence.
  • Integrate child & youth safeguarding measures into communications with partner organizations.
  • As the Foundation expands programs in Africa there will be an increased need to provide high-quality, locally relevant support to staff and partners to increase awareness of the local safeguarding context and to adapt safeguarding measures as appropriate.
  • Responsible for crisis management and reporting.
  • Embed youth-centric internal escalation and reporting processes.
  • Act as the main point of contact to receive and manage any safeguarding issues/matters.
  • Design and implement child and youth safeguarding training programs for all employees.
  • Continually assess and evaluate the overall effectiveness of the Safeguarding program; review and update child & youth safeguarding policies and practices on a regular basis.
  • Provide regular reports on progress, results and learning regarding safeguarding to Foundation staff, senior management and partners.
  • Integrate child & youth safeguarding measures into recruitment and performance management processes.

Qualifications

  • Relevant academic degree and/or diploma in Social Work, Sociology, International Development or Global Studies and/or a combination of relevant experience and education.
  • Ten (10) years experience in designing, managing, monitoring and evaluating child and youth safeguarding initiatives, gained in law enforcement, social work, humanitarian or program development.
  • Highly developed knowledge and understanding of current safeguarding and privacy legislation, guidance and best practices for multiple countries in Africa and Canada.
  • Substantial experience working with children and youth in international development and humanitarian settings.
  • Familiarity with safeguarding risks associated with social media and responding to security breaches involving information of children and youth.
  • Astute ability to identify and mitigate risks.
  • Experience in incident investigation and applying continuous learning to improve and strengthen safeguarding measures.
  • Experience developing and delivering engaging and effective safeguarding training.
  • Ability to inspire others to make significant change and act as a change agent.
  • Strong leadership skills with the ability to mentor and lead a collaborative team.
  • Ability to manage conflict and handle sensitive issues with a results-driven approach.
  • Ability to exercise appropriate and sound judgement and discretion.
  • Excellent verbal, written and presentation skills with the ability to articulate information to a variety of constituents across cultures.
  • Excellent interpersonal and listening skills and ability to collaborate and form effective partnerships with internal and external stakeholders, demonstrating tact, diplomacy and sensitivity to culturally diverse environments.
  • Flexible, intellectually curious and open. Must be comfortable with ambiguity, be receptive to new ideas, and is also willing to change when presented with best options.
  • Results driven and motivated by a high sense of performance excellence with a sense of urgency.
  • Proficiency with MS Office Suite (PowerPoint, Word, Excel).
  • Professional maturity and sensitivity to working within different cultures.
  • Impeccable integrity.
  • May require international travel up to 20-40% of the time.

TO APPLY

Please email your resume along with a cover letter explaining your interest in the position to humanresources@mastercardfdn.org, indicating “Senior Manager, Safeguarding (Africa)” in the subject line of your email. All applications are appreciated; however, please note that only those candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

 

Mastercard Foundation values the unique skills and experiences each individual brings to the Foundation, and are committed to creating and maintaining an inclusive and accessible environment for everyone. We appreciate your interest, and advise that only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted directly.

Completion of satisfactory business references, background checks (criminal and credit) and proof of education are essential conditions of employment.

If you require accommodation during the recruitment and selection process, please contact the People and Culture Department. We will work with you to provide a positive recruitment experience in a confidential manner.

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