Evidence, Learning and Advocacy Manager - Child Protection

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future.

Job Overview

Under the direct supervision of the Child Protection Coordinator, the Evidence, Learning and Advocacy Manager - Child Protection will lead evidence generation, learning capture, technical documentation, external reporting support, advocacy and policy engagement, and strategic government engagement for IRC Ukraine's Child Protection department. The position will serve as a key support to the Child Protection Coordinator for national-level positioning, regular engagement with government counterparts, coordination mechanisms, donors, UN agencies, and other strategic stakeholders.

The position will translate programme data, assessments, partner and field learning, and operational experience into high-quality external reports, analysis, briefing materials, presentations, learning products, policy and advocacy outputs, and technical documentation. The role will maintain a strong understanding of Ukraine's child protection system, institutional architecture, policy and reform environment, and key government and coordination processes, and will help ensure that IRC's Child Protection evidence and programme experience are consistently reflected in external engagement and sector-level discussions.

The role will support a complex Child Protection portfolio covering child-focused victim assistance, reintegration support for children returned from occupied territories and institutional care, alternative care and deinstitutionalization, justice for children, violence against children, case management, MHPSS and PSS, social service and systems strengthening, capacity strengthening, and integrated programming with other sectors. The position will help ensure that learning from field implementation is systematically captured, analysed, and used for programme adaptation, proposal development, donor engagement, government engagement, coordination leadership, and sector-level influence.

The position will work closely with central and field Child Protection teams, MEAL, Grants, Partnerships, Advocacy and Communications, and other technical sectors. The role is not intended to replace MEAL, Grants, Communications, or field implementation functions; rather, it will bridge these functions by ensuring that Child Protection evidence, external reporting, learning, advocacy, and stakeholder engagement are technically sound, ethically documented, strategically used, and followed through.

3. Primary Responsibilities:

Evidence Generation and Learning Management:

Develop and maintain a Child Protection evidence and learning agenda aligned with IRC Ukraine's Strategic Action Plan, CP strategy, donor requirements, government and sector priorities, and field-level needs.

Work with MEAL and CP teams to identify priority learning questions, evidence gaps, emerging trends, and documentation opportunities across CP programming.

Support practical evidence-generation processes, including after-action reviews, lessons learned exercises, outcome harvesting, case trend analysis, field learning visits, qualitative documentation, and synthesis of assessment findings.

Synthesize CPIMS+, MEAL, partner, assessment, monitoring, and qualitative data into clear analysis for programme adaptation, quality improvement, external reporting, donor engagement, government dialogue, and advocacy.

Track and analyse key child protection trends, system gaps, service-delivery challenges, and emerging issues in Ukraine, drawing on field evidence, coordination discussions, assessments, and available secondary data.

Institutionalize regular learning loops within the CP department, including quarterly learning sessions, action tracking, and follow-up with central and field teams.

Ensure evidence and learning products apply ethical, safe, and child-sensitive approaches, including informed consent, confidentiality, data protection, child safeguarding, and do-no-harm principles.

Technical Documentation, External Reporting and Knowledge Management:

Lead the development of high-quality CP technical documentation, including learning briefs, practice notes, case studies, technical notes, outcome summaries, programme snapshots, lessons learned products, and thematic analyses.

Support and contribute to external reporting for donors, coordination bodies, government counterparts, and other external stakeholders by providing clear technical narrative, cross-location analysis, evidence of results, emerging needs, challenges, adaptations, and lessons learned, in coordination with Grants and MEAL.

Prepare and quality assure briefing packs, presentations, evidence notes, speaking points, meeting briefs, key messages, and technical inputs for the CP Coordinator and other senior representatives for donor meetings, government engagement, coordination platforms, senior leadership discussions, and external events.

Document IRC Ukraine's programme models and lessons learned in child-focused victim assistance, reintegration support, alternative care, justice for children, violence against children, and other priority CP areas.

Create and maintain a structured CP knowledge management system, including programme models, SOPs, tools, training materials, good practice examples, finalized learning products, external reports, and key reference documents.

Maintain practical trackers and calendars for CP external products, reporting deadlines, government and coordination requests, advocacy windows, stakeholder engagements, and follow-up actions.

Ensure consistency and quality of technical language across CP documentation, including alignment with CPMS, IRC technical standards, donor terminology, and inter-agency guidance.

Government Engagement, Coordination and Strategic Representation:

Maintain an up-to-date understanding and stakeholder map of Ukraine's child protection system, including relevant national and sub-national government institutions, social service structures, coordination mechanisms, mandates, reform processes, and key decision-makers relevant to IRC's CP portfolio.

Track policy, institutional, legislative, coordination, and reform developments relevant to child protection in Ukraine and provide concise updates and analysis to the CP Coordinator and relevant technical leads.

Attend regular meetings with key government counterparts, national and sub-national authorities, technical working groups, and inter-agency coordination mechanisms when delegated by the CP Coordinator, ensuring consistent and professional IRC Child Protection representation.

Prepare for external meetings by developing agendas, briefing notes, presentations, talking points, evidence summaries, and key messages; present IRC Child Protection evidence, programme experience, and technical positions when delegated.

Document key decisions, commitments, requests, and action points from government and coordination meetings; provide timely read-outs to the CP Coordinator and relevant teams and proactively follow up agreed actions.

Maintain a simple government and strategic stakeholder engagement tracker to support continuity of relationships, visibility of commitments, and timely follow-up across the CP central team.

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