Policy Associate - UJALA/University Mohammed VI Polytechnique - Rabat, Morocco

Policy Associate – UM6P-J-PAL Agriculture Lab for Africa (UJALA)

Organization: UM6P-J-PAL Agriculture Lab for Africa (UJALA)

Location: Rabat, Morocco

Start Date (Earliest): December 2024

Title: Policy Associate

Employer: University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P)

Education: Master's, other advanced degrees

Language Requirement: French, English 

Duration: Indeterminate

I- Job summary

The UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA) is looking to strengthen its Policy team to support the implementation of impact evaluations conducted by a team of international researchers in partnership with OCP Africa. This position will be based in our offices at the University Mohammed VI Polytechnic campus in Rabat.

About UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA):

J-PAL and UM6P are partnering to form the UM6P-J-PAL Agricultural Lab for Africa (UJALA). UJALA funds research to rigorously evaluate agricultural technologies and practices designed to increase small-scale farmers’ food security, productivity, and profitability. UJALA aims to answer critical questions related to designing and delivering effective food and agricultural subsidies, assessing the value of fertilizer customization to crop needs and soil nutrients, reducing low-income households’ reliance on imported food, alleviating farmers’ constraints to adopting and maintaining new agricultural technologies and practices, and connecting farmers to markets that sell at competitive prices.

About UM6P: 

University Mohammed VI Polytechnic (UM6P) is an institution oriented towards applied research and innovation with a focus on Africa. UM6P is engaged in economic and human development and puts research and innovation at the forefront of African development. This enables it to consolidate Morocco’s frontline position in these fields, using a unique partnership-based approach, and boost skills training relevant for the future of Africa.

About J-PAL: 

The Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is a global research center working to reduce poverty by ensuring that policy is informed by scientific evidence. Anchored by a network of over 200 affiliated professors at universities around the world, J-PAL conducts randomized impact evaluations to answer critical questions in the fight against poverty.

J-PAL values diversity, equity, and inclusivity in our work and the broader perspectives our staff bring. We encourage people of color, first generation college students/graduates, and other underrepresented groups to apply to this role. In your cover letter, please consider sharing how your racial, gender, socioeconomic and/or other identity has influenced your drive and desire to work at J-PAL. (This is not required, but rather an opportunity for us to get to know you.)

For more information on J-PAL Global's commitment to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion visit this webpage.

About the Policy Associate role

The UJALA Policy associate will support policy engagements with partners, support the policy team in projects development, capacity building activities and communication tasks.

The selected candidate will join a growing team based in Rabat. We are particularly interested in candidates who have up to two years of relevant work experience with governments, policymakers, NGOs, or the private sector in Morocco or elsewhere, and who are interested in evidence-based approaches. The ideal candidate would be able to engage effectively with key stakeholders in the public policy space to disseminate evidence and promote evidence-based policymaking. 

II- Key responsibilities

As a Policy associate, you will work under the supervision of the Senior Policy Associate to:

• Support engagements with UJALA’s partners
• Create materials for UJALA’s partners, including tailored evidence notes, presentations, policy briefs, and other high-level deliverables designed to “translate” research findings into actionable recommendations
• Provide technical and project management support to policymakers and practitioners as they develop evaluations and act as a liaison between them and the research team
• Identify windows for drawing on existing evidence to contribute to decisions by policymakers 
• Organize convenings designed to share policy lessons from completed research.
• Support project development
• Identify new opportunities for rigorous evaluation of social policies
• Support with building new partnerships with stakeholders in government, NGOs, international organizations and the private sector in Morocco
• Help raise funds for new research and scale-up activities by contributing to grant proposals
• Support implementing organizations and affiliated researchers to plan for the scale-up of evidence-based interventions (including planning for adaptation and further evaluation as needed).
• Support UJALA’s capacity building activities
• Support the organization and implementation of in person and online training activities 
• Support UJALA team’s capacity building teams to create material for training activities.
• Support UJALA’s communications efforts 
• Draft and edit blog posts for J-PAL’s blog
• Manage UJALA’s website, ensuring that content is up-to-date, engaging and easy to navigate
• Design simple infographics and charts to communicate complex research findings.

III- Requirements 

Your technical expertise, strong communication and organizational skills, passion for translating research into action, and interest in poverty reduction and development make you an ideal candidate for this role.  

• Education: You hold a Master’s degree in economics, public policy, or a closely related field, including coursework in microeconomics, econometrics, and program evaluation. Candidates with Master’s-level degrees in other fields may be qualified as long as they demonstrate a solid understanding of quantitative research methods. 
• Experience: You have up to 2 years of relevant and substantial work experience related to the design of social programs and policies. You have a successful track record of identifying opportunities, developing and managing external partnerships, and relevant experience in communication and development.  
• Skills: You are a self-starter who is able to set personal goals, manage time with multiple work streams and competing priorities, learn quickly, independently identify solutions, and propose innovations. Candidates should be comfortable working in or learning computer applications, including Google Suite, Salesforce, and Stata or R. Proficiency in English and French are required. Knowledge of Arabic, French, Portuguese, Spanish, or other languages spoken in our regions of work are a plus. Experience with randomized evaluations is a major advantage.  
• Communication: You are detail-oriented and have advanced writing skills. You understand how to communicate policy lessons from technical academic research in ways that policymakers and practitioners understand. You are precise, clear, and creative. 
• Organization: You are a strategic thinker. You can handle multiple projects at once with little supervision, meet deadlines while conducting high-quality work, and effectively manage your time.  
• Cultural competencies: You are comfortable and adept at working in a diverse and multicultural work environment, with colleagues, partners and policymakers from around the world. You display cultural, gender, religion, race, nationality, and age sensitivity and adaptability.
• Attitude: You love learning. You are passionate about international development policy and the rigorous research that informs it. You are self-motivated, work hard, and enjoy working in teams.