Safeguarding and Ethical Leadership Coordinator for MSF Boards and Associations

Location: Any MSF office* Contract: 100% - Permanent Starting date: 04th of January 2027 Deadline to apply: 30th of October 2026 Compensation and Benefits: MSF practice is to offer the compensation and benefits package in line with the MSF entity offering the contract. *By default, the successful candidate will be offered a contract in the MSF office, able to issue a contract, of their country of residence at the time of application. If no MSF office exists in their country of residence, the successful candidate will be expected to relocate to a country where an MSF office can issue a contract, provided the local legislation allows for that. MSF INTERNATIONAL Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international, independent, medical humanitarian organisation that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, healthcare exclusion and natural disasters. MSF offers assistance to people based only on need and irrespective of race, religion, gender or political affiliation. MSF International is the legal entity that binds MSF’s 24 sections, 28 associations and 19 branch offices together. Registered in Switzerland, MSF International provides coordination, information and support to the MSF Movement, as well as implements international projects and initiatives as requested. SAFEGUARDING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ROLE The incumbent commits to contribute to a safe, supportive, inclusive, equitable, diverse, respectful, and healthy workplace, and associative spaces free from abuse and other misconduct. They will not engage in any form of abuse including those detailed in MSF Typologies of Abuse and when an employee suspects or observes abuse, they will report it (without investigating it) to protect others. I. CONTEXT MSF is committed to creating a safe, respectful, and dignified environment for its patients, their caretakers, and the communities in which it works, and for all its volunteers and staff, board and associative members. To this end, all sections of MSF have adopted Behavioural Commitments designed to ensure all staff are aware of their obligations to create workspaces free from abuse and inappropriate behaviour. MSF is committed to safeguarding and ensuring zero tolerance of inaction on abuse. MSF is continuously strengthening its safeguarding work, and safeguarding remains a top organizational priority. In line with this organization commitment, MSF has created a Board Strengthening Programme, as well as Ethical Leadership Minimum Standards (ELMS) applicable to all board members. As safeguarding expands, MSF’s associative structure is working to adopt the highest standards of safeguarding for and amongst its members. II. PURPOSE OF THE JOB The Safeguarding and Ethical Leadership Coordinator for Boards and Associations supports the implementation, operationalisation, monitoring, and continuous improvement of MSF’s safeguarding work with boards and associations across the MSF movement. This reflects the International Board’s commitment to minimum standards for safeguarding in associative networks. The role: - leads coordination and implementation efforts that translate safeguarding principles, commitments, policies, and standards into practical, measurable, consistent, coherent, and sustainable safeguarding practices across MSF’s boards and associative structures. - advances safeguarding culture change by supporting MSF boards in understanding their role in safeguarding leadership and oversight; and by supporting the development of robust safeguarding understanding and putting in place safeguarding measures within associative structures and associations. - contributes to strengthening prevention, detection, reporting, response to safeguarding cases. - promotes accountability and institutional learning on safeguarding across the MSF movement. III. ACCOUNTABILITIES A. Coordination, design, and implementation: - Lead the coordination, implementation, and training on the ELMS, as well as on safeguarding, and other ethics principles within MSF boards. - Translate safeguarding and ELMS concepts into actionable documents, processes, and initiatives for MSF boards associations/networks in line with existing MSF initiatives on safeguarding. - Develop implementation guidance, tools, frameworks, templates, and operational resources. Key Accountabilities: - Safeguarding ambitions are translated into practical implementation plans and deliverables. - Implementation progress is systematically tracked, monitored, and reported. - Approaches, tools, trainings, and guidance are developed and used by relevant stakeholders. B. Drive safeguarding culture change: - Drive integration of safeguarding as a core organizational practice across MSF boards and associations. - Strengthen safeguarding accountability and leadership engagement, and ownership. - Other tasks assigned by the ISC or the International President or their delegate. C. Lead monitoring, accountability, learning, and continuous improvement on Safeguarding and Ethical Governance: - Monitor implementation progress, identify risks and gaps, and drive corrective and improvement actions where needed. - Analyze ELMS and safeguarding implementation, challenges, and lessons learned to inform strategic decision-making. - Produce implementation reports, dashboards, briefing papers, presentations, and governance updates. - Lead learning and knowledge-sharing initiatives related to safeguarding and ELMS implementation and best practices. Key Accountabilities: - Safeguarding is embedded into MSF associations and boards’ ways of working. - Safeguarding considerations are integrated into associative and boards’ processes. - Organisational awareness and ownership of safeguarding responsibilities is increased across the MSF associations and boards. D. Coordinate the framework and response to ELMS and safeguarding complaints involving senior leadership: - Ensure relevant frameworks and processes relating to triage, case management, investigation, and decision-making are implemented for ELMS and safeguarding complaints involving senior leadership (the incumbent will not engage, case management, investigations or decision-making directly, but rather ensure it is in place). - Reception, and coordination, initial review and assessment of safeguarding and ELMs allegations involving senior leadership (i.e. General Directors and board members). Ensure a decision-making panel is formed for ELMS-related complaints, and ensure their decision is reported to the International Board. Key Accountabilities: - Ensure that ELMs related complaints are properly assigned to relevant experts for case management/investigation. - Ensure a decision-making panel is formed for safeguarding or ELMs-related complaints, and ensure their decision is reported to the International Board. AUTONOMY, COMPLEXITY The role is responsible under the technical supervision of the ISC and the hierarchical supervision of the International President (or the IP’s delegate). The role will coordinate closely with: - the Board Strengthening Programme concerning board training and direct board support activities with respect to safeguarding and ELMS implementation. - the International Associative Team to ensure appropriate association support and training activities with respect to safeguarding. - the ILD to ensure legal risks and statutory requirements are duly considered. The role uses subject matter expertise, analysis, independent judgement and translates safeguarding, and ethical governance initiatives (such as the Ethical Leadership and Minimum Standards), and other safeguarding initiatives and concepts into relatable, understood, actionable documents, trainings, and actionable initiatives that support to ensure all parts of MSF have a robust understanding of, and structures that support safeguarding. The role needs a strong understanding of, safeguarding policies, codes of conducts-including ethical governance principles, and how to draft them for associations (non-staff), alongside an understanding of the role of trustees and Boards as oversight for safeguarding. The incumbent will also need to understand case management and administrative investigations to be able to explain these concepts and how they relate to oversight and associations. The incumbent will also need to have good understanding of confidentiality, and act with the utmost discretion, when following up, and arranging that safeguarding and ELMs complaints involving senior leadership are properly and promptly addressed.