Project Leader - RETTA (TRAFFIC International)

TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, works to ensure that trade in wild animals and plants is not a threat to the conservation of nature. We actively monitor and investigate wildlife trade and provide information to diverse audiences worldwide as a basis for effective conservation policies and programmes. TRAFFIC is a strategic alliance of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and is an international network, organised into six regional programmes.

TRAFFIC is implementing a four-year project ‘Reducing trade threats to Africa’s wild species and ecosystems (RETTA) through strengthened knowledge and action in Africa and beyond’. The project’s purpose is to strengthen actions to conserve and protect wildlife populations, areas of high biodiversity, and communities in Africa threatened by illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade, with a particular focus on trade to Asia. The project is organised around five inter-related work streams:

• Increasing the quality, breadth, depth and timeliness of information – i.e. the knowledge base – on markets for, and illegal and unsustainable trade in, wildlife and wildlife products from Africa; 
• Improving the targeting, design and effectiveness of actions to reduce illegal and unsustainable trade in African wildlife using analyses and outputs bringing together data from this project with information from other sources;
• Supporting innovation and scaling up of successful approaches to identifying and reducing illegal and unsustainable trade;
• Encouraging greater information sharing and collaboration to implement actions to reduce illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade;
• Ensuring effective, adaptive management of the programme of work supported through funds from Arcadia and strict adherence to all financial management and reporting procedures

Characteristic Duties 

This position is responsible for leading and ensuring the effective delivery of the overall project. Work will require applying an insight-led, results-oriented and collaborative approach. Critical functions include leading the design and delivery of high quality research and the generation of insights and outputs that strengthen knowledge and approaches used to reduce illegal wildlife trade within Africa and between Africa, Asia, and potentially other major markets identified via project research.


Specific Duties

• Lead responsibility for ensuring the successful implementation of the project, working closely with regional directors for East/Southern and Central Africa, and leading a small project team based in both Africa and UK.
• Collaborating and maintaining strong internal relationships with TRAFFIC regional teams in Africa and globally, ensuring all actions are synergistic, complementary and demonstrate value for money
• Managing staff, sub-agreements, reporting, donor liaison, work plans and budgets under rigorous project management systems.
• Ensuring the technical quality and timely delivery of work plan activities, including conducting a rigorous evaluation of project activities and interventions and suggesting adaptive management approaches to amplify project impact.
• Ensuring adherence to TRAFFIC’s research and data management protocols 
• Leading the compilation of reports, briefing papers and other communication materials, including technical review and sign-off, to ensure quality control and timely submission. 
• Developing and implementing research partnership strategies in Africa to strengthen international co-operation addressing trade of illegal wildlife stemming from Africa.
• Developing and implementing advocacy strategies to strengthen international approaches to addressing trans-continental trade of illegal wildlife between Africa and other continents with a primary focus on Asia.
• Convening, facilitating and/or chairing meetings and workshops, and consolidating relationships with potential project collaborators.
• Leading efforts to inform understanding and actions amongst government, inter-government, private sector and civil society within Africa to reduce wildlife trafficking 
• Proactively managing relationships and fostering dialogue amongst an ‘international community’ of wildlife trade stakeholders and potential project collaborators.
• Ensuring effective linkages to delivery of TRAFFIC’s wider programme priorities with specific reference to research and building capacity and partnerships to deliver a lasting conservation impact.
• Developing concepts and proposals to help leverage the additional funding and technical resources that will be required to ensure the successful delivery and continuation of the project as appropriate. 
• Other duties as required by the line manager / TRAFFIC Senior Programme Director, Africa and Europe