National Ombuds
2026-02-17T08:03:00+00:00
SOS Children’s Villages Malawi
https://www.greatmalawijobs.com/jsjobsdata/data/employer/comp_4705/logo/SOS%20Children%E2%80%99s%20Villages%20Malawi.png
https://www.sos-childrensvillages.org/
FULL_TIME
Lilongwe
Lilongwe
10101
Malawi
Nonprofit, and NGO
Social Services & Nonprofit, Legal, Human Resources, Protective Services
2026-02-28T17:00:00+00:00
8
The National Ombuds and the rest of the Ombuds Office (i.e., other National Ombuds, Regional Ombuds, Global Ombuds and Ombuds Administrator) work independently from SOS Children’s Villages. s National Ombuds position is contracted by the Malawi SOS Children’s Villages Malawi
The National Ombuds in Malawi, as designated neutral professionals, will build awareness, promote prevention, nurture child participation, and enable children and young people to be safe in all SOS Children’s Villages Malawi programs. The Ombuds Office is based on a rights-based approach in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). Developed with input from children and young people, the Ombuds Office functions on the principles of independence, impartiality, confidentiality and informality. Honouring these principles is critical to the success of the Ombuds Office.
Key performance areas and main responsibilities:
Strategic obligations
- The National Ombuds serves as a designated independent practitioner providing informal and confidential conflict resolution support to children, young people, care leavers, their families, and staff at the SOS country levels.
- The National Ombuds promotes fairness of process and supports the safe expression of concerns by listening carefully, taking all concerns seriously, explaining options in child friendly ways, and supporting resolutions of issues that have not been addressed to the satisfaction of the inquirer through existing mechanisms. conflict resolution within SOS Children’s Villages Member Associations through the SOS Ombuds Office’s fundamental principles.
- Serve as a vehicle for historical and current children, young people, care leavers, families and staff to make safeguarding or HR inquiries about issues that have not been dealt with to their satisfaction by SOS
Receiving and Addressing Concerns
- receive and address concerns in a timely manner, ensuring that no concern is dismissed or ignored
- Listen actively and respectfully to concerns without discrimination, judgement, intimidation or bias
- Discuss an agreed action plan with inquirers and provide ongoing follow up and support
Guidance and Referrals
- Help Inquirers understand SOS processes and navigate between SOS structures and community or statutory systems.
- Refer cases, where appropriate, to relevant SOS departments, child protection authorities, legal services, or community resources.
- Active listening
Child-Friendly Engagement
- Engage directly with children and young people in calm, respectful, non-threatening, and age-appropriate ways.
- Communicate directly with children who have experienced harm, ensuring sensitivity, dignity, and emotional support.
- Ensure accessibility through child-preferred communication channels, including face-to-face meetings, phone calls, and child-safe digital platforms.
Communications & Media Studies
Collaboration and Feedback
- Collaborate with children, young people and staff representatives to strengthen and safeguard and Ombuds processes
- Support the sharing of children’s views and feedback to
- Communication and support methods
- Advise senior management on any changes needed within the MA
- Feedback loop
Documentation and Learning
- Develop and maintain a secure confidential database that tracks concerns until they are resolution.
- Identify national trends within SOS program and services while maintaining confidentiality
- Recommend changes to the Malawi Board, Regional Ombuds, and Global Ombuds to strengthen safeguarding and child participation.
- Confidential database
Challenging working environment and efforts required
- Working in-country with, but independent of, SOS while working remotely with colleagues in the Ombuds Office requires wisdom and maturity – to build a community of practice, uphold Ombuds principles, and minimise isolation.
- Number and complexity of inquiries the Ombuds may receive.
- Responding to various local and national cultures and laws as well as regional and international conventions, principles, and standards
- Responding to historical cases, which may have limited documentation
- Participating in a pilot innovation project, learning for scale up, and supporting scale up.
Competencies and Skills
- Bachelor’s degree in a relevant area such as law, social work, psychology, child rights, sociology, youth work or psychosocial wellbeing. Thise with Master’s degree will have added advantage.
- Minimum 5 years demonstrated experience in one of the following fields: ombudsperson, mediation, child safeguarding, child protection, or child rights;
- Minimum 3 years demonstrated experience in working with children and youths;
- Experience in working in communities;
- Ability to speak Chichewa, and Tumbuka Desirable: Ability to speak and work in at least two regional languages and English
- The National Ombuds will be important in ensuring that safeguarding concerns are addressed appropriately within the Member Associations.
- Honest and transparent with an understanding of children and young people’s developmental stages and needs
- Knowledge of children’s rights, best interests of the child, safeguarding, and related issues
- Excellent listening and consultation skills
- Facilitation/training skills with participatory methods
- Ability to work using child-centered principles, with children and young people
- Excellent problem-solving and mediation skills; comfortable with innovation.
- Ability to keep information confidential
- Nurturing nature
- You have the legal right to live and work in Malawi;
* The National Ombuds serves as a designated independent practitioner providing informal and confidential conflict resolution support to children, young people, care leavers, their families, and staff at the SOS country levels. * The National Ombuds promotes fairness of process and supports the safe expression of concerns by listening carefully, taking all concerns seriously, explaining options in child friendly ways, and supporting resolutions of issues that have not been addressed to the satisfaction of the inquirer through existing mechanisms. conflict resolution within SOS Children’s Villages Member Associations through the SOS Ombuds Office’s fundamental principles. * Serve as a vehicle for historical and current children, young people, care leavers, families and staff to make safeguarding or HR inquiries about issues that have not been dealt with to their satisfaction by SOS * receive and address concerns in a timely manner, ensuring that no concern is dismissed or ignored * Listen actively and respectfully to concerns without discrimination, judgement, intimidation or bias * Discuss an agreed action plan with inquirers and provide ongoing follow up and support * Help Inquirers understand SOS processes and navigate between SOS structures and community or statutory systems. * Refer cases, where appropriate, to relevant SOS departments, child protection authorities, legal services, or community resources. * Engage directly with children and young people in calm, respectful, non-threatening, and age-appropriate ways. * Communicate directly with children who have experienced harm, ensuring sensitivity, dignity, and emotional support. * Ensure accessibility through child-preferred communication channels, including face-to-face meetings, phone calls, and child-safe digital platforms. * Collaborate with children, young people and staff representatives to strengthen and safeguard and Ombuds processes * Support the sharing of children’s views and feedback to * Advise senior management on any changes needed within the MA * Develop and maintain a secure confidential database that tracks concerns until they are resolution. * Identify national trends within SOS program and services while maintaining confidentiality * Recommend changes to the Malawi Board, Regional Ombuds, and Global Ombuds to strengthen safeguarding and child participation.
* Excellent listening and consultation skills * Facilitation/training skills with participatory methods * Ability to work using child-centered principles, with children and young people * Excellent problem-solving and mediation skills; comfortable with innovation. * Ability to keep information confidential * Nurturing nature
* Bachelor’s degree in a relevant area such as law, social work, psychology, child rights, sociology, youth work or psychosocial wellbeing. Thise with Master’s degree will have added advantage. * Minimum 5 years demonstrated experience in one of the following fields: ombudsperson, mediation, child safeguarding, child protection, or child rights; * Minimum 3 years demonstrated experience in working with children and youths; * Experience in working in communities; * Ability to speak Chichewa, and Tumbuka Desirable: Ability to speak and work in at least two regional languages and English * Honest and transparent with an understanding of children and young people’s developmental stages and needs * Knowledge of children’s rights, best interests of the child, safeguarding, and related issues * You have the legal right to live and work in Malawi;
JOB-699420b481dfb
Vacancy title:
National Ombuds
[Type: FULL_TIME, Industry: Nonprofit, and NGO, Category: Social Services & Nonprofit, Legal, Human Resources, Protective Services]
Jobs at:
SOS Children’s Villages Malawi
Deadline of this Job:
Saturday, February 28 2026
Duty Station:
Lilongwe | Lilongwe
Summary
Date Posted: Tuesday, February 17 2026, Base Salary: Not Disclosed
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JOB DETAILS:
The National Ombuds and the rest of the Ombuds Office (i.e., other National Ombuds, Regional Ombuds, Global Ombuds and Ombuds Administrator) work independently from SOS Children’s Villages. s National Ombuds position is contracted by the Malawi SOS Children’s Villages Malawi
The National Ombuds in Malawi, as designated neutral professionals, will build awareness, promote prevention, nurture child participation, and enable children and young people to be safe in all SOS Children’s Villages Malawi programs. The Ombuds Office is based on a rights-based approach in accordance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989). Developed with input from children and young people, the Ombuds Office functions on the principles of independence, impartiality, confidentiality and informality. Honouring these principles is critical to the success of the Ombuds Office.
Key performance areas and main responsibilities:
Strategic obligations
- The National Ombuds serves as a designated independent practitioner providing informal and confidential conflict resolution support to children, young people, care leavers, their families, and staff at the SOS country levels.
- The National Ombuds promotes fairness of process and supports the safe expression of concerns by listening carefully, taking all concerns seriously, explaining options in child friendly ways, and supporting resolutions of issues that have not been addressed to the satisfaction of the inquirer through existing mechanisms. conflict resolution within SOS Children’s Villages Member Associations through the SOS Ombuds Office’s fundamental principles.
- Serve as a vehicle for historical and current children, young people, care leavers, families and staff to make safeguarding or HR inquiries about issues that have not been dealt with to their satisfaction by SOS
Receiving and Addressing Concerns
- receive and address concerns in a timely manner, ensuring that no concern is dismissed or ignored
- Listen actively and respectfully to concerns without discrimination, judgement, intimidation or bias
- Discuss an agreed action plan with inquirers and provide ongoing follow up and support
Guidance and Referrals
- Help Inquirers understand SOS processes and navigate between SOS structures and community or statutory systems.
- Refer cases, where appropriate, to relevant SOS departments, child protection authorities, legal services, or community resources.
- Active listening
Child-Friendly Engagement
- Engage directly with children and young people in calm, respectful, non-threatening, and age-appropriate ways.
- Communicate directly with children who have experienced harm, ensuring sensitivity, dignity, and emotional support.
- Ensure accessibility through child-preferred communication channels, including face-to-face meetings, phone calls, and child-safe digital platforms.
Communications & Media Studies
Collaboration and Feedback
- Collaborate with children, young people and staff representatives to strengthen and safeguard and Ombuds processes
- Support the sharing of children’s views and feedback to
- Communication and support methods
- Advise senior management on any changes needed within the MA
- Feedback loop
Documentation and Learning
- Develop and maintain a secure confidential database that tracks concerns until they are resolution.
- Identify national trends within SOS program and services while maintaining confidentiality
- Recommend changes to the Malawi Board, Regional Ombuds, and Global Ombuds to strengthen safeguarding and child participation.
- Confidential database
Challenging working environment and efforts required
- Working in-country with, but independent of, SOS while working remotely with colleagues in the Ombuds Office requires wisdom and maturity – to build a community of practice, uphold Ombuds principles, and minimise isolation.
- Number and complexity of inquiries the Ombuds may receive.
- Responding to various local and national cultures and laws as well as regional and international conventions, principles, and standards
- Responding to historical cases, which may have limited documentation
- Participating in a pilot innovation project, learning for scale up, and supporting scale up.
Competencies and Skills
- Bachelor’s degree in a relevant area such as law, social work, psychology, child rights, sociology, youth work or psychosocial wellbeing. Thise with Master’s degree will have added advantage.
- Minimum 5 years demonstrated experience in one of the following fields: ombudsperson, mediation, child safeguarding, child protection, or child rights;
- Minimum 3 years demonstrated experience in working with children and youths;
- Experience in working in communities;
- Ability to speak Chichewa, and Tumbuka Desirable: Ability to speak and work in at least two regional languages and English
- The National Ombuds will be important in ensuring that safeguarding concerns are addressed appropriately within the Member Associations.
- Honest and transparent with an understanding of children and young people’s developmental stages and needs
- Knowledge of children’s rights, best interests of the child, safeguarding, and related issues
- Excellent listening and consultation skills
- Facilitation/training skills with participatory methods
- Ability to work using child-centered principles, with children and young people
- Excellent problem-solving and mediation skills; comfortable with innovation.
- Ability to keep information confidential
- Nurturing nature
- You have the legal right to live and work in Malawi;
Work Hours: 8
Experience in Months: 36
Level of Education: bachelor degree
Job application procedure
Interested persons should submit their applications and detailed Curriculum Vitae with three traceable referees via this organisation system.
Please ensure that you include your full contact details including telephone numbers.
Closing date for receiving applications is on 28th February 2026. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
Application Link: Click Here to Apply Now
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