Remote jobs opening at AFRICANENDA FOUNDATION
JOB ALERT
ORGANIZATION: AFRICANENDA FOUNDATION
POSITION: RESEARCH AND ADVOCACY SPECIALIST
LOCATION: Remote (Africa)
REPORTS TO: DIRECTOR, ADVOCACY AND CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 5 OCTOBER 2026
ABOUT AFRICANENDA FOUNDATION
AfricaNenda Foundation is an Africa-led organization focused on building expertise, coordinating stakeholders and accelerating the rollout of inclusive instant payment systems across Africa.
The organization works to promote universal access to inclusive payment systems, including for financially excluded populations, by addressing regulatory, structural and technical barriers such as limited interoperability, insufficient technical capacity and weak collaborative models.
ABOUT THE ROLE
AfricaNenda Foundation is seeking a highly capable Research and Advocacy Specialist to strengthen its evidence-generation and advocacy work.
The successful candidate will produce credible and decision-useful evidence and translate research findings into policy positions, advocacy messages, stakeholder engagement strategies and practical recommendations that support inclusive instant payment systems across Africa.
The position combines research, policy analysis and advocacy. The Specialist will support the full evidence-to-influence cycle, including identifying research priorities, conducting or commissioning research, analyzing findings, developing thought leadership products, preparing leadership engagements, coordinating advocacy initiatives, tracking policy and industry developments, and documenting results and lessons.
KEY OBJECTIVES
The Specialist will be responsible for five interconnected objectives:
Generate evidence through rigorous and timely research on policies, regulations, institutions, markets and user realities affecting inclusive instant payments.
Translate evidence into clear advocacy propositions, practical recommendations and compelling policy messages.
Drive influence by supporting targeted advocacy that advances priority issues on institutional and ecosystem agendas.
Equip leadership with analysis, briefings, talking points and engagement materials.
Demonstrate results by tracking advocacy progress, documenting outcomes and applying lessons to future research and influencing strategies.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
EVIDENCE STRATEGY AND PLANNING
Support the Director in defining and maintaining AfricaNenda Foundation’s evidence-generation and advocacy priorities.
Develop annual and rolling evidence agendas aligned with organizational strategy and emerging sector issues.
Translate strategic priorities into research questions, analytical workstreams, products, audiences and influencing opportunities.
Identify evidence gaps that may limit policy action or weaken the case for inclusive instant payment reforms.
Maintain a forward-looking calendar covering research outputs, policy processes, regulatory developments, stakeholder engagements and advocacy opportunities.
Ensure evidence-generation plans are realistic, properly sequenced and connected to intended policy outcomes.
RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS
Conduct desk research, literature reviews, policy and regulatory reviews, comparative analysis, political-economy analysis and rapid evidence assessments.
Design and support primary research using qualitative and quantitative methods, including interviews, focus groups, surveys, consultations and case studies.
Support research commissioning and quality assurance.
Analyze developments affecting inclusive instant payment systems, including governance, participation rules, scheme design, pricing, use cases, access channels, consumer protection and recourse.
Conduct research on related areas such as digital public infrastructure, digital identity, data governance, competition, open finance, cross-border payments, digital trade and responsible innovation.
Undertake country, regional and continental scans to identify policy trends, implementation gaps, emerging risks and transferable lessons.
Develop research frameworks, methodologies, interview guides, survey tools, evidence matrices and quality-assurance protocols.
Validate findings through triangulation, peer review and stakeholder consultation.
Maintain complete and traceable source records and ensure factual claims are verifiable.
Clearly distinguish between research findings, interpretation, assumptions and recommendations.
Identify incomplete or contested evidence and advise on its implications for AfricaNenda Foundation’s positions.
Maintain records of approvals, versions, sources, research ethics requirements and intellectual-property arrangements.
ADVOCACY STRATEGY AND EXECUTION
Support the Director in developing, implementing and refining AfricaNenda Foundation’s advocacy strategy.
Translate research and technical evidence into policy implications, institutional positions, practical recommendations and targeted advocacy asks.
Develop issue-specific advocacy plans covering objectives, priority audiences, influence pathways, key messages, tactics, milestones, risks and indicators.
Prepare advocacy materials including policy briefs, position papers, regulatory analyses, consultation responses, executive memos, briefing notes and talking points.
Identify policy windows and decision points.
Segment stakeholders according to influence and interest and tailor engagement approaches to relevant mandates and incentives.
Coordinate advocacy activities across technical programmes, capacity development, communications and partnerships.
Support coalition building, leadership engagement and follow-up on commitments.
Monitor stakeholder responses, institutional constraints and advocacy outcomes and adapt approaches where necessary.
Maintain a repository of approved positions, messages, recommendations and supporting evidence.
Ensure advocacy is technically sound, politically informed, non-partisan, inclusion-focused and consistent with AfricaNenda Foundation’s mission.
Design and coordinate policy dialogues, consultations, roundtables and bilateral meetings.
Prepare decision-focused briefing materials for AfricaNenda leadership.
Build trusted stakeholder relationships and represent AfricaNenda when delegated.
Incorporate underserved-user perspectives into advocacy and policy engagement.
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
ESSENTIAL QUALIFICATIONS
Master’s degree in Public Policy, Economics, Finance, Development Studies, Law, Political Science, International Relations, Public Administration or another relevant discipline.
At least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in applied research, policy analysis, advocacy, financial inclusion, digital financial services, payment systems, digital public infrastructure or a closely related field.
Demonstrated experience conducting research and translating findings into recommendations and advocacy propositions for the digital financial services ecosystem.
Strong experience producing policy briefs, research reports, presentations and stakeholder engagement materials.
Experience engaging policymakers, regulators, central banks, development partners and private-sector institutions.
Experience managing research assignments or consultants and assuring the quality of technical outputs.
Strong understanding of African digital financial services policy, regulatory and instant payment system contexts.
Ability to manage multiple workstreams and deliver high-quality outputs under tight deadlines.
Experience applying systematic-review methodologies and tools, including PRISMA 2020 and PRISMA-P protocols.
Experience managing research references and citations using Zotero and EndNote.
Experience conducting qualitative thematic coding and analysis using NVivo and ATLAS.ti.
Ability to develop both concise executive products and substantive research outputs.
DESIRABLE QUALIFICATIONS
Direct experience in instant payments, interoperability, payment-system governance, financial-sector regulation or digital public infrastructure.
Experience working across multiple African countries or regions.
Experience applying political-economy analysis to policy or advocacy work.
Relevant publications or a demonstrable portfolio of policy and research products.
Fluency in English is mandatory. English-French bilingual proficiency is desirable.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
Interested candidates should submit:
Cover letter demonstrating suitability for the role.
Current CV highlighting relevant responsibilities and achievements, including contact details for 3 professional referees. One referee should be a recent supervisor or client.
2 publications substantially authored by the applicant:
1 research output.
1 advocacy or thought-leadership output, such as a policy note, blog or thematic think piece.
HOW TO APPLY
Send the complete application to:
applications@africanenda.org
EMAIL SUBJECT: Research and Advocacy Specialist
Relevant files should be clearly labelled, for example:
CV – Name
Cover Letter – Name
APPLICATION DEADLINE: 5 OCTOBER 2026
The application should be submitted by close of business EAT on 5 October 2026.
Incomplete applications will not be considered. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Shortlisted candidates may be required to complete a practical written assessment covering insight synthesis, policy analysis, advocacy positioning and thought leadership.
AfricaNenda Foundation is an equal-opportunity employer and encourages applications from people of all backgrounds.
FULL TERMS OF REFERENCE
Download the Research and Advocacy Specialist Terms of Reference
