Assistant Legal Advisor (Legal Programs Coordinator) – Kenya

Job brief

POSITION SUMMARY

The Assistant Legal Advisor (ALA) (Legal Programs Coordinator) supports HTI's initiatives within Kenya's criminal justice system by working closely with the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the C-TIP Secretariat, and non-governmental organizations. The ALA role focuses on implementing HTI's goals, coordinating with government and non-government stakeholders, and advancing anti-trafficking efforts. This position will report to the Country Director – Kenya.

Position Title: Assistant Legal Advisor (Legal Programs Coordinator) – Kenya

Department: Programs

Reports To: Country Director

Location: Nairobi, Kenya

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Legal and Policy Guidance:

• Provide clear, accurate advice on Kenyan statutory, regulatory, and customary law relevant to all local program activities.
• Interpret legislative and policy developments and translate them into actionable guidance for the Country Director, Special Counsel, and the Law Enforcement Advisor.
• Monitor legal and policy changes and provide timely updates to program leadership and technical teams.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of and inform leadership and technical teams of customary practices and evolving community norms.

Partnership and Stakeholder Coordination:

• Arrange and secure meetings that may be complex or challenging to obtain, ensuring senior staff are fully briefed.
• Support relationship-building efforts that strengthen trust, information flow, and collaborative problem-solving.
• Facilitate coordination among stakeholders.
• Develop and maintain partnerships with government and non-government partners to increase HTI's ability to implement, collect, share, and analyze data, and measure impact.
• Create and sustain effective partnerships with government and civil society organizations and attend all relevant technical meetings with ODPP, DCI, and related partners, as needed.
• Represent HTI at various meetings and workshops in Kenya, as required.
• Attend meetings, retreats, and other HTI events, as required.

Program and Capacity Building Support:

• Contribute to the development and refinement of training materials, ensuring alignment with Kenyan legal standards and practical realities.
• Provide legal context, case examples, and clarifications during training in design and delivery as needed.
• Ensure training content reflects both statutory requirements and customary norms as needed.
• Conduct regular program reviews and provide ongoing program support and troubleshooting to ensure completion of HTI's objectives and key results in Kenya.
• Engage in program design, strategic planning, assessments, and process development to support successful execution of HTI's mission and growth goals in Kenya.
• Collaborate with the Global MERL Manager, Global Programs Manager, consultants, and external evaluators when necessary to design and execute prevalence studies, evaluations, calculations, etc.

Research & Resources:

• Conduct legal research related to human trafficking prosecutions and related criminal justice processes.
• Monitor legal policy and statutory changes that may impact TIP and advocate accordingly
• Conduct research on legal, political, social, and economic events, trends, and/or developments relating to TIP in Kenya and the surrounding regions.
• Carry out targeted desk research to generate substantive inputs for HTI's reporting cycles, including quarterly, annual, and donor reports, as well as for the development of new proposals, concept notes, briefing notes, and summary status reports.
• Research and provide timely and accurate research and analysis of Kenyan-based funding opportunities, as required.
• Collect and organize relevant TIP resources, guides, and other materials as they become available from legal partners and other anti-trafficking organizations.

Data:

• Support the Global MERL Manager, Global Program Manager, and Data Analyst with the coordination of nationwide TIP data collection.
• Monitor case progression through the criminal justice pipeline to support data analysis.
• Support the development and use of data quality assurance plans, reporting tools (TIPMAP), data analysis, and databases.
• Maintain confidentiality of privileged and sensitive information.

EDUCATION

• Bachelor's degree in law (LLB or equivalent) from a recognized Kenyan or International university required.
• Admission as an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya is required.
• Additional training or education in combating human trafficking, child exploitation, public policy, governance, legislative reform, or other related fields is preferred.

REQUIRED EXPERIENCE

• Extensive practical experience working inside Kenya's criminal justice system and related institutions. Direct working experience within ODPP, DCI, or other justice sector bodies.
• Access, institutional trust, and operational fluency domestically must already be in place for this role to succeed.
• Experience in policy related work, including analyzing legal and policy considerations to inform practical operational guidance related work, including analyzing legal and policy considerations to inform practical operational guidance.
• Demonstrated experience identifying legal or operational risks and proposing practical mitigation strategies to senior staff.
• Substantial experience coordinating across diverse stakeholders and facilitating senior-level engagements/meetings.
• Strong experience building trust-based relationships and networks and the ability to secure senior-level meetings, navigate prosecutorial, investigative & judicial environments confidently, and maintain productive information flow across stakeholders.
• Familiarity with sustainability principles, including strengthening local capacity and supporting long-term institutional ownership.

STRONGLY PREFERRED EXPERIENCE

• 5+ years working with Kenyan statutory, regulatory, and customary legal frameworks.
• Experience working with the Counter-Trafficking in Persons Act and Penal Code (Cap. 63).
• 2+ years' experience in program development, project management, capacity building initiatives, and program implementation.
• Experience working with international organizations and diverse cultures.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to collaborate across diverse teams and cultures.
• Ability to cultivate trustful relationships and maintain professional interactions.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills in both Kiswahili and English.
• Ability to take responsibility for delivering high-quality work within assigned areas.
• Ability to maintain effectiveness and clarity in fast-paced or high-pressure environments.
• Ability to identify opportunities to strengthen processes, systems, or outputs and advance solutions appropriately.
• Ability to balance multiple priorities with strong organization and attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and efficiently while upholding high professional standards.
• Strong ethic of service with a shared commitment to HTI's goals.