Policy Analyst at Food For Education

About the Role 

• The Policy Analyst will support the Senior Manager, Policy in shaping and driving the policy initiatives at Food for Education. This role focuses on the analysis of, technical support, and research of policies that support F4E's mission to enhance child nutrition, improved agricultural value chains, and education through effective school feeding programs. The Policy Analyst will serve as an in-house resource to generate data, analyses and reports that we can proactively use in engaging with government entities in the educational, agricultural and health sectors, and international organisations to integrate F4E’s objectives into national and county policy frameworks.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Policy Research and Analysis

• Conduct original quantitative and qualitative research, and produce policy reports, analyses, and briefs on school feeding that are capable of informing decision making internally and externally.
• Research on relevant policy issues affecting child nutrition and education, including the assessment of laws, policies, budgets, development plans, strategies, white papers, etc.
• Analyse existing policies, regulations, and public resources, including financial resources, to identify opportunities for policy development and improvement that touch on school feeding.
• Conduct in-depth and broad national and county policy scans periodically and inform on actions needed to respond to the findings.
• Utilise analytical frameworks and tools to support the development of policy advice.
• Support F4E’s growth and expansion efforts by assessing enabling conditions from a policy perspective and aid us in making decisions to venture into new markets or tweak our operational approach.
• Keep up to date with changes to government legislation, policy, regulations, education trends, and best practices in order to provide advice as required to a range of audiences.
• Prepare and present findings and recommendations to internal and external stakeholders.
• Policy Development and Implementation
• Support the Senior Manager, Policy and the Department with the creation and ongoing refinement of policy frameworks that align with both governmental guidelines and F4E’s strategic goals.
• Provide expert advice and technical support to government bodies, particularly in integrating school feeding into public policy and educational frameworks.
• Maintain a robust evidence base which informs public policy and strategy decisions internally and externally.
• Influence and build constructive, collaborative working relationships with policy implementation groups within F4E and with partners key to our policy work.
• Collaborate with the Impact and Utilisation teams to ensure that policy analyses are informed by relevant data to inform policy advice and outputs (i.e. reports, analysis, etc.).

Technical Assistance

• Assist in providing policy development expert advice and technical support to government bodies.
• Provide technical assistance to county and national partners to implement national and county policies.
• Provide technical assistance around financing for school feeding at the county and national levels of government..
• Support the Senior Manager, Policy, to curate a culture of learning within the department and organisation on related policy topics.
• Assist in the preparation of policy briefing notes, talking points, internal white papers, and related reports for F4E.

Desired Candidate Profile 

• Bachelor’s degree in Public Policy, International Relations, Economics, Public Administration, Public Finance, Law, or a related field.
• 4-6 years’ experience in policy research, development, or analysis, focusing on education, nutrition, or agriculture.
• Strong research and analytical skills, with the ability to synthesize data into actionable policy insights.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• A strong understanding of how government functions and experience in engaging with policymakers and stakeholders in government.
• Proven ability to influence public policy and engage effectively with government stakeholders.
• Proficiency in English and Swahili.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in a relevant field.
• Experience working within the education or nutrition sectors in Kenya.
• Experience working on public finance.