Job Title: Communications, Advocacy, and Fundraising Manager
Location: Child’s i Foundation – Kampala, Uganda (with local travel)
Department: Communications, Advocacy, and Fundraising
Reports to: Country Director
Direct Reports: Communications & Advocacy Coordinator, Communications Officer
Collaborates: Business Development Lead UK and fundraising and communications consultants
Job Purpose
The Communications, Advocacy, and Fundraising Manager will lead Child’s i Foundation’s efforts to align communications, advocacy, and fundraising with its mission to promote family care and strengthen child protection systems. Working closely with the Country Director and CEO, the role will drive strategies to increase public awareness, stakeholder engagement, and resource mobilization at both national and international levels.
The role addresses a critical challenge: over 5.4 million children globally, including 15,260 in Uganda, are raised in institutional care. Institutional care is costly, unsustainable, and deprives children of the love, stability, and individual attention vital for their development. Child’s i Foundation tackles this by replacing institutional care with sustainable, community-led solutions rooted in contextual African approaches.
Having already achieved transformative success—reducing institutional care facilities to zero in one Ugandan district through government and community collaboration—Child’s i continues to scale its impact by building partnerships and strengthening local capacities.
The Communications, Advocacy, and Fundraising Manager will play a pivotal role in amplifying this work, ensuring every child has the opportunity to grow up in a safe and loving family, while contributing to the progressive elimination of reliance on institutional care.
Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic Leadership
- Develop and oversee the implementation of the Communications, Advocacy, and Fundraising strategies.
- Integrate initiatives across the three functions to ensure a cohesive approach to achieving the organization’s goals.
- Serve as a key representative of Child’s i Foundation, fostering relationships with government officials, NGOs, media, and corporate sponsors, primarily in Uganda.
- Collaborate with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT), CEO, and Business Development Lead- UK to develop and lead on the Uganda Fundraising Calendar and oversee its execution with support from the SLT and the Uganda Board.
2. Communications
- Lead the development and dissemination of engaging communication materials, press releases, and digital campaigns to enhance the organisation’s profile.
- Oversee content creation for blogs, social media, and newsletters, ensuring consistency in messaging and alignment with the organisation’s mission.
- Strengthen the organisation’s communications by ensuring the challenges we aim to address are clear and our solutions are communicated compellingly to inspire action and support.
- Act as the primary media contact for the organisation, addressing press inquiries and promoting key initiatives.
- Collaborate with the Business Development Lead in the UK to develop and implement communication plans aligned with fundraising strategies, emphasising strong ethical storytelling and conveying the urgency of the issues the organisation seeks to address.
3. Advocacy
- Implement and evaluate the National Advocacy Strategy, focusing on promoting Family care and Child Protection as well as Inclusivity
- Build and manage relationships with key stakeholders, including policymakers, influencers, and advocacy networks.
- Spearhead initiatives like the Ugandans Adopt Campaign to drive community and national-level impact.
4. Fundraising
- Design and execute fundraising strategies to achieve financial targets, collaborating with the UK fundraising team.
- Contribute to the development of compelling grant applications and proposals for donors, charitable trusts, and statutory bodies.
- Manage donor relationships, ensuring accountability and consistent engagement through tailored care programs.
- Provide regular reports on donor acquisition and fundraising activities, ensuring Uganda’s fundraising plans remain on track while identifying challenges and suggesting mitigations or alternative courses of action.
- Work closely with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and the Uganda Board to strengthen and expand existing public fundraising activities.
5. Monitoring and Reporting
- Track and evaluate the impact of communication, advocacy, and fundraising efforts, providing regular updates to the Country Director.
- Contribute to the annual report and organizational KPIs by documenting achievements and lessons learned.
6. Team Leadership
- Mentor and manage the Communications Advocacy and Fundraising team, ensuring individual and departmental performance aligns with organisational objectives.
- Provide guidance on strategic priorities and operational improvements.
Qualifications & Working Experience
- University Degree in Mass Communication, Public Relations or Journalism (undergraduate)
- Minimum of 5 years previous experience in an executive position involving communications and management
- Previous experience in digital/online communications such as social media channels for communications and/or fundraising purposes
- Experience creating and managing websites through Wix and WordPress
- Previous experience and a good understanding of the dynamics with Ugandan media and civil society spaces
- Experience of developing and delivering organisation-wide fundraising strategies and tactical plans with a proven track record of managing fundraising targets
- Experience of donor stewardship with understanding of donor needs
- Proven track record of successfully organising cultivation events.
- Good understanding of communications strategy and tactics, particularly in relation to brand, marketing and digital:
- Experience of establishing systems for monitoring and evaluating communications and fundraising and measuring long term impact
- Up to date and thorough knowledge of the principles, practice and legislation relating to fundraising, campaigning and communications in a charity setting.
- Experience of having managed third-party suppliers/agencies
Skills & Abilities
- Strong relationship building and management skills and evidence of effective donor reporting skills and experience.
- Confident and engaging interpersonal skills with the ability to network, influence and build relationships at all levels.
- Excellent leadership and team management skills with a successful track record of managing, developing and motivating staff
- Excellent project management skills
- Ability to prioritise workload of self and others.
- Good budget management skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills including report writing, public speaking and presentations
- Good computer skills including Microsoft Word, Excel, PPT and WordPress
- Experience with graphics software i.e. Adobe Photoshop or In Design
- Good photography skills or an interest in photography
- Confident decision-making ability: ability to analyse data and information, engage stakeholders and weigh up options to make clear decisions.
- Ability to engage in strategic thinking, and to work in a growth-mindset environment focused on learning
- Problem solving skills; proactive and forward thinking.
Personal Attributes: (can be related to company core values)
- Thrives on working with others, is motivated by working closely with other people, building and managing relationships and meeting new people.
- Excellent at motivating others and building resilience in the team.
- Positive and resilient.
- Thrives in a fast-paced environment, with a ‘can do’ attitude.
- Self-motivated and open: reflects on self, willing to be open and honest about self-reflection and seeks personal improvement.
- Enthusiasm, energy and willingness to meet challenging demands and work to deadlines.
- Outgoing and proactive personality
- Proven ability to work as a member of a team and independently with minimal direction or supervision
- Ability to work to tight deadlines and under pressure, and balance varied projects
- Interest in alternative care and child protection issues
How to apply
Send your updated application letter and CV ONLY to [email protected].
The closing date for applications is 19th September 2025 at 17:00 EAT. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.
Child’s i Foundation is committed to safeguarding vulnerable children and adults from sexual exploitation and other forms of harassment and abuse. Rigorous background and reference checks will be conducted in the course of the recruitment process.
