Vice Consul South Africa and Lesotho

Job Description (Roles and Responsibilities) **Main purpose of job**: **Vice Consul**: Delivering consular services and assistance to British Nationals in South Africa in line with our public guide "Support for British Nationals Abroad: A Guide”. Run projects, including media campaigns, training events and lobbying activities to help minimise risks to British residents and visitors to South Africa, to help “prevent” them from getting into difficulty. **Lesotho/Eswatini Liaison Officer**:Supporting the High Commissions in post crisis management planning, post resilience and as a point of contact/liaison between Eswatini/Lesotho and South Africa. **Roles and responsibilities**: Vice Consul **Providing consular assistance to British Nationals (BNs) who get into difficulty in South Africa and the region by leading on complex consular assistance cases and providing support for team members on other cases.** - Leading on complex/high profile cases involving vulnerable British Nationals. This might involve supporting families of people who have been bereaved, including victims of murder; giving welfare assistance to destitute British people; supporting victims of crime and people who have been hospitalised; as well as assisting victims of rape & sexual assault, domestic violence and a host of other issues. Please note this could require visiting mortuaries and other challenging environments); and some cases will have media/parliamentary interest - Engaging with teams across South Africa, Lesotho & Eswatini to resolve complex consular cases and pursue consular objectives - Supporting and advising consular officers in the Southern Africa region on complex assistance cases - You can expect to travel a few weeks per year. In a crisis or when supporting on a complex case, you may be expected to travel at short notice - Meeting consular business targets and ensuring cases are updated promptly on the management system, with a close watch on KPIs and monthly statistical returns - Managing Consular Services such as issuing Emergency Travel Documents to British Nationals and officiating Citizenship Ceremonies for new British Nationals - Effective management of the consular section in Pretoria, in conjunction with Vice-Consul based in Pretoria - Management of Honorary Consuls, including recruitment, ensuring skills kept up to date, and provision of advice and support to them as required **Supporting Consular Directorate’s Prevention objectives by building strong relationships and liaison with local authorities and organisations**: - Identify and lobby government and local authorities on key consular issues, with support from High Commission colleagues - Creation and delivery of prevention projects to help reduce the risk to British people in South Africa, with support from Consul, media colleagues and specialist teams - With support of colleagues, publishing information on UK government websites to ensure British visitors can access advice whilst in South Africa, Lesotho or Eswatini Lesotho/Eswatini Liaison Officer - Regularly review and update Lesotho/Eswatini Crisis Management Plans, including supporting non-resident Deputy High Commissioners with adhoc projects - Work with colleagues to ensure the South Africa Crisis Management Plan supports Lesotho/Eswatini including consular resilience and the use of South Africa as an evacuation route - Liaise with the Regional Crisis Advisor to ensure crisis training and exercising includes both posts, and increases awareness and capability to respond to a crisis - Assist with recruitment and training to SA based consular volunteers who might deploy to Lesotho/Eswatini - Act as a liaison point for Leostho/Eswatini, helping to resolve and direct queries with colleagues based in Pretoria - Maintain ownership of the Lesotho/Eswatini archive - identifying and forwarding relevant background documents on request of the new misisons - Assist with the co-ordination of any incoming visits _(i.e. ministerial)_ that impact on Lesotho/Eswatini and South Africa - liaising closely with the Protocol team on airport arrangements for visitors transmitting Johannesburg - Support Heads of Mission in any transition activities required, including the organisation of any introductory events and communications activities - Provide surge capacity in periods of crisis, to cover for extended periods of absence, or to assist with activities requiring an additional resource commitment such as election monitoring, organisation of large events and panel interviews, which may include travel - Visiting both Lesotho and Eswatini posts at least once per year on a scheduled visit **Resources managed (staff and expenditure)**: - Management of 1 x AO Consular Officer. - Management of 1 x Honourary Consul in Eswatini - Recruitment depending, 1 x Honourary Consul in Lesotho - Management of the Pretoria consular office, in conjunction with equivalent EO Vice Consul Essential qualifications, skills and expe