Principal Counsel, Africa Legal

Overview

This role involves leading and scaling legal and compliance across multiple countries of operation in Africa for an international drone logistics organization.

You will act as a senior, strategic, and highly adaptable lawyer with a hands-on focus on both compliance execution and regulatory strategy. The position provides significant autonomy to build and shape the legal function, while collaborating with a larger global legal team. You will also partner closely with Africa leadership and cross-functional stakeholders to support continued growth in complex and evolving regulatory environments.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, scale, and continuously improve legal and compliance programs across Africa, focused on sustainable, practical operations that support rapid growth
• Lead day-to-day compliance workstreams covering sanctions, anti-bribery and anti-corruption, privacy, healthcare, employment, and product-related regulations
• Support internal investigations, audits, and risk assessments in partnership with People, Finance, and senior leadership
• Manage litigation and disputes across the organization’s African markets
• Translate complex regulatory requirements into clear, actionable guidance for business and technical teams
• Own compliance with U.S. government award requirements, including FARs and 2 CFR 200, and serve as a primary point of contact for U.S. government contracting officers (including at the U.S. Department of State)
• Monitor and assess regulatory and policy developments across relevant African jurisdictions and advise leadership on emerging risks and opportunities
• Provide pragmatic, risk-calibrated guidance as a senior legal advisor to business leaders
• Build relationships across the organization and help foster a durable culture of compliance, empowering teams to raise issues early
• Help shape long-term legal and regulatory strategy in Africa while balancing compliance rigor with innovation and speed

Requirements

• W illingness to dive deep into unfamiliar issues and operate effectively in ambiguous, fast-moving environments
• Strong judgment and confidence to make independent decisions, with the discernment to escalate when appropriate
• Experience advising on legal and compliance matters, preferably in international or emerging-market environments
• Ability to break down complex legal and regulatory problems into clear priorities and practical solutions
• Excellent written and verbal communication, including ability to advise senior stakeholders
• Collaborative, solutions-oriented mindset and strong organizational skills
• Ability and willingness to travel up to :25% to Africa and San Francisco headquarters

Compensation & Benefits

• Equal opportunity employer; prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or the organization’s policies.
• Voluntary self-identification for government reporting purposes (participation is optional and does not affect the hiring process).