JOB TITLE Emergency Coordinator | |
REPORTING TO Director of Programme Implementation | GRADE 3.5 |
REPORTING TO POSITION (MANAGEMENT) Juba Based: Emergency Preparedness and Response Manager, Education Cluster Co-Coordinator, & Emergency Officer. Field Based: Emergency Team Leader – Upper Nile, and Emergency Team Leader - Unity | LOCATION Juba, with frequent field travel. |
CHILD SAFEGUARDING
Level 3. The responsibilities of this post may require the post holder to have regular contact with children and young people. In the overseas context all posts are considered to be level 3.
As part of these responsibilities the post holder will support the establishment of child safeguarding systems, promote a culture of keeping children safe, and ensure that potential harm to children (by our own staff and/or as a result of how we do our work) is identified and addressed on an ongoing basis. The post holder should report and respond to interventions as determined by position related responsibilities identified in the Child Safeguarding Policy.
INTRODUCTION
The Republic of South Sudan (RoSS), is the world’s newest state, having achieved statehood on the 9th July 2011, following more than 40 years of civil war. As the new nation forms, historic ethnic and political rivalries are re-emerging, with armed insurgencies, militia activities, and violent intercommunal clashes becoming increasingly frequent. Meanwhile, tension and conflict with Sudan is on the rise, sparked by the failure to agree all outstanding elements of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement prior to Independence, such as the border demarcation, citizenship, oil control and transit fees. As a result, there have been influxes of hundreds of thousands of returnees and refugees, placing enormous strain on an already fragile infrastructure. The oil shutdown at the beginning of 2012 continues to have a considerable economic impact, with the collapse of the GDP, depreciation of the SSP, rise in inflation, and depletion of reserves. The social impact of the shutdown is also reversing previous development gains, and increasing poverty and child mortality, and decreasing school attendance rates. The most notable impact however, is the worsening food insecurity, compounded by rising inflation and what many feel is a collapsing economy. The country is therefore currently in the midst of multiple ongoing emergencies, which are likely to deteriorate further throughout 2012.
Save the Children is a child rights organisation working in 9 of the 10 states of South Sudan, in the themes of Education, Child Protection, Nutrition, FSL, WASH, Health and Child Rights Governance. Save the Children International is a 'dual mandate' organisation and as such equal priority will be given to both humanitarian and development work. This is the only way we are able to ensure that some of the fundamental rights that we believe children have, such as survival, safety and constant access to protection and education, can be guaranteed.
The majority of SCISS emergency interventions are mainstreamed through the country programme’s ongoing activities in each of the states in which it operates. There are therefore regular programme development changes that take place to respond to the emerging humanitarian needs, in various parts of the country throughout the year. In response to the refugee influx in late 2011, Save the Children in South Sudan (SCiSS) mounted a specific Emergency Response Program in Upper Nile and Unity States, with a focus on Education and Child Protection in Emergencies, and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Promotion (WASH), which are currently managed directly by the Juba based Emergency Team.
It should be noted that the country context is very challenging and precarious and that field conditions are extremely basic. It should also be kept in mind that the existing country programme is very large, complex, under-resourced and blighted with operational and systemic challenges, especially as we are currently attempting to scale up activities in the rainy season and towards SCI transition.
ROLE
The Emergency Coordinator (EC) is responsible for setting the direction and either advising or coordinating the activities of SCiSS emergency operations. Currently, this includes direct responsibility for the management of the refugee emergency response activities in Upper Nile and Unity States.
The EC is responsible for the development, review and implementation of the country emergency strategy, which includes; identifying and building internal capacity, strengthening emergency preparedness across the country programme, and mobilising resources in response to new emergencies.
The post holder will ensure that continued monitoring of the changing humanitarian context across the country enables timely changes to planned and ongoing activities, to meet the emerging needs of the affected population, in particular vulnerable children.
The EC is responsible for the development of emergency programme plans, based on the identified needs, and the capacity in which SCiSS are able to respond. Emergency programmes should be developed in full consultation with all relevant internal and external stakeholders, and in line with Save the Children national and global priorities.
The EC is responsible for maintaining an oversight of key emergency donor grants, seeking and securing necessary funding for emergency activities, managing SC member emergency seed funding and appeals, monitoring of emergency programmes and ensuring financial and other reporting compliance.
The EC will be expected to assume the Assessment Team Leader and Response Team Leader function during the initial phase of new emergency assessment and / or response if necessary.
Additional responsibilities will include external representation, contribution to advocacy and communications regarding emergencies, and ensuring adherence to SCiSS requirements
MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES
Delivery of Quality Emergency Response:
• To assume overall management and oversight of the implementation of the SCiSS emergency responses in Unity and Upper Nile states ensuring delivery of high quality and timely emergency response interventions including the timely provision of quality people, funding and logistics.
• To support in the implementation of emergency response activities throughout the country, by working in coordination with the Deputy Directors of Programme Implementation and Field Managers, in an Emergency Advisory role.
• Link with all relevant parts of the Juba based country programme team of SCiSS, to support emergency programming developments and implementation.
• To monitor the changing situation (political, economic, conflict and other) across South Sudan and ensure that programme activities are adapted where necessary to ensure the ongoing needs of the affected population are met. Develop contingency plans for the country, and support in the development of these for specific field locations to encompass predicated changes within programme implementation plans
• Ensure that there is a high standard of grant management in the delivery of quality outcomes for children in accordance with donor reporting guidelines and requirements
• Review and evaluate emergency response programming and ensure that lessons identified are incorporated into future responses while ensuring implementation of strong M&E and accountability systems across all responses.
• Ensure compliance of programme activities with Save the Children national and global policies and procedures and with relevant donor regulations and agreements, SPHERE guidelines and the NGO code of conduct.
• Ensure that existing SCiSS finance, logistical, HR and administrative guidelines are adhered to.
Capacity Building:
• Build SCiSS’s operational preparedness and response capacity by developing and implementing plans for mobilising resources to implement the Country Strategic Plan and Country Emergency Strategy.
• Support field teams to deliver a rapid, appropriate and effective response to emergencies in their areas of operation while complying to Minimum Operating Standards and Emergency Standard Operating Procedures.
• Identify gaps in operational capacity across the programme and deliver emergency training to ensure that the country programme maintains an appropriate emergency surge capacity
• Ensure systematic monitoring of capacity building activities
Resource Management:
• Co-ordinate the development of proposals and secure funding for emergency response, liaising with key humanitarian donors and SCI members.
• Plan for and maximise use of any internal funds for emergency response including the Children’s Emergency Fund (CEF), SC member seed and appeals funding.
• Identify and manage key items and locations for propositioning emergency supplies and manage relations with UN pipeline managers and Technical Advisors in managing emergency GIK
• Promote the improvement and development of partner capacity for emergency preparedness and response
• Liaise at regular intervals with all key donors involved in emergency response activities, updating on need for revisions to ongoing budgets and plans as required. Represent Save the Children’s emergency response to local authorities, other donors and members of the humanitarian community.
• Ensure establishment and maintenance of strong working relationships with local communities, community based organisations and other local authorities as appropriate.
Leadership and Team Management:
• Provide analysis on context and risk requirements of large scale response activities to Senior Management Team
• Support the positioning of SCiSS as a lead emergency response partner for children in the country among the donor and humanitarian community.
• Establish and build on relationships and partnerships with key donors and other humanitarian actors.
• Increase the visibility and improve reputation of SCiSS through coordinating/managing successful emergency responses and working with the Juba based info/comms staff to ensure production of high quality, analytical reports, regular sitreps, and collection, analysis and dissemination of relevant information and data
• Participate in relevant coordination meetings, as and when necessary.
• Establish approaches and mechanisms to maintain staff and management enthusiasm and commitment to emergency response
• Lead, support and motivate emergency team members, ensuring that team members have clear objectives and receive meaningful feedback on their performance.
• Comply with all relevant Save the Children policies and procedures with respect to child rights and safeguarding, health and safety, equal opportunities and other relevant policies.
CORE BEHAVIOURS
Leadership: Action; Thinking; Self; Inspiring; Developing Others
• Demonstrates managerial courage by confronting difficult situations and seeking resolution, and stating willingness to champion ideas
• Tailors communication style to certain audiences
• Effectively influences others by understanding their interests and showing how they will be met by own preferred resolution
Understanding humanitarian contexts and application of humanitarian principles:
• Integrates beneficiary accountability principles into the approach
• Ensures that programme goals and activities uphold the principles of the key national and international humanitarian frameworks, codes and commitments
Achieving results effectively
• Collects, analyses and disseminates information to and from communities and other stakeholders
• Addresses difficult situations and makes tough decisions confidently and calmly
• Considers the wider impact of decisions to be made in the short and long term
• Coordinates with stakeholders to avoid duplication & maximise resources
• Documents lessons learned and applies them to future projects
Maintaining and developing collaborative relationships
• Establishes and maintains clear communications and dialogue with disaster and conflict affected people and other stakeholders
Operating safely & Security
• Takes measures to do no harm and to minimise risks for partners and communities
• Reduces vulnerability by complying with safety and security protocols set by the organisation
Managing yourself in a pressured and changing environment
• Remains effective and retains perspective in the face of difficult or demanding situations
• Plans, prioritises and performs tasks well under pressure
QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
Knowledge/Experience:
• At least 3 years field experience in a humanitarian emergency context including managing insecurity in
remote insecure environments.
• Proven team management experience in an emergency response context.
• Prior experience working under extenuating circumstances (including unusually long hours at little or no notice).
• Experience in project/programme implementation, monitoring, review and evaluation preferably from a
child rights approach in accordance with the CRC and international humanitarian rights standards
• History of working effectively and respectfully with host country government, INGOs and UN agencies.
• Strong team leadership capacity including remote management experience
• Substantial people and programme management experience with good interpersonal skills and ability to
communicate at all levels.
• Solid experience in grant management, including budget holding and donor reporting.
• Substantial understanding or proven experience of security management issues.
• Experience of working with partners and a participatory approach
Skills/Abilities:
• Highly developed relationship building, influencing, negotiating & interpersonal skills, with the ability to liaise with key stakeholders on child rights issues.
• Highly developed verbal and written communication skills. Fluency in written and spoken English and computer Literate.
• Ability to work with limited supervision from line manager.
• Strong stakeholder management skills including representational, political awareness and advocacy skills.
• Ability to analyse strategic trends and develop appropriate plans and responses.
• Ability to produce high quality reports.
• Ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines.
• High levels of attention to detail and quality.
Desirable
• Tertiary qualifications in humanitarian studies, development or a related field desirable but not essential.
• Experience or knowledge of working in South Sudan
• Experience of working with Save the Children
• Experience of Education and Child Protection in Emergencies programming.
Application Process
To apply for the position, visit our website http://www.savethechildren.org.uk/jobs and apply for position 7418 by 18th August 2012.
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