****HANDICAP INTERNATIONAL****
Handicap International is an independent and impartial international aid organisation working in situations of poverty and exclusion, conflict and disaster. Working alongside persons with disabilities and other vulnerable groups, our action and testimony are focused on responding to their essential needs, improving their living conditions and promoting respect for their dignity and their fundamental rights.
Handicap International is a not-for-profit organisation with no religious or political affiliation. It operates as a federation made up of a network of associations that provide it with human and financial resources, manage its projects and implement its actions and social mission.
For more details on the association: http://www.handicap-international.org
****MISSION CONTEXT****
The Ebola epidemic was confirmed in Guinea on March 2014. The Ebola virus appeared in the forest area very close to the border with Sierra Leone and Liberia and, starting from March 2014, quickly spread to neighbouring districts in the two countries.
According to the latest World Health Organization update on March 1st, 2015, a total of 23,969 confirmed, probable, and suspected cases of Ebola and 9,807 deaths had been reported from the three West African countries (Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone) where transmission has been widespread and intense[1]. Total case counts include all suspected, probable, and confirmed cases, which are defined similarly by each country. Because of improvements in laboratory diagnostics and surveillance in recent weeks, totals may overestimate the actual number of cases in some areas. The highest reported confirmed case counts were from Sierra Leone and Liberia, followed by Guinea.
Various factors are still contributing to the spread of the epidemic such as (among others):
- Health Factors: the symptoms of this haemorrhagic fever are very similar to those of other types of endemic fevers in the affected countries (confirming the presence of the virus is possible only through biological tests that cannot be carried out on all suspected patients). Additionally, health centres, which are already poorly equipped or little operational, are being deserted; the 3 countries are facing lack of health personnel and the death of many frontline health workers is a significant obstacle to increase the capacity to care for patients.
- Cultural, social or political factors: some very important traditional practices increase the risk of transmission (burial practices...); communities are highly mobile, namely for economic reasons (border markets...); the population lacks information and has very little or even incorrect knowledge on health issues; the population have little trust in authorities and sometimes turn to unreliable sources of information (spiritual leaders...); many cases are hidden by families because they fear not only the disease, but also stigmatisation; there are popular 'revolts' (demonstrations, violent movements) in Guinea and Liberia as a protest against actions of the government or international organizations.
- Economic factors: poverty is widespread; the prices of commodities are increasing because of the crisis; the restrictions on freight and imports limit the availability of goods.
Current situation:
The overall response to the EVD epidemic has now moved to a second phase, as the focus shifts from slowing transmission to ending the epidemic. To achieve this goal as quickly as possible, efforts have moved from rapidly building infrastructure to ensuring that capacity for case finding, case management, safe burials, and community engagement is functioning as effectively as possible.
For the first time since the week ending 29 June, 2014, there have been fewer than 100 new confirmed cases reported in a week in the 3 most-affected countries in January. Nevertheless, case incidence increased again in Guinea and Sierra Leone the following weeks.
It is worth mentioning that the health system is currently unable to meet the non-Ebola health needs of the population (primary health care, immunization, maternal and child health, surgery), food insecurity is striking in some areas, the livelihoods of people are affected (economic activity has considerably slowed down), and all schools are still closed even about to be reopened. If the general population is directly or indirectly affected by the epidemics, all vulnerable groups, such as elders, pregnant women, children or persons with disabilities (due to their lower capacity to access services) are even more impacted. The consequences of the Ebola outbreak are turning this health crisis into a major humanitarian crisis.
The indirect consequences of the epidemic are significant even if response plans have taken into account the impact of the outbreak on other sectors. However, major information gaps still prevent a clear picture of the situation in the three countries.
HI Sierra Leone/Liberia
The Handicap International "Mano River" programme that covers Liberia and Sierra Leone (based in SL) was implementing the following projects until the outbreak of the epidemic in these two countries early in the summer of 2014:
- Inclusive Education projects (1 in Liberia and 1 in Sierra Leone);
- Mother and Child Health Project (SL),
- Civil society support project (disability movement) in Liberia.
- These projects have been stopped last year and their human resources devoted to the Ebola response. They are currently resuming.
The HI response to Ebola focuses in Sierra Leone on:
- Ebola Ambulance fleet management in Western Area (Freetown and rural area): transportation of suspected and affected persons and home decontamination.
- Ebola awareness raising of people with disabilities, either through direct awareness actions with this vulnerable group or through sensitisation of stakeholders in the field (authorities, NGOs in order to include the disability dimension in their awareness campaigns. Awareness campaigns were accompanied by a distribution of hygiene products.
Today, in Sierra Leone, HI is leader of the “special needs” sub-committee of the cluster “Social Mobilisation” (lead by UNICEF).
HI is also developing in this country several projects such as:
- Consortium with several INGOs, to ensure protection of vulnerable groups (including Ebola affected persons) through the development of a protection desk mechanism in Sierra Leone.
- Maternal and Child Health project: participate in rebuilding mutual confidence between community and health facilities, advocate for the inclusion of vulnerable people in community planning and response meetings, support and maintain comprehensive Infection Prevention and Control practices in the context of MCH at PHU level and psycho-social support (PSS) for EVD-affected families, with a special focus on vulnerable groups (women, children, disabled persons, survivors) discharged from holding/treatment centers.
- In few districts in SL, HI is also realizing an assessment of the other impacts of the Ebola outbreak: on health system, food security (including a market analysis) and WASH.
****MAIN RESPONSABILITIES OF THE EXPATRIATE****
- Ensuring the global coordination of the program implemented in your country;
- Representing Handicap International towards institutional donors, local authorities and partners;
- Ensuring application and respect of logistics, accountability and financial procedures;
- Ensuring the operational management of the team placed under your responsibility (expatriate and national staff);
- Ensuring strategic programs development in accordance with humanitarian needs identified as well as financial opportunities to be raised in the frame of Handicap International’s mandate and expertise;
- Ensuring the security and safety of the staff members, operations and means related to the program under your responsibility;
- Ensuring smooth and regular reporting on the activities;
****MAIN TASKS OF THE EXPATRIATE****
COUNTRY REPRESENTATION
- You are the main interlocutor of Handicap International towards local authorities, institutional donors, humanitarian actors and partners;
- You participate actively to coordination and information meetings (clusters, NGO coordination, etc.);
- You represent the organisation, its activities and programs during delegation visits;
STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE programs
- You regularly follow up humanitarian needs, donors strategies, financing opportunities;
- You regularly update programs strategy suggestions for Handicap International in the country;
- You lead and/or organize assessment missions for the elaboration of new projects;
- You ensure proposal and reports writing (renewal of projects or new projects);
- You discuss proposal submitted towards potential donors and negotiate related budgets.
Supervision AND monitoring
- You ensure the coherence and the homogeneity of all projects under your responsibility (methodologies, indicators and results follow up);
- You organise and animate team coordination meetings as frequently as possible;
- You organize field visits on each operational base on a regular basis;
- You organize and animate workgroups on a regular basis with each project manager;
- You guarantee the respect of applicable logistics and administrative procedures;
- You are responsible for the monthly follow up of the budgets;
- You are responsible for the transparency of acquisition, utilisation and follow up of all materials and equipments dedicated to the projects;
- You are responsible for eligibility and goods utilisation of funds allocated to the projects.
SEcuritY MANAGEMENT
- Update security plans and safety procedures;
- Ensure the strict respect of any applicable security measures;
- Participate or ensure participation of the field security officers to interagency security meetings;
- Coordinate implementation of any emergency security and safety procedure and ensure link with HQ in such cases.
TEAM MANAGEMENT
- You ensure strict application and respect of the General Terms and Conditions of engagement for expatriate staff of Handicap International;
- You define, with each expatriate, his action plan and delay for reaching defined goals (IAP);
- You support and advise your team in the implementation of their IAP;
- You ensure feed back towards your team about issues potentially raised by them;
- You ensure a good communication – coordination – information level of each member of your team through regular coordination meetings (or other if needed);
- You are concerned and aware on the personal and professional evolution of each expatriate, and its development within the mission : individual interviews, oral and written evaluations;
- You ensure conflict resolution (personal and professional) within your team;
- You propose relevant needed adaptation to the organisational chart of the mission and contribute to its implementation;
- You support expatriates in their national staff management: coordination meetings, individual interviews, etc;
DIRECT SUPERVISION OF INTERVENTIONS
- Supervise the logistics and administrative department in links with the Administrative and Logistics Coordinator;
- Supervise the implementation and the follow up of the activities and the partnerships from an administrative, operational and strategic point of view;
Reporting
- You receive and take acknowledgment of technical sitreps sent by your team (administrative, logistics, and project technical sitreps);
- You write the missions monthly sitreps, and send them monthly to the emergency Desk Manager;
- You regularly update partners on the organisation activities (especially in relevant coordination meetings) and send activities reports when accurate;
- You regularly update donors on projects follow up (through contractual demanded or ad hoc reports);
- You regularly update Regional Emergency Coordinator, field offices and other HI departments on Emergency Division activities in your country (newsletter, activity report etc…)
- You provide the Desk Manager with a mission report and/or handover document at the end of your contract;
- Debriefing at HQ at the end of your mission (and during Home-Break).
****JOB CONDITIONS****
- Status: French salaried contract
- Remuneration: 2500-2900 EUR + expatriate allowance (457 EUR) + Social insurance
- Start: April
- Duration: 6 months
- Living conditions: guesthouse shared with other expatriates (no charges)
****PROFILE REQUIRED****
Education and experience:
- Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance or international politics
- Minimum 3 years in the humanitarian/development field with at least one experience as head of mission in an INGO.
- Experience of post-emergency contexts
Professional skills:
- Extensive knowledge of emergency donors, including ECHO, UN.
- Experimented in team manager.
- Excellent analysis and writing skills.
Language:
- English mandatory, French an asset.
Personal skills:
- Able to cope with a huge workload
- Proactivity and flexibility
- Diplomacy and interpersonnal skills
HOW TO APPLY:
PLease send your application through the following link :
