This position is conditional upon award of funding
Background:
Catholic Relief Services (CRS)/CRS will be submitting a proposal in response to the 2015-16 USAID Food for Peace (FFP) Development Food Assistance Program (DFAP) Request for Applications (RFA). CRS/DRC will serve as the prime on the application and will develop the proposal in consortium with other international non-governmental organizations, local implementing partners and international/national research institutions. The proposed program will involve a multi-sectoral response to addressing food insecurity and vulnerability across the former Kasai provinces in DRC. The estimated timeframe for this program is 2016-2021.
Primary Function:
The Gender/Youth Advisor will provide technical support and lead coordination for the integration of the program’s gender strategy focusing on gender transformational approaches at the household and community levels. S/he will guide the refinement of the gender strategy according to results of formative research, including the Gender Analysis. S/he will ensure youth issues are addressed in formative research and will supervise CLUSA’s Youth Advisor in ensuring quality implementation of youth-related activities. S/he will work to establish context appropriate and culturally relevant approaches to working and engaging with women, men, girls and boys to achieve program outcomes including the promotion of improved couple communication and joint-decision making; the reduction of S/GBV and Intimate Partner Violence (IPV); increased female empowerment; and the promotion of positive masculinities. S/he will be responsible for coordinating collaboration with the GDRC’s Ministry of Gender and with implementing partner Reseau Femme et Developpment (REFED) and will work with other key consortium staff (Technical Leads, SBCC specialist, etc.) to ensure effective implementation of gender and youth-specific activities and integration of gender/youth messaging and advocacy across sectors. Based on Gender Audit Results, the Gender/Youth Advisor will work to systematically build capacity of Consortium members in gender and youth integration. S/he will be responsible for monitoring gender and youth activities in the field including managing beneficiary feedback mechanisms for gender/youth interventions, supervising gender/youth staff and partners, managing foundational Purpose activities on advocacy and improvement of inclusive community development, and documenting lessons learned in gender and youth integration.
Specific Responsibilities:
Technical Support and Training
- Provide technical support for gender and youth interventions across sectors, including training of field staff and partners
- Ensure equitable participation of women, men, boy and girl beneficiaries
- Support MEAL Coordinator in developing a gender-sensitive monitoring strategy including development of gender-specific indicators and appropriate monitoring and communication tools
- Support the MEAL Coordinator in documenting lessons learned in gender and youth integration and organize periodic learning events to share lessons with consortium members and stakeholders
- Serve as the focal point for developing the Scope of Work for the Gender Analysis and Participatory Gender Audit in collaboration with the Regional Technical Advisor for Gender Integration
- Co-lead the Gender Analysis in Year 1 and the Participatory Gender Audit in Years 1 & 4 with program staff and stakeholders, supporting in data collection and analysis
- Lead presentation and validation of Gender Analysis results with stakeholders and facilitate the development of an action plan for the integration of recommendations
- Based on results of formative research, and in close collaboration with Technical Leads, SBCC Specialist and REFED, develop evidence-based behavior change communication strategies and tools
- Help develop and revise gender training materials and curriculum in collaboration with REFED and the Ministry of Gender
- Train staff on the delivery of gender-related topics with particular emphasis on addressing the high prevalence of S/GBV and IPV
Project Implementation and Monitoring
- Oversee the integration of gender and youth across all Purposes in collaboration with Technical Leads, national and provincial actors
- Ensure systematic communication of program’s gender and youth activities, successes and challenges among consortium members and all Purpose Leads
- Ensure alignment of program gender strategy and GDRC’s gender policies and priorities
- In collaboration with REFED, participate actively in sector forums and platforms with government partners, UN, donor partners and civil society, specifically representing gender-advocacy on GDRC multi-sectoral committees
- Participate actively in Program Management Unit (PMU) meetings, feeding information down to implementing partners and gender staff
Partnership/Capacity-Strengthening
- Organize, and when possible, facilitate targeted trainings for REFED to build consistent knowledge base for implementation of program gender strategy
- Coordinate, with REFED, gender-related trainings with consortium members and beneficiary communities
- Support implementing partners to build capacity to promote gender equitable norms in their operations, including recruitment and monitoring and development of work plans
- Ensure gender and youth partner(s) implements high quality gender and youth activities according to strategy through systematic monitoring and effective communication and collaboration
- Provide direct supervision to CLUSA’s Youth Advisor and assist him/her in coordinating mapping of youth associations
Reporting, Management, Finance and Donor Compliance
- Contribute to gender/youth sections of technical reports according to agreement requirements
- Review partner reporting and provide feedback on gender and youth-specific issues across sectors
- Participate in staff recruitment and management (development of Job Descriptions, interviews, capacity-strengthening and mentoring) with a focus on the promotion of gender equity
- Develop and monitor gender and youth-specific budget line items and report on expenditures
- Verify that all gender and youth-related activities, expenditures and purchases conform to CRS administrative and financial policies and to agreement requirements
Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):
These are rooted in the mission, values, and principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and to achieve the desired results.
- Serves with Integrity
- Models Stewardship
- Cultivates Constructive Relationships
- Promotes Learning
Key Working Relationships:
Internal: Chief of Party, Deputy Chief of Party for Program Quality, Deputy Chief of Party for Operational Excellence, Meal Coordinator and MEAL Team, Health/Nutrition/WASH Technical Lead, Sustainability & Governance Technical Lead, SBCC Specialist
External: Ministry of Women, REFED, HNI, local and international technical partners (NGOs, projects, platforms, decentralized structures, etc.), USAID and other donors
Knowledge and Skills:
- In-depth understanding of gender, age and other socio-cultural factors in the context of food security programming
- Demonstrated analytic capacity and ability to write high quality reports
- Demonstrated capacity to lead the collection, analysis and utilization of information from a broad range of sources in order to ensure effective integration of gender and youth concerns throughout the project’s duration
- Excellent partnership, communication and advocacy skills and the ability to interact effectively with donors, collaborating agencies, local and government partners
- Ability to foster commitment and build capacity among project staff and in-country actors to gender integration and empowerment
- Excellent organization and planning skills and ability to resolve problems constructively
- Understanding of current best practices and innovations in gender programming, including approaches for engaging men in gender programming and working with households to improve communication and resource management.
- Computer literate, with strong knowledge of MS Office applications, spread sheets, database programs, and statistical software packages.
- Flexibility, persistence, and ability to work well in a multi-sectoral and multi-cultural team
- Ability to work in a challenging and stressful environment with unexpected challenges
Qualifications:
- Masters or PhD degree in Social Sciences, Community Development, Gender Studies or other relevant field
- Minimum of 5 years’ experience working with CRS or other agencies on a gender, female empowerment or rural development project
- Experience in community based approaches (CBA), community empowerment, advocacy and community systems strengthening preferred
- Experience in conducting gender-related participative qualitative and quantitative research (notably Gender Analyses and Audits)
- Proven experience in multi-sectoral programs (Ag/Nutrition) with strong gender components, strong technical experience in S/GBV and IPV programming preferred
- Experience working in the Kasais preferred
- Demonstrated management and leadership capabilities
- Experience as a trainer and demonstrated success in knowledge transfer of gender-transformative approaches and interventions
- Knowledge of USAID and USG grant regulations and procedures specifically relating to ADS 205
- Excellent written and oral communication skills in French required
- Working knowledge of English and Tshiluba is a plus
Major Responsibilities of Position: Technical leadership, team building, strategic leadership, coordination, monitoring/evaluation, mentoring/training, and report writing.
Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skills, effort, duties, and responsibilities associatedwith this position. Also, this position is conditional upon award of funding for the DFAP.
CRS’ talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation.
EOE
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