Regional Associate (Middle East), Resource and Support Hub (RSH)
Part time role (75%, approx. 165 days per year):
Estimated Annual Salary of £42,000- £46,000 (depending on experience)
Amman Based; Sept 2021- Feb 2024
Summary of the Role
This is an exciting opportunity to join an impactful and exciting programme that is expanding its geography to include the Middle East region. The Regional Associate (RA – Middle East) position will be based in Amman, in shared office space (to be negotiated) with occasional travel to other countries (Covid permitting).
The Resource and Support Hub
In December 2019, DFID (UK Department for International Development – now Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office - FCDO) launched a new centrally-managed safeguarding programme, the Resource and Support Hub (RSH). This programme aims to provide a global service to the aid sector as a whole by marshalling quality evidence, tools and guidance on safeguarding; it also provides more tailored assistance to smaller, local civil society organisations (CSOs) in developing countries to strengthen their safeguarding policy and practice against sexual exploitation and abuse, and sexual harassment (SEAH).
The RSH contract is delivered by a consortium, contractually led by Options, with Social Development Direct as technical and delivery lead and also including Global Child Protection Services (GCPS), Terre des Hommes and Sightsavers. The first phase runs from December 2019 – Nov 2021, and we are currently negotiating an extension for a further three years with FCDO.
The RSH is intended to ensure that organisations delivering aid have access to the tools, guidance, support and training they need to ensure that they do no harm. It has an online global platform which is free, user friendly and accessible to all, offered now in English and Arabic, and subsequently in French and Swahili. Our work is focused around three main outcomes
Capacity development. Less-resourced CSOs are equipped with relevant skills to address SEAH and motivated to transform their organisational cultures, leadership and practices to create safer and more inclusive institutional environments - and feel better supported by partner organisations to do so.
Dialogue. Networks of organisations across the aid sector engage in inclusive and enquiring discussion on SEAH, strengthening shared learning on what works to prevent and respond in different contexts and creating greater coherence and consistency across the sector.
Evidence. SEAH-related research questions are embedded in new research in the aid sector, creating a stronger, more coherent and high-quality evidence base on the root causes of SEAH and effective context-specific approaches to address it.
About the role
This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in one of FCDO’s leading safeguarding programmes. In your role as Regional Associate – Middle East, you will manage the Middle East Regional Hub, which will enable organisations across the region to become aware of and have access to the RSH digital platform, as well as some face to face opportunities. You will oversee the work of the three national Hubs in the region, Jordan, Syria and Yemen. Staff in each Hub include the National Associate, and the Senior Advisor. You will also work closely with the regional M&E and communications advisors.
Responsibilities
The primary responsibilities of the post holder are as follows:
1. Management of National Associates (NAs)
- Manages, supports and oversees the National Associates and senior advisors in country hubs in the Middle East.
- Convenes regular meetings with the National Associates, mostly remotely, individually and through the Middle East regional working group. The latter is designed to facilitate cross regional learning between National Associates.
- Ensures design, drafting and implementation by national hubs of contextualized country assessments,
- workplans, strategies and activities are drafted and implemented by National Associates.
- Advises and supports the NAs to recruit and manage National Expert Boards (NEB) in each country. The NEB will bring together diverse thought leaders and practitioners working on SEAH in each country and will serve the Regional Hub by providing contextualised advice, information, networks and contacts.
- Is a trouble-shooter and source of advice to NAs in the development of all national level RSH activity in Syria, Yemen and Jordan.
2. Regional level coordination
- In collaboration with RSH colleagues in the global working group, and the regional comms advisor, maximise opportunity for the regional marketing/ communication of Hub
- Facilitate and coordinate regional conferences and advocacy events
- Establish and maintain regional level relationships with stakeholders and networks, including donors, regional level bodies, regional implementers etc relevant to RSH.
- Provide regional contextual analysis to the RSH as a whole to inform the programme’s activities, approaches and profile.
3. Regional level delivery
- Leads the regional stakeholder mapping exercise (of relevant tools, stakeholders and research gaps at regional level)
- Oversees the drafting of the Arabic quarterly newsletter and updating of the Arabic page of the website
4. Act as Senior advisor to the Jordanian OR Syrian OR Yemeni country hub
The regional associate for Middle East is also required to play the role of the senior advisor to the national associate (SANA) in ONE of the Middle Eastern hubs (depending on the nationality of the regional associate). This aspect of the job includes:
- Being a sounding board for the National Associate, providing strategic advice on approach, context, networks and stakeholders, gender and conflict sensitivity, inclusion and intersectionality, language, and any other relevant issues.
- Working in a collaborative way with the NA, brainstorming, assisting with the development and design of approaches, sharing contacts and networks, backstopping as necessary, and helping to strengthen the core products (eg the country assessment).
- Support with identifying and cultivating relevant individuals and institutions for the National Expert Board in country.
- Being a key resource in helping the National Associate to contextualise the core RSH work in country.
- Advising on the country assessment (mapping organisational safeguarding capacity, safeguarding service delivery and the evidence base on safeguarding); the country marketing plan; the country safeguarding community of practice; activities targeting national stakeholders (primarily civil society organisations) via the RSH digital platform and face to face.
5. Other
- Contribute to reports to FCDO, the logframe and M&E framework on progress of the Middle East Regional Hub
- Represent SDDirect in Jordan OR Yemen OR Syria and at regional level.
- Represent SDDirect locally on the negotiation of office space (as necessary).
- Facilitate any visits to the Regional Hub in Amman by visiting RSH team members or consultants.
- Ensure NAs are aware of FCDO compliance requirements and adhere to relevant policies (e.g. safeguarding, code of conduct, conflict of interest).
Safety and Security
- Day-to-day responsibility for ensuring the programme’s safeguarding framework is implemented in target countries.
- Responsible for ensuring NAs are aware of and adhere to the policies and procedures within Safeguarding Framework.
- Ensure NAs receive adequate safeguarding training and refresher training from Deputy Team Leader.
- Establish and maintain the RSH communications tree in the region
- Act as the RSH programme Safety and Security focal point in the Middle East Region, liaising as necessary with the SDDirect Duty of Care Lead
- Ensure NAs are aware of and adhere to RSH safety and security procedures and safeguarding protocols/ Code of Conduct as necessary throughout the life of the programme
Management Lines
The post holder will be managed by the Team Leader, based in London. They will line manage the three National Associates, with support to senior advisors as needed. Management will be in line with SDDirect’s policies and procedures.
Office set up
The Middle East Regional Hub is likely to need several desks in an office space. SDDirect will negotiate with a suitable host organisation to have desk space plus limited office support – either for a fee or in return for in-kind services (safeguarding training etc). In carrying out the duties above, the postholder will be expected to undertake their own admin, unless provided by the limited office support we can obtain through partners.
Requirements
The successful candidate will:
- Have minimum 15 years of experience working in the aid sector in the Middle East
- Have experience of safeguarding/ sexual exploitation and abuse (or Gender Based Violence, child protection) and capacity building of organisations, particularly in CSOs, within a Middle Eastern context
- Have proven management experience with the ability to work autonomously to a high level of delivery. Be familiar with standard work planning and M&E tools and approaches.
- Be able to work under pressure and pick-up new tasks and processes quickly, as well as experience and confidence in problem solving and risk mitigation
- Be happy to work remotely
- Have good communication, networking and facilitation skills
- Have extensive experience of working with civil society organisations, especially around capacity building.
- Have good networks among the development community in Jordan
- Have experience of management of staff, ideally remote management
- Have the right to work in Jordan and no record of criminal conviction
- Ability to write to an excellent standard in English and Arabic