Gender Specialist-ECW MYRP (National)

TITLE: Gender Specialist-ECW MYRP (National)

TEAM/PROGRAMME: Programme Operation Team

LOCATION: Jordan or any other location (preferably MENAEE) where SCI is operating/ Having presence.

GRADE: 3

CONTRACT LENGTH:

12 months

CHILD SAFEGUARDING:

Level 3: the post holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work with country programs; or are visiting country programs; or because they are responsible for implementing the police checking/vetting process staff.

ROLE PURPOSE:

The Save the Children-led consortium with funding from Education Cannot Wait (ECW) will implement a Multi-Year Resilience program in Syria-GoS, NES and NWS for a period of 3 years. The MYRP 2024-2027 is designed to adopt a gender transformative and an intersectional approach to focus on how gender interacts with other power differentials to impact educational access and achievement in Syria. The MYRP will work to steer and inform a resilient education response to the humanitarian and conflict riddled context in Syria. The protracted crisis in Syria, social norms combined with economic hardship and other factors, has continued to compound the educational needs of Syrian children and adolescents.

MYRP 2024-27 attempts to situate the fundamental challenges of educational access and quality within the broader prevailing humanitarian context in the country and aligns them with Education Cannot Wait’s (ECW) strategic and programmatic priorities. It is structured to identify long-standing and emerging needs across the critical nodes of the education sector including children, teachers, parents/caregivers, and communities. This approach is meant to inform a streamlined focus for the MYRP to identify target populations and help crystallize intersectional and layered challenges for the most disadvantaged including adolescent girls and boys between the ages of 10-18 years with disabilities and special needs, communities most exposed to climate change vulnerabilities, and children – girls and boys- as well as teachers dealing with mental health and psychosocial challenges.

To be relevant and effective, education interventions in emergencies and protracted crises must apply a gender lens at every stage of programming. This includes addressing a range of issues such as School-related Gender based Violence (SRGBV) and discriminatory gender norms that prioritize boys’ education in the face of economic hardship and insecurity. The school environment itself also presents gendered barriers to learning such as the limited availability of female teachers, lack of adequate sanitation facilities, gender biased curriculum, textbooks and teacher practices. Attention to these gender dynamics and social constraints will result in improved education for all crisis-affected populations and help build inclusive, equitable education systems.

In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.

SCOPE OF ROLE:

The Gender Specialist will support the Education Cannot Wait (ECW) Multi-Year Resilience Program (ECW-MYRP) to provide technical support to guide and inform gender-based programming through leading implementation of targeted gender transformative initiatives and integrated approach across the consortium in the whole of Syria. The Gender Specialist will support the ECW-MYRP consortium and implementing partners and Women Led Organizations to provide technical support and mainstream gender as cross cutting theme for all the programmatic activities in the ECW-MYRP. They will ensure gender is integrated into the results-based management frameworks, strengthening and supporting gender equality strategies and facilitating gender equality capacity strengthening for partner organizations via training and tool development. She/he will not only ensure ECW-funded education programmes are gender sensitive but aim to provide support to make such programmes become gender transformative.

The Gender specialist will ensure the implementation of all the gender deliverables in the MYRP (gender mainstreaming and gender targeted strategies) are aligned with ECW’s approach to gender transformative MYRP; Lead on capacity building and knowledge building and management on gender transformative EiEPC. Support all MYRP grantees/consortia leads to partner with local women organizations and contribute to their institutional capacity strengthening; Provide strategic advice to MYRP steering committee for gender integration; Serve as quality assuror in MYRP implementation ensuring gender issues are properly addressed; and support in creation of strategic partnerships and implementation of resource mobilization strategies.

Reports Direct: Senior Education Program Manager-ECW/GPE

Reports Indirect: Gender & Inclusion Technical Advisor

Staff reporting to this post: None

Budget Responsibilities: None

Role Dimensions: Overall responsibility for guiding and informing gender responsive programming across the integrated approach described within this MYRP. SC as the GLO, they will work on building capacity of consortium and implementing partners to ensure that gender and disability inclusion is considered across the entire project cycle. He/she will support data driven gender responsiveness and to ensure that course correction is taken as needed to further improve programming and reporting.

Specific duties and responsibilities:

Lead capacity development of MYRP partners on gender transformative EiEPC

– Identify gender capacity gaps amongst the MYRP consortium and implementing partners and ensure adequate support is provided in collaboration with relevant stakeholders.

– Set up gender focal point system within MYRP consortium and implementing partners

– Identify local and/or regional resources and network that can be accessed for knowledge building of MYRP country team on gender equality and empowerment of women and girls in EiEPC.

Support strategic partnership building with LWOs

– Support MYRP consortium members to identify LWOs for collaboration and partnership in the implementation of the MYRP.

– Ensure LWOs are meaningfully engaged in the MYRP implementation with support for institutional capacity strengthening.

Support cross-sectoral collaboration for shared gender equality outcomes

– Initiate and support capacity strengthening initiatives from other sectors (GBV training from GBV sub-cluster, training on CSE from SRHR WG…)

– Set up partnerships for cross sectoral partnerships within the MYRP (GBV referral pathways developed by the GBV sub-cluster, re-entry of married girls in GBV safe spaces, education institutions)

Monitoring and Learning

-Conduct regular light gender assessments to inform MYRP programming

-Develop advocacy materials for gender equality in MYRP

-Good practices and lessons learnt on gender in EiEPC captured and disseminated at country and global level.

-Support MYRP lead grantee to include gender results in the annual report and report on the GLO function.

KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:

• Coordination with the consortium Gender focal persons.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

• Master’s degree or equivalent in Social Science, development studies, gender & development or equivalent combination of relevant training and experience. Advanced degree will be an added advantage.
• Proven 5-year experience working on normative change for gender equality and adolescent sexual and reproductive health in sensitive contexts
• Proven experience in supporting the designing, implementing and evaluating gender-transformative social and behaviour change communication interventions.
• Experience in supporting the implementation of gender-transformative approaches in humanitarian context.
• Experience working in the Syrian context, is an added advantage.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a team setting with minimal supervision
• Specific knowledge of international development and gender equality issues; experience engaging children and other community members on gender equality issues desirable.
• Excellent planning and organizational skills with the ability to multi-task in a fast-paced work environment.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Computer literate
• National terms and conditions will be applied**.**
• Language: Fluency in Arabic & English.

Essential:

Accountability:

• Holds self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
• Holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved

Ambition:

• Sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves (and their team), takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages others to do the same
• Widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
• Future orientated, thinks strategically.

Collaboration:

• Actively listens to different perspectives and experiences of stakeholders
• Actively participates in networks to access and contribute to good practice
• Establishes and maintains clear communication and dialogue with disaster and conflict affected people and other stakeholders
• Establishes clear objectives with partners

Creativity:

• Develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
• Willing to take disciplined risks

Integrity:

• Honest, encourages openness and transparency
• Commitment to Save the Children Values

Understanding humanitarian contexts and application of humanitarian principles:

• Ensure that programme goals and activities uphold the principles of the key national and international humanitarian frameworks, codes and commitments
• Integrates beneficiary accountability principles into the approach
• Participates in disaster coordination mechanisms and interagency cooperation mechanisms

Leadership: Action; Thinking; Self; Inspiring; Developing Others:

• Demonstrates approachability and trust by listening carefully to others and valuing their contribution, and making others feel comfortable by being open and honest about their thoughts and feelings
• Demonstrates self-development and management by taking responsibility for own development, and actively seeking out feedback to better understand their own strengths and weaknesses
• Makes positive statements about work
• Effectively influences others by understanding their interests and showing how they will be met by own preferred solution
• Gives constructive feedback to enhance capabilities and responsibilities to partners and others

Desirable

• Experience building capacity and trainings especially on gender related issues.
• Knowledge of the policies, functions, structures and decision-making processes of key national institutions regarding Gender.
• Team player with strong leadership skills

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

Travel: 10% of time travel required to Northeast and Northwest of Syria to meet with implementing partners.