WASH Advisor

JOB PURPOSE:

To provide strategic technical leadership and capacity building to programme teams in the design, implementation and monitoring of Oxfam’s WASH programme in Syria. This will involve contextual analysis, WASH sector assessments, implementing the current strategy, internal and external coordination / representation, ensuring the consolidated and quality implementation/follow-up of Oxfam’s WASH programme in Syria, and integrating WASH into multi-sectoral programming (with Gender, Protection and Emergency Food Security and Livelihoods). The role will influence strategic and operational decision-making within the WASH programme in line with the Oxfam’s overall strategy for Syria. Oxfam in Syria is a principal WASH INGO provider.
The post provides an opportunity to significantly contribute to directly alleviating the hardships, persisting public health risks confronted by vulnerable urban and rural civilians by providing access to clean water, sanitation, hygiene services and goods which in turn will contribute to their recovery and resilience from the devastation of armed conflict. The country team has a Country Strategy until 2026 focusing on building resilient communities through live-saving and early recovery interventions. Hence, the post holder will therefore lead the implementation of the strategy from the WASH perspective.

DIMENSIONS OF THE ROLE:
• Manages processes (sometimes separate projects) relating to WASH policy and practice development within the team/country.
• Works to set team priorities within the context of the WASH departmental/country strategy and operational plan.
• Advises senior management & WASH technical teams on specific programme contexts & components.
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• Assesses the quality and accuracy of information coming from the field, from external coordination and other relevant sources.
• Diverse and complex context analysis at micro and macro level with the ability to communicate complex matters to a diverse audience.
• Problems faced are diverse – relating to management of people, budgets and processes which can relate to issues within own technical specialism.
• Problem solving complexity includes people management and strategic management related to team specialism.
• Impacts directly on programme quality and contributes to the achievement of Oxfam’s strategic objectives.
• Liaises with Oxfam’s Technical Advisors at regional and global level.
• Representation and networking with external actors’, including Government ministries, UN, INGOs and partners as and when necessary to fulfil the technical support function.
• Impact and influence will be within own WASH team but may include other parts of the programme and external stakeholders.
• Active role in lobbying and advocacy on issues related to WASH through coordination with other WASH partners.
• Perform other tasks/responsibilities as may be necessary or required by the organization to achieved Oxfam’s goals and objectives.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
Strategic technical leadership for programme design and support implementation
• Provide country strategic leadership with focus on strengthening the quality of WASH emergency response, preparedness, recovery and resilience underpinning community engagement and behavioural change approaches (based on persisting public health risks including the Covid-19 pandemic) through effective consolidation and synergy of all ongoing WASH (engineering and hygiene promotion) projects and strategy-related activities.
• In close coordination with other technical sectors, provide leadership and technical support to the WASH team to enhance a consolidated, solid and systematic contextual understanding of programmatic areas, people’s needs and capacity as well as power dynamics. This will require inputting in the triangulation and analysis of information from a variety of sources.
• Ensure effective, quality and timely programme execution and operationalise processes by providing guidance and leadership to matrix-managed technical WASH team in hubs and line managed technical WASH team Damascus -based on agreed timeline that they are fully able to do be self-sufficient or have obtained longer-lasting capacity improvements without the post holders’ direct supervision.
• In close coordination with other programme teams (EFSVL, protection, gender) and based on assessment and contextual analysis contribute to developing multi-sector context appropriate detailed strategy, operational plans and budgets for the delivery of humanitarian programme that model and promote integration and effective community engagement with full participation of women and excluded vulnerable persons.
• Work closely with other programme teams, especially the MEAL team, to enhance social accountability and ensure ongoing monitoring of Oxfam’s WASH programme activities, in both accessible and inaccessible areas.
• Coordinate and support the structured ways of working necessary with Logistics and WASH to ensure that our procurement, tendering and contracts are appropriate to the context and each work stream (e.g. supply + installation contracts as compared to supply only contracts).
• Provide strategic and technical advice to develop creative solutions to the delivery and monitoring of WASH services, in both accessible and inaccessible areas.
• Seek collaborative research and development opportunities to work with the public sector and private sector, academia and local partners to address areas for improvement and problems identified from the
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field e.g. water conservation practices, management models, non-revenue water, alternative technologies for water treatment and onsite/offsite sanitation.
• Provide strategic analysis and steer with the WASH team the response to the diversity in Syria – ranging from humanitarian crises to areas in which the urban and rural communities can recover from conflict to resume more secure lives.

Capacity building:
• Work closely with Area Managers to identify capacity building needs for WASH team members and develop context appropriate initiatives for individuals and teams using a variety of approaches. Support technical capacity building assessment, planning and initiatives of relevant external stakeholders (LNGOs, Ministry of Water Resources, etc.)
• Support on identifying WASH-related capacity building opportunities for Oxfam staff and local partner organisations; support the development and implementation of capacity building plans and design and deliver training as appropriate. This includes identifying staff secondments and team/partner participation in global/regional learning events as well as on-the-job capacity building.
• Take the initiative in documenting lessons learned, best practices and case studies to shape in-country strategies and programme approaches and contribute to broader sector learning.

Contribute to programme quality standards:
• Ensure that the programme is inclusive of marginalised and vulnerable individuals and communities, that it promotes the full and equal participation of women and that accountability to affected communities is central to the ways of working.
• Provide technical support for the implementation of WASH activities in Syria – including ensuring coherence, standardized approaches, programme quality, and integration with other sectors across the WASH programme. This also includes providing support on ensuring Oxfam and sector minimal standards are met.
• Support the WASH team in safeguarding, safe programming and gender risk analysis and mitigation activities prior to programme implementation; provide strategic steer on amending activities and approaches where necessary.
• Support WASH programme and project teams in developing and applying appropriate monitoring, verification, evaluation, and learning (MEAL) tools in relation to Oxfam’s WASH work in Syria.
• Actively support programme and project teams in mainstreaming gender and protection where feasible throughout Oxfam Syria’s WASH work.
• In close coordination with other sector leads and technical teams ensure that Oxfam’s humanitarian programme is sensitive to Syria’s specific context while simultaneously addressing the need of most vulnerable and remains impartial.
• Lead and coach the technical leads in the conceptualisation and writing of project proposals including supporting donor programme reports where required, to ensure these are of high quality.
• Provide technical support in the development and implementation of national programme evaluations, learning events and specific WASH programme related research activities.
• Be familiar with and abide by Oxfam’s Code of Conduct and other regulatory codes such as the Red Cross Code of Conduct, Partners in Aid Code, Oxfam International Protocols and the Inter- Agency Field Co-operation Protocol.

Coordination and Representation:
• Promote and support effective integration within the WASH Team between PHEs and PHPs, and contribute to mechanisms for coordination with gender, protection and EFSVL teams as appropriate.
• Represent Oxfam externally in relevant UN/(I)NGO or Government fora; develop alliances with organisations and other relevant stakeholders working in WASH with a view to enhancing coordination.
• Actively contribute to advocacy and campaigning on WASH issues including analysis, surveys, assessments and support the development of policy products as required.
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• Provide strategic and technical input in sector specific coordination mechanisms and contribute to effective relationships to build a sustainable platform of OXFAM’s WASH interventions with relevant stakeholders (Governmental bodies, INGOs and LNGOs).
• Influence the direction of planning, approaches and governance structures initiated at WASH sector level based on the outcomes of possible research or innovation projects that may be developed from the programme.

Experience, Knowledge & Competencies:

Essential:
• Graduate qualification in either one of the following: water and/or sanitation/civil engineering; environmental, public, or preventive health; community development or relevant field.
• At least five years of international and/or national humanitarian relief field work experience on medium/large scale humanitarian responses that include WASH, Public Health Engineering or Public Health Promotion coordination and direct implementation programmes, employing community engagement and hygiene behaviour change approaches, in a range of environments – urban, peri-urban, rural and collective shelters/schools targeting both displaced and host populations, and complex armed conflict contexts
• Working WASH experience in the Middle East
• Strong skills and ability to conceptualise, write and contribute to donor proposals and reports with accurate technical details.
• Strong ability to provide strategic leadership and capacity building skills.
• Strong analytical and planning skills, including critical thinking beyond the programmatic but within the regional context.
• Strong coordination skills including the experience in representation with Government and other external actors, in a sensitive political environment. Diplomacy, tact and negotiating skills are essential.
• Ability to work effectively under stress in emergency situations, in a leadership role and/or as part of a team.
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• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with sensitivity to cultural differences and the ability to work in a variety of cultural contexts and communicate with a diverse range of people.
• Sound understanding of the importance of gender and protection in WASH.
• Committed to and knowledge of humanitarian principles and quality standards for humanitarian response.
• Experience and ability to work and travel in insecure environments.
• Experience in working remotely (i.e. from field teams and sometimes Damascus team).
• Good written and spoken English is essential.

Desirable:
• Good working level of Arabic language
• Proven experience on both Public Health Engineering and Public Health Promotion.
• Familiar with Oxfam humanitarian approach and, particularly, community engagement