Womens Protection and Empowerment Coordinator

Background/IRC Summary: The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives. Founded in 1933 at the request of Albert Einstein, the IRC offers lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster. At work today in over 40 countries and 22 U.S. cities, we restore safety, dignity and hope to millions who are uprooted and struggling to endure. The IRC leads the way from harm to home.

Job Overview/Summary: The IRC has more than 30 years experience in Pakistan, much of it providing multi sectoral support to conflict affected IDPs and Pakistanis affected by natural disaster. The IRC’s Women’s Protection and Empowerment (WPE) Program in Pakistan has been operational in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province (KP) since January 2014. The program, which seeks to ensure that displaced women and girls can access appropriate services and are protected from further harm, is implemented in partnership with 3 local NGOs. Under the guidance of the Deputy Director Programs, this position is responsible to provide strategic direction to WPE program. The post holder will lead WPE staff and the national implementing partners.  The coordinator will oversee 1) case management; life skills and psychosocial support; legal support; and empowerment activities to GBV survivors and vulnerable women and girls; 2) GBV prevention activities, including engaging men and boys in IDP/ host communities; 3) training and capacity building to improve the quality of case management and psychosocial support to GBV survivors; 4) monitoring and research evaluation of girls’ life skills program I addition to overseeing project/program implementation, the WPE Coordinator will also be responsible expand WPE programming and profile in Pakistan.

The position will be based in Islamabad with frequent travel to the field locations, and will report to the Deputy Director Programs in Islamabad.

Major Responsibilities

• Business Development
  • Expand WPE program portfolio with the goal to double in size by end of 2015.
  • Work closely with the DDP and the CD, lead the development of new business concepts for the expansion and strengthening of WPE programming in Pakistan
• Technical Quality
  • Provide guidance on program design from the outset of business development to implementation phases of project life cycles;
  • Provide clear technical support, supervisory guidance, training and mentoring to all WPE programs, activities and teams in Pakistan and in close coordination with the Partnership Coordinator, Deputy Director Programs as well as the Country Director (CD) to  ensure consistent, harmonized and quality program design and implementation across project sites and improved integration between WPE and other IRC programs.
  • Ensure IRC and its partners’ program staff adheres to WPE/GBV professional standards and principles through technical support and mentoring by the WPE management team.
• Strategic Planning
  • Contribute in the Strategic Action Planning process by undertaking the sectoral context analysis and accordingly selecting the priorities for Pakistan country office against relevant outcomes.
  • Provide cohesive leadership to WPE programming in Pakistan, ensuring that priorities and opportunities identified are in line with IRC Pakistan’s strategic plan and goals.
  • Remain abreast of ongoing trends in Pakistan and in the region as related to WPE programming, and provide regular updates on these trends and how they affect programming to the Senior Management Team.
• Representation & Advocacy
  • Maintain strong relationships with relevant government partners involved in WPE activities.
  • Develop and maintain strong relationships with donors and potential donors in Pakistan
  • Represent IRC WPE in GBV Sub-cluster meetings, protection cluster meetings, central GBV Working Group and at other relevant meetings and task forces at provincial and national levels
  • Maintain effective relationship with active WPE/GBV actors in the country for effective and improved coordination and programming
• Staff Supervision & Development
  • Directly supervise WPE team and work closely with partners’ staff
  • Provide on-the-job training and coaching to the WPE team to promote holistic program approaches and strategies.
  • Maintain open and professional relations with team members, promoting a strong team spirit and providing oversight and guidance to enable staff to successfully perform in their positions.
  • Assist the staff in identifying professional development needs and opportunities.
  • Work with the staff to ensure performance objectives are regularly reviewed and met.
  • Provide continuous performance feedback to staff; identify performance issues and work with staff and Human Resources to document and address issues in a timely manner.
  • To put in place a succession plan in WPE to identify and develop potential leaders/project managers
• Monitoring
  • Working closely with the M&E unit and the WPE program team to develop, adapt and implement harmonized monitoring and evaluation systems; analyzing results to ensure program effectiveness and quality, with a focus on the impact of IRC WPE programs throughout Pakistan.
• Budget Management
  • To participate in internal BvA meetings and also with partners to ensure that grant(s) is on track, and all under/over spent are handled with proper planning
  • To work closely with finance and grants teams to develop budget notes for all partners, and for IRC’s direct implementation
• Professional Standards
  • Any other duties as assigned by the supervisor to develop WPE programs.
  • All IRC staff are required to adhere to the IRC Way Standards for Professional Conduct and the IRC country employment policies.

Key Working Relationships

Position Reports to:                       Deputy Director Program

Position directly supervises:      Program Manager WPE

Indirect Reporting:                                         WPE Program Staff

Other Internal and/or external contacts:

Internal: Partnership Coordinator, M&E Coordinator, PDQ coordinator, Head of Offices, IRC’s WPE Technical Units

External: Clusters, local partners, government stakeholders, INGOs, NGOs, peers

Job Requirements:

Education:                          Advanced degree in Social Work, Women’s Studies, or other related field

Work Experience:            Minimum 4 years professional experience developing, managing, and evaluating GBV prevention and response programs in emergency and community-based settings; 

Demonstrated Skills and Competencies:

• Strong project planning and organizational skills
• Successful experience and ability working within a volatile and unstable security environment is a must.
• Thorough understanding of best practices and evidence-based strategies in GBV response (case management, psychosocial support, legal support) and GBV primary prevention and risk reduction;
• Experience implementing GBV response and prevention programs in collaboration with local partners and providing direct technical support to local organizations
• Proven experience supervising and providing case management services and psychosocial support services;
• Previous experience managing programs financed through US, UN and private foundations, with strong program/technical and budget management skills
• Strong planning, reporting, monitoring and evaluation skills;
• Successful experience in developing new programs in line with strategic goals
• Strong written and oral communication skills, effective in representation and advocacy with external parties;  
• Experience managing, supervising, coaching and mentoring staff;
• Proven ability to work well in and promote teamwork, comfortable in a multi-cultural environment, flexible and able to handle pressure with professional grace;