INGO Forum Field Coordinator at Mercy Corps

Location: Maiduguri

Program / Department Summary

• The Nigeria International NGO Forum (INGO Forum) is a civil society mechanism comprising of approximately 40 members (confirmed and prospective) and 4 observers active in the humanitarian and development fields in Nigeria. The purpose of the Forum is to provide an inclusive and consistent space for INGOs to develop and employ collective strategies and approaches to enhance the overall effectiveness and efficiency of humanitarian and development initiatives throughout Nigeria.
• The INGO Forum exists primarily to serve the needs of its members and to act in their interest for the betterment of serving beneficiaries. The main objectives include information sharing/ communication; coordination; policy development and advocacy; engagement with national civil society; and external representation of the INGO community. With 2 current staff (Coordinator and Support Manager) the INGO Forum plans to expand its reach with the goal of improving services to its members and increasing advocacy related to identified key priority issues. As of March 2017, the INGO Forum will be hosted by Mercy Corps in Nigeria’s capital city of Abuja.

General Position Summary

• The INGO Forum Field Coordinator will support the Forum and its member organizations in information exchange, coordination, engagement with stakeholders, representation, advocacy and communication functions.
• S/he will serve as an information focal point linking Abuja coordination structure with up-to-date realities in the NorthEast through proactive engagement with identified personnel and information collection and sharing. In collaboration with humanitarian managers of member organizations based in the North-east Nigeria, s/he will facilitate action-oriented coordination discussions and identify opportunities for improvement of coordination, both within INGOs and on behalf of INGOs with other partners or stakeholders. As a main link between the INGO community and the Nigerian NGO community, s/he will actively engage with local NGOs to identify opportunities for collaboration and to build high-yielding partnership.  

Essential Job Responsibilities
Information Sharing / Communication:

• Facilitate structured and effective information exchange both between internal INGO partners, and with external partners (NNGOs, UN, Government, etc)
• Stay informed on political, humanitarian and security contexts, while providing structured updates to the INGO Forum
• Assist in drafting humanitarian updates, policy briefs, and other similar materials.
• Facilitate effective information flow between field-level realities in NE Nigeria and capital-level coordination in Abuja.
• Compile and update simple 4Ws (Who, What, Where, When) matrixes/databases for Forum Members and, using this information, update stakeholders on joint INGO delivery progress.
• Maintain an updated contact list of all actors in the NE and ensure effective information sharing amongst all actors
• Undertake regular visits to the field and provide relevant updates on the humanitarian situation.
• Consistently liaise with key stakeholders in NE to share relevant information and stay informed.
• Engage partners to efficiently compile necessary information to respond to external requests.
• Maintain updated stakeholder mappings to inform strategic engagement.
• Summarize key documents (reports, assessments, etc) and share with partners in easily-read format.
• Support the Forum in developing data collection tools, databases, statistical reports and maps.

Coordination:

• Help facilitate INGO coordination in NE states (Maiduguri with potential for other NE state capitals) Engage with INGO Forum member organizations in Borno, Adamawa, Yobe and/or Gombe to plan monthly action-oriented coordination meetings.
• Regularly travel to Yola, Gombe and Damaturu etc. to engage with partners and identify coordination and advocacy gaps.
• Facilitate monthly coordination meetings while assuring action-oriented dialogue and productive use of time.
• Engage with other coordination mechanisms in Borno to ensure INGO representation and assure complementarity, gap-filling and avoidance of overlap.

Representation:

• Develop relationships with NNGO consortia to explore partnerships and related capacity gaps.
• Identify opportunities for capacity building for NNGOs, as well as opportunities for INGOs to learn from NNGO practices.
• Assure NNGO interests are represented within INGO Forum key messages, and actively seek advocacy allies/partnerships.
• Provide linkages between INGO and NNGO community / identify opportunities for collaboration.
• Help organize and facilitate workshops and other capacity development, as necessary.
• Maintain welcome pack for arriving INGOs, and information pack on INGO Forum for other partners.

Finance & Compliance:

• Ensure compliance with donor and host agency (in this case, Mercy Corps) regulations
• Draft or review scope of work to hire and manage technical consultants, including review for technical efficacy and contract budget, as required.

Security:

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

Accountability To Beneficiaries:

• INGO Forum  team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work.

Knowledge and Experience

• Advanced university degree in law, political science, international relations, journalism, social sciences, international development or related technical field (minimum masters degree).
• Demonstrated experience of 5 years in coordination of complex emergencies at international level
• Knowledge and understanding of the international humanitarian/development system and the mandates of the actors involved.
• Prior experience in managing INGO Consortia/fora
• Written and spoken fluency in English.
• Strong data analytical and interpretation skills.
• Willingness to learn and interest in humanitarian practice.
• Commitment to international humanitarian standards and principles.
• Excellent writing, editing and analytical skills and ability to formulate well-targeted strategic documents.
• Ability to work independently in a fast-paced and often demanding environment.
• Proven experience in influencing for policy change and practice
• Demonstrated experience in facilitating meetings in high-pressure professional setting
• Demonstrated experience in lobby and engaging with high level actors with strong evidence from the field
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and experience in humanitarian setting.
• Experience in an NGO (local or international), in NE Nigeria Humanitarian context.
• Knowledge of and contacts in Nigerian NGOs.

Success Factor

• Commitment to achieve results in a timely manner
• Trustworthiness and  integrity
• Committed to humanitarian values and principles
• People management skills
• Influencing and negotiation skills
• Communication
• Cultural sensitivity
• Gender equity and protection sensitive
• Creative solutions to problems.