Gender and Protection Sector Manager at CARE

Location: Nigeria - Maiduguri (Borno)
Type of Post: Unaccompanied  
Funding: Approved
Expected Travel: up to 50%  
Type of Contract: International
Language Requirement: English
Employee Duration: Active Full-Time

Overview / Description

• CARE International’s humanitarian mandate is to meet the immediate needs of disaster-affected populations, including women, girls, men and boys as well as their families in the poorest communities in the world, in a way that also addresses the underlying causes of people’s vulnerability.
• According to OCHA, the Lake Chad Basin humanitarian emergency is among the most severe in the world. Across the Lake Chad Basin region—comprising Cameroon’s Far North Region, Chad’s Lac Region, Niger’s Diffa Region, and northeastern Nigeria’s Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe states—violence continues to impact civilian populations and relief organization personnel.
• After more than 10 years of conflict between non-state armed groups and the Nigerian military, the situation is only getting worse. The conflict is intensifying, and the needs are massive. The United Nations estimates that there are more than 2.5 million people who have been displaced from their homes due to violence, and 7.9 million who depend entirely on humanitarian aid to survive with women and children bearing the brunt of the conflict (estimated 80% of those living in UDP camps are women and children).
• In order to address the systemic and structural practices that create barriers to the realization of women’s rights and gender equality; including prevention of and response to GBV, sexual exploitation and abuse, CARE has a specific focus on working with girls and women in a way that supports their empowerment and of engaging actively with men and boys as allies in GBV prevention.
• Due to the acute need to address Gender and Protection (G&P) issues in Northeast Nigeria and surrounding (non-conflict) areas, CARE is seeking an experienced Gender and Protection Sector Manager to develop and support high quality Gender/GBV and Protection-related programming and operations, as well as to serve as CARE's representative for all G&P-related activities within the UN system, the Ministry of Health and with other key partners and stakeholders.
• The position will be based in Maiduguri (Borno State) and will report directly to the Humanitarian Team Leader in day-to-day activities; work across various departments, collaborate with the other Sector Specialists (Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and Food and Nutrition Security and Livelihoods) and also work closely with the Program Director.

Responsibilities
What you will be responsible for:

• Provide technical direction and leadership, ensuring CARE's programmatic expertise in Gender and Protection (and particularly in crisis-affected settings) is translated to the Northern Nigeria context
• Facilitate the development of quality, gender-sensitive, and impact-focused G&P strategies and interventions in Nigeria
• Establish key internal and external contacts, including country office staff and partners with an understanding of the main issues related to Protection and Gender Based Violence dynamics and trends in the affected population
• Provide standard technical guidelines, help develop mechanisms, identify gaps and provide capacity building of CARE Nigeria’s staff
• Nurture and support existing partnerships and develop new ones (especially with women-lead local organizations) to continue and replicate work for the improvement of program quality and impact in Nigeria
• Influence policy and practice through analysis and advocacy in coordination with key stakeholders
• Conduct capacity gap assessments in the country office and recommend key actions for improvement
• Identify learning and training opportunities for CARE staff and partners, and work as a mentor and role model for less experienced staff
• Perform other duties as assigned by supervisor.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Social Studies, Human Rights, International Humanitarian Law or related field. Master’s degree preferred
• Minimum 5 years (International Experience) of progressive and substantial experience leading gender/GBV and protection sector programming in humanitarian contexts (experience complex protracted emergencies and in development settings is an added value)
• Previous experience on protection/GBV in medium-large scale emergencies (three years minimum)
• Proven experience in managing protection/GBV-specific projects
• Proficient analytical skills that demonstrate an understanding of the current concepts, priorities, and issues in programme monitoring, data collection and evaluation.
• Technical skills required for you to be successful:
• Strong understanding of inter-agency coordination systems
• Technical expertise on Protection and GBV mainstreaming and Gender Equality, with experience of applying these concretely to specific humanitarian program sectors, plans, policies and processes
• Demonstrated experience in mainstreaming protection and GBV in at least one of CARE’s key sectors (SRHR, FSNL)
• Knowledge of training tools and methods and proven experience delivering training on protection and GBV-responsive programs or GBViE (Gender Base Violence in Emergencies)
• Demonstrated ability to communicate ideas in a culturally sensitive manner and conducive to practical applications
• Understanding of  local/norms and Northeast Nigeria’s dynamic context are added values
• Excellent written, oral communication skills
• Excellent computer skills (Microsoft Office).