Humanitarian Preparedness and Response Officer at Catholic Agency for Overseas Development (CAFOD)

Job Profile

• This is a dynamic role, which contributes to the effective development, coordination and delivery of CAFOD’s humanitarian work in Nigeria, in line with the Core Programme Strategy. This role will provide both programme and operations support as well as technical advisory to strengthen CAFOD’s work and its ability to support partners in the country. Working with partners is central to CAFOD’s humanitarian response and the Humanitarian Preparedness and Response Programme Officer (HPR-PO) will play an important role in identifying and supporting partners to prepare for, mitigate the impact of, and respond to disasters and crises by providing support, knowledge, mainstreaming protection and building long-term capacity.
• The role will help to ensure that partners are able to respond to sudden onset emergencies and chronic humanitarian situations, by implementing programmes that integrate recovery into on-going development efforts. The role will also be key in ensuring CAFOD’s corporate commitments around climate, gender and localization are realised through our humanitarian work. The scope of the post falls into the following broad functions:
• The post holder will report to the Programme Manager. The post holder will not be a budget holder but maybe required to lead or hold line management responsibilities.

Key Responsibilities
Programme management and development in line with Core Programme Strategy (40%):

• Plan and implement humanitarian programmes, providing technical support and guidance to CAFOD programme staff and partner organisations to deliver high quality assistance in relief, rehabilitation and recovery phases of humanitarian response and preparedness, ensuring a transformative gender perspective is informing all of CAFOD’s humanitarian work in-country.
• In co-operation with partners and under the guidance and supervision of the Programm Manager, develop and manage CAFOD humanitarian programmes (this includes gender sensitive/gender transformative humanitarian response), contributing to the development and review of CAFOD Nigeria core Integral Ecology Programme Model .
• Work with other programme officers and partner staff to monitor new and chronic humanitarian crises, support country level decision making on responses to these crises through timely provision of assessment information and support the development and design of humanitarian responses
• Jointly responsible with partners for the effective implementation, monitoring, evaluation (including facilitating external evaluations) and reporting on programmes, in line with jointly agreed standards (programme cycle management) and donor requirements.
• In collaboration with partners and under the supervision of the Programme Manager, jointly develop programme and project proposals and assess existing capacities to manage and implement the work. This includes leading on preparation of funding applications and reports for external funders, in liaison with the Programme Development Funding Officer and other relevant colleagues as guided by the line manager.
• In collaboration with the M&E Officer and other staff as relevant, promote, capture and disseminate learning from partners and programmes, and ensure that this informs future programme development, including on Gender & Inclusion in humanitarian response and preparedness.
• Realise CAFOD’s principles by acting in line with CAFOD’s partnership standards, and by promoting and supporting partners’ adherence to jointly agreed accountability, gender, safeguarding, supply chain management/procurement good practice, and other standards, as these emerge.
• Oversee and support (where appropriate) the work of UK based Programme Accompaniers and consultants working on CAFOD programmes.
• Respond to emergencies as they occur, in consultation with Country Representative and/or Programme Manager, and in co-ordination with CAFOD’s Emergency Surge Response Group.
• In co-ordination with the Country Representative and/or Programme Manager develop, nurture and sustain relationships and effective communications with relevant stakeholders, including local government, national networks and other agencies.
• In co-ordination with the Country Representative and/or Programme Manager, Plan, implement and represent CAFOD’s gender programmes, providing technical support and guidance to CAFOD programme staff and partner organisations to deliver high quality transformative gender programmes.
• In co-ordination with the Country Representative and/or Programme Manager, Plan, implement and represent CAFOD’s livelihood programmes, providing technical support and guidance to CAFOD programme staff and partner organisations to deliver high-quality innovative livelihood programmes.
• Communicate with other teams within CAFOD to ensure that the programme is well understood, and that information is available for fundraising and other communication, including publications, media briefings, education, etc. This may involve participation in sessions/events with Supporters, communities of practice, working groups, etc., as agreed with the relevant manager.

Humanitarian Response and Preparedness Technical Support and Advisory (25%):

• Under the guidance of the Programme Manager, and in close synergy with other programme officers, support the development of CAFOD’s understanding and approach to DRR and Anticipatory Action.
• Provide operational support, and other support as needed for humanitarian work, such as needs assessment, project design, implementation, monitoring and evaluation
• Identify and link/provide support and technical leadership in the areas of CASH, WASH, Protection, Food Security, Protection and humanitarian innovation, including gender-sensitive and gender-transformative humanitarian programming.
• Under the guidance of the Programme Manager, lead, participate in and undertake missions, as required, for emergency assessment of areas affected by, or recovering from crises; programme design and planning; monitoring and evaluation, or accountability and protection mainstreaming support to CAFOD projects and programmes
• Strengthen CAFOD’s approach to risk analysis and emergency preparedness within our core programmes.
• Support CAFOD’s core and timebound humanitarian programmes to invest in resilience and adaptive capacities of the poorest and most vulnerable, linking development, relief and recovery.
• Engage with counterparts in civil society organisations, UN Agencies and relevant government departments to prioritise working with strategic and new networks and alliances.
• Keep up to date with development issues and trends, both within the relevant country or sector, and more generally.
• Monitor the political and security context to contribute to CAFOD’s organisational risk assessments and security plans.
• Engage in all relevant humanitarian platforms (i.e. Start Network, working groups in-country), ensuring CAFOD is abreast of the latest development and CAFOD and partners are well positioned to respond to emergencies and input on key policy processes where appropriate
• Under the supervision and guidance of the Programme Manager, engage with the Humanitarian Policy team to ensure CAFOD’s humanitarian policy and advocacy is coherent and effective, and informed by our experience and that of our partners.
• Ensure that all emergency and humanitarian work is implemented according to CAFOD’s programme quality standards and minimum benchmarks, including Core Humanitarian Standards, and CAFOD’s Safe, Accessible, Dignified and Inclusion framework as well as CAFOD standards on Gender and Inclusion
• Ensure gender lens are used in the design, implementation and monitoring, evaluation and learning of all emergency and humanitarian interventions.
• Complement partners’ thematic understanding on Core Humanitarian Standards, Do No harm and other Globally accepted standards in Humanitarian Response that contribute to the development of relevant interventions that bring about positive change.

Partners Capacity Strengthening and Localization (20%):

• Contribute to raising the profile  of  local partners and  promote their engagement and leadership in humanitarian response,  connecting  them with other key stakeholders.
• Under the guidance of their line manager as well as the CR, support strategic capacity strengthening and assessment of CAFOD’s partners’ on emergency preparedness.
• Support CAFOD’s partners to design, implement and lead their own initiatives and strategies to have influence on decision-makers.
• Support partners to identify and mitigate environmental risks in their humanitarian programmes and promote nature-based solutions where appropriate.
• Under the guidance of the PM and the CR, carry out institutional, PCM, M&E capacity strengthening of partner organizations in line with CAFOD strategic direction on localization.
• Identify, select and support new humanitarian partners.
• Develop, nurture and manage relationships with CAFOD’s partner organisations in line with the principles and standards set in our Partnership Policy, guidance and tools, and in agreement with the Country Representative or Programme Manager.
• Work with partners to regularly assess the quality of the relationship, ensuring that effective communication channels are in place, and that any shortcomings are addressed.

Programme administration, financial management and monitoring (15%):

• In close co-operation with the relevant roles in the finance and programme teams, prepare, manage and monitor budgets relating to both CAFOD and partner-led expenditure, as agreed with the Programme Manager.
• Develop accounting frameworks for ongoing programmes to ensure proper budget coding
• Set project approvals in CAFOD’s internal information management system
• Deliver the programme within agreed budgets or instigate budget revisions according to evolving needs, in line with CAFOD’s finance guidelines and procedures.
• Effectively use CAFOD’s programme management information systems to ensure programme and project information is up to date. This will include producing management information to support decision-making.

Focal Point Responsibilities
Contribute to the development and management of Safeguarding /SADI Procedures, processes and systems:

This post-holder is the Safe Accessible Dignified Inclusive (SADI) Focal Point, responsible for the coordination and support on SADI matters and including the following:

• Coordinate, support and provide context-specific advice to staff and partners and act as contact point for support on the implementation of the SADI approach (for quality and safety of our programmes) and associated safeguarding policies which prevent and respond to sexual exploitation and abuse
• Lead and manage the development and dissemination of Safeguarding tools, procedures, processes and interventions to guide safe programming.
• Act as a safeguarding contact point for staff to advise them in the case of any concerns
• Lead on capacity development and strengthening of programme officers, partner staff and communities on Safeguarding / SADI. This will include support for partners to embrace and to adhere to quality and safe practices in programmes, individual organisations and in communities where we work.
• Work with partners to put in place complaints and feedback systems. This will include consultations with communities and people on the design, implementation and monitoring of complaint-handling systems, processes and access to safe and responsive mechanisms to handle complaints.
• Work with partners to ensure organisational commitment to act on complains, that the complaints system is clearly communicated to relevant stakeholders especially communities, prioritises the safety of the complainant, they cover sexual exploitation and abuse, that communities are aware of the expected behaviour of humanitarian staff regarding the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse and other emerging issues according to defined policies and processes.
• Work closely with partners to put in place referral mechanisms (contextual safeguarding mapping) for complaints that fall out of the scope of the organisation.
• Ensure appropriate and adequate documentation of complaints and evidencing those complaints are managed timely, fairly and appropriately, and generate periodic reports to inform management decisions.
• Develop a storage system for partner complaints.
• To document and share knowledge and learning on SADI for country programs, and feed into organisation-wide sharing of best practice, information, questions, and experiences relating to SADI and safeguarding (particularly Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse - PSEA).
• Ensure key tools and standards including CAFOD Foundational Quality Standard (FQS4), Core Humanitarian Standards and CAFOD’s SADI Framework are understood and implemented by CAFOD staff and partners.
• Work collaboratively with CAFOD’s Safeguarding Advisers and ERO Protection Mainstreaming.

Job-specific Competencies

• Experience in the humanitarian architecture of Nigeria
• Experience of working with, and/or a commitment to humanitarian standards e.g. Humanitarian Charter, SPHERE, the Red Cross and Red Crescent Code of Conduct and IHL instruments.
• Experience of developing monitoring and evaluation frameworks and data collection and analysis tools.
• Knowledge and experience of Nigeria/ Sahel Region
• Ability and willingness to travel, often at short notice and to insecure areas.
• Demonstrable experience of working with ECHO
• Experience of successful applications/implementation to institutional donors and understanding of institutional donor humanitarian funding environment.
• Experience of cash transfer programming, WASH, protection, DRR, livelihood.