Roving Cash & Voucher Specialist - Ukraine Refugee Crisis at Plan International

Role Purpose

• The conflict in Ukraine is resulting in a major humanitarian crisis with over 3 million people having fled to neighboring countries, and millions displaced within Ukraine. Plan International is responding to the crisis and working in partnership with civil society organisations in Poland, Romania, and Moldova to meet the key needs of those affected by the crisis as well as host communities.
• This position will play a key role in the support to country level activities and will provide technical support and guidance to Plan International teams and partners in Poland, Romania, and Moldova. The position will initially be remote but may well be based in one of the 3 countries in the future.
• The Ukraine Hub is a service-oriented structure to support initiation of activities, and to help find solutions to problems as and when arise. Creative thinking and identifying work arounds to problems faced will be a critical element of the role.

Dimensions of the Role

• The position will develop Plan International’s approach to Cash & Vouchers in Emergencies across all response locations, in close collaboration with our partners.
• The role is the primary point of contact for technical staff in Poland, Moldova, and Romania and will ensure Plan International is following high standards of programme quality. The post holder will represent Plan International in external fora, ensuring the organisation is seen as a leader in gender focussed programming in humanitarian response.

Accountabilities
Assessment and Program Design:

• Ensures all work has a strong gender focus in line with Plan International's Global Strategy.
• Lead on cash and voucher needs assessments coordinating with Plan's other programmatic areas and country-based Cash Working Groups, ensuring assessment findings are documented and disseminated.
• Ensure that the different capacities, vulnerabilities and coping mechanisms of girls and boys are considered and analyzed.
• Provide technical assistance to teams in Poland, Romania, and Moldova in the formulation of cash and voucher program strategies and plans.
• Ensure that Cash & Voucher interventions are linked into longer term programming.
• Support preparedness activities across all response locations.

Program Implementation:

• Ensure the effective planning, implementation and coordination of cash and voucher programming that address the key needs for boys and girls.
• Contribute to the development of staffing plans to implement cash & Voucher programme activities and work with the HR team to recruit in line with approved grants.
• Ensure that Cash & Voucher interventions are aligned with key standards and other existing global guidelines and tools.

Capacity Building:

• Develop capacity building plans and provide training, coaching and mentorship to program staff and partners.
• Coordinate and/or implement trainings and briefings of Plan staff, partners and other key stakeholders on cash and voucher approaches and related issues such as gender equality and inclusion, amongst others.
• Promote the application of best program practices.

Monitoring and Evaluation, Reporting and Accountability:

• Work closely with the Monitoring & Evaluation (M&E) colleagues in Plan International and partner organisations to develop a cash and voucher M&E framework.
• Build capacity of Cash and voucher and M&E staff to collect quantitative and qualitative data, ensuring all data is disaggregated by sex, age and disability.
• Document key learning from the use of cash and voucher modalities in the response.
• Input to the regular Ukraine Response sitreps.
• Prepare timely reports on Cash & Voucher projects in compliance with internal and donor requirements.
• Establish accountability activities to ensure that feedback from all relevant stakeholders is
• considered throuahout all phases of the response.

Coordination and Resource Mobilization:

• Build and maintain relationships with relevant government departments. UN agencies and NGOS.
• Actively contribute to cash & voucher Coordination Mechanisms. Support partner organisations take a co-leadership role in Working Groups as and when requested by partners.
• Establish/maintain new/existing relationships with key donors
• Support Plan's country offices to build a diversified portfolio of funding for cash & vouchers.
• Support development and submission of quality proposals in response to identified opportunities.

Influencing:

• Support country offices to develop case studies and reports of program innovation and successes.
• Contribute to relevant global advocacy and policy objectives with documented learning and evidence.

Communication:

• Work with Plan's communication team to support the dissemination of articles, success stories, presentations and media interviews highlighting Plan's work in cash & vouchers.

Key Relationships
Internal:

• Programme technical leads.
• Ukraine Hub
• National Organisations
• Global Hub departments including humanitarian, finance, legal, funding)

External:

• Civil Society Organisations
• UN Agencies
• Cash Working Groups
• Institutional Donors
• Embassies

Technical Expertise, Skills and Knowledge
Essential:

• Demonstrable experience in design, implementation and evaluation of in-kind food through cash/voucher and market based programming.
• Knowledge of international humanitarian standards and codes of conduct, and extensive understanding of Social Safety Nets, Livelihoods and associated methodologies.
• Excellent proven cash programming skills.
• Excellent representational and coordination skills.
• Excellent project design, participatory monitoring, and evaluation skills.
• Ability and previous experience of working in emergency settings.
• Good working knowledge of key humanitarian donors, for example WFP, USAID, EU, DFAT, CIDA, DFID, DGECHO.
• Knowledge of major humanitarian, recovery and development challenges and issues, specifically strategies for poverty and hunger reduction.
• Strong analytical skills: secondary/primary data analysis.
• Proven knowledge in targeting methods in Cash/voucher programmes.
• Knowledge and understanding of UN’s role in development cooperation.

Desirable:

• Experience of working in in humanitarian settings in a range of contexts (eg refugee, conflict, rapid onset).
• Skills in writing funding submissions and donor reports.
• Proven effective management skills leading teams across several locations and operating in a cross-cultural structure.
• Experience in contextual analysis, quantitative and qualitative research and other assessment tools.
• Advocacy, influencing, networking, and negotiating skills, experienced in gaining commitment from a wide range of people, bringing about change and providing support from a distance.
• Ability to transfer knowledge and transfer clear messages and information to a wide spectrum of people from different cultures and backgrounds.
• Proven skills in process and group facilitation, training, and capacity building.
• Knowledge of issues related to international development cooperation and humanitarian assistance.
• Proficiency in Ukrainian, Polish, Romanian, or Moldovan languages.

Plan International'S Values in Practice:

• We are open and accountable: We create a climate of trust inside and outside the organisation by being open, honest and transparent. We hold ourselves and others to account for the decisions we make and for our impact on others, while doing what we say we will do.
• We strive for lasting impact: We strive to achieve significant and lasting impact on the lives of children and young people, and to secure equality for girls. We challenge ourselves to be bold, courageous, responsive, focused and innovative.
• We work well together: We succeed by working effectively with others, inside and outside the organisation, including our sponsors and donors. We actively support our colleagues, helping them to achieve their goals. We come together to create and implement solutions in our teams, across Plan International, with children, girls, young people, communities and our partners
• We are inclusive and empowering: We respect all people, appreciate differences and challenge inequality in our programmes and our workplace. We support children, girls and young people to increase their confidence and to change their own lives. We empower our staff to give their best and develop their potential.

Physical Environment:

• Based remotely, working in a virtual hub. Required to travel to operational locations on a regular basis, sometimes at short notice.

Level of Contact with Children:

• Mid contact: Occasional interaction with children