Internal/External Job Announcement

About CRS

Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the United States. CRS works to save, protect, and transform lives in need in more than 100 countries, without regard to race, religion or nationality. CRS’ relief and development work is accomplished through programs of emergency response, health, agriculture, education, microfinance and peacebuilding. 

 For nearly 60 years, CRS has taken the lead in responding to natural and man-made disasters affecting Ethiopia's most vulnerable communities. Moving beyond emergency response, CRS' disaster mitigation and recovery projects in drought and flood-prone areas have rebuilt individual and community assets through non-food aid in the form of agriculture, livestock, health, nutrition, and water and sanitation assistance. CRS's humanitarian work in Ethiopia also provides livelihoods support to farmers and entrepreneurs, promotes gender equality, mobilizes for immunization and mitigates the impact of COVID-19.

 As part of CRS family, you will join the more than 5000 strong and vibrant individuals working globally to accomplish the mission of CRS. 

CRS/Ethiopia invites you, the qualified candidate, to apply for the following different positions for an indefinite term contract that is contingent upon funding of the JEOP program:

 Position Title: Senior Project Officer Capacity Building and Collaboration (Early Warning Systems)

Duty Station: Addis Ababa

Employment Term: Indefinite Term contingent upon funding of JEOP program

Reports to: Program Manager II – Early Warning and DRR

Application Deadline: January 09, 2021

 JEOP Background

The Joint Emergency Operation (JEOP) is a food assistance program operating in Ethiopia since 2012. JEOP works closely with the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) and other stakeholders to provide timely food assistance to disaster affected people in Ethiopia. JEOP engages in need assessments of affected areas and supports the targeting process of the affected people. Strengthening the Government of Ethiopia’s early warning system (EWS) is one of JEOP’s strategic investment areas, as the program seeks to enhance local capacity to collect timely and quality data to inform emergency food need estimation.

 JEOP has been implementing an EWS in its operation woredas across five regions (Amhara, Oromia, Tigray, Sidama, SNNP) and Dire Dawa City Administration. Activities include collection of EWS data, analysis, and reporting; empowering kebele DRM committees around risk monitoring, providing risk education training to communities and support to take risk actions; and enhancing the local capacity through training and active engagement at local level in food security assessments. JEOP is planning to cascade the food security analysis at woreda and zonal levels as part of continuous commitment to strengthen the Government of Ethiopia’s EWS - with a focus to local level structures and responding to capacity gaps.

 Job Summary:

As a member of Joint Emergency Operation (JEOP) project team, you will facilitate the achievement of project objectives through coordinating and reporting on all project activities and providing technical guidance and advice to staff and implementing partner(s) advancing Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) work serving the poor and vulnerable. Your coordination and relationship management skills will ensure that the project for which you are responsible applies best practices and constantly works towards improving the impact of its benefits to those we serve.

 Job Responsibilities:

• Organize and lead the implementation of all assigned project activities as outlined in the detailed implementation plan in line with CRS program quality principles and standards, donor requirements, and good practices.
• Ensure learning properly accompanies project activities throughout the project cycle. Support accountability through coordinating project evaluation activities and guiding partners in their efforts to reflect on project experiences. Analyze implementation challenges and report any inconsistencies and/or gaps to inform adjustments to plans and implementation schedules.
• Coordinate and oversee working relationships with all local project stakeholders and serve as the liaison between them and the project team to mobilize local actors and promote project activities and impact.
• Supervise and perform ad-hoc inspections of various processes and resources at project sites to ensure timely project activities implementation and adherence to established process standards and procedures. Ensure proper tracking of resource use for project activities through periodic budget reviews and follow-up with and assistance to implementing partner.
• Support and coordinate capacity building and technical support activities to ensure assigned project activities are implemented per project guidelines and standards.
• Coordinate provision of any logistical and administrative support to staff and partners.
• Ensure project documentation for assigned activities is complete with all required documents and is filed per agency and donor requirements. Assist with preparation of trends analysis reports and documentation of case studies and promising practices
• Conduct regular capacity assessment across JEOP partners and Government of Ethiopia counterparts; Undertake a capacity building activities (including ToT trainings) to JEOP partners and local Government of Ethiopia officials through preparation/revision of training materials designed using interactive adult learning methodologies
• Support partners and local Government of Ethiopia officials to prepare quality joint analysis and need estimation reports following zonal level quarterly review meetings; collaborate at higher level with senior Government officials and other stakeholders (e.g., RFSA, WFP, Food Economy Group, IPC, Ministry of peace, universities etc) for fostering learning and synergizing efforts
• Closely work and collaborate with partners, and zonal level DRM to prepare a risk communication messages in a standard format as an outcome of zonal level review meetings; facilitate review and approval of the message by CRS and NDRMC; and ensure timely translation and dissemination of the messages

Job Requirements

Typical Background, Experience & Requirements:

Education and Experience

• University degree in project management, rural development/development studies, Agriculture, Early Warning, Disaster Risk Reduction, food security/resilience/livelihood, or other related field of studies.
• ·Minimum of five years of work experience in areas of early warning and disaster risk reduction, resilience and climate, and market monitoring with progressive responsibilities, ideally with an international NGO. Some experience may be compensated by additional academic background and vice versa.
• Minimum of two years of experience with partnership activities and institutional strengthening – experience with church partners a plus
• Knowledge of technical principles and concepts in disaster risk reduction, resilience, and humanitarian principles. General knowledge of other related disciplines to ensure proper cross-sectoral approach.
• Knowledge of and experience with capacity strengthening best practices; experience with capacity building, including training, mentoring as well as developing training materials; good oral presentation skill
• Experience with program monitoring and analysis.
• Experience and skills in networking and relations with donors, peer organizations, and faith-based and civil society partners. Understanding of partnership principles.
• Experience in gender/protection sensitive programming is advantageous
• Proficient in MS Office packages (Excel, Word, PowerPoint), Web Conferencing Applications, leading remote trainings, information and budget management systems, knowledge-sharing networks, data collection platforms (e.g. iFormBuilder, KOBO, CommCare), statistical analysis and visualization software (e.g. SPSS, STATA, R, Power BI)
• Strong data collection and research skills and ability to interpret and analyze data
• Presentation, facilitation, training, mentoring, and coaching skills

 Personal Skills

• Ability to work under remote supervision as part of the team in fast-paced emergency environment according to CRS Standard Operating Procedures; willingness to travel and spend time in the field
• Good strategic, analytical, problem-solving and systems thinking skills with capacity to see the big picture and ability to make sound judgment
• Strong technical writing skills
• Proactive, resourceful, and results-oriented
• Attention to details, accuracy, and timeliness in executing assigned responsibilities
• Strong relationship management skills with ability to influence and get buy-in from people not under direct supervision, work with individuals in diverse geographical and cultural settings, and with local partners in a collaborative way, prioritizing subsidiarity

 Required/Desired Language: English, Amharic. Advantageous if applicant speaks Afan Oromo, Somali, Tigrigna and other Ethiopian languages

 Travel Required 30%-50%

 Key Working Relationships:

Supervisory: none

Internal: JEOP team, Country program staff, other CP early warning/resilience staff (ICT, RFSA, other program departments), CRS Technical Advisors (EARO, HRD and others)

External: JEOP consortium members, RFSA projects, donor representatives, UN stakeholders (OCHA, WFP), NDRMC, other humanitarian stakeholders and Government of Ethiopia sector office at different level.

 Agency-wide Competencies (for all CRS Staff):

These are rooted in the mission, values, and guiding principles of CRS and used by each staff member to fulfill his or her responsibilities and achieve the desired results.

• Serves with Integrity
• Models Stewardship
• Cultivates Constructive Relationships
• Promotes Learning

 Disclaimer: This job description is not an exhaustive list of the skill, effort, duties, and responsibilities associated with the position.

CRS' talent acquisition procedures reflect our commitment to protecting children and vulnerable adults from abuse and exploitation. Equal Opportunity Employer

How to Apply

You should fill the application form through this link; CLICK HERE and attach your up-to-date CV on / before the application deadline January 09, 2021.

You will be contacted only if selected for written exam/interview. Phone solicitations will not be accepted. These job opportunities are open to Ethiopian nationals only. CRS requires its staff to treat all people with dignity and respect and to actively prevent harassment, abuse, exploitation, and human trafficking. Qualified women are highly encouraged to apply**