PROGRAM SUMMARY:

PEACE-WISE Program - Leveraging our existing development and peacebuilding programming that involves 8,000 women in SDS and SDS, Mercy Corps will partner with leading women’s networks, Almanar Voluntary Organization in SDS and Khartoum, Sudan Women’s Development Organization (SWDO) and Relief & Mediation Corps (REMCO) -  the PEACE-WISE Partners - to amplify the voices of conflict-affected women in state and national level decision-making and demonstrate the power of collective influence and action to address priority needs. The program facilitates peer-to-peer and peer-led skills building, learning and exchange efforts to strengthen and expand women’s leadership and infuse the experiences and priorities of SDS and SDS women into key dialogues and processes that affect their stability and security.  

POSITION SUMMARY:

Mercy Corps is seeking a bold and innovative individual to be the Gender Officer for the PEACE-WISE Program in Sudan/ SKS. The Gender Officer will work closely with the Peacebuilding & Advocacy Coordinator to provide programmatic, gender and operational support, as well as working with the Program Manager and Gender Advisor in Khartoum. The Gender Officer will be based in Kadugli/SKS, tasked with supporting the implementation of this specific program and supporting the team at state-level (South Kordofan State) to deliver high quality programming in this challenging environment. S/He is responsible for the program performance and quality, ensuring that the SKS PEACE-WISE Partner (Almanar) is implementing high-impact interventions in time and within budget, and are tracking progress toward specific objectives, indicators, and milestones. The Gender Officer will work closely with the partner to provide any needed support. This position is suitable for those who work to find innovative solutions to programmatic challenges.

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS:

1. Coordinate and implement capacity building efforts through the mobilization and empowerment of partner organizations to identify, plan, and address priority needs.
2. Coordinate activities with all involved implementing agencies. Participate in monthly meetings with all partner organizations at state-level (SKS) to ensure close cooperation and sharing of lessons learned.
3. Monitor and measure project implementation, impact, standards, and operational compliance.
4. Keep track of local gender-specific issues and advocacy efforts at state-level (SKS) to ensure effective implementation of Peace Wise activities.
5. Give constructive feedback on project operations and reporting of partner NGOs.
6. Produce formal and informal reports on all aspects of the project in a timely and efficient manner.
7. Coordinate work plans for capacity building of NGO staff, identify training needs, and develop, implement, and maintain training plan. Participate in meetings relevant to gender, protection, community development, or as assigned.
8. Work closely with program staff and MEL Officers at the state-level (SDS).
9. Participate in weekly management meetings and produce weekly reports.
10. Stay abreast of project developments and needs.
11. Follow through on program needs as required, such as procurement, meeting scheduling, and consultant finding,
12. Liaise with and support key program staff to ensure that the Mercy Crops program activities are running effectively and making best use of project resources.
13. Troubleshoot on reporting and programmatic needs. Advise supervisor on improvements and necessities, as required. 
14. Provide written reports, as necessary.
15. Conduct him/herself both professionally and personally in such a manner as to bring credit to Mercy Corps and to not jeopardize its humanitarian mission.
16. Other duties as assigned.

REPRESENTATION AND COORDINATION

• Establish and maintain close and productive relationships with local authorities, cluster coordination, as well as relevant state-level (SKS) government authorities, in close coordination with the Program Manager.
• Represent MC at all relevant coordination meetings at field level and provide written update about each representation and actively participate in humanitarian advocacy initiative at field and state-level (SDS);
• Coordinate with other INGOs in SKS to ensure MC’s comparative advantage and identify new strategic partnerships.

SAFETY AND SECURITY

• Work closely with the country team’s security focal point to ensure that programs are contributing to and responding to safety and security plans and procedures;
• Ensure that programs are designed and implemented with a clear analysis and understanding of security management priorities.
• The Gender Officer must strictly abide by security standards and guidance of the Security Focal Person in the field level.

ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING

As part of our commitment to organizational learning and in support of our understanding that learning organizations are more effective, efficient and relevant to the communities they serve, we expect all team members to commit 5% of their time to learning activities that benefit Mercy Corps as well as themselves.

ACCOUNTABILITY TO BENEFICIARIES

Mercy Corps team members are expected to support all efforts toward accountability, specifically to our beneficiaries and to international standards guiding international relief and development work, while actively engaging beneficiary communities as equal partners in the design, monitoring and evaluation of our field projects.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY:

N/A

ACCOUNTABILITY

REPORTS DIRECTLY TO: Peacebuilding & Advocacy Coordinator

WORKS DIRECTLY WITH: Peacebuilding & Advocacy Coordinator, Program Assistant, Head of Office, Program Manager, DOP/Team Leader, Operations/Procurement Officer, MEL Officers, Gender Advisor

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

1. BA in international development, women’s studies, gender or a comparable area of study
2. At least 3 years of related work experience is required.
3. Should have some experience in Gender, NGO capacity building and community development.
4. Demonstrated ability to successfully initiate and maintain positive relationships with local governments and NGOs is vital to effective performance
5. Proven good leadership and management capabilities
6. Practical and theoretical knowledge in program monitoring and data collection methods is preferred.
7. Experience with refugees or programs that support refugees is preferred.
8. Demonstrated flexibility, creativity and enthusiasm and willingness to learn and to be continually adaptive within a dynamic and often self-directed working environment
9. Excellent written and oral communication in English, organization, prioritization and negotiating skills.
10. Excellent teamwork abilities, interpersonal and problem-solving skills, attention to detail and timeliness.
11. Adequate understanding of donor rules and regulations is required.
12. Advanced computer skills in MS Office programs, particularly Word, Excel and Power Point
13. Commit to working with program participants regardless of race, religion or gender.

SUCCESS FACTORS:

The ideal candidate will have a natural curiosity for quantifying and articulating the impact of Mercy Corps’ programs on individuals and in communities.  He/she will also have excelling supervisory and team management skills. They will need an interest in exploring and championing factors that lead to adoption of peace-building and conflict resolution behaviors by the communities. S/he will have good negotiation and partnership management skills and approach things from a peace-building/conflict resolution perspective. They should be dynamic, agile and be able to apply innovative approaches and strategic thinking, planning and monitoring frameworks. A successful candidate will have the ability to mentor others, improve their capacities and inspire teams to think outside the box.

Other factors include:

• The ability to work under pressure
• Willingness and ability to quickly learn new information/concepts and implement them
• Strong team player with initiative and positive attitude towards problem solving
• A learning approach to work with excellent capacity building skills
• Self-starter, multi-tasker, solution-seeker and innovator.