TITLE: Senior Climate Resilience /DRR Advisor – West and Central Africa
TEAM/PROGRAMME: Programme Development and Quality
LOCATION: can be based in any country where SCI is legally registered and issued a contract.
GRADE: 4
CONTRACT LENGTH: 2 Years with the possibility of extension
CHILD SAFEGUARDING:
Level 3: either the post holder will have access to personal data about children and/or young people as part of their work; or the post holder will be working in a ‘regulated’ position (accountant, barrister, solicitor, legal executive); therefore a police check will be required (at ‘standard’ level in the UK or equivalent in other countries).
ROLE PURPOSE:
Climate change is expected to worsen in the coming decades, and the West and Central Africa region is among the most affected in the world. Climate assessments for the region conclude that the region is likely to become warmer and drier, and increasingly variable rainfall is anticipated. An increase in both frequency and intensity of extreme events, mainly droughts and floods is also anticipated. Niger and Mali are amongst the most affected countries by climate change.
These changes pose serious hazards to children, particularly those who are most deprived and marginalized. In light of its strong commitment to climate change, Save the Children will ensure that innovative climate approaches and actions are embedded in our programs so that we contribute effectively to the survival, development, and protection of children. We are looking for an experienced climate change professional, with a commitment to children’s rights, who is able to think strategically about Save the Children’s potential to contribute to addressing this crisis.
The Senior Advisor will use his/her in-depth contextual understanding, technical expertise, and relationship-building skills to define and deliver our strategic ambition for Climate Change in the West and Central Africa region. The role will lead strategy development and the technical design and implementation of high-quality programs that mitigate climate change-induced shocks and deliver change for children in both emergency and development programming. The Sr. Advisor will ensure that all climate change programming is of excellent technical quality and contributes significantly to Save the Children’s strategic objectives, national/regional/global learning, and advocacy. The role will also support various thematic technical advisors in integrating a climate resilience lens in programming with a focus on reducing the impact of climate change on children and their communities.
The Sr. Advisor supports national and regional climate change advocacy and influences, and drives strategic partnerships for new business development, helping to position Save the Children as a leading Child Rights organization on climate resilience. The role will work closely with PDQ and operations colleagues at regional and national levels. This role includes a focus on training and coaching country office staff for external representation on priority issues including risk mitigation, climate resilience integration in Health, Food Security and Livelihoods, and Protection, and Education systems and structures, among others.
In the event of a major humanitarian emergency, the role holder will be expected to work outside the normal role profile and be able to vary working hours accordingly.
SCOPE OF ROLE:
Reports to: Regional Programme Development and Quality (PDQ) Director
Staff reporting to this post: No direct reports but expected to provide coaching and mentoring support to operational and other technical colleagues.
Budget Responsibilities: None
Role Dimensions: The role is expected to foster relationships with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders including Save the Children members, the Country Office PDQ teams, advocacy colleagues, Regional Advisors, technical counterparts in other organizations, donors, academia, etc. The role is also expected to engage with internal Technical Working Groups and Communities of Practice.
Context: Development/Humanitarian
Scope: Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, DRC, Senegal, Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast
Primary Technical area: Climate Change / DRR
KEY AREAS OF ACCOUNTABILITY:
Technical Leadership:
- Work with CO, SCI center, and relevant members to harmonize CSPs and develop a region-wide multi-sectoral Climate resilient Strategy.
- Work with relevant in-country teams across various sectors, SCI Regional, Global, and SC Member teams to ensure that climate resilience is embedded in thematic programs and practical guides are available for the country office to integrate the issue of climate resilience in programs with a special focus on children.
- Build capacity of national staff and partners in key technical approaches related to climate resilience and DRR
- Stimulate innovative actions for climate resilience in the region, introducing best practices from within and outside the region, and building on our existing portfolio, experience, and comparative advantage.
Ensuring Programme Quality (Design and Implementation):
- Work closely with new business development colleagues to identify and pursue funding opportunities; engage with technical partners, donors, and colleagues across Save the Children.
- Lead the technical scoping, planning, and design and technical inputs in proposal writing during new programme development, and ensure that we design and deliver high-quality programmes building on global best practices. Ensure that gender, risk reduction and resilience considerations are reflected in our programme design and implementation.
- Provide oversight and guidance to the programme implementation teams to ensure that climate resilience programme components are technically sound, implementation methods are consistent with national strategies, acknowledged best practices (e.g. Save the Children Common Approaches and global evidence); and are likely to achieve scale, as well as equitable and sustainable results.
- Promote and monitor integrated programming in a way that increases the overall impact of child-sensitive climate resilience programmes at the community level.
- Work with Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning (MEAL) teams to conduct quality monitoring against international standards through participatory methodologies (including child-friendly methodologies).
- Contribute towards the creation of an organisational learning culture that promotes the use of data, evidence and analysis and understands its link to quality and accountable programming.
- Undertake field visits to project sites; work with implementation teams to understand impacts, and operational challenges, and continuously identify opportunities for learning and improvement.
- Support the continuous assessment of climate resilience needs and ensure they are appropriately reflected in the Save the Children country strategic plans and priorities.
- Contribute to organisational learning on climate resilience, ensuring that evidence and learning from our programmes is shared within and across Country Offices and our partners, as well as with colleagues in the wider regional and global community in Save the Children.
Networking & External Engagement:
- In alignment with Regional and Country Office strategy and leadership, and working closely through the Child Poverty thematic leads, assist and coach for strategic positioning with donors, partners and government in-country, and carve out a clear role and value addition for Save the Children in the climate resilience space.
- Develop a Partnership Strategy for Climate Resilience in West and Central Africa, with specifics for each country, and cultivate contacts and links with relevant country and regional stakeholders for joint programming and other forms of joint action.
- Ensure the quality, clarity and consistency of technical components of internal and external reports (e.g. programme reports, sit-reps, internal updates), working closely with awards, programme implementation, advocacy and communications colleagues as needed.
- Leverage and liaise with technical colleagues from across Save the Children, including technical working groups and centres of excellence, ensuring that learning from countries is shared with others and global lessons brought back.
The role is expected to require travels to countries in West and Central Africa for 30% of the time.
BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice)
Accountability:
- self-accountable for making decisions, managing resources efficiently, achieving and role modelling Save the Children values
- holds the team and partners accountable to deliver on their responsibilities – giving them the freedom to deliver in the best way they see fit, providing the necessary development to improve performance and applying appropriate consequences when results are not achieved.
Ambition:
- sets ambitious and challenging goals for themselves and their team, takes responsibility for their own personal development and encourages their team to do the same
- widely shares their personal vision for Save the Children, engages and motivates others
- future orientated, thinks strategically and on a global scale.
Collaboration:
- builds and maintains effective relationships, with their team, colleagues, Members and external partners and supporters
- values diversity, sees it as a source of competitive strength
- approachable, good listener, easy to talk to.
Creativity:
- develops and encourages new and innovative solutions
- willing to take disciplined risks.
Integrity:
- honest, encourages openness and transparency; demonstrates highest levels of integrity
QUALIFICATIONS
Essential
Master’s degree in a Climate-related discipline is essential.
Desirable
PhD desirable.
EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS
Essential
- At least 5 years’ experience of working nationally and internationally on Climate resilience issues in emergency or development settings.
- At least 5 years’ experience in mapping climate risks and mitigating the impact of climate-induced shocks to communities in rural and urban settings
- At lest 10 years working on Natural Disaster Risk Reduction policies and programs
- Experience in leading the creation and implementation of a strategy, demonstrating the ability to identify and prioritise the necessary steps towards an ambitious goal.
- Experience in designing and writing proposals, monitoring and evaluating development programmes that build resilience to climate shocks with communities.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills to motivate, influence and negotiate both internally and externally -in English and French
- Strong results orientation, with the ability to challenge existing mind sets.
- Excellent analytical skills especially on social aspects and impact of climate change on children
- Experience of building networks, resulting in securing significant new partnership and funding opportunities for the organisation.
- Sound understanding of major climate issues and risks in the West and Central Africa Region related to the climate emergency, and a close focus on evidence based approaches, and action learning/adaptation of programming.
- Experience of building, leading and developing colleagues and staff with different backgrounds and expertise.
- Commitment to Save the Children values – including gender equality and focusing on the most marginalised and deprived.
Desirable
- Strong child rights programming and commitment to the rights based approach, environmental justice and sustainability, ecosystem-based approach, gender equality, inclusion, and community-based development.
- Experience of working within a complex and matrix organisation structure.
- Excellent training, facilitation, and team building skills.
More Information
- Job City Senegal
