Protection & Gender Based Violence Specialist

About Mercy Corps

Mercy Corps is a leading global organization powered by the belief that a better world is possible. In disaster, in hardship, in more than 40 countries around the world, we partner to put bold solutions into action helping people triumph over adversity and build stronger communities from within now, and for the future.

Mercy Corps has been operating in Ethiopia since 2004, working in rural, peri-urban, and urban areas in five regional states - Somali, Oromia, Afar, Southern Nations Nationalities and Peoples, Amhara - and the capital city of Addis Ababa. We engage in both development and humanitarian work, and seek to integrate approaches, programs, and geographies as much as possible. Our partners include government, academic institutions, development and private sector actors, civil societies, and communities.

Position Title: Protection and GBV Specialist

Duty Station: Negele town, Southern Oromia

Open Position: 1

Position Status: Immediately

Program / Department Summary

The position holder shall be in charge of technical quality implementation and delivery of the standalone Child Protection and GBV related activities and mainstreaming of Gender and protection in all focus area of the EHF multisectoral project in the assigned Woreda. The position holder will mainly responsible the daily implementation; and consultation with government agencies, humanitarian actors and community members to identify Children, GBV and protection risks and to develop possible strategies to mitigate protection risks and to strengthen response and prevention capacity of various actors. In addition, the position holder is also responsible to provide capacity building trainings on different protection topics including basic protection principles, GBV and CP case management, prevention, and response mechanisms, PSEA and safeguarding to government line bureaus, community representatives, community volunteers, and other humanitarian actors. S/He will be responsible for day-to-day activity implementation in the Women and Girls Safe Spaces and Child friendly Spaces and community-based sensitizations. S/He will also be responsible for documentation of GBV and Child Protection related activities, compile reports (weekly, and monthly); as well as represent Mercy Corps in protection and GBV related coordination forums such as Zonal and Woreda levels protection, CP/GBV cluster, PSEA Network and so on.

Essential Job Responsibilities

Strategy & Vision

• Collaborate and work closely with the project team members for effective integration of GBV and Child Protection issues in all project activities.
• Collaborate with local authorities and other development and humanitarian actors’ to effectively identify GBV and Child Protection risks in the area and to come up with risk mitigation and response strategies.
• Able to learn and update his/ her information or knowledge to adapt the changing situation and context.

Program Management

• Coordinate and facilitate proper implementation of GBV and Child Protection related activities of the project.
• Provide trainings for Mercy Corps, government staff and other service providers in the areas on GBV and CP case management and PSS, prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, interagency standing committee guideline/IASC/ on Gender Based Violence /GBV/, GBV and CP basic concepts, GBV and CP referral and coordination mechanism and so on.
• Lead the process of capacity building to Women and Social Affairs office and other service providers of CP, GBV and psychosocial support providers on case management and MHPSS.
• Conduct Safety Audit, protection risk assessment, analysis and share the information to service providers and CP and GBV protection clusters.
• Conduct GBV and CP service mapping and coordinate with service providers to strengthen service provision and to support vulnerable children and GBV survivors to have timely and multi- sector response services as required.
• Lead the process of strengthen the GBV and CP coordination mechanism in the area.
• Lead the community level awareness raising sessions on GBV, CP and protection related issues.
• Provide awareness to community members on basic protection principles, prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA) trainings, Mercy Corps safeguarding principles and reporting mechanism.
• Organize review meetings and other periodic meetings with community members, government representatives and other humanitarian actors on the GBV, CP and protection concerns in relation to the project.
• Ensure that the GBV and CP referral and psychosocial support related activities are properly implemented at the local level in collaboration with women and social affairs office.
• Participate in humanitarian coordination forums and platforms which focuses on GBV, CP and protection issues.
• Provide on job training for the safe space facilitators, protection officers and community volunteers in GBV, CP and protection related activities.
• Lead the process of dignity kit and UASC material distribution for affected community members (women and girls)
• In place and lead the process of WGSS and CFS activities in the selected areas.
• Provide guidance and training on the unstructured and structured safe space interventions, like positive parental sessions, Adolescent girls programing, information dissemination, skill building and other sessions.
• Participate in capacity building trainings and workshops which focuses on gender, CP, GBV and protection issues.
• Make sure to provide appropriate support to the FO in implementation of gender equality, diversity, and equality (GDI) priorities.
• Coordinate and prepare weekly and monthly reports on GBV and CP, and protection related services and submit to relevant staff including the protection adviser at the country office.

Team Management

• Supports and liaise with all project team and provide a capacity building on protection mainstreaming and other on the job training and capacity building.
• Make sure to coordinate with other humanitarian actors in the areas and provide support to make sure to integrate basic GBV, CP and protection principles during service delivery.
• Coordinate with humanitarian actors and conduct periodic GBV, CP and protection risk assessment, Safety Audit and develop a joint strategy.
• Coordinate with the health team and counsellors and make sure that MHPSS services are properly provided to the community who needs that support and document the information properly!
• Supervise the Protection Advisor, Protection Officers, safe space facilitators and community volunteers of GBV, CP and protection work.

Finance & Compliance Management

N/A

Influence & Representation

• Represent Mercy Corps in different GBV, CP and protection related platforms (Zonal and Woreda) levels and communicate what Mercy Corps is doing regarding GBV, CP and protection and share lesson from other agencies as well.
• Provide timely training and orientation to safe space facilitators and community volunteers and make sure that they convey messages clearly to the community.
• Coordinate with safe space facilitators, community volunteers and other community structures in the area to provide information to community member on available services for GBV, CP survivors and other protection issues.
• Creates and maintain relationship with local authorities and other service providers for effective service provision on GBV, CP and protection issues.
• Always upholds the image and values of Mercy Corps,

Security

• Ensure compliance with security procedures and policies as determined by country leadership.
• Proactively ensure that team members operate in a secure environment and are aware of policies.

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 program participants 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.
• Mercy Corps team members are expected to implement community accountability reporting Mechanism (CARM) effectively.
• Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and MC's policies, procedures, and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Supervisory Responsibility

The Protection Advisor is responsible to provide technical support to the Protection Specialist, to all Protection officers, community volunteers and social workers to be able to properly integrate protection principles during day-to-day activity implementation; as well as responsible to provide a capacity building training.   

Accountability

• Reports directly to: Field Program Manager
• Technical report to: Protection Advisor

Knowledge and Experience

• BA degree in Gender and social development, Sociology, Psychology, Social work, or other similar social science field of studies
• Minimum four years’ work experience in GBV, Child Protection and Protection related roles (Experience working in NGO is an advantage)

Success Factors

• Skill in direct counselling and psychosocial service provision to Vulnerable children, GBV survivors and other trauma affected community members.
• Ability and willingness to frequently travel to project areas.
• Good training facilitation skill
• Fluent in communicating in English (knowing local language is a value add)
• Good interpersonal and communication skills
• Experience in closely working with regional and Woreda government offices.
• Excellent coordination skill
• Communication skill, good human relations
• Firm belief in teamwork, gender equality and social inclusion