Conflict Technical Advisor at 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 working in Nigeria since 2012 in the most marginalized regions of the country to deliver urgent, lifesaving assistance and promote development. We partner with communities to help them recover and rebuild, while addressing root causes of conflict, insecurity, and inequality. Every month we help ensure that more than 100,000 people have enough food to eat, and our work impacts the lives of over 600,000 people across the country.

We are recruiting to fill the position below:

Job Title: Conflict Technical Advisor

Reference Number: ABV/PRO/2020/0043
Location: Abuja, Nigeria (With an estimated 40% travel to other program locations)
Position Status: Full-time, Field-based, and Regular.

Program / Department Summary

• This is a five-year United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded Community Initiative to Promote Peace (CIPP).
• The CIPP program aims to strengthen conflict prevention, mediation and early warning by facilitating community-led analysis and action to prevent, manage, and mitigate conflict and violent extremism.
• The program will work in twenty-four (24) high-risk local government areas in Benue, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kogi and Plateau states.

General Position Summary

• The CTA will provide senior leadership of the program’s technical components, ensure the synthesis of technical approaches across the Six states; and will assume responsibility for leading all the technical trainings, peacebuilding events and translating program learning into tangible adjustments to intervention strategies.
• The CTA in collaboration with the communications team will disseminate these findings in research briefs, white papers, and reports.

Essential Job Functions
Program Quality Oversight:

• Provide leadership and strategic vision to selected technical components of the CIPP program, including workplan development, conflict and stakeholder analysis, IBN/M training, partnership selection and management, and overall sector strategy.
• In close partnership with the COP, provide direct management oversight to the CIPP Learning and Program Monitoring and Quality Technical Unit.
• Best practices, standardization
• Dissemination of lessons learned to internal and external stakeholders
• Encourage systematic opportunities to use data for learning and improvement, and to focus on learning lessons throughout the life of the program.

Technical Leadership:

• Provide guidance to develop the strategic vision of technical components including conflict analysis, Do No Harm, mediation, and develop curricula and material for training / workshops in all of these areas.
• Recognize opportunities for innovative action and create an environment where alternative viewpoints are welcomed.

Program Implementation:

• Assist with socialization of the program with Government of Nigeria stakeholders, ensuring necessary approvals and collaboration as required.
• Ensure that beneficiaries are effectively targeted according to established vulnerability criteria.
• Integrate community approaches, gender sensitivity and capacity building into all activities as appropriate.
• Document processes and achievements to ensure best practices are captured and disseminated. This will include the continual re-evaluation of program activities and information, with resulting activity adjustments in keeping with new insights.
• Produce written reports on program activities, capturing the impacts of activities.
• Facilitate the achievement of performance-based targets and outcomes and lead efforts to design effective, proactive, and iterative M&E systems following the program’s logical framework and results chain measurement.
• Create and follow effective stakeholder management plans, ensuring sound and proactive communications with Mercy Corps Nigeria, partner organizations, Mercy Corps headquarters, USAID, Government of Nigeria authorities, and colleague agencies.
• Conduct frequent field visits to all project sites – spend up to 40-50% of time in the field.

Information Management:

• Document achievements / impact of innovative program components of the program.

Capacity Building and Mentoring:

• In close partnership with the COP and DCOP create a work atmosphere conducive to professional growth and development of excellent personnel at all levels.
• Implement, and ensure all staff are effectively using, the performance planning and management system, establishing performance expectations and regularly providing constructive feedback.
• Promote accountability by conducting staff annual performance reviews with direct supervisees, and ensuring that supervisory staff do the same in a timely manner.
• Contribute to country team-building efforts and ensure the integration of all team members into relevant decision-making processes
• Provide conflict analysis, conflict sensitivity, and Do No Harm analysis training and technical assistance to USAID mission staff and USAID implementing partners.

Internal and External Coordination:

• Active contributor and collaborator with regional and global counterparts to promote the use of best practices.
• Strengthen linkages with other internal resources, including the LMS, Digital Library, Hub, and Connect, to enhance organizational learning where relevant to M&E.
• Maintain close working relationships with counterparts in other relevant international NGOs, and local NGOs and associations in Nigeria.

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 towards 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:

• None

Accountability:

• Reports Directly To: Chief of Party
• Works Directly With: CIPP Director of Finance and Administration, DCOP, CIPP Program Manager, CIPP MEL Manager, other CIPP staff, Country Director, Finance, and Operations teams. Coordinates with HQ
• Program Performance team and the Technical Support Unit.

Job Requirements
Knowledge and Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field such as Social Sciences, Law or Development Studies.
• At least 5 years of progressively responsible experience in international development with a preference for experience in senior program management / direct supervision
• Experience working in the conflict mitigation / preventing violent extremism sector in Africa
• Conflict analysis, Do No Harm analysis, conflict sensitivity training, and Do No Harm training experience strongly preferred.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office programs, i.e., Excel, Word, PowerPoint, etc.
• Experience of working on USAID programs preferred
• Previous experience living and working in challenging or insecure environments preferred.
• Nigeria / West Africa experience preferred.
• Fluency in spoken and written English required.
• Knowledge of local dialects is preferred.

Success Factors:

• A successful candidate will have a demonstrated ability to lead and communicate effectively with team members of varied work styles and cultures, follow procedures, and meet deadlines with flexibility and creativity in planning and problem-solving.
• S / he will have a proven ability to learn quickly, multi-task, prioritize, take initiative, be accountable for results, understand the larger picture while remaining focused on the details, problem solve, work within a complex and sensitive setting, and to follow laws and security protocols.
• The most successful Mercy Corps team members have a strong commitment to teamwork and accountability, thrive in evolving and changing environments and make effective written and verbal communication a priority in all situations.
• Mercy Corps team members represent the agency both during and outside of work hours when deployed in a field posting or on a visit / TDY to a field posting. Team members are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner and respect local laws, customs and Mercy Corps’ policies, procedures and values at all times and in all in-country venues.

Living Conditions / Environmental Conditions

• The position is based in Abuja and it requires up to 40% travel to field offices.

Application Closing Date
11th December, 2020.