Cash Technical Advisor, West Africa

Background/IRC Summary:

The International Rescue Committee (IRC), responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people survive, recover and gain control of their future. The IRC is working to improve the safety, health, education, economic well-being, and power of people in crisis affected places.

The Economic Recovery and Development Technical Unit (ERD TU) is responsible for supporting the development, implementation, and monitoring of client-centered programs such as, but not limited to, cash and voucher assistance (CVA), rural & agricultural livelihoods, and enterprise development and employment promotion. The TU’s technical assistance to this wide variety of programs ensures quality and use of evidence-based practices; promotes innovation, diversity, equity, and inclusion; and drives data-based management and decision making.

Job Overview/Summary:

The Cash Technical Advisor (TA) will provide technical support in the design and development of cash and voucher assistance (CVA) activities as well as other ERD programs in West Africa to ensure the most appropriate, effective, and safe delivery of assistance for affected populations. They will also train colleagues on several CVA program approaches. Moreover, the position holder will lead or support selected global and country-led initiatives to extend scale and quality in line with IRC’s strategic CVA goals. The selected candidate should also have familiarity with the operational aspects of CVA, including supply chain and finance; as well as with supporting social protection systems.

Specific Responsibilities:

The Cash TA will spend at least 80% of their time delivering technical assistance in-person and remotely to country colleagues focused on CVA and ERD programming, CVA across all sectors as well as general economic program design, implementation and learning support. The TA’s country portfolio will primarily focus on IRC programs across West Africa, with potential support for other regions. This is a primarily programs-focused position with the central responsibility concentrated on program quality. It is expected that the TA will travel approximately 40% of the total time to country programs to support program quality and capacity strengthening in person. This may also mean deployments in emergency response and may be on short notice. The remaining approximate 20% is spent on internal strategic work to improve scale and quality of cash programming globally, at the discretion of their supervisors. The Technical Advisors’ specific responsibilities are as follows:

Ensure program quality:

Contribute to the design, development, and implementation of high-quality ERD programs and CVA activities within other sectors (such as health, education, protection, and governance):

• Support assessments on basic needs, food security, livelihoods, rapid market and labor markets, CVA feasibility, including financial services provider, and protection and gender-sensitive assessments.
• Ensure programs are in line with the IRC’s key theories of change for ERD and CVA, adapted to the context, selecting interventions based on the best available evidence and the country program’s Strategic Action Plan.
• Ensure programs are responsive to clients’ needs and preferences, as well as incorporating strong components of promoting equality, inclusion, local partnership and Do No Harm.
• Provide inputs on the design of theories of change, monitoring plans and log frames, including indicator selection.
• Promote IRC’s cash ambitions, including the use of digital payments, strong operational support systems, and alignment of CVA programs with social protection systems.
• Represent IRC in the Regional Cash Working Group and channel information between the working group and IRC’s country teams as well as the Regional Leaderships
• Ensure sound analysis of context, capacity, and opportunities to input into country Strategy Action Plans (SAPs).

Engaging in business development leading to high quality concept notes and proposals:

• Review technical quality of ERD project proposals and other sectors’ proposals with CVA and/or livelihoods components.
• Input into go / no go decisions on proposals and on budgets required for project delivery.
• During staffing gaps, write technical narratives of proposals and provide support on monitoring and evaluation aspects of ERD projects.
• When requested, engage with donors and do outreach in support of country programs.

Direct support to IRC country teams:

• Provide trainings based on needs, capacities and preferences of target group about subjects like basic and advanced cash programming, needs and markets analysis, protection mainstreaming, gender analysis etc., in person and remotely.
• Regularly exchange with country level program staff about ERD and other cash programming while providing expert advice and mentorship.
• Offer practical and timely advice to improve ERD and cash program quality and scale, overcoming obstacles, staying within IRC’s best practices and policies etc.
• Support country teams to contextualize and adapt global resources.

Regional Cash focal point:

• Keep up to date with contextual analyses and crisis data in West Africa, such as the IPC Food Insecurity data and other sector and country trends related to CVA and food insecurity.
• Share cross-context knowledge and learning across the IRC West Africa country teams and facilitate exchange between the teams.

Support or lead cash strategic projects to improve IRC global cash programming implementation, including operations:

• Work closely with other cash team members on relevant strategic projects centered around improving the IRC’s ability to scale and implement high quality CVA programming.
• Cultivate relationships with the Supply Chain and Finance Teams in IRC West Africa country teams to
• Set up IRC’s cash Standard Operating Procedures;
• Support the contracting of new financial service providers;
• Support electronic and paper voucher systems;
• Improve other operational aspects of CVA.
• Participate in ongoing training courses and share knowledge and skills with other Technical Unit colleagues.

Key Working Relationships:

Position Reports to: Senior Technical Advisor – Cash & Markets

Position directly supervises: N/A

Other Internal and/or external contacts:

Internal: Close, regular relationships with country teams and regional colleagues; as well as with colleagues in the ERD Technical Unit. Regular communication with Technical Advisors from other Technical Units, such as education, protection, health, governance, research, evaluation and learning and gender equality technical unit teams. Interaction with IRC internal departments, including business development, procurement, and finance, external relations, and advocacy departments.

External: Serve as IRC program representative in outside regional and global meetings, e.g. Cash focal point for West Africa, and forums with donors, online forums, other non-governmental organizations, inter-agency groups and foundations.

Job Qualifications:

a. Education: Master’s/post-graduate degree in development, humanitarian affairs, economics, international relations or relevant field or equivalent combination of education and experience.

b. Work Experience:

• A minimum of 7 years implementing and/or leading cash-based humanitarian programming in diverse crisis or post-crisis settings.
• Experience providing technical support and guidance to a diverse team, including an ability to supervise staff in cross-cultural settings and at a distance.
• Experience in needs and markets assessments, design, implementation, and monitoring & evaluation of CVA programming to meet basic needs, incl. food security, NFIs etc. as well as technical tools and materials development.
• Experience in finance and supply chain procedures needed for CVA.
• Experience in livelihoods programming, such as income generating activities, employability, village savings and loans associations (VSLAs) etc.
• Experience aligning CVA with social protections systems.

c. Demonstrated Skills and Proficiencies:

• Knowledge of global trends in CVA
• Experience navigating the humanitarian system, including the humanitarian principles, cash working groups (country and regional) and global models for CVA delivery.
• Demonstrated assessment, data collection and analysis skills, including needs assessments, market assessments and incorporation of gender, age, and disability analysis into assessments.
• Experience with a wide range of delivery mechanisms for CVA (e.g. mobile money, bank transfers, direct cash etc.), including digital.
• Knowledge of guidelines of mayor institutional donors (e.g BHA, ECHO, GFFO, FCDO, Sida etc.).
• Proven track record in developing funding proposals and budgets for a range of donors.
• Demonstrated ability to work across departments, functions, and sectors to build strong working relationships with colleagues, and external partners.
• Strong program/technical, project design, planning, reporting, monitoring, and evaluation skills.
• Strong communication, influencing, support and training skills to serve IRC country teams well.
• Excellent communication skills involving listening to, interacting with, and communicating clearly with people from diverse nationalities and backgrounds, and senior level internal and external partners, with a high degree of integrity.
• Working productively and proactively in remote team and management structures.
• If needed, flexibility to work adjusted hours, as appropriate to accommodate for different time zones.
• Demonstrated dedication to a Do No Harm approach, gender equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• Experience with remote and face-to-face training, facilitation and engagement tools, and familiarity with mobile monitoring tools.
• Strong analytical and conceptual skills, with the ability to think and plan strategically.
• A proven understanding of broader ERD programming e.g. resilience building, gender-sensitive rural livelihoods, employment and entrepreneurship promotion, VSLAs etc.

d. Language Skills: Fluency in English and French required

f. Working Environment: Up to 40% travel is expected, Covid-19 restrictions permitting.

Standards for professional conduct and commitment to equality:

The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Equality, and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants based on merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability.

We offer benefits that help promote an empowering work environment, including parental leave, medical insurance, counseling services, gender-sensitive security protocols, and more, depending on the country where the selected candidate will be based.

We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

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